Peter Stetina, Flavia Oliveira Parks win Grasshopper Series final, Ukiah-Mendo Gravel Epic
Round four winners secure overall titles at Grasshopper Adventure Gravel series
Peter Stetina (Canyon) claimed victory at the Ukiah-Mendo Gravel Epic – the fourth and final pro men's race in the Grasshopper Adventure Series – and also the overall, while Flavia Oliveira Parks (Specialized) won the pro women's race and the women's overall series standings.
The Californian event, which is also part of the Gravel Earth Series, covered 75 miles (120km) with 8,423 feet (2567m) of vertical ascent, utilising a private logging road through the redwood, fir and oak forests of western Mendocino County.
Stetina won the race in 3:58:48 and was the only rider to complete the course in sub-four hours. Tobin Ortenblad was second in 4:06:07 and Nick Spano was third in 4:14:54.
"The course was beautiful, and knowing that the last stretch was rough pavement, I ran a faster set-up that allowed me to make my move after the second feed zone with 50km to go. I went into a turbo-diesel mode,” Stetina said.
Oliveira Parks finished in 4:28:29, only 70 seconds ahead of Jennifer Tave. Leah Van der Linden, rounded out the podium with a finishing time of 4:54:45.
“It was a demanding course,” said Parks at the finish, also sharing that by using a hydration pack, she was able to stay hydrated and fed and push over the climbs to be conservative on the descents.
"It was one of those days that you had to ride your own pace. I knew the climbs would suit me, went hard over the climbs to have a buffer, to not be put under pressure on the descents or take unnecessary risks."
Low Gap was the first event of the Grasshopper series, won by Kate Courtney and Christopher Blevins, then it was Huffmaster, where Brennan Wertz and Oliveira Parks claimed the top spot, while the third round, the Lake Sonoma MTB, was won by Matthew Marotto and Vida Lopez Deson Roman.
In the final overall standings, Oliveira secured the victory with a total of 175 points, while runner-up Jennifer Tave and third-placed Leslie Ethridge tied with 158 points each.
In the men's standings, Stetina finished with a total of 170 points to take the win, while runner-up Ben Frederick finished with 143 points and third-placed Cassius Anderson had 133 points.
Results
Position | Rider | Time |
---|---|---|
1 | Flavia Oliveira Parks | 4:28:49 |
2 | Jennifer Tav | +1:11 |
3 | Leah van der Linden | +25:56 |
4 | Saralita Flamm | +37:31 |
5 | Lauren Brandon | +48:20 |
Position | Rider | Time |
---|---|---|
1 | Peter Stetina | 3:59:48 |
2 | Torbin Ortenblad | +7:19 |
3 | Nick Spano | +16:06 |
4 | Harry Elworthy | +16:07 |
5 | Cassius Anderson | +24:09 |
Overall Standings
Pos. | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Flavia Oliveira Parks | 178 |
2 | Jennifer Tave | 158 |
3 | Leslie Ethridge | 158 |
Pos. | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
---|---|---|
1 | Peter Stetina | 170 |
2 | Ben Frederick | 143 |
3 | Cassius Andreson | 133 |
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Simone is a degree-qualified journalist that has accumulated decades of wide-ranging experience while working across a variety of leading media organisations. She joined Cyclingnews as a Production Editor at the start of the 2021 season and has now moved into the role of Australia Editor. Previously she worked as a freelance writer, Australian Editor at Ella CyclingTips and as a correspondent for Reuters and Bloomberg. Cycling was initially purely a leisure pursuit for Simone, who started out as a business journalist, but in 2015 her career focus also shifted to the sport.
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