The Iron Horse Bicycle Classic’s La Strada La Plata Gravel Race challenged cyclists with 95 miles and over 7,700 feet of elevation gain over rolling terrain on Sunday with its long course.
The race began at Chapman Hill, took riders up Horse Gulch and then followed dirt roads through Bayfield and Ignacio before looping back to Durango.
“It was a great course,” said Sarah Sturm. “I’ve lived here for 15 years and there were multiple times where I thought, ‘Where am I?’”
Sturm finished the IHBC strong with a first-place finish, getting a little redemption after crossing second in the road race.
“I was frustrated after yesterday, but I’m stoked because I felt good the whole day and wasn’t too fatigued,” Sturm said.
Sturm not only won the women’s race in 5 hours, 6 minutes and 37 seconds, she finished ahead of every man except the top five.
“It feels good. It’s always a good reminder that it’s about how I’m feeling on the day,” Sturm said. “I’m prepping for UNBOUND (Gravel) so I’m stoked to try out my nutrition and go for 100 miles.”
UNBOUND is a 200-mile gravel race in Kansas, and is part of the Lifetime Grand Prix. Howard Grotts, the IHBC’s mountain bike champion, will also race at UNBOUND.
Sturm’s teammate, Ellen Campbell, finished second in the women’s race on Sunday in 5:42:54.7. Terry Casey finished third in 5:57:22.7, followed by Sunny Gilbert (6:34:55) and Danika Brabec (7:14:37) in fifth.
The men’s long course race ended with two riders finishing together, but Guy Leshem edged Jess Clapier by just .5 seconds to take the win in 4:50:49.1. Tyler Lock (4:53:22) finished third in the men’s long course, followed by Sam Riess (5:00:00) and Ian McPherson (5:02:00).
The long course had 48 cyclists take on the challenge while another 112 took on the 55-mile short course.
Harris Pigford (3:21:52.8), Todd Jackson (3:22:51.7) and Chris Eckstein (3:26:24.3) were the top-three men on the short course. The top three women included Madeline McKeever (3:47:43.4), Katie Ulvestad (4:05:25.8) and Lindsay Gaesser (4:07:32.1).
“I hope to see more gravel racing in Durango,” Sturm said. “We have the terrain for it.”
