UCI Gravel World Series – Brennan Wertz, Jenna Rinehart declare prime step at Highlands Gravel Classic

Brennan Wertz and Jenna Rinehart gained the Highlands Gravel Classic over the weekend, taking out the one US spherical of the 2024 UCI Gravel World Series.

Wertz, who additionally gained the Sea Otter Classic Gravel Race final weekend, came visiting the road in 3:25:20, 12 seconds forward of Cobe Freeburn. Nicholas Roche was 34 seconds again in third on the race which wound its means over the canopy-covered gravel roads and thru greater than a dozen climbs because it traversed the altering terrain of the Ozarks.

“Thrilled to land on the highest step right here in Arkansas and in doing so, additionally qualify for the UCI Gravel World Championships in Belgium in October,” stated Wertz in an Instagram post. “It’s been a busy final 9 days, with 3 races on two completely different sides of the US. I’m drained, happy, and hungry to maintain constructing in the direction of the various objectives nonetheless to come back later within the yr.”

Reinhart first needed to meet up with Maude Farrell and Flavia Oliveira Parks after her chain got here off early within the race, leaving her watching the sector experience off into the gap as she put it again on. Still, in the end she took off on them each, ending in 3:51:55, 25 seconds forward of Farrell and greater than 4 minutes forward of Oliveira Parks.

“I obtained just a little hole on Maude I believe perhaps with ten miles to go and determined to go for it and see if I might maintain it … she wasn’t too far-off so I needed to push tremendous exhausting to the tip,” Reinhart stated in a post-race interview.

The Highlands Gravel Classic ran over a 67.6 mile (109km) course that includes 7,000 ft (2,100 m) of climbing, was 95% gravel and began and completed on a farm exterior Fayetteville, Arkansas.