WAUSAU –  Results are now available for Ironbull’s fourth annual Red Granite Grinder, which was held Oct. 15 in the Wausau area.

Riders came from 14 states for the event, ranging from as young as 5 years of age and up to age 76, to compete in the event. Results are available at https://www.ironbull.org/results-and-pictures-2022.

“The start of the race was energizing, riding through the heart of the city with a police escort and a fleet of bikers,” said Nick Schroedel, competing in his first gravel race.  

The Red Granite Grinder featured 12-, 50-, 85-, and 144-mile race options with a non-competitive urban ride. 

Right off the bat, riders faced the biggest climb of the day and were met with snow atop Rib Mountain State Park. Rachel Popelka, a 85-mile finisher who covered 50 more miles on a bike than she had ever previously ridden, described the top of Rib Mountain as magical “with the fog preserving the previous night’s snow on the autumn leaves.” Later in the race, snow fell, resulting in many riders arriving at the finish mud covered.

GPS trackers were used for the first time at the event, so family, friends, and cycling fans could digitally monitor the progress of riders along the course. As the final miles unfolded, the drama mounted as three riders jockeyed for the podium in the 144 mile. Hayden Pucker had just created a gap on defending champion, Matti Rowe, when he made a devastating wrong turn on the homestretch. Rowe grabbed his second win, despite battling bike mechanical problems for the second half of the race. Adam Bird came in seconds later, resulting in the most contested podium in the event’s history.

“The atmosphere at the finish was electric with excitement,” said race director Shane Hitz in a news release.“Fans were using their phones, watching the dots on the trackers of the lead group during the last half hour and as they came in the excitement was at a level I’ve never seen at any finish line. The energy was amazing.”

Ten new private lands were added to this year’s routes, including Willow Springs’ corn maze. The various routes featured a mixture of gravel country roads, snowmobile trails, farm fields and a little singletrack thrown in between the urban start and finish.

Up next

Ironbull’s next event, the Rib Mountain Adventure Challenge – Winter Edition, features more adventure on bikes. Teams of one to four people work together snowshoeing, biking, trekking and partaking in winter challenges using a map and compass to guide their way through the course in the dead of winter. Find more information at https://www.ribmountainadventurechallenge.com/winter.