Gran Fondo National Series and The Sufferfest Launch Virtual Qualification for USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship

In order to provide more opportunities for cyclists to qualify to compete in the 2020 USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship, the organizers of the Gran Fondo National Series partnered with the industry leader of Indoor Training, Wahoo & The Sufferfest, to launch these new virtual qualification options.

About the USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship

A USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship title, complete with a national championship jersey and medal, will be awarded to the winner in each age-group category at the annual USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship event, which in 2020 will be held as a part of the Gran Fondo Asheville in Asheville, North Carolina on August 23. All normal Gran Fondo Asheville Routes and categories will be available; Gran Fondo Asheville routes are open to all riders to register and do not require qualification.

Qualification Criteria for Gran Fondo National Championships

Riders must first qualify before being eligible to compete in the National Championship event. Riders can qualify a number of ways, including results and rankings in Qualification Events. View complete qualification criteria. Due to the postponement or cancellation of 2020 Qualification Events as a result of the COVID19 public health crisis (view current status of all 2020 GFNS Events), GFNS and USA Cycling have revised the qualification criteria for the 2020 Gran Fondo National Championship to include virtual cycling options. Riders who have qualified already or who qualify through outdoor events are not required to participate in the virtual qualification process.

Virtual Qualification Criteria via The Sufferfest

In order to create opportunities for riders to qualify for the National Championship event, The Sufferfest and GFNS worked together to create a 6-week Gran Fondo Training Plan and two virtual qualification events. The training plan will start May 4, 2020 and the virtual events will be held on Saturday, June 6 and Sunday, June 14. The Sufferfest is providing extended trial memberships (in addition to their normal 14-day trial) for cyclists utilizing the Gran Fondo Training Plan to qualify for Gran Fondo National Championships. View details and registration codes.

Riders will need a paid one-month subscription ($14.99) to The Sufferfest to participate in either or both of the virtual qualification events. Riders who meet any one of the following criteria will qualify for national championship event:

1. Complete at least 75% of all the workouts in the “GFNS Training Plan” on The Sufferfest app. Workouts must be posted in the app to count.

2. Complete both Sufferfest Qualification Events. These will be long video-supported routes in the The Sufferfest app, including designated timed segments.

3. Rank in the top 50% of riders in your age and gender group for absolute power, and power to weight across all of the qualification segments in one of the events. If you don’t qualify after riding the first event, completion of the second event will meet the qualification criteria. *See below for more details*

Everyone who participates in the training plans and virtual qualification events will automatically be entered for a chance to win a Wahoo KICKR SNAP Smart Trainer.

View details and instructions on how to get started.

GFNS Founder and Event Director, Reuben Kline, commented, “In these uncertain times I am very happy to work with innovative partners like Wahoo Fitness and The Sufferfest to keep cyclists engaged and provide new avenues to qualify for the 2020 USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship.”

“We’re honored to partner with GFNS to help athletes achieve their goals in the face of current challenges,” said David McQuillen, Founder of The Sufferfest. “By incorporating sessions from our strength training, yoga, and mental training programs, the training plan our Sports Science team developed for GFNS will help homebound athletes train responsibly and use their time inside to get stronger both physically and mentally.”

About The Sufferfest

The Sufferfest, now part of Wahoo Fitness, is a comprehensive training app for time-crunched cyclists. Subscribers get unlimited access to a library of structured workouts designed by elite coaches, 100 training plans, Strength Training for Cyclists, Yoga for Cyclists and a 10-week Mental Toughness program. The Sufferfest 4DP® platform creates the most effective workouts available, with targets personalized to an athlete’s complete power profile. Connection to smart trainers, power meters, cadence sensors, and heart rate monitors allows athletes to train to specific targets and analyze performance data. Available for iOS, macOS and Windows.

About Gran Fondo National Series

Founded in 2012 by event director Reuben Kline, Gran Fondo National Series is the largest and most competitive series of gran fondo cycling events in the United States. GFNS was the first series to implement timed-segment racing into US gran fondo events, and has crowned Gran Fondo National Champions and Gran Fondo National Series Champions since 2012. Starting in 2020, GFNS entered into a partnership with USA Cycling to bring the existing GFNS Gran Fondo National Series and the one-day Gran Fondo National Championship into the portfolio of official USA Cycling National Championship events.

For more information, please visit granfondonationalseries.com