Thornton-Brooks and Niwinski take Overall Victory at Boone Gran Fondo

The weather in the High Country delivered! A record breaking number of cyclists attended the Boone Gran Fondo p/b Capua Law Firm and were treated with the cool mountain air with the day’s high of 80° while the rest of the southeast saw sweltering temp near 100°!

After Jennifer Thornton-Brooks successfully defended her second Asheville title last month, the local Boone cyclist was back to grab another victory in the women’s 94-mile Gran Fondo with the fastest time over 4 timed sections of 1:03:41. Kenna Pfeiffer from Oviedo FL was second 4m 54s behind, with regular series rider Valentina Cummings from Asheville NC in third place 7m 11s behind.

Overall in the Gran Route, Noah Niwinski from Vilas NC was fastest over 4 timed sections in a time of 54:55.45 ahead of Owen Cole from Chapel Hill NC in second 5m 54s behind, with Felipe Aros from Miami FL (2024 Gran Fondo Florida winner) in third place 15m 73s behind. Niwinski won Boone for a second time, taking victory back in 2021.

In the 57-mile Medio women’s race, 15 year-old Julie Raydo from Williamsburg VA was fastest over the 3 timed sections in 56:19.07, Nikki Fields from Prestonsburg KY was second 2m 38s behind, with Lindsay Fons from Albuquerque NM third 6m 1s behind.

Niki Fields said afterwards “Gran Fondo National Series Boone did not disappoint…one of the most beautiful and most fun rides we have ever done To my surprise, I had won 2nd Overall Female coming in behind a 15 year old and 1st place in my age group! What?!?!?!! Never in a million years would I believe I had accomplished that!”

Photo: Niki Fields and friends - age category medals all round!

Overall Jeff Brandenburg from Columbia SC was fastest in the Medio fondo in a combined time of 42:22.12, ahead of Peter Mckinney from Newland NC just 42s behind, with Ryan Peck from Durham NC in third place 2m 25s in arrears.

On the 24-mile Piccolo Route, Kara Bonneau from Cary NC was fastest over the timed section in a time of 10:06.14, beating Andrew Whitehair from Brecksville by 54s in second place, and Caroline Hatch from Asheville in third place 1m 17s behind.

Photo: Kara Bonneau from Cary NC was fastest in the Piccolo Fondo!

In the team competition, team mates Owen Cole, John Paul and Jack Cross from team EFRTLESS were fastest in a time of 2:49:18, beating team SUPRABARS.COM in second (3:26:55), with team FILLNOW in third place (4:21:40) and Team Blow Up in fourth place (4:35:05).

Riders were rewarded for their efforts back at the Expo located outside Capua Law Firm in Boone with an energetic finish line party featuring great local food and beer, the award ceremonies and the legendary prize raffle featuring more than $5,000 in prizes from Series sponsors!

More than 50 more riders have automatically qualified for the 2024 Gran Fondo National Championships in Frederick, Maryland on September 15, 2024 where they can compete for a USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championship title. National Championships jersey and medals will be awarded to the winner in each age-group category at the National Championships.   

Proceeds from the Boone Gran Fondo benefit Watuaga Pioneers Mountain Bike Team who were manning the aid stations. The team is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting youth cycling and engages in the Boone Gran Fondo as a team building activity and to foster advocacy for the sport.

Link to 2024 Boone Gran Fondo results: https://www.granfondonationalseries.com/boone-2024-results

Next Up: 2024 USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championships!

Riders do not need to qualify to participate in Gran Fondo Maryland. All normal Gran Fondo Maryland routes (Gran, Medio, Piccolo) are open to all riders to register and do not require qualification. There is a separate start time for USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championships participants; they will start 30 minutes prior to the Gran Fondo Maryland riders.

As the presenting sponsor for Gran Fondo Maryland, Ourisman Automotive Group will host two packet pickups at Ourisman dealerships during the event weekend. Support from Ourisman Automotive Group and a grant from the Michael Erin Busch Sports Fund through Maryland Sports Youth and Amateur Sports Grants Program though Maryland Sports Commission were instrumental in bringing the USA Cycling Gran Fondo National Championships back to Frederick, Maryland for 2024.

Gran Fondo Maryland in Frederick on September 15th 2024 is the perfect way to cap off your summer cycling season. The event has something for everyone, taking riders through several different state parks, municipal forests, protected watersheds, and the Catoctin Mountain National Park. Frederick, Maryland is within an hour of Washington DC and Baltimore, and within 4 hours driving distance from many of the biggest cities on the East Coast, including Philadelphia, New York City, Pittsburgh, Roanoke, Richmond, and Norfolk. 

Gran Fondo Maryland has something for everyone with three routes to suit all abilities, and you can win some fantastic prizes too!

*Register before August 20^th to receive a FREE SUAREZ event Jersey!

New for 2024, the SUAREZ Gran Fondo National Series including an event-specific custom jersey from SUAREZ Cycling Apparel when you register at least 26 days before a Gran Fondo National Series owned event, for Gran Fondo Maryland the deadline is August 20^th 2024.