Bradyn Lange and Anna Yamauchi earned solo victories in the pro divisions at Lake Sonoma MTB on Saturday, the third of five events in the Grasshopper Adventure Series in northern California.
The Healdsburg area in northern Sonoma County received unexpected rain showers during the event, making the long route, with 23 miles and 4,500 feet of vertical gain, slippery on the abundance of single-track sections, three-time Olympic MTB rider Katerina Nash calling it "slide it to ride it".
Lange gained separation in front of all contenders on the first pass of the 7-mile outer loop, and only one of the e-Bike racers nearby. He stayed on the gas for the solo victory, finishing in 1:49:49. Justin Peck, who won a pair of collegiate titles in short track MTB cross-country last season, finished 3:16 back in second. Peter Stetina was third at 4:05 back, and a fast-closing Sandy Floren, another 41 seconds behind Stetina was fourth.
"The strategy was to see how hard I could push myself. Mainly I was trying to prep for Sea Otter in a couple of weeks. I took off halfway up the first climb," Lange told organisers at the finish.
"All the downhills and flat parts, it's like there's a speed limit on a lot of these trails, like sprinting out of each corner. There is only so much power you can do throughout the course, so I didn't blow up."
Stetina was happy to be on the podium and said, "You can't beat local mountain bike racing".
"After The Mid South was cancelled with fires last weekend, I needed something to do in March. Luckily, Mig [Crawford, race director] had spots still open, so a quick pivot. My goal is just pummel myself physically and keep it upright. You can never go as fast in training as you do in a race."
While Lange will take part in the new Sea Otter Classic Gravel race next month as part of the field for the Life Time Grand Prix, Yamauchi needs to ride her way back into the series as a wildcard entrant. She finished in 2:15:22, good for 17th overall in the mass-start event. She had 7:13 to spare over pro women's runner-up Nash and another 26 minutes to Kelly Brennan in third.
"I pinned it to the singletrack. I knew there would be chaos [in the mass start] and rode my race, a lot of yo-yoing out there. It was either straight up or straight down," the 25-year-old winner said at the finish. "My chain was a little muddy at times but no issues out there."
Nash, two years from being double Yamauchi's senior, said the course was already muddy a the start, so the intermittent rain on the second half created slippery spots in the deep ruts as 300 riders repeated the loop.
"It was good, the first race of the season. This one's not easy, a lot of good climbing. I enjoyed the downhills and it was fun to get a little bit slick and slide it to ride it style."
Taj Krieger went into the third Hopper as the series leader, and with a seventh-place finish Saturday he held a margin over Stetina and Ben Frederick, who are now tied in second place with 111 points and trailing Krieger by 24 points. Kate Courtney, who did not race Lake Sonoma, continued in the women's overall after winning the opening two rounds, with Yamauchi leaping to second overall, just nine points back.
The 2025 Grasshopper Adventure Series moves to Ukiah-Mendo Gravel Epic on April 27, the 76-mile mixed-terrain event serving as the NCNCA Gravel District Championship event.
