What is shaping up to be the most successful season in Stradalli racing added another huge accomplishment Saturday, and this time it wasn't from the race team itself. Cycling great Cesar Grajales won the Boulder Rubaix Pro 12 Men Race using the Blue Faenza Stradalli Bike in a solo effort. This year the field was stacked at one of the hardest races on the calendar.
“This is a deceptively difficult course because you feel confident after the first couple of laps. Then suddenly you start hearing “pop, pop” everywhere and it’s the sound of the riders popping off the back of their bikes because the pace gets so much faster. Your legs have to work harder to handle the constant surges on sandy hard pan and just before you think you have made it through the worst, the wind begins to mess with you. All these conditions string out the field and gutter the back half. You feel like you are on the rivet before you are back to a swelled field with a slightly slower pace. Just as you catch your breath you are on the attack again with the “pop, pop” noises coming out everywhere. The conditions make this a war of attrition and energy conservation.”
With only two laps to go a small group formed. The lead contenders in the main group began opening the lead from the peloton. That’s when Grajales took advantage of the growing gap and went in for the winning move. It was a tough move as other riders tried and failed to pull away from the main group, but the group itself was not gaining on the leaders. Grajales surged forward alone and began working with them. It was there that he took the hard workload of the group for the next twenty miles as other riders eased up, taking advantage of his pull. But he could tell the race was his to win as no one else had enough in the tank to surge forward with him. He went on the attack with 3 miles to go, pulled away from the lead group and finished with a solo victory!
“This was an awesome win for Cesar Grajales and Stradalli racing! This was a stacked field, major competition, tough conditions, over 65% of it was gravel roads in Colorado that is a great win for Cesar Grajales and Team Stradalli! Cesar is one of the greats in the sport, people watch him because of what he can do on a bike. His work ethic, his passion and his aggression are unmatched in road racing and I am so very proud of him and what he has accomplished.” Tom Steinbacher, Stradalli CEO.
Stradalli cycle continues to see success in Pro Races all around the country. Their bikes are being used in multiple races each weekend and the results are steadily coming in. Champion riders are taking advantage of all the team has to offer at it is already paying dividends. Cesar Grajales’ triumphant win is another huge indication that this is the year of Stradalli in the cycling world.
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