Stetina Enjoys Van Life with Gorge Gravel Grinder

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Stetina Enjoys Van Life with Gorge Gravel Grinder

For Peter Stetina, it means a week of adventure in Portland, culminating Sunday with the Gorge Gravel Grinder, followed by a week of gravel riding with his friend and former teammate Jacob Rathe.

California-based Stetina will load up her van this Friday and head out for the 10-hour drive to Portland, where there are three events: a 52.2-mile ride, a 67.2-mile ride, and a 93-mile ride that Stetina will headline. This will be Stetina's first race of the year after the pandemic disrupted her original plans.

"The Gorge Gravel Grinder will be held near Portland by the same people who host the Oregon Trail Gravel Grinder. This weekend is a one-day spring event, hardpack gravel, and will be run on road bikes as well. It's like the Strade Bianche, with rolling pastures," Stetina told Cycling News.

"It's a really strong riding scene there and it's good to get an idea of the gravel environment in other regions. It's a regional competition and we're still in the early season preparation stage, but I'm really looking forward to going. I think the field will be competitive and there are a lot of really talented cyclocross riders in that area, so I'm excited to see who comes out."

The course Stetina plans to race on includes more than 7,000 ft. of elevation, but the American rider is more interested in the tactical aspects of the race rather than the specific profile.

"It's going to be a tactical race, which might make it harder for me, but I think it will be a good race. But right now I want to try as many races as I can and find out what I like. For me it's like a buffet of races, I'm going to stick around Hood River for a couple of days and ride my gravel bike with Jacob Latte."

This weekend, Stetina will leave California for a rare trip in a converted van he purchased to transport himself and his equipment. He has only had a handful of opportunities to use the van in the past 12 months, but this weekend will be an important opportunity to embark on a week-long trip that combines gravel racing and a sense of adventure.

"It's the full van life," he says.

"I have to get some spare parts and I just installed my own portable shower for camping. I can fit three bikes under the bed, which is specially cut to my saddle height, and there's a sink and electricity. It's a gravel-style team bath. I have a packing system now, but it's basically like a moving apartment with a bike assembly kit, and once you're inside it's much more comfortable than staying in a hotel."

"It's about a 10-hour drive each way, about a week, and May is when the races fill up with gas and there are some really big events going on."

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