Gravel Royale kicks off with Quebec attack on the Rockies

TransRockies Gravel Royale launched into the first of three days of gravel racing in the Canadian Rockies on Saturday. After a sampler of Nipika resort singletrack trails, the elite men and women headed out into the remote gravel roads surrounding the resort. The result turned into a east vs. west battle in the men’s race and a B.C. vs. U.S.A. in the women’s.

Elite women

While Chelsee Pummel isn’t a B.C. local, she is from the Rocky Mountains. Just the Montana part of the extensive range. That likely helped the Bozeman racer feel at home as she flew to the first stage win, and lead, in the women’s race. In second was the very local Lindsay Glassford. From just down the road from Nipika in Panorama, B.C., Glassford held of Bend, Ore. stage race veteran Emma Maaranen for second place on day one. Times are tight, though, and there are still two days of racing through the Rocky’s wilderness left before the final finish line. And, with veteran racers like Helena Coney lurking just off the podium, there will be little room for error.

Elite men

On the men’s side, stage one of the Gravel Royale turned into an inter provincial battle royale. Alexis Cartier and Julien Gagne, from Sainte-Anne-des-Lacs and Sherbrooke, Quebec, respectively, escaped from the field one after the other. By the top of the day’s KOM section, they riding together.

While the race for different teams, that alliance held to the finish line where Cartier took the win by 0.2 seconds. That gives him the lead going out into stage two on Sunday.

Behind, Cory Wallace and Michael van den Ham ended up working together to try limit their losses to the Quebec duo. Van den Ham is now living in B.C., though he originally hails from the Canadian prairies. Wallace is an Alberta local, but from the mountain town of Jasper. That averages out to … a foothills alliance? Either way, after two hours 45 minutes  of racing, they both have 4:35 to make up to the Quebec racers. Wallace takes the sprint finish, and the final podium spot, but with…