Justine Barrow and Julien Gagne fly the coop to claim victory at Gravel Locos

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It was a pair of decisive victories at the Gravel Locos 150 over the weekend as Australian champion Justine Barrow and Julien Gagne flew the coop and carved out clear cut solo victories in Hico, Texas.

Gagne claimed the men’s 147 mile (237km) race with 6,285 feet (1916m) of climbing in 6:34:22 with Niki Terpstra nearly three minutes back in second and Adam Roberge close behind in third. It was a long solo that led the Canadian to victory, with Gagne taking off after the group had thinned to around ten riders when there was still more than 100km left to go.

Barrow built an even bigger gap on her nearest rival as she covered the slightly shortened course, with some river crossings removed due to high water levels. The rider, who just arrived in the United States days before, finished more than 14 minutes ahead of Marisa Boaz while it was then Emily Newsom in third.