Sofia Gomez Villafane (Specialized Off-road) captured her third consecutive victory at Valley of Tears on Saturday, while Alexey Vermeulen (ENVE) won from a three-rider sprint among elite men.
The 93-mile (150km) race went the full distance this year, after winter weather in 2025 sliced the distance in half, and in the third edition brought crosswinds and deep sand pits to disrupt the action.
Villafañe made a solo move after 30 miles when the red dirt trail entered Caprock State Park, a new part of the course. Paige Onweller (Trek Driftless) accelerated away from Emily Newsom (Ventum-BikeTiresDirect) to edge closer to the two-time Valley of Tears winner.
At the mid-way point of the race, Villafañe had a slim edge on Onweller. Newsom rode alone in third place and Cecile Lejeune (Trek Driftless) moved into fourth position, three-and-a half minutes back. US gravel champion Lauren Stephens (Aegis x LOE) rode just 48 seconds back in fifth, with Sierra Sims (Team Winston-Salem) on her back wheel.
On the slightly uphill dirt finish into Turkey with four sharp corners, Villafañe won the two-rider battle and earned a third bison skull trophy, a distinct wall decoration from Texas complete with horns. Onweller was just four seconds back for second place. Newsom, who won Homegrown Gravel a week ago, was 5:20 back in third place.
Villafañe proved her form with a third victory in three races, winning Santa Vall and Castellon Gravel in February. For Onweller, just to finish the race and also podium was a major achievement to “bust the cobwebs” after seven months away from racing. In 2025 Onweller suffered a neck injury and severe concussion when she was struck by a driver of a car on a ride in Arkansas.
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