Why did gran fondos become so popular?

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In the summer of 2010, Carlos Perez, event director for Levi’s Gran Fondo, examined the country’s nascent market for long-distance cycling races. New gran fondo events were popping up across the country, and promoters were reaching out to Perez to ask him about his race.

He had founded the event the previous year with Levi Leipheimer. At the time, it was just the second American race to use the gran fondo title, which translates to “big ride” from Italian. Like the other events spreading across the U.S., Levi’s Gran Fondo was an American version of the famed Italian cyclosportive event.

“You could tell people were looking at [gran fondos] as the next big thing,” Perez says.

Six years later, the gran fondo has become a popular addition to any American cyclist’s array of event choices. The website GranFondoGuide.com lists 82 of them across the country. There are five within a three-hour drive of Perez.

The races range in size from small, local events with several hundred riders to large events that draw thousands and boast an international marketing footprint. Levi’s Gran Fondo caps registration at 7,500.

The growth has increased competition between the events. Promoters now advertise in print magazines and on social media and try various strategies to keep participation numbers high. Some races align themselves with retired or current pro riders (including Jens Voigt and Phil Gaimon), or advertise the race’s selection of food and wine. Other promoters advertise their events as being part of a national or global series with prizes for repeat participants.

Expansion has also forced promoters to find innovative ways to cut overhead costs, which are sizable, due to the long courses. And this confluence of cost and competition has created a debate regarding what actually constitutes a gran fondo. On one side of the divide are races that, like a marathon, time a rider from the start of the race to the finish. On the other are events that measure a rider’s time on specific segments or climbs.

This variation may appear insubstantial, but it greatly impacts a race’s overall cost, as well as its marketing.

WITHIN CYCLING INDUSTRY CIRCLES, there’s an often-repeated explanation for the growth of gran fondos. The throngs of cyclists who entered the sport during the Lance Armstrong era entered middle age (or older) during the past decade. This cohort lacked the time or desire to race in regular criteriums or traditional road events.

Simultaneously, race promoters saw that marathons and long-distance triathlons had surged in popularity. In Italy, cycling events such as Gran Fondo Campagnolo and Maratona dles Dolometes served up a similar blend of competition with life-affirming challenge. But there was nothing like those …

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