The Redlands Bicycle Classic presented by San Manual Band of Mission Indians returns for a 38th edition this week, continuing its prestige as the longest-running stage race for men and women in the United States. In 2024, the five-day event offers a new time trial course and a new mountain stage for pro fields which burgeon with an abundance of talent.
Racing in southern California runs from Wednesday, April 10 to Sunday, April 14. The women’s pro field, with more than 130 riders on 21 teams, will again be one of the largest to take the start line when racing starts with the City of Highland Circuit Race. The men’s pro field features 26 teams, including two squads from Great Britain – Ribble Rebellion, featuring USA’s Cole Davis, and ThrivaSRCT-SignaturePayments.
Last year, Emily Ehrlich secured the general classification victory for Virginia’s Blue Ridge Twenty24 in a women’s field, her teammates Melisa Rollins and Laurel Quinones taking third and fourth overall, respectively. The same trio swept the podium in the Route 66 time trial. Other riders looked for ways to score stage wins, including Skylar Schneider (L39ION of Los Angeles) who swept the weekend on the final two days of racing.
On the men’s side, Tyler Stites (Project Echelon Racing) was the rider to beat in the men’s overall, and he successfully defended his title with a hard-fought battle against rising teen star ahead of 17-year-old talent Andrew “AJ” August (Hot Tubes Development) by a mere 14-second margin. Robin Carpenter (L39ION of Los Angeles) was another 11 seconds back for third overall, while Riley Sheehan (Denver Disruptors) was just off the podium in fourth.
August is now racing in Europe with Ineos Grenadiers, as is Sheehan, competing with Israel-Premier Tech. The PatoBike women’s squad featured last year’s runner-up Marcela Prieto, but the team will not be at Redlands this year.
‘Pivotal’ is what Virginia’s Blue Ridge TWENTY24 general manager Nicola Cranmer called the course changes this year, especially the mountain road race on the second day.
“This year we’ve got new challenges thrown at us and we are ready. It’s always fun to race new stages with no history, this will be more than a test of tactics and fitness. The Onyx Summit climb will really be pivotal in the GC battle,” she said about stage 2 on Thursday.
The five stages for pro men and pro women take place in and around Redlands, and include a circuit race, individual time trial, criterium and two road races.
Women’s contenders
Emily Ehrlich (Virginia’s Blue Ridge-TWENTY24)
Defending women’s champion Emily Ehrlich has had a fast start to her 2024 season with a GC victory at Valley of the Sun stage race followed by two gold medals at Pan American Track Cycling Championships. Fresh off her track feats, Ehrlich returns to for a second overall win with an all-star cast from Virginia’s Blue Ridge-TWENTY24, supported by Marlies Mejias, who won the Highlands Circuit Race last year, and 2022 US Pro road champion Emma Langley.
“Coming back to Redlands after winning at Pan Ams feels oddly comforting and yet exciting with the addition of new stages. It’s a mental and physical struggle to switch from the intensity of track racing back to the energy demands of road racing again, but with a great team to fall back on I have complete confidence,” Ehrlich told Cyclingnews.
Both Rollins and Quinones are back this year, so the TWENTY24 squad has many options for stage wins and a GC effort. Both raced at Valley of the Sun and Tucson Bicycle Classic, where the team went 1-2 on GC with Ehrlich and Mejias. Mexican rider Sofia Arreola was a support rider last year at Redlands but returns as the winner of this year’s overall in Tucson. And from the junior team, local Redlands resident Ella Sabo will look to light up the sunset course where she grew up.
Canadian Nadia Gontova climbed through dense fog to win last year’s mountaintop finish to Oak Glen Village and will now be one to watch with her new DNA Pro Cycling squad. Last year while still part of ROXO Racing, Gontava won a stage at the Vuelta Colombia Femenina in July.
The 23-year-old climber will be part of a deep roster for DNA Pro Cycling this time out, which will be led by veteran Sara Poidevin, who rode the past two seasons at the Women’s WorldTour level with EF Education-TIBCO-SVB. Also a proven climber, Poidevin has finished second on GC at Tour of the Gila and makes her inaugural appearance at Redlands.
Multi-time Colombian road champion Diana Peñuela, former Mexican road champion Anet Barrera and 2023 Tour of the Gila points winner Shayna Powless bring solid support for the road and circuit days, while 2023 Redlands points classification winner Holly Breck will be back on home roads on southern California.
A new Williams Racing composite squad at Redlands Bicycle Classic will be led by accomplished sprinters, and sisters, Samantha Schneider and Skylar Schneider. Last year Skylar Schneider won two stages and finished second in the points classification. The 24-year-old will most likely focus again on stage wins, but could easily shift to pursuit of the GC.
She is the reigning Pan-American road race champion and was the bronze medallist at the 2023 US Pro road race nationals. In 2021 she won the overall at Joe Martin Stage Race, and at that UCI event last year had two podiums to secure the points classification. Climber Kayla Davis, who raced last year with Israel-Premier Tech-Roland Development and Jamaican road race champion Llori Sharpe will be in support roles.
Emily Marcolini is back and will ride for her new 2024 team Boneshaker p/b Orange Seal. The 28-year-old Canadian put on a dazzling performance two years ago at Redlands Bicycle Classic, winning solo on the Oak Glen climb from Yucaipa on stage 2 and going on to lock up the mountain classification and third overall.
This year she finished second on a mountaintop finish on stage 2 of Tour El Salvador. She’ll ride alongside Colombian climber Lorena Villamizar, who finished seventh overall at Tour El Salvador.
Alia Shafi (Fount Cycling)
Fount Cycling has always been a surprise team from the domestic elite level at any major races in the US, going back to , who returns with last year’s best amateur rider Alia Shafi.
Last year, Shafi won the best amateur prize for women, finishing ninth overall including a second place on the Highland Circuit Race. She went on to win the Devil’s Den time trial at Joe Martin Stage Race and take fourth overall in the UCI 2.2 event. So far this season she has two top 10s at Tucson Bicycle Classic.
Men’s contenders
Tyler Stites (Project Echelon Racing)
Stites is on form as he looks for a third consecutive GC title at Redlands Bicycle Classic. The 26-year-old from Arizona already has 17 days of racing in his legs from a European swing with Project Echelon Racing, including a victory at Rohdes GP by Culture & Sports and three top 10s at Tour of Rhodes.
“I am excited for the Redlands Classic this year, with new courses that will shake up the dynamic. Onyx will certainly be an opportunity to create time gaps and it will be a difficult climb to hide your cards on. The time trial will be special because it is a rarity to have a technical TT in the US,” he told Cyclingnews.
“This year’s field is really strong and we know we are going to have to race everyday. Anything can happen on the Sunset Circuit, so everything counts. It will be a great race and we are motivated to defend our title.”
Robin Carpenter makes his season debut at Redlands Bicycle Classic. Last year he secured the third step on the podium riding for L39ION of Los Angeles, punctuating the week with a stage 5 victory to conclude the week.
“Racing the Redlands Bicycle Classic on a composite team brings me back to 2011 and my first Redlands ever. I think many people start their US cycling careers on a composite amateur squad at Redlands, where they sleep at a host house and take on classically hard courses in a big peloton for the first time,” recalled Carpenter before taking the start this year.
“The nostalgia for those feelings of hunger for results is real and I’m stoked to both race myself and also to lend my expertise to those younger riders on my team eager to prove themselves.”
Like the women’s Williams Composite squad, riders from across three teams operated by Williams Racing – L39ION of Los Angeles, Miami Blazers and Austin Aviators – were selected to compete at Redlands. Riding alongside Carpenter are former US road champion Kyle Murphy and sprinter Cory Williams.
Eric Brunner (Primal-AudiDenver)
Two-time US elite men’s cyclocross national champion, Eric Brunner, will join Primal-AudiDenver just for the Redlands Bicycle Classic. He’s a major league wild card on the pavement, having focused the past two seasons in off-road pursuits, but he relishes the opportunity to compete again at the US stage race, where he last competed in 2022 and finished third overall.
“I’m focusing on mountain bike (XCO) this season but have a bit of everything on the calendar. Redlands is the only road race I’m planning on this year,” he told Cyclingnews, as he’ll have his coach Grant Holicky as director with the Primal team this week.
“The race is an important target for me as well as good training for the rest of my season. I was very excited to have the opportunity to ride with Primal-Audi Denver, they’re a long-standing Colorado team with a lot of guys who I know. I have my eye on Sunday’s Sunset stage which is very punchy and technical, but I plan to go for it every day.”
Last year at Redlands on the Highland circuit opener, Noah Granigan outsprinted Robin Carpenter to claim the first leader’s jersey of the week for pro men. He was later second on stage 4 and finished sixth in the points classification. While he is largely a sprinter who takes advantage of breakaways, Granigan has had success across stage races. He was second on GC at Joe Martin Stage Race two years ago, and also won the mountains classification at Presidential Cycling Tour of Turkey.
He’ll line up with another former US road champion in the field, Stephen Bassett. a new member for the Denver Disruptors after four seasons with the Human Powered Health/Rally Cycling programme and racing in Europe. The last year he had a US-heavy schedule was in 2019, when he won the overall at Joe Martin Stage Race.
Redlands will be his first stage race of the season for both Granigan and Bassett.
Torbjørn Røed (Above + Beyond Cancer Cycling)
Another off-road rider who earned his stripes with road racing is Torbjørn Røed. He stormed on the scene in 2022 with Yoeleo Test Team p/b 4Mind. That year he had top 10s in four stage races including Joe Martin Stage Race and Tour of the Gila. Last year at Redlands he was third on the time trial and finished 10th overall.
Since then, Røed turned his focus to gravel racing, where he has taken victories at Big Sugar Gravel, Belgium Waffle Ride Kansas and this year’s The MidSouth. While he said he is just riding at Redlands as a support rider with Above + Beyond Cancer Cycling, his great form from fifth at last weekend’s Belgian Waffle Ride Utah should translate well on the road.
“Our main goal is just stage wins, stage podiums,” Røed told Cyclingnews. “I was third there on the TT last year, but this year’s TT is a lot different. The course was just out and back, simple last year, without any corners. And this year it’s a loop with a lot of corners, right and left and a bit of a bike path in there. So it’s kind of narrow and a lot more technical.
“I’m super excited for stage 2 up to Big Bear (Onyx Summit). I think that’s gonna be fun. I do like long and steady (climbs).”
