Racers and Adventurers on Rene Herse

Racers and Adventurers

Ever since Rene Herse Cycles started in 1938, we’ve worked with some of the world’s fastest racers and most intrepid adventurers. They test our tires all over the world, from the Flint Hills of Kansas to the forgotten mountain passes of the Silk Road Mountain Race. They provide feedback for our product development. And they are just great people to be around. Here are the stories of just a few of them, some of their results, and their tire and equipment choices in various events.

Ted King

The ‘King of Gravel’ (front) has stood on the podium in gravel races more often than almost anybody. He isn’t just one of the fastest and most skilled cyclists, he’s also one of the nicest and most thoughtful humans you’ll ever meet. When Ted and his wife Laura aren’t ripping across the world’s gravel courses, they are raising their young kids in the green mountains of Vermont.

2024 Bon Jon Pass Out: 1^st (700×44 Manastash Ridge End.)
2021 Unbound Gravel: 4^th (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass End. Plus)
2021 Last Best Ride: 1^st (700×42 Hurricane Ridge Endurance Plus)
2020 AR High Country Race: 1^st & FKT (700×44 Snoq. Pass End.)
2019 SBT GRVL: 1^st (700×35 Bon Jon Pass)

Lauren de Crescenzo

Lauren’s story is truly inspirational: She overcame a life-threatening accident to go back to college and get her dream job at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Then she put her career on hold to pursue her other dream: gravel racing. Lauren and her team tested many tires before discovering the speed and durability of Rene Herse.

2023 The Rad Dirt: 1^st (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2023 Mid-South: 1^st (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2022 SBT GRVL: 1^st (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2022 Gravel Worlds: 1^st (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2022 U.S. Pro Championships: 2^nd (700×28 Chinook Pass Xlight)
2022 Tour of the Gila: 1^st (700×28 Chinook Pass Extralight)

Brennan Wertz

As the current Gravel National Champion, Brennan continues to ride at the front in the biggest gravel races. He’s probably the most consistent racer today, and definitely one to watch for the future!

2024 U.S. National Championships: 1^st (700×44 Snoqu. Pass End.)
2024 UCI Highlands Gravel Classic: 1^st (700×44 Manast. End. Plus)
2024 Sea Otter Classic Gravel: 1^st (700×44 Manastash Endurance)
2024 Huffmaster Hopper: 1^st (700×35 Bon Jon Pass Endurance)
2023 U.S. Gravel Nat. Champships: 3^rd (700×44 Manastash End.)
2023 Shasta Gravel Hugger: 1^st (700×42 Hurricane Ridge End.)

Sofiane Sehili

Formerly a bike messenger in Paris (France), Sofiane has become a specialist of ultra-long distances and ultra-tough courses. Sofiane’s methodical approach to racing extends to his tire choices. He’s one of the most humble racers we’ve met: Who else would admit to singing during the long solitary hours on road and trail?

2023 Silk Road Mountain Race: 1^st (29” x 2.2” Fleecer R. Endurance)
2022 Silk Road Mountain Race: 1^st (29” x 2.2” Fleecer R. Endurance)
2022 Tour Divide: 1^st (29” x 2.2” Fleecer Ridge Endurance)
2021 Silk Road Mountain Race: 1^st (29” x 2.2” Fleecer R. Extralight)
2021 Two Volcano Sprint (with Adrien Liechti): 1^st (700×28 Xlight)
2020 French Divide: 1^st (29” x 2.2” Fleecer Ridge Endurance)

Mazda Orange Seal Factory Team

The biggest gravel team has a roster of likable young racers: Jenna Rineheart, Innokenty (Inno) Zavyalov, Marisa Boaz (left) and Dannielle Ravnikar. You’ll find them at the front of the pack in every race they enter. Off the bike, they are some of the nicest people you’ll meet.

2024 Robidoux Rendezvous: 1^st men & women (Inno, Jenna; 700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance rear /Extralight front)
2024 UCI Highlands Gravel Classic: 1^st (Jenna, 700×44 Manastash Ridge/Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2024 Mid-South: 2^nd (Jenna; 700×44 Snoqualmie Endurance)
2023 Gravel Locos: 2^nd (Marisa; 700×44 Snoqualmie Endurance)
2023 Mid-South: 4^th (Inno; 700×44 Snoqualmie Endurance)

Lael Wilcox

Lael is one of the fastest and most fun humans on (and off) a bike in this world. She’s ridden every single road in her home state of Alaska, and she’s raced on many continents. Lael mentors young girls and aspiring female bikepackers through her GRIT program and the Lael Rides Alaska Scholarship.

2022 Westfjords Challenge: 1^st (700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance)
2022 Trans-Balkan Race: 1^st (700×55 Fleecer Ridge Endurance)
2022 Migration Gravel Race (Kenya): 2^nd (700×48 Oracle R. End.)
2021 Unbound XL: 1^st (700×48 Oracle / 700×55 Fleecer Ridge End.)
2021 Alaska Pipeline Trail FKT (700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance)
2021 Hope 1000: 1^st (29″ x 2.2″ Fleecer Ridge Endurance)

Adrien Liechti

Adrien asked us for a set of tires for the grueling Hellenic Mountain Race. Four days, 12 hours and 6 minutes later, he stood on the podium. Traversing the steep slopes of Greece’s Pindus Mountains, enduring rain, snow and knee pain, the former bike messenger pushed on with minimal rest, taking first place less than two hours ahead of second-place finisher Manuel Truccolo. We’re proud to have contributed in a small way to this amazing ride—and many others.

2024 The Accursed: 2^nd (700×55 Fleecer Ridge Endurance)
2024 Atlas Mountain Race: 9^th (700×55 Fleecer Ridge Endurance)
2023 Hellenic Mountain Race: 1^st (700×55 Fleecer Ridge End.)
2023 Silk Road Mountain Race: 8^th (700×55 Fleecer Ridge End.)

Francesca Selva

Francesca races professionally in Europe. Her specialty are fixed-gear races, where she explores the limits of traction at incredible speeds and lean angles. “Grip like Moto GP,” she enthused about her Rene Herse tires.

2023 Aarhus Super Cup: 1^st (RH x FMB 25 mm tubular)
2022 Italian Fixed Championship: 1^st (700×28 Chinook Pass Xlight)
2022 Italian Fixed Cup, Stage 3: 1^st (700×28 Chinook Pass Xlight)
2022 Italian Fixed Cup, Stage 2: 1^st (700×28 Chinook Pass Xlight)
2022 Zuricrit: 1^st (700×28 Chinook Pass Xlight)
2021 Italian Fixed Championship: 1^st (700×38 Barlow Pass front / 700×44 Snoqualmie Pass rear)

Amanda Naumann

Amanda raced (and won) on gravel long before it became popular. (She won the Unbound 200 twice back in the day.) An engineer in her day job, she chooses her equipment based on careful testing. And then she rides with abandon – and a smile. Together with her partner David Sheek, she organizes the Mammoth Tuff gravel race in the incredibly scenic mountains of the Eastern Sierra Nevada.

2021 Unbound XL: 2^nd (700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance)
2020 Sugarcane 200: 1^st (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Extralight)

Kevin Benkenstein

Kevin is a force of nature, enjoying long adventures in his native South Africa when he’s not plotting another trip to the world’s biggest gravel races. After being narrowly beaten in the inaugural Rhino Run bikepacking race across the deserts of South Africa and Namibia, he returned in 2023 to win the race decisively and set a new FKT (Fastest Known Time). Incredible!

2024 Unbound XL: 5^th (700×44 Manastash Ridge Endurance)
2023 The Rhino Run: 1^st & FKT (700×55 Fleecer Ridge Endurance)

Lisa Pfeiffer (@elza_per_se)

Philosopher, photographer, bikepacker: Lisa combines many passions on her outings and adventures. She likes to ride fast and far. Her stories are full of insights about human nature—and refreshingly free of numbers like watts and kilometers.

2023 Race Around Rwanda: 2^nd (700×42 Hurricane Ridge Endurance front / 700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance rear)

Sophie Jail

Sophie is embarking on adventures the world over when she’s not at home in France fixing old cars and mopeds. After racing the 2,700 km Rhino Run in South Africa and Namibia, she continued riding northward all the way to the equator in Kenya—because she didn’t feel like stopping!

2023 Malteni Bootleggers UltraCX: 2^nd (700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance rear, 700×42 Hurricane Ridge Endurance front)
2022 The Rhino Run: 2^nd (700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance rear, 700×42 Hurricane Ridge Endurance front)

JaBig

International DJ & world-traveling bike tourer JaBig is one of the funniest, most positive people you could imagine. His observations are always inspiring and thought-provoking. In 2022, he went on a 6-month, 10,000-mile ride around the perimeter of the United States to raise funds for World Bicycle Relief. (700×38 Steilacoom & Barlow Pass Endurance)

Holly Mathews

The beauty and challenge of the Rift Iceland enticed Holly to return to racing. Since winning on her comeback, she’s joined the Cinch Racing team to ride with her friend Lauren de Crescenzo – and she’s rarely far behind!

2023 Colorado state championships: 1^st (700×28 Chinook Xlight)
2023 Mid-South: 9^th (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2022 Boulder-Roubaix: 2^nd (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Extralight)
2022 Mid-South: 4^th (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2021 Gravel Worlds: 7^th (700×44 Snoqualmie Pass Endurance)
2021 Rift Iceland: 1^st (700×42 Hurricane Ridge Endurance)

Hailey M. Moore

Hailey enjoys racing and touring in equal parts. She’s discovered bikepacking races as a way to challenge herself and experience what she likes most: cycling in the mountains. Her stories from races and outings are full of fascinating observations about cycling, life and the world.

2022 Ozark Gravel Doom: FKT (700×55 Fleecer Ridge Endurance / 700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance)
2021 NorthSouthCO Bikepacking Race: 1^st (700×48 Oracle End.)

Abdullah Zeinab

Abdullah was persuaded by a friend to enter the Rhino Run, a 2700-km bikepacking race from South Africa to Namibia. Neither of them expected what came next: Abdullah and Kevin Benkenstein set a blistering pace that left the world’s fastest racers in their dusty wake. After more than a week on the road, after traversing two deserts, and after enduring many mishaps, Abdullah prevailed to win the race by just 18 minutes. Epic!

2022 The Rhino Run: 1^st (700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance)

Annie Davis

Annie burst onto the scene by winning the big race in her home state, the Arkansas High Country Race (Short Course), and setting the Fastest Known Time (FKT) in the process. We’ll probably hear more from her in the future!

2022 Unbound XL: 14^th (700×42 Hurricane Ridge Endurance Plus)
2022 Rule of 3 100-mile team ride (with Mariah White, Allie Corlett): 2^nd (700×38 Steilacoom Endurance)
2021 AR High Country Race Short Course: 1^st & FKT (700×48 Oracle Ridge Endurance)

Geneviève Gambillon

Back in the late 1960s, a few young racers asked Lyli Herse for training advice. Lyli took the women under her wing and formed a women’s team that became a dominant force in French racing. Most successful of these unstoppable young racers was Geneviève Gambillon:

World Champion, Road: 1972, 1974
French Champion, Road: 1969, 1970, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976
French Champion, Track Pursuit: 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976
French Champion, Track Sprint: 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976

Lyli Herse

René Herse’s daughter Lyli dominated cyclotouring competitions for more than a decade, often beating the fastest men. To this day, she holds the record for the famous Puy de Dôme hillclimb. Then a race promoter persuaded her to take out a racing license. The rest is history: Over the next 12 years, she won eight French championships!

French Champion, Road: 1956, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1967
Tour de France Féminin, 1956: 4^th & 2 stage wins
Poly de Chanteloup hillclimb race (tandem with various captains): 1^stin 1948, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1957
Grimpée du Puy de Dôme, 1951: 1^st & record (still stands today)

Louison Bobet

Numerous professional racers had their frames made by René Herse: Louison Bobet, Briek Schotte, Robert Oubron and others came to the shop to have their bikes built. The frames were painted in their sponsors’ colors, but the unique features of René Herse’s frames show who built them, and the racers’ names appear in the order books.

Louison Bobet, 3-times winner of the Tour de France, ordered a René Herse frame in late 1958 and appears to have ridden it to his last win as a professional, in the 1959 Bordeaux-Paris race.

1959 Bordeaux-Paris: 1^st

René Herse

Our founder, René Herse was not just a talented fabricator and framebuilder, but also a strong rider. In 1938, he introduced his new components by entering an ultralight 7.94 kg (17.5 lb) bike in the Concours de Machines, a competition for the best bikepacking bike. And then rode that bike over 700 kilometers on rough mountain roads at high speed to prove its worth. Only a small technical problem cost him first place: The bottom bracket—one of a few parts he hadn’t made himself—developed play, and his bike was penalized.

1938 Concours de Machines: 2^nd & lightest bike