The Ascent to Dirt Elite: AC’s Brennan Wertz Hits the Trail in Search of Gravel Glory

After a breakthrough 2021 season riding as a working-man pro, our very own Brennan Wertz has leveled up for 2022 with a well-deserved place on the Scuderia Pinarello squad. With a packed schedule of gravel races ahead, AC will be by Brennan's side as co-sponsor, leaving no stone unturned as we keep his machine in tip-top condition with typical AC care and some of the tastiest components, wheels and tires ever to set rubber to the trail. 

So far, Brennan's season has hit all the high notes, with a second at the Low Gap Hopper, a win at the Miami Gravel 100, another at the Huffmaster Hopper, and yet another win at this past weekend's Shasta Gravel Hugger - surely not his last visit to the top step. Let's not forget that last year he snagged a top ten at Unbound while holding down a day job at AC, so there's no telling where he'll end up in 2022. But whatever happens, we know he's going to have a lot of fun.

For our fellow bike nerds, here's a quick rundown of Brennan's Pinarello Grevil race rig, a stand-in ride until his new bike arrives later in the season.

BRENNAN'S PINARELLO GREVIL

FRAME: Pinarello Grevil (59cm)

COCKPIT: MOST alloy GR (130mm stem, 42cm)

SADDLE: MOST Lynx

DRIVETRAIN: Sram Red AXS Mullet w/ Quarq power meter (10-50 cassette, 46t chainring, 175mm arms)

WHEELS: Enve 4.5 AR 

TIRES: René Herse (models vary from race to race)

CERAMICSPEED: Coated OSPW cage. Coated bottom bracket, headset, hub, and pedal bearings. UFO coated chain.

Brennan's full list of sponsors for the season include:

Pinarello bikes • Above Category • Q36.5 apparel • Enve wheels - for gravel events • Lightweight wheels - for road events • Sram • CeramicSpeed • René Herse tires  • Garmin computers • Arundel bottle cages • otter.ai