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Durango’s Cobe Freeburn takes top honors at Bighorn Gravel while Eagle cyclist battles for podium finish

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The peloton rolls out of Gypsum at the start of the 2025 Bighorn Gravel race on Sunday.
Stephen Martin/Explore With Media

A year after finishing runner-up to Eric Brunner, Cobe Freeburn took the top prize at Bighorn Gravel on Sunday.

The Durango cyclist pulled away climbing to the Peter Estin Hut and rode solo for the remaining 50-miles, coming into Gypsum exactly 5 hours after he started the 85-mile gravel adventure.

“I didn’t really win much until last year,” the 23-year-old said, referring to the classic road race in his hometown — which rs. Freeburn also swept the GoPro Mountain Games mountain bike events earlier this month in Vail.



“Ever since then, (I’ve) been learning how to ride in the front a bit more,” he said. “(I) felt pretty confident. I just kind of rode within myself.”

Freeburn followed his Durango comrade Cody Cupp through the singletrack section early in the race. With the dusty conditions, both knew they wanted to be at the front right away.

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“I decided to take the opportunity to push really hard,” Cupp said.

A four-person peloton — including 2022 champion Zach Calton and Eagle’s Sam Brown — formed heading up Brush Creek Road.

“It got obvious when we were rotating that Cobe and Zach were a bit stronger than myself and Sam,” Cupp admitted. “The same thing happened with Sam and I last year.”

“I think we both knew there’s a lot of racing left,” Brown said, noting there were three more major climbs left at that point.

The Ram’s Horn Escape climbed about 10,000 feet over 85 miles.
Stephen Martin/Explore With Media

Nathan Spratt . His 1:07:18 split allowed him to catch onto the back of the group. Freeburn absorbed Spratt’s ensuing attack and then dealt his own going over the top, mimicking Brunner’s lethal blow from a year ago.

“I was like, ‘he did it last year and was able to go the rest of the way, so maybe I could,'” Freeburn said. “I was just alone from there.”

Freeburn finished in 5:00:36, Calton came through three minutes later for silver and Spratt (5:05:52) wound up with the bronze. Meanwhile, about seven minutes back, Brown and Cupp duked it out for the second-straight summer.

Cobe Freeburn crosses the finish line to win the 2025 Bighorn Gravel Ram’s Horn Escape on Sunday in Gypsum.
Stephen Martin/Explore With Media

Cupp got a gap on Red Hill Road, but Brown clawed back with about 10 miles left.

“Which I was surprised and impressed and disappointed,” Cupp laughed.

“Coming over the top, I noticed the rider catching behind me,” Brown added. “So I was like ‘I just got to go. This is the time.'”

Brown pulled even going into the paved Cottonwood descent, then jumped Cupp around a sharp turn. From there, it was an all-out, time trial drag race to the finish. Brown (5:12:50) held on for a 31-second win.

“It was a sick battle with him,” Cupp said. “Last year, we rode together until the last climb — and last year I got the better of him. I tried to do the same thing again and he was more prepared this time.”

With the prize purse expanding through the top-5 this year, Brown’s second-straight fourth-place finish felt much more satisfying.

“It does because there’s money for fourth now,” he said with a grin. “But also, I think since I was racing with Cody again for a lot of the race, being able to get in front of him this year over last year was good, too.”

Nathan Spratt rips down a descent during the 85-mile Ram’s Horn Escape race at Bighorn Gravel on Sunday in Gypsum.
Stephen Martin/Explore With Media


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