Brennan Wertz spent eight years as a top-level rower before transitioning to cycling. During that time, he raced for Stanford, nabbed a world record, and chased the Olympics before injuries sidelined him. When he picked up cycling to pass the rehab time, he fell in love with the sport and never looked back. In 2021, he jumped into Unbound and landed in the top 10. This year, he’s racing in the Life Time Grand Prix, which brings a whole new set of unknowns.

In this conversation, Brennan sits down with Payson in Monterrey, CA to talk about his rowing career, finding his way into cycling, and why he was hooked on gravel from the start. With only a year and a half of racing under his belt, he’s aware that he doesn't have the experience that his competitors have, but with years of rowing, he’s got the power numbers and the mentality to make up for it. He talks about how much he enjoys getting out of his comfort zone, how he's tried to bring the team spirit of rowing into his gravel training, and how he hopes to prove that bigger racers can perform at the highest levels of the sport. This year, he isn’t looking forward to the events that his 6 foot 5, 200-pound frame is most suited for, but to the races that pose new challenges. Mountain biking at Sea Otter and elevation at Leadville are two of the events he’s most excited about, and he tells Payson about how he's training for them, and whether he'd ever be interested in dipping his toe in professional road racing.

Instagram: @withpacepod
YouTube: Payson McElveen