Pro cyclists, a movie star, and a mountain of donuts. What could possibly go wrong?
In one of the most absurdly brilliant race-day spectacles we’ve ever filmed, Levi’s GranFondo teamed up with Bike Monkey to host the Gran Donut, a micro fondo where elite cyclists and celebs traded carbon frames for tiny bikes and victory laps for glazed chaos.
Announced by the legendary Dave Towle, this high-carb melee featured Olympic gold medalist Kristin Armstrong, world champion Rebecca Rusch, Garmin-Sharp pro Tom Danielson, cycling legend Levi Leipheimer, beloved blogger Elden “Fatty” Nelson, and none other than Patrick Dempsey (yes, that McDreamy). The race? A tactical showdown of donut consumption, children’s bike speed, and outrageous hijinks, all for charity.
Gran-Donut – Culture Pop DNA
Letting us loose on this was a bold move. But they knew what they were doing.
We ran wild, camera in one hand, donut in the other. Capturing every glorious bite, back-alley pass, and bike-barreling-lap around the parking lot. We treated it like the Olympics. If the Olympics had sugar crashes, tiny wheels, and illegal Heimlichs from Dr. Dempsey.
Shot with a small but savage crew, this production was part satire, part sports doc, and 100% Culture Pop chaos.
This one reminded us: storytelling doesn’t always need polish, sometimes it just needs sprinkles.
