Last year, Peter Stetina made the biggest and boldest decision of his professional career. He gave up his World Tour license, said goodbye to the elite of road racing, and embarked on a new path of reward, responsibility, and above all, adventure.

Stetina's first full season as a gravel racer did not go according to script. The global COVID-19 pandemic shut down racing for most of the year, but that didn't stop the American from creating new forms of coverage around the sport. Earlier this month, he flew to Atlanta, bought a van, and headed home.

The "Let's Privateer" campaign, a joint effort between Sportful and Canyon, is on track, and when the racing finally resumes, the former mountain domestique will be ready to go. His transformation from a World Tour rider to a self-employed entrepreneurial gravel rider has only one driving force: his passion for the sport.

"I love bike racing. It's simple," he tells Cycling News. 'I left the World Tour when I was still in the prime of my career. I'm still competitive and I still want to race. I've been doing that for the last 10 years, but I've become addicted to the community spirit of gravel events."

"I'm not a fan of the gravel events," he said.

"Competition and community are in similar balance. Such experiences are made sweeter when shared."

"Life on the World Tour can be more extreme and not necessarily friendly to the masses. But once I started Gravel, I found that everyone on the same track shared experiences and stories."

Stetina dabbled in gravel last year, but found relatively quickly that balancing the demands of the World Tour with a gravel calendar was too much of a burden. However, he also realized relatively quickly that balancing the World Tour with a gravel calendar was too demanding.

Stetina started the gravel project almost from scratch, leveraging the few relationships he had built over the years. She found sponsors and equipment, designed the race plan, and made sure her voice was at the center of all creative ideas.

"It's 100 percent different from the World Tour. It's 100 percent different from the World Tour. Everyone can relate to the fact that you start your own project from scratch. It's gratifying and it gives you freedom. Of course, it's more work, but it's also a lot of fun. I can focus on creating stories and learn that it's okay to say no to things I don't want to do.

"The hardest part is the overall hustle. On the World Tour, even though it's physically hard, everything is set up for you, from logistics to sponsorship deals. You get your gear, you get your plane ticket sent to you, and you grow up in an environment where all you have to do is focus on pedaling your bike."

"In my world right now, I'm working on business plans and sponsorship ideas. I need to be more entrepreneurial and not just make a name for myself. Being fast on a bike is almost secondary sometimes. Now I can pivot towards what I want to do and jump on it with my sponsors. I can create a lot from this opportunity."

Stetina's creativity has led to the "Let's Privateer" campaign, which follows him as he embarks on his gravel career. This is an example of how Stetina has attracted sponsors and pioneered the emerging gravel scene.

"This is primarily a call to embrace your inner privateer. Ask any cyclist who participates in gravel how they would like to ride in their own way at a gravel event. Performance is important, but so is the community and fun that surrounds the gravel scene. "

If you're looking for expert advice on gravel and all other group sets' your nearest Shimano dealer is your source of knowledge. Find your nearest Shimano dealer here: gravel.shimano.com/en/dealers