Keegan Swenson (Santa Cruz-SRAM) and Sofia Gomez Villafañe (Specialzed Off-road) dominated one other 12 months of the Life Time Grand Prix offered by Mazda collection and defended their general titles.
Each riders opened with victories at Sea Otter Traditional’s Fuego XL mountain bike race, the primary of seven scheduled rounds of the off-road assortment of US races. Whereas each faltered on the signature Unbound Gravel 200, not making the highest 10, they remained constant the remainder of the way in which for the highest spots, incomes $30,000 every from the $300,000 prize purse divided equally among the many prime 10 riders within the invitation-only subject.
Swenson received three of the final 4 races, Leadville 100 MTB, Chequmegon MTB Competition, The Rad Filth Fest, whereas Villafañe scored victories at Chequamegon MTB and Massive Sugar Gravel. In 2023 they each received Crusher within the Tushar, however that occasion was cancelled resulting from space wildfires this 12 months. For the Grand Prix general one of the best 4 scores had been mixed from the six races that did happen.
The ultimate strikes within the general befell at Massive Sugar Gravel in Bentonville, Arkansas. Melisa Rollins completed second Saturday at that gravel race and jumped forward of Paige Onweller and Alexis Skarda into second general.
Cecily Decker used her third-place at Massive Sugar to make the large bounce from thirteenth to sixth general. Additionally shifting into the highest 10 to earn prize cash had been Lauren De Crescenzo, going from eleventh to eighth, and Michaela Thompson, altering 14th to tenth. Haley Smith, Erin Huck and Hannah Otto remained within the prime 10.
Sarah Sturm and Sarah Lange didn’t honest in addition to they hope at Massive Sugar, and their closing outcomes bumped them out of the highest 109 to eleventh and twelfth, respectively.
“I’m tremendous excited to defend my title from final 12 months. Three wins and two second locations, this season I’ve simply been actually actually constant,” Villafañe stated in a Life Time press launch.
“I got here out of a little bit of a lull in the summertime feeling like possibly I wasn’t at my greatest in Leadville, however I’m beginning to determine this endurance stuff. Hopefully I’m again subsequent 12 months! Shout out to all the women on the market who’re actually stepping up the sport, and I’m tremendous proud to be on the market with all the women.”
The Life Time Grand Prix launched three years in the past, and Swenson has been the general champion for males all 3 times. He locked up the three-peat with the victory at The Rad Filth Fest on the finish of September, however put in a robust displaying at Massive Sugar with fifth place.
Matthew Beers and Payson McElveen had been the closest in factors to Swenson and used the ultimate outcomes at Massive Sugar to resolve who obtained the $24,000 runner-up examine. Beers completed fourth in Arkansas in a five-rider dash, two spots forward of McElveen, and in flip the South African took second general within the collection, McElveen going third.
The stability of riders within the males’s prime 10 didn’t change names, solely positions for prize cash. Brendan Johnston and Cole Paton rounded out the highest 5, with the second half of the 10-rider podium stuffed out by Russell Finserwald, Alex Wild, Torbjørn Røed, Peter Stetina and Lachlan Morton.
Massive Sugar Winner Alexey Vermeulen completed two factors behind Morton for eleventh place, and should missed the ultimate payout.
“It was an amazing season. Coming into this race with none strain and having the win already secured was superior,” Swenson stated. “Third 12 months in a row so I’m very blissful. I’ll fill out the appliance for subsequent 12 months too.
“The calendar for subsequent 12 months appears good, I’m actually excited to have Little Sugar in there – an actual mountain bike race like that’s actually cool, and prize cash for particular person occasions will actually change the racing and make it much more dynamic and thrilling for everybody – it’ll be good.”
Organisers for the Life Time Grand Prix have introduced a seven-event schedule and collection modifications for 2025. The invitation listing might be diminished from 30 to 25 for elite girls and elite males, and the prize purse might be adjusted to $200,000 for the collection, however add a complete purse of $180,000 for the six particular person occasions. The Rad Filth Fest and Crushar within the Tusher are off the schedule subsequent 12 months, and Little Sugar MTB has been added, with the collection going to a greatest of 5 races among the many six.
