Cycling In the United States Is shifting

In2022 , Life Time launched the newest series in North American off-road cycling, the Life Time Grand Prix presented by Mazda — an unprecedented, sixevent journey that covered varying MTB, gravel and dirt terrain across six iconic off-road events around the country. From April to October, 60 of the world’s top cyclists hit the Flint Hills of Emporia, Rocky Mountains of Leadville, Colorado, and gravel trails of Bentonville, Arkansas, for their shot at the largest prize purse in off-road cycling history: $250,000, split evenly between men and women.

For Life Time, the goal of the series was simple (and also extremely complex): play a part in changing the landscape of professional and recreational cycling in the U.S. By giving pro cyclists a chance to push themselves against the best riders on the toughest courses for an entire year, while also giving cycling fans an opportunity to ride alongside these athletes, Life Time hoped to help reignite cycling fandom in North America — and beyond.

Now, just a year later, the results are already showing.

“It’s a really exciting time in the United States for cycling. We continue to see the level of competition rise at events around the country, and the depth of the elite fields keep getting deeper” said Michelle Duffy Smith, Marketing Director for Life Time Events.

After kicking off in Monterey, California, at the Life Time Sea Otter Classic presented by Continental, the inaugural Life Time Grand Prix did not disappoint. From around the country (and across the globe), pro and recreational riders flocked to these six premier event locations — 1) Monterey (Sea Otter), 2) Emporia (UNBOUND Gravel),

3) Beaver, Utah (Life Time Crusher in the Tushar presented by The Creamery),

4) Leadville (Stages Cycling Leadville Trail 100 MTB),

5) Hayward, Wisconsin (Life Time Chequamegon MTB Festival presented by Trek), and

6) Bentonville (Life Time Big Sugar Gravel presented by Mazda) — with new levels of participation and excitement.

At UNBOUND Gravel 2022, the tangible energy filled the Flint Hills as MTB and gravel riders alike descended upon Emporia to embrace the spirit of gravel. With more on the line and more competitive fields, pro and amateur riders cranked up the heat to match the unrelenting Kansas summer sun. In the women’s field, MTB rider Sofia Gomez Villafane (Heber City, Utah) built a commanding lead early and held it for the rest of the race, defeating defending UNBOUND champion Lauren De Crescenzo (Atlanta, Georgia) by more than nine minutes. For the men, a lead pack of five riders stayed neck-andneck through the downtown Emporia finish, with nonLTGP rider Ivar Slik (Duivendrecht, NLD) claiming first and Keegan Swenson (Heber City, Utah) finishing just one second behind.

Following her fourthplace finish at UNBOUND Gravel, rider Haley Smith (Uxbridge, ON) emerged atop the women’s Life Time Grand Prix leaderboard by winning the notoriously difficult Crusher in the Tushar and finishing third at the iconic Leadville Trail 100 MTB in August. With another top-3 finish at Chequamegon in September, Smith cemented her position as the first female Grand Prix champion, trailed closely behind by Gomez Villafane and Sarah Sturm (Durango, Colorado), who finished second and third, respectively.

On the men’s side, Keegan Swenson used the momentum from his firstplace finish at UNBOUND Gravel to pedal himself ahead of the pack and build an insurmountable lead, taking each of the first four events — twice, by significant margins. After thirdand second-place finishes, respectively, at Chequamegon and Big Sugar, Swenson coasted to the men’s title with room to spare. In a battle to fill out the rest of the podium, riders Alexey Vermeulen (Boulder, Colorado) and Russell Finsterwald (Colorado Springs, Colorado) claimed the final two spots, narrowly fending off Cole Paton (Cashmere, Washington) and Peter Stetina (Santa Rosa, California).

“Now one year into the Life Time Grand Prix, we’re excited to watch the series