We’re at the moment greater than midway by means of the 2024 Life Time Grand Prix collection, and the defending champions – and energy couple – American Keegan Swenson (SRAM, Santa Cruz Bicycles) and Argentine Sofia Gomez Villafañe (Specialised) are once more main the 2024 Life Time Grand Prix standings after profitable races on the Leadville 100.
Swenson not solely gained the boys’s race however did so in record-setting vogue, masking the 105-mile course in 5:49:08.
Villafañe got here in second at Leadville with a time of seven:14:03 to American Melisa Rollins (Crew Twenty24), who cruised to the win 4 minutes forward of Villafañe in 7:10:10.
Swenson sits atop the males’s leaderboard with 94 factors, with challengers Payson McElveen (SRAM, Allied Cycleworks) in second, seven factors behind, and Unbound-winner Lachlan Morton (EF Training-EasyPost) in third, 11 factors behind Swenson.
On the ladies’s leaderboard, Villafañe holds the highest spot, however with a a lot smaller margin between her and second place Haley Smith (Trek): Villafañe has 88 factors whereas Smith has 83. Third place Hannah Otto (Pivot Cycles) has 81 factors.
At each Life Time Grand Prix race, the first-place end is price 35 factors, second-place 33 factors, and third-place 31 factors. Every place after that’s awarded one to 2 fewer factors than the place above it.
Now, simply three races stay for Sweson and Villafañe to solidify their collection victories or for a worthy opponent to unseat both of them.
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A take a look at the remaining races:
(Picture credit score: Lifetime)
September 14: Chequamegon MTB
The shortest race of the collection, the 40-mile Chequamegon mountain bike options various terrain because it meanders from downtown Hayward, Wisconsin, over the famed American Birkebeiner Ski Path and into the city of Cable.
September 28: 110-mile The Rad Filth Fest
The penultimate occasion of the 2024 Life Time Grand Prix collection is held in Trinidad, Colorado, on a “enjoyable and quick” gravel course.
Life Time launched the Rad Filth Fest in 2021. Organizers state that the gravel weekend was chosen to be a part of the Grand Prix to present collection athletes a brand new and ‘relaxed’ occasion to take part in whereas additionally giving Life Time the chance to showcase Trinidad as a motorcycle vacation spot and, after all, promote a more recent occasion.
October 19: 100-mile Large Sugar Gravel Race
The ultimate occasion of the Life Time Grand Prix is obligatory for all and can function a tiebreaker within the occasion of a tie on factors. This occasion is one other rugged and distant gravel race, this time showcasing a number of the finest unpaved roads Arkansas has to supply.
Swenson had his worst finishes of the collection at Chequamegon and Large Sugar final yr, ending second and third, respectively, with a DNS at The Rad Filth Fest.
Villafañe additionally struggled at these occasions in 2023, ending third at Chequamegon, DNS’ing The Rad Filth Fest, and ending in a stunning twenty fourth at Large Sugar.
With a $300,000 prize purse on the road, although, followers can wager that Swenson and Villafañe can be doing all they’ll to retain their prime spots and finally declare victory throughout the collection for a 3rd time for Swenson, and a second time for Villafañe.
However as all good biking followers know, whether or not highway, gravel, or MTB, the race ain’t over ’til it is over, and that can be very a lot the case all the way in which till the ultimate end line dash of the 2024 Life Time Grand Prix collection.
