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On Saturday, September 28, Keegan Swenson all but wrapped up the 2024 men’s Life Time Grand Prix presented by Mazda by soloing to his fourth victory of the season at the Rad Dirt Fest, while Lauren De Crescenzo defended the women’s title in Trinidad after an incredible long-range attack.
For De Crescenzo, the win was lucky number three at The Rad. The Colorado racer won the inaugural event in Trinidad in 2021, finishing a mind-blowing second overall. She also won last year’s event.
Her win on Saturday comes just six weeks after she fractured her collarbone at SBT GRVL.
De Crescenzo’s time of 5:41:10 was eight minutes faster than Sofia Gomez Villafañe, who was second on Saturday. Cecily Decker was third, and Alexis Skarda and Melisa Rollins rounded out the wide angle podium.
Swenson was a first-timer at The Rad, a race he skipped last year to prepare for the UCI Gravel World Championships. He averaged 22.66 miles per hour over 110 miles and 10,000 feet of climbing to finish in 5:00:01.
Pete Stetina was one minute and 23 seconds back, and Griffin Easter came in three minutes after Stetina. Matt Beers and Brendan Johnston rounded out the podium.
The Rad is the penultimate race in the Life Time Grand Prix, and Swenson’s win solidifies his overall lead in the series. He has a perfect score of 105 in the overall standings, which has been calculated by taking into account the best three scores from the five races to date. He also has 35 more points in the bank which he can cash in after Big Sugar Gravel on Saturday, October 19.
Swenson only needs to start that race to be guaranteed his third successive Life Time Grand Prix victory.
Payson McElveen now sits in second place in the series, 14 points behind Swenson, despite a DNF at The Rad. After fourth on the day in Trinidad, Matt Beers moves up two places to third with 89 points, after becoming the third highest-ranked Life Time Grand Prix male rider in Trinidad.
On the women’s leaderboard, De Crescenzo’s win nudges her further up in the rankings to 11th, although that “isn’t where I want to be in the standings,” she said. De Crescenzo skipped Chequamegon two weeks ago to let her collarbone heal ahead of The Rad so will be looking for a good result at Big Sugar to penetrate the top 10.
Like Swenson, Sofia Gomez Villafañe also looks to have the overall Grand Prix title locked up for the second year in a row, leading the women’s series with 103 points. Paige Onweller, who finished seventh at The Rad, is sitting in second, 13 points back. However, Alexis Skarda, who was fourth on the day in Trinidad, only trails Onweller by one point.
The men’s race rolled out of downtown Trinidad at 9 a.m., and the lack of a neutral start meant it was full gas from the gun. As riders settled in, a large group formed.
Alex Howes was the first rider to animate the race, and he was joined by 21-year-old Kellen Caldwell of Durango who had a breakout performance on the day. The two worked to establish over a minute lead on the chasers but were eventually caught. Caldwell would hang on to finish seventh on the day.
After the lead group separated into two groups, eventually Swenson, Pete Stetina, and Griffin Easter got away in the final hour of the race while Matt Beers and Brendan Johnston caught up to Caldwell and Finn Gullickson to form the first chasers.
Then, Swenson and Stetina dropped Easter, and despite Stetina’s repeated attacks, Swenson managed to gain time on him through the rolling section coming out of Trinidad Lake State Park.
“On that last big push back into town, Pete [Stetina] and I worked really well together,” Swenson said. “He then made two late attacks but I was able to counter them and gain a few seconds on him, and that allowed me to roll in solo to the finish. I had a good day out and a good time racing the guys out there.
“Today was my first time competing here and the course was rad,” he said. “My goal was to have a nice, solid ride. I wanted to put the pressure on and make it hard, but at the same time try and be smart because I knew if I had a podium here, and depending on where other guys finished, I could lock up the overall.”
The elite women’s race started five minutes after the elite men and 25 minutes before the amateur racers doing the 110-mile course.
After only 30 miles, De Crescenzo once again proved that she is a master at going alone, breaking away near the Spanish Peaks aid station and then continuing to build her lead alone over the 80 plus miles that followed.
“I tried to go a few times on the steep pitches of the first climb and was finally able to break free on a steep, sandy portion somewhere between miles 25 and 30,” De Crescenzo said. “That was never the plan, it just felt right.”
A group of about 14 rolled into the first aid together with Gomez Villafañe a strong leader. She attacked on the final climb of the day to earn herself a hard-fought second place, with Cecily Decker earing her best result of the series so far in third, rolling home just 14 seconds behind Gomez Villafañe.
2024 The Rad Dirt Fest Women’s Top 10
Full results here
1. Lauren De Crescenzo, 5:41:10
2. Sofia Gomez Villafane, 5:49:20
3. Cecily Decker, 5:49:34
4. Alexis Skarda, 5:50:44
5. Melisa Rollins, 5:53:10
6. Sarah Lange, 5:53:21
7. Paige Onweller, 5:54:55
8. Erin Huck, 5:56:21
9. Anna Hicks, 6:06:16
10. Sarah Sturm, 6:06:29
2024 The Rad Dirt Fest Men’s Top 10
Full results here
1. Keegan Swenson, 5:00:01
2. Peter Stetina, 5:01:24
3. Griffin Easter, 5:04:47
4. Matthew Beers, 5:05:14
5. Brendan Johnston, 5:05:39
6. Finn Gullickson, 5:05:53
7 Kellen Caldwell, 5:06:16
8. Julien Gagne, 5:11:51
9. Henry Nelson, 5:11:56
10. Russell Finsterwald, 5:11:58
