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<\/p>\nLange got clear after a hard fought battle in Monterey, California to take the first Life Time Grand Prix leader’s jersey of 2026.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
(Photo: Will Tracy\/Velo)<\/p>\n
Updated April 16, 2026 06:03PM<\/p>\n
(MONTEREY, CA \u2013 Velo) It was a fast day of racing around the grounds of Laguna Seca Raceway as Bradyn Lange took the win at the Sea Otter Classic, the first race on the Life Time Grand Prix calendar.<\/p>\n
The race was decided in a reduced sprint finish after the race dwindled to a handful of elite riders under the relentless pace. In the sprint, it was the last corner that decided the day as Keegan Swenson battled Lange to the line.<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t want it to go to a sprint and I don\u2019t think he did either,\u201d Lange told Velo after the finish. \u201cWe were going to the final corner and I was like, \u2018I don\u2019t know what to do.\u2019 So I just chopped him on the inside and put my head down.\u201d<\/p>\n
Magnus Bak Klaris took third just after Swenson. Alexey Vermeulen and Matt Beers finished fourth and fifth, crossing some 10 seconds later, in the 90-mile race.<\/p>\n
For Lange, the result is a culmination of sorts after a few years of growing results for\u00a0 the 26-year-old mountain biker turned gravel pro. The national championship win was a big step last year, but winning at Sea Otter in his first race in the national champion kit puts him firmly at the top of the global gravel peloton.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no better way to to start the season,\u201d Lange said. \u201cI\u2019ve always dreamed of going to the line with Keegan and battling with him, especially on a course like this. It was sick, just attacking each other on the final climb.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were both hanging on for dear life, at each moment when the other was attacking. I am kind of at a loss for words.<\/p>\n
\u201cOver the past five years, I\u2019m just always looking ahead, like, these guys are, you know, so many years ahead of me. It\u2019s like, my time will come.\u201d<\/p>\n
Well, it appears his time has come.<\/p>\n
This is a developing story, more to come\u2026<\/p>\n
Results: Men\u2019s Sea Otter Classic<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n