The Rad Dirt Festival is back in the Life Time Grand Prix series in 2027, returning the off-road competition to a seven-race event, and there will also be an adjusted athlete selection process for the year ahead.

The September event in Trinidad, Colorado was last included as part of the series in 2024, though there have been six events in the season the past three years following the cancellation of Crusher in the Tushar due to wildfires two seasons ago.

For the year ahead, riders in the series must start a minimum of six of the seven events, which in 2027 will be Sea Otter Classic Gravel, Unbound Gravel 200, Leadville Trail 100 MTB, Chequamegon Mountain Bike Festival, Rad Dirt Fest, Little Sugar MTB and Big Sugar Gravel.

The process for deciding the 25 athletes in the men’s and women’s competition is also changing in 2027, with the aim being to “create a performance driven-path” that also improves the abilities of athletes to plan for what’s ahead.

“The Grand Prix is about identifying the best all-around off-road racers, and competing across gravel and mountain bike racing reflects that,” said Kimo Seymour, President of Events and Media at Life Time. “Establishing the field earlier also gives athletes greater certainty as they plan their seasons and partnerships.”

Automatic selection for this season only applied to the top five and the top overall Under 23 rider from 2025, then there were 16 selected athletes, and three wild card entries – with more added in the case of selected athletes dropping out – and places were confirmed after the second event, which was Unbound in late May.

For 2027, the rules will be adjusted so the top ten athletes from 2026 gain automatic selection, along with the top U23 rider. The remaining 14 spots will then be decided based on the results from among the Pro category at the mid-April Sea Otter Classic Gravel and Sea Otter Classic Fuego XL.

“Our goal is to continue raising the competitive standard of the Grand Prix while creating a clear pathway into the Series for athletes to pursue,” said Seymour. “The top athletes from this season will earn their opportunity to return, the next group will have the chance to race their way in at Sea Otter, and from there we’ll have 25 women and 25 men taking on seven of the most demanding off-road races in the country.”

The leaning toward performance-based, rather than discretionary, selection, is also not where the changes end, with a new Pro category vetting procedure set to be introduced for 2027. Riders will have to apply for access to race in the Pro category at Life Time events, as part of a process which will be introduced in September.

Subscribe to Cyclingnews for unlimited access to our gravel and off-road cycling coverage in 2026. We’ll be on the ground at the biggest races of the season, bringing you breaking news, expert analysis, in-depth features, and much more. Find out more.

The Rad Dirt Festival is back in the Life Time Grand Prix series in 2027, returning the off-road competition to a seven-race event, and there will also be an adjusted athlete selection process for the year ahead.

The September event in Trinidad, Colorado was last included as part of the series in 2024, though there have been six events in the season the past three years following the cancellation of Crusher in the Tushar due to wildfires two seasons ago.

For the year ahead, riders in the series must start a minimum of six of the seven events, which in 2027 will be Sea Otter Classic Gravel, Unbound Gravel 200, Leadville Trail 100 MTB, Chequamegon Mountain Bike Festival, Rad Dirt Fest, Little Sugar MTB and Big Sugar Gravel.

The process for deciding the 25 athletes in the men’s and women’s competition is also changing in 2027, with the aim being to “create a performance driven-path” that also improves the abilities of athletes to plan for what’s ahead.

“The Grand Prix is about identifying the best all-around off-road racers, and competing across gravel and mountain bike racing reflects that,” said Kimo Seymour, President of Events and Media at Life Time. “Establishing the field earlier also gives athletes greater certainty as they plan their seasons and partnerships.”

Automatic selection for this season only applied to the top five and the top overall Under 23 rider from 2025, then there were 16 selected athletes, and three wild card entries – with more added in the case of selected athletes dropping out – and places were confirmed after the second event, which was Unbound in late May.

For 2027, the rules will be adjusted so the top ten athletes from 2026 gain automatic selection, along with the top U23 rider. The remaining 14 spots will then be decided based on the results from among the Pro category at the mid-April Sea Otter Classic Gravel and Sea Otter Classic Fuego XL.

“Our goal is to continue raising the competitive standard of the Grand Prix while creating a clear pathway into the Series for athletes to pursue,” said Seymour. “The top athletes from this season will earn their opportunity to return, the next group will have the chance to race their way in at Sea Otter, and from there we’ll have 25 women and 25 men taking on seven of the most demanding off-road races in the country.”

The leaning toward performance-based, rather than discretionary, selection, is also not where the changes end, with a new Pro category vetting procedure set to be introduced for 2027. Riders will have to apply for access to race in the Pro category at Life Time events, as part of a process which will be introduced in September.

Subscribe to Cyclingnews for unlimited access to our gravel and off-road cycling coverage in 2026. We’ll be on the ground at the biggest races of the season, bringing you breaking news, expert analysis, in-depth features, and much more. Find out more.