The Rad might just be America's most underrated gravel race. It's not for lack of quality — the long course alone is hard to beat for scenery and terrain relative to almost anything else in the Life Time portfolio — it's more that Trinidad simply isn't on most riders' radar yet.
Trinidad sits right at the base of the Spanish Peaks, the twin 12,000-plus-foot summits that give the whole region its name — an overlooked gateway right where Colorado's high desert plains give way to genuine alpine terrain. That geography is what makes the Rad's courses so varied: riders climb out of dry, exposed high-desert flats into pine forest and rougher, more alpine-adjacent ground, all inside one race. Downtown might be an acquired taste on an ordinary day, but it comes alive when it matters, and the start/finish line on Trinidad's old red brick streets is always followed by an after-party the town takes seriously.
The Rad ran as a full round of the Life Time Grand Prix in 2024 before being dropped from the series for 2025 — Life Time has said it remains committed to growing the race outside the Grand Prix structure. It's since settled into life as an official UNBOUND Gravel qualifier, with qualifying coins for the 100- and 200-mile fields awarded partly on category results and partly by random draw.
Registration runs through the Life Time Rad Dirt Fest website and typically opens in February. Unlike most Life Time events, it doesn't reliably sell out.