Lachlan Morton sees ‘limited opportunities to invent a new tactic’ to unseat Swenson as Leadville champion

For each of the past three years, Keegan Swenson (Santa Cruz) has not just won Leadville 100 MTB, he has smashed records. Last year he stormed across the rocky, high-elevation terrain in his first sub-6-hour effort, finishing in 5:43:31 and crushing the record time by 15:06. 

These performances are not just about winning times, but the margins to major contenders. Lachlan Morton (EF Education-EasyPost) was second to Swenson at Leadville in 2021, eight minutes off the winning pace. Swenson was 14:30 faster than second-placed John Gaston in 2022, and last year 14:29 faster than runner-up Alexey Vermeulen. Last year Morton recorded his personal best time at Leadville, 2:49 faster than 2021, but finished ninth and just over 33 minutes back of Swenson.