From new and unreleased bikes to mullet drivetrains and a temporary return to narrow tires, we went deep to cover the tech of the gravel peloton.
Right away, we spotted something interesting: an Argon 18 athlete on a unmarked, very different-looking bike. What a large head tube! (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)
Updated April 17, 2026 12:20PM
Welcome to Velo’s Sea Otter Classic coverage, where we share our favorite things we’ve found at the 2026 show. Bikes, components, accessories, and more: if we think it’s cool, you’ll see it. See the rest of our Sea Otter coverage.
Sea Otter is many things these days. Most come for the trade show, which hosts many of the world’s most significant cycling brands, while some come to race themselves in road, mountain, and gravel events. A select few riders are here to kick off the Life Time Grand Prix, the world’s premier gravel race series.
Of everything to see at Sea Otter, the Life Time Grand Prix pro gravel race is one of the richest exhibitions of them all. Like its road counterpart, this is the pinnacle of gravel. The tech choices made here are no small cog in the wheel of gravel tech development for everyone.
It is also the first event of the series, which means there are new frames, groupsets, and even some unreleased tech that make up the men’s and women’s peloton at the race. We went early to the start and got to work compiling a huge gallery of tech, dissecting every choice, trend, and flourish we could find. While we couldn’t take photos of everything, we did our best to get as close as we could.
Gallery: Sea Otter Classic Elite Gravel
Only at pro races can you roll up to the start and see a perfectly tuned Pinarello Grevil sitting so casually (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)This one belongs to Grand Prix newcomer Kyan Olshove. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Matthew Wilson, one of last year’s Wild Card selections, was one of the first riders on the rollers warming up. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Right away, with Xcadey power meter front and center. Xcadey might not be discussed as much as its peers, but the company has a ton of different power options for good value. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)A Shimano Ultegra/XTR mullet for Wilson. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Russell Finsterwald was just behind Wilson, showing off the brand new Look C85 Cezal. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)We got to take a closer look at the, erm, Look G85 Cezal yesterday. Finsty gave himself a little bit of motivation with a selective decal placement. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)We got up close with the Look G85 Cezal yesterday. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Soon, Alexey Vermeulen hopped up on the rollers to get his legs moving. The start is a 5-minute climb that the race will take on at well over 6 watts per kilo. Warm-up is key. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Vermeulen makes it nice and simple to see who he is partnering with this year. Interestingly, he has stuck with a 2x GRX/Dura-Ace combination. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)(Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Mismatched tires? At Sea Otter? Who is this rookie? (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Oh, it is Pete Stetina. He is on his farewell tour and knows a thing or two about ripping on gravel, so he gets the pass. He also is 2x Shimano, but behind Vermeulen, these were the only front derailleurs we could find. Times are changing, but for these two established names, the range of 2x is still king. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)It is the first American race for the Canyon X DT Swiss All Terrain team. Their Canyon bikes are complete with Shimano groupsets, DT Swiss wheels (and when the time comes, suspension forks too), and Schwalbe tires. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Speaking of tires, we did not see many mountain bike tires beyond the Schwalbe Thunder Burt in its narrowest 2.1 form. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)That being said, for the rear, this rider still went narrow with a 45mm tire. That is a full 8mm difference, which is quite aggressive. 3-5mm is more common. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)While our eyes were pointed down, and we saw these new Pearl Izumi aero socks. These are from their new Black line, and we have been testing them. They are quite impressive in feel, and I would imagine they are faster with that elevated piping. Andrew L’Esperance is the rider wearing them. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Dura-Ace shifters for the Canadian. He had a XTR Di2 mech to handle the rear. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)The eventual champion Bradyn Lange was next on the rollers. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Full GRX for the Canyon X DT Swiss team, even though they had the larger derailleur cage to accommodate the 10-51t cassette needed to get up the steep bits. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)A little flourish of custom decals for the US national champion who is a member of the Canyon X DT Swiss team this year. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)The new Rene Herse semi-slicks, I wonder who it might be? (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Ted King, of course! (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Taylor Phinney is out of retirement and back with a pair of very cool, retro-looking glasses. These look like a pair of Oakleys circa the beginning of his career, but we couldn’t confirm that. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Dylan Johnson was on a new frame, and from the look of it, it is unreleased. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Johnson’s bike was one of three unreleased frames we saw at the start. The other one at the men’s race was from his Felt teammate, Adam Roberge.(Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Berd spokes on the start line. These are built on Caleb Swartz’s bike, a new rider in the Grand Prix. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Swartz’s levers have seen better days. Train hard to race hard. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)He was riding the Mondraker Arid. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Tires, tires, tires. It is the talk of the town for good reason. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)We can confirm that Keegan Swenson’s Crux was not one of the other unreleased frames. Will we see a new Crux in 2026? (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Matt Beers was also on the Crux. Wheels and tires were the 50mm Pathfinder and the new lightweight Roval Terra CLX III. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)In many American races, Simon Pellaud might be limited by the limits to tire sizes for the Aspero 5. At Sea Otter, most of the competitors have seemed to join him at the smaller width. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Brendan Johnston had an interesting mix of the old and the new. On the rear of his bike, it was the old SRAM mullet, since Giant is not UDH with its gravel bike yet.(Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Race time, so that means it is a mad dash for all the media to get out of the starting shoot after getting all the up close and personal glam shots. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)And the men are off! Back down to the start to see what the women have for tech selections. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Right away, we spotted something interesting: an Argon 18 athlete on a unmarked, very different-looking bike. What a large head tube! (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Ellen Campbell has a nice looking Mondraker Arid. The bike is from a longtime mountain bike–only manufacturer, so it has a nice, unorthodox look to it. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)The Trek Checkmate in Trek Driftless colors. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)It is Cecile Lejeune’s! The Trek Driftless rider was a breakout athlete from the Life Time Grand Prix last year. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Like many of the women on SRAM, it was mullet season in Monterey rather than the conventional Gravel XPLR groupsets. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Morgan Aguirre is on the more aggressive Orbea Terra Race. With the vibe-shift to 45mm tires this year at Sea Otter, it meant riders with multiple gravel bikes could err on the side of the lighter builds. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)We got a look at her bike the day before the race. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)One change she made was pushing the limits on the front end to a 50mm Schwalbe. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Aguirre’s PAS Racing teammate Karolina Migon was riding a Rose gravel bike. Rose is not huge in the US, but it has been a staple in the women’s gravel peloton over the last few years. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Lauren Stephens was on the new recycled compound from Vittoria. They don’t have this tire in many bigger sizes, so this is the first time we have spotted it at a big start line. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)She also had this curious little radio device that we were seeing for the first time as well. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)From both SRAM and Shimano, the mullet drivetrain was big at Sea Otter. The course is defined by a very steep final climb so this isn’t the most surprising, however it was interesting to see just how ubiquitous it is, especially with the Shimano athletes. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)The top two women both ran mullets, with Sofia Villafañe running a SRAM XX rear mech to power her across the mixed terrain on the Sea Otter gravel course. Like Beers and Swenson, it was the usual crux for Villafañe as well. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Lauren De Crescenzo has a new bike sponsor this year in Argonaut, a custom builder out of Bend, Oregon. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)On her Argonaut, the experienced gravel pro had a Wove saddle, a popular option throughout the women’s peloton as the small brand out of colorado specializes in unique ergonomics built for high-speed racing and aero positions. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Of all the different groupsets and details from around the start, it was interesting to see the setup from the Liv riders like South African Haley Preen. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Giant and Liv do not have gravel bikes with UDH dropouts. So, for the SRAM athletes, that means the best solution is an older mullet set up. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)Kate Courtney was racing her first major gravel race at Sea Otter. She did it on an Allied Able. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)We caught up with her the day before the race to check it out! Compared to the mullet’s Courtney was fully decked out with SRAM Red XPLR, Schwable tires (which are the big winner of the tire wars this year, they are everyone on the line), and some Duke Racing Wheels. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)(Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)(Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)And that was all we had time for before the race hit the road! Thanks for following along. (Photo: Logan Jones-Wilkins/Velo)
