73 year-old Frank Yohannan has owned and operated the Sea Otter Classic cycling festival in California for 30 years, but now Life Time, Inc., a multi-billion dollar health and fitness-event company, has bought the world renowned festival.  

Life Time is known within the cycling world as promoter of the Leadville 100, UNBOUND Gravel and Crusher in the Tushar amateur gravel events.  It also organises triathlons and marathons, including the New York and Chicago Triathlons, as well as the Miami Marathon and Chicago Half Marathon.

They also operate more than 150 supersized fitness centers located in the United States and Canada.

On the sale Yohannan commented, “What’s most important to me is to continue to grow.  The synergies Life Time brings are some that we could never have done on our own.”

The terms of the purchase were not made public, but Yohannan will continue to run Sea Otter during a three-year buyout period, while also independently licensing the Sea Otter name to events in Canada, Spain and Australia.

After cancelling the 2020 edition of the Sea Otter Classic, the festival tentatively plans to return 7-10 October 2021 with gran fondo, gravel and MTB races that start and finish at the world famous Laguna Seca Raceway in Monterey, California.

PHOTOS: Sea Otter


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