Washington Student League - Race # 3

The race continues to get this little ol' blog updated.  The racing also continues, well continued, for the fine young lads on my junior high team. Race # 3 of the Washington Student League series took place on May 5th, hence my timely, but aged, report on the festivities.

Without further ado, actual photos and rambling comments about the day...

Under a blazing sun, temps in the 80s to broil everyone.  After the usual chilly Pacific Northwest winter and spring, jumping to 80 degrees not easy.  Hot 'N' Dusty was the order of the day.  Race venue being 360 Park, located in scenic Gig Harbor, Washington.  First time there for son Ian and I.  Always cool to ride somewhere new.

Zane, Jack, and Dylan ponder the start and damage retinas with bright yellow shirts.

Don't tread on me.

Zane battles the heat and dust.  This kid always puts in a great effort - awesome.

Dylan on the attack.  Fantastic effort that earned him a 3rd place podium spot for the day.  Our best team results so far for the series.  Very nice indeed.

My son Ian, showing a glimpse of his former junior level racing form, rode in for 5th place.  Great job.

Jack does a little sand surfing.  Course a mixture of double and singletrack, fun loop to enjoy for all.

Scotty races through the woods in his second ever mountain bike race.

Post race discussion courtesy of Zane, Dylan and Jack.  Yeah, it was hot and tough out there.

A wave of high schoolers hits the course.

This kid is ripping it.  Check out the mini roosts coming off the wheels.  Cool!

Will, member of our partner high school team, with some corner blur action.

Brandon, also on the high school team, looking good.  I dig this pic, if I can say so myself, shooting races is a blast.

Welcome to Wheelie Town, this kid will be your tour guide.

What it's all about.  Will and fellow racer showing some start line good sportsmanship.

Fun day that ended on slightly bad note, my son Ian overdoing it in the heat.  Pre-ride, then race effort, followed by hanging out in the sun for hours, topped off by another lap of the course for the rec ride.  Wheels fell off the wagon during the last ride - toasted and nauseous - so we took the shortest route back.  Water, shade, then loaded him up ASAP to hit the road for home.

After a stop for pizza and more liquids, passed out in the car, and woke up feeling okay.  Yikes.  Besides that little misadventure, a pretty successful day for all.  Mountain bike racing is quite the adventure.

Washington Student League - Race # 2

Hot off the presses, race report from the second race of the Washington Student League series.  Race took place on April 28th - so uh - maybe not that hot.  We'll call it lukewarm - okay - cold off the presses.

Better late then never as they say, whoever they is.  Race venue was held on some military property near Tacoma, Washington.  Joint Base Lewis McChord to be semi-exact.  Mixture of dirt roads and singletrack greeted the racers, along with decent weather.

Racer Boy Son, Ian, actually raced on this property a few years ago for a cyclocross race - exactly when - a blur at this point.  He elected to skip this race, so no revisit for him.  With or without Ian, me being coach, a revisit was in store for me.

A few Pics 'N' Words from the day.  For the record, kids in bright yellow t-shirts on my junior high team, neon orange shirts belong to our partner high school team.  All others assorted racers from other schools...

Zane stands tall on the start line. 

One of the many starting waves of kids hitting the course.  It gets a bit steeper shortly.

See?  I told you it gets steeper.  My boys in yellow, from left to right: Jack, Sean, Andy, and Dylan. 

The fun continues.  Jack powers towards the top, Sean in push mode, Zane spins his way up.  Mountain bike racin' ain't easy.

Sean makes his way up the start hill.  Also his first ever mountain bike race - great job.

Jack blurs the course with speed. 

Under a glaring spring sun, Zane crosses the finish line. 

 Brandon and Will get ready to rumble in the fast high school division.

 Anders rolling the 29er in the high school class.

High school racer Zac clears the log pile. 

Brandon railing the singletrack section. 

This tight right hander claimed a few victims. 

Lots of fast kids abound, boys and girls.

Everyone rode and raced well.  Will put some extra icing on the cake with 3rd place podium finish.  Awesome.

Fun day all around and a great experience for all.  Super cool to see these young racers, experienced or not, give the course and fellow competitors a go.  Until next time...

Team Weekly Ride - Photo Proof

Yowza, the blog machine has slowed to a crawl due to other life distractions.  The usual stuff - like working for living, raising a family, and goofing around on Facebook instead of blogging.

My junior high mountain bike team activities are winding down, cool program to be involved with.  I'll spew out a few blog posts to get caught up, since my army of regular readers (ha!) are probably starved for entertainment by now...

As part of the program, we ran two practice rides per week, one on Wednesday and the second on Sunday - last one partnered with the high school team.  We usually had a good turn out for all the rides, anywhere from 3 to 10 kids showing up.

We'd keep these rides pretty informal, no real "race training", besides the occasional practice race start - which the kids usually got a kick out of - along with slow races, last one across the line without dabbing wins.  On some rides, we'd also session a log crossing or other feature for technical skills.

For the most part, we'd just ride for two hours and as the weeks progressed, would let various kids take turns being ride leader.  Super cool to see a string of ten or so young mountain bikers in front of you during a ride.  Most of the rides on our local Saint Edward - Big Finn Hill trails, long with a few road trips out to Duthie or Paradise to mix things up a bit.

A few pics I grabbed during one Wednesday ride on our local trails...

Dylan, downhill racer and bike handler whiz, playing XC rider.

Andy - who joined the program a few weeks in after hearing about it - gives the Gravity Pit a go.  He's probably the most enthusiastic kid of the bunch.  Since joining has attended every ride and race. At the races, did all the pre-rides, raced, and the rec ride afterwards.  His dad says he rides everyday after school.  Oh yeah, his dad also picked a up a new 29er and started riding a bit.  Spill over effect in action - awesome.

Andy, Jack, Matt, and Gabe living large.

My own son, Ian, enjoying the singletrack.  Ian's gung ho bike interest has tapered way off in the last year or so.  Considering he's been riding and racing since age 8, maybe a break needed.  I don't push any of this, is supposed to be fun.  If not fun, give it a rest.  As long as we continue to hit the occasional father/son fun ride, all good.  Racing is just icing on the cake.

Scotty rounds a corner.  New to mountain biking, picked it up quick, and even raced a few times.

Shawn, one of our adult volunteers, riding one of his own 650B frames.  Makes 'em in the garage - very cool.

Caleb over the roots.  Caleb's grandfather, Tom, also assists the team with rides and skill instruction.  A family affair on two wheels.

Sean in action.  Shy nice kid, his dad also rides.  Seemed hesitant to race at first, then tried it and did well.  Fantastic to see him cross the finish line and have a good time.

Zane on the go.  One of the smaller, quieter kids on the team.  Hides that fact he goes all out at races, gives it a real go with a sprint at the end.  Fantastic.

Marne, local woman racer and assistant coach to the team.  Also married to Shawn, total bike crazy couple.  I couldn't have run the team without 'em.  Thanks!

Zac, one of the high school team members, sharing a ride with the junior high kids.

Troy, the high school team coach and dad to Zane and Zac, hitting the singletrack.  Troy also helped plenty with junior high team.  Thanks!




So there you have it, a glimpse into a team practice ride.  Not all teammates pictured, but you  get the idea.  Part of what I dig about this program is that most of these kids have no prior racing experience, though most have mountain biked before.  Main intent was to just get 'em out there riding.

We've been riding and racing since March and all of 'em have gotten fitter and faster.  Very cool to witness.  They also forced me at times to squeeze riding into my stupid busy schedule - and for that I thank 'em.  

H-Ball and Tomac - Circa '92

Circa '92 footage of H-Ball and Tomac rocking old school style, complete with bar ends and disk rear wheels.  This doesn't look so abnormal to me - or even seem that long ago - but then again, I'm old and was already riding for awhile before '92.

I got a kick out of it, so posted for my massive following (ha!) to enjoy and/or mock.  Greg Herbold and John Tomac, now icons of the sport, could still kick your ass - even on these ancient steeds.  Bet on it.

Washington Student League - Race # 1

The Washington Student League in full swing, first race of the series now in the books - actually a few weeks ago - call me Mr. Slow Blogger. My team, Northshore Middle School Composite, joined the fray with with most of 'em experiencing their first ever race.  And not exactly under perfect conditions with rain and temps in the 40s.  Wet 'N' Mud-O-Rama.

Middle School (Junior High) boys staged and ready to roll (top pic), my team included.  Some of 'em literally shivering after being pre-soaked from the pre-ride one hour earlier.  Then away they go, racing away from the start line.

The girls hit the second turn after their start.  Great to see these young women get involved with the sport.  Girl rocking the skirt and single speed - family has 7 kids and they all race - and they're all really fast.  Amazing.

Jack on the left, Dylan in the middle, Andy on the right - three boys from my team in their first ever race.  Awesome.  Well, first XC race for Dylan - he does have downhill race experience and is quite the bike handler.

Race venue was Fort Steilcoom Park in Lakewood (Washington).  Ian and I have been to this site a few times previously, for various mountain bike and cyclocross races.  I also assisted at the first Washington high school mountain bike race held here, a few years ago.  Now back with a team of my own.  Pretty cool, eh?

Another young girl racer out on the course.  Fantastic.

My son Ian, rolling along in the rain, also on my team.  He found the competition a bit stiffer then expected, not all that different from the usual junior level race.

Teammate Scotty matched his helmet to course tape, how did he know?  Scotty very new to mountain biking, now with a race under his belt. Nice job.

Teammate Andy with post race muddy smile, scoring 12th place out of 15 middle school kids.  First race and he appeared to have a fun day, despite the weather.  He also gets the hard core award - pulling off the pre-ride, race, and afternoon recreational ride on the muddy course.  15 total miles of wet off-road action, in jeans and a sweatshirt to boot.

Teammate Scotty scored 11th place, riding injured added to the fun.  Previous day bike mishap scored him a bruised tail bone, but still wanted to race - and that he did - great job.

Teammate Jack in his first ever race experience, rolled in for 7th place.  Excellent.

Dylan, downhill racer and expert bike handler, pulls off a 4th place finish in his first XC race.  Missed the podium by only one spot.  Fantastic ride.

Ian, looking a bit pensive, after his 8th place finish.  Solid ride in messy conditions - way to roll - nice job.

Teammate Cormac cruising into the finishing chute.  15th place for the day.  Great effort.

Assistant coach Marne gives Ian the post race muddy high five.  Great group of kids and adults associated with our team.

Teammate Cormac wearing some of the course - as everyone did.

The fast high school boys give it a whirl, high school kids being broken up into various groups, based on skill and experience.  The two boys in blue, Evan and Theo, former teammates of Ian's previous JL Velo junior race team.  Very fast high school kids with previous race experience.

Zac, a member of the Northshore high school team, spins the 29ers.

The course, about a 5 mile loop, a mixture of gravel roads and single track.

Will and Brandon, Northshore high school racers, giving it a go.  Also former JL Velo teammates (and current Slalom Consulting teammates). We've known these racers and their dads for a few years now.  These young experienced racers can also be mentors for teammates on their school team.  Cool set up.

Mixture of experience and racers found in this program, from total beginners to junior level racers with years of races on their resume.  There's a place for everyone.

Sean and Zane, two more boys on my team, elected to ride the recreational event instead of racing.  No wrong answers to any of this.  All about getting kids on bikes, matching their level of interest.  Great stuff.

Our first race day went well, 8 of the 14 students on our team elected to participate - races being optional in the program.  Good turn out.  All of 'em appeared to have a positive experience, even with the not-so-pleasant weather.  It's a blast seeing these kids getting into mountain biking - from basic trail riding to racing - it's all good.