This weekend of racing was amazing and very fast. It started on Saturday morning in Fontana for my first Cat 1 15-16 race of the season. My family and I headed out there at 6 AM. When I got there at 8 I was able to say hi to some of my friends and hero's, like Aaron Gwin and Kyle Strait. One of my favorite things about this sport is being at the same event as many Pros and they are as accessible as you or I and equally as down to earth. I was also able to see Throop, and anyone who has raced any Team Big Bear event knows what an asset this man is to the crew, and an all around great guy. He was injured earlier this year and to see him back out on course made my day. I saw my friends, Jonah and Turner finish their race and was able to talk to Jonah about the course and talk strategy. I then started to get ready for my race. Staging for my race was confusing because our line up was on the ground so our whole group was lost. We finally got if figured out and I was sent to the back of the pack to start. Despite starting in the back, I was able to get into the top ten by the first climb. The first lap was fast and we were already running into the back of racers that started ahead of us. I was able to pick off people with methodical passes on the fire road and maintain my position through the single track. The second lap was almost identical to the first. Unfortunately, I saw my teammate Micah who got a flat, and I couldn't offer him much help. On my final lap I came across my good friend Derek Hermon and had enough left in the tank to give him a little push up the last fire road climb, it was the least I could do considering he was riding with a broken hand. I was able to finish strong in 9th place among national competition and got a glimpse into who I would be racing at Sea Otter.
As soon as I finished I had to keep my legs feeling fresh for Keyesville the next day. When I finished cooling down we said our good byes and headed straight to Keyesville for the high school race. We left Fontana about 1:00 and made it to Keyesville about 4:30. My dad and I then headed out on a pre-ride of the course and watched some of the middle school awards. When we finished our ride we headed into Kernville for the night. My dad used to spend a lot of time in Kern growing up and took us to the local Pizza Barn for dinner. The next morning after a great night sleep my legs felt strong. We headed back to Keyesville at 10 and the waiting began. When the race was getting closer the wind was getting worse and worse. My warm up went good and fast. While waiting for staging to begin I was able to talk to some friends and crack a few jokes before everyone got serious. When I got up to staging I felt ready and strong. First Varsity went then JV C, now it was our turn. Since it was a smaller start shoot the start seemed more relaxed than usual, but that all changed going up the first climb. Kyle Chromy and I went off the front quick and worked together at an extremely fast pace. Kyle and I jockeyed back and forth for the first 2 laps. On the last lap on the steepest climb on the course I took a risky line to pass Kyle and kept going till the next fire road. I looked behind my shoulder and Kyle was out of sight but I kept my head down and hammered. Going into the last descent and climb I could taste my first ever win in the high school league and I kept hammering. As soon as I saw the finish line I was filled with emotion. I've been looking forward to that day for two years. It was a well fought race with Kyle, he kept me true till the finish. Now looking forward to next weekend with another double race weekend.
Thanks to my sponsors for the great support, Ellsworth Bikes, RideFast Wheels, Kenda Tires, Rudy Project, Ftech, Scicon, ESI grips, ASG sport, Gup, RynoPower, Physiophyx and especially my coach Jason with SoCal Devo for all his support.
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