SoCal Finals!!!

This weekend in Tehachapi for the SoCal League Finals was remarkable and milestone achieving. My family and I got down there on Saturday morning and as soon as we dropped the jacks on our RV my dad and I got kitted up and pre-road the course. It is the exact same as years past but it was more hard pack which made it even faster.  I'm very familiar with the course because late last year I did a 6hr solo for the Santa Claus Grand Prix so I know the course like the back of my hand. The rocky descents are one of my favorite type of riding and Tehachapi does not disappoint. The rest of the day was for exactly that, resting. I showered and took a nap. I then went and watched some middle school friends race their last race of the year. I hung out with my good buddy Devin DeBruhl and we stayed off our feet playing games. We had pasta dinner and then as has been tradition this year we tracked down someone who had a TV with Supercross. Unfortunately, I got to bed later than usual but I slept in til 7 as opposed to my usual 6 so this balanced me out a bit. The nerves didn't hit until my family got up around 9. Then the waiting began. I love racing early. 9:30-10 is the best time for me. Waiting until 1:38 is a very long wait. I had my breakfast and listened to my music to keep me distracted. Around 12:15 I began getting ready. I went over my bike, my dad went over my bike and she was dialed in. I kitted up and began my pre-ride warm up on the trainer at 12:50.  At 1:05 I finished with the 15 min warm up and then another 5 on my actual bike to finish it out. I gave myself 5 minutes to get to the line and take care of any last minute details and literally in the middle of JV C call ups (the category before mine) I had to relieve myself (#1). I gave my gloves to my teammate Jason Ganske for fear of leaving anything behind and took care of business, sorry for the TMI, but all you racers have been there one time or another right?! I made it back just as JV C finished rolling in and JV A was to be called. Shockingly this reduced some of my nerves. When I get to the line I completely focus and wipe everything out of my mind and I just focus on the countdown. I hear my mom yell "Maximum Effort" just before the count begins and then I go when the announcer says GO!

This start was a bit unusual from the rest of the season with the count being drawn out and a few riders jumped the gun and had to regroup before we took off.  On the first lap, Kyle Chromy and I set the pace,  swapping back and forth with Aiden Chapin in close 3rd.

This order and tempo stayed true until the first descent on the 2nd lap when all 3 of us got caught behind a lapped rider. Kyle and I had to go off trail and I got stuck, having to unclip and push which let Kyle and Aiden break away. Kyle proceeded to get a 15 second gap on me and Aiden had about 7 seconds.  On the switch back climb they both managed to put riders between us but I was able to stay strong and move past them. When we entered the feed zone I had closed the gap to about 5 seconds. Coming out of the feed zone Kyle and Aiden had tucked in behind Tyler Herbert my former teammate racing in JV C, this allowed me to catch them, tuck in, hydrate, regain energy and as we hit the first climb for the last time I was able to muster enough energy for one more good haul. Kyle followed me and it was a slugfest up the short steep climb. I was able to get the lead spot into the descent which allowed me to regain more energy up the switch back climb. There I lowered the tempo a bit just in case we came down to a sprint in the end. At the very top of the climb I was able to get past a lapped rider which split Kyle and I up and allowed me to get into the spectator valley with a little gap. My mouth was so dry I could barely talk. I passed my good buddy Cole Fiene, and he helped to call out to lapped riders that I was coming through. This was awesome to hear.

With the last 1/4 of the lap ahead being my favorite rocky descent the only thing going through my head was "tires down, don't crash!" As soon as I made the sweeping corner into the finish straight away I could not help but smile knowing that I would be in the Leader's Jersey later that day, which has been a dream of mine since starting High School Racing for NICA. With the win I was also able to tie with my buddy Kyle Chromy for the Overall on the Series.

Another highlight of the day was when I watched my good friend Jonah Sanchez win the Varsity race, clenching him the leaders jersey as well. He is graduating this year and this is well deserved. I will miss racing with him.

It has been a phenomenal year and one I will never forget. I have made many new friends and became closer with many old ones. I am giving back to my community as a Teen Trail Corp Captain and a member on the Sapwi Bike Park Committee bringing the first bike park in Conejo Valley. I travel almost every weekend to new places and ride alongside my heroes. I would not be able to do this without the love of my parents and sister, guidance of my coach Jason Ranoa and support of my extended mountain bike families the Ranoa's, Sanchez's, Chapin's, Miller's,Wray's, Conway's, DeBruhl's, Flanagan's,  Chitteroff's and many more, you help make me who I am today.
Also special thanks to my sponsors Ellsworth, RideFast, ESI grips, Scicon, ASG Sports, Rynopower, Ftech, Gup, Kenda MTB, Rudy, Tasco and Physiophyx.
Lastly, I finally learned how to attach pictures to my blog to make it more interesting!! Ha!