15 of 42 racers In Boys Cat 1 17-18 were from NorCal & SoCal Leagues. While fine boys from Ft.Follins and Durango took 1&2, 3rd through 6th were NorCal varsity racers Tony Smith (Marin Catholic), Will Curtis (2010 Varsity Champ, San Rafael), Chris Bennett (El Cerrito), and Nicolas Newcomb (Drake). Cody Kaiser (El Dorado Hils) was 9th, Alex Stevenson was 11th (Berkeley), Max Houtzager (Redwood)12th and Riley Predum (Drake)15th. That is 8 out of the top 15!
In Girls Cat 1 17-18 Drakes Sophia Hamilton took 2nd.
In Boys Cat 2 15-18 Branson's Sven Beer won with team mate Eliel Antilla in 3rd and Jacob Albrecht from Santa Cruz in 5th.
I guess what I am seeing is that after 10 years of development organized High School racing is making a difference a the highest levels. No longer do we have to rely on those random self-developing talents which used to survive on their own. Now they are getting supported. Outreach is finding talents which might never have raced, good athletes who might have played other sports, and generating an incredibly fertile mountain biking community.
It is also speaks to the idea that how mountain biking has been understood, conceptualized, and communicated has merit. This is a critical idea, especially in a sport which has been largely learned by trial and error by independent efforts. What we don't see here in the numbers is that the kids still have fun.
Pretty dang cool.
In Girls Cat 1 17-18 Drakes Sophia Hamilton took 2nd.
In Boys Cat 2 15-18 Branson's Sven Beer won with team mate Eliel Antilla in 3rd and Jacob Albrecht from Santa Cruz in 5th.
I guess what I am seeing is that after 10 years of development organized High School racing is making a difference a the highest levels. No longer do we have to rely on those random self-developing talents which used to survive on their own. Now they are getting supported. Outreach is finding talents which might never have raced, good athletes who might have played other sports, and generating an incredibly fertile mountain biking community.
It is also speaks to the idea that how mountain biking has been understood, conceptualized, and communicated has merit. This is a critical idea, especially in a sport which has been largely learned by trial and error by independent efforts. What we don't see here in the numbers is that the kids still have fun.
Pretty dang cool.
