Durango High School Teams do it up in Granby

What a crew for Race # in Granby.  Everyone made a long trip super easy and fun.  Many people walked up to me during the race and told me how great the AHS/DHS  riders are and how they really appreciate them showing others good sportsmanship.  I really appreciated traveling with a group of kids that NEVER complained about anything.  They were always positive about the trip, the course, the race, etc.

We loaded the van at 8 am on Saturday morning and headed out after Rob from Bread hooked us up with lots of goodies!  Levi was the DJ and we cranked the tunes.  7 hours later we arrived in Granby at a YMCA that had everything:  horse shoes, cabins, trails, grassy fields, pool, etc.   Everyone picked a bunk bed and headed out on their pre-ride.  Quinn led out the AHS crew and the DHS crew was led by Sepp.  I tagged along:)  We learned a new word:  beautitude which we decided was a noun but it was fun to use it as a verb.  The course was super bumpy so I advocated for one pre ride lap to save everyone’s arms!    We then hit the pool and bedtime after some card games.  Big thank you to Sabina for cooking our yummy dinner!!

Race day was COLD..brrrrrr.  The girls warmed up in a lot of clothes and India even had on a down coat.  I slept out and my water bottle froze!   The Aspens were peaking and either bright yellow or yellow leaves on the trails.  India and Robin were first to go and their start was fast up a hill to a very fast descent.  India worked with a rider from Boulder to break away from the rest of the group.  It was a nail biter to watch them lap around.  I waited anxiously near the finish to see who would be coming in first.  It was India!  But, somewhere on the course, the two girls had formed a bond in which they would work together and finish together.  Right before the finish, India dismounted her bike to wait for the other Boulder rider.  They finished together.  The head coach from Fairview (the Boulder school) has emailed me to say how impressed he was with India and her good sportsmanship.  I, on the other hand, was not so thrilled!    But, I respect her decision and am impressed with her willingness fulfill an obligation….so long as she does not make that agreement out on the course again! Due to the cold, Robin had a tough race and never fully warmed up.  We decided that she may race colder than others and should plan on arm warmers even if the rest of the field is not in them.  Knowing what to wear for morning starts times can be tricky.

Bryce, Charie, and Quinn were up next.  Charlie, division leader, wore the leader’s jersey and got called up to have a great starting position.  Bryce had a descent position, but spent most of the first lap passing to catch up.  On lap 1, Charlie was in the lead with Bryce close behind.  Bryce made his move 1/2 way into the second lap and was able to hold on for the win.  Both Charlie and Bryce had phenonmenal races!  Quinn was so cool and calm in his first race.  He looked like a natural and finished mid pack amoungst a big group of div 2 Sophomores.  He had a perfect first race!

Next up were Nano, Jack, Sepp, Stephen and Levi.  The 3 varsity boys made up 3/4 of the starting line.  It was a fast, flat course and they knew they had to go out hard.  Sepp quickly got the lead with 4 varsity riders close behind.  He increased his gap as the race progressed.  Stephen held his position and was making the bumpy terrain look like smooth riding.  Levi had a tough first lap, but then came on strong in lap 3 and 4.  Being on the course with 100 other riders is no small feat when trying to pass.  These guys did great on a course that had plenty of spots that created hard terrain to pass on.  Nano and Jack also had great starts with Nano getting the call up.  Nano was in 2nd for lap 1 and 2 and the varsity girls and I were very eager for it was seeming to be the race of his life!  He stayed calm and rode very hard.  In the end he was passed, but he gave it 110% and just seeing him in the front gave me shivers!  He finished with a podium finish.  Jack also spent much of his race passing and he looked like he had a motor on his bike he was flying!

Loaded up the van and missed awards so we could have a pre-midnight arrival.  But AHS is now in the lead with DHS in 12th (the scoring works such that not having a girl race really hurts the overall team scoring.  But, if we get Sierra, Kaylee and whoever else, DHS will move back up in no time).  I have not seen individual overall, but I’m guessing we have a few in the overall leader jersey again!

Next race is in Elbert (outside Colorado Springs).  It is the same weekend as my cousin’s wedding in Boulder.  So, I can offer to drive the van on Friday, but everyone would have to leave school early and be ok with me not being there until pick up on Sunday.  Probably not ideal!  Would be great to get a crew there to maintain school scoring and get some more races under us!  We just may need parent help for this one!

Race #2 Granby Results

1st India Waller/ Varsity Girls

12th Robin Austin/ Varsity Girls

1st Sepp Kuss/ Varsity Boys

4th Levi Kurlander/ Varsity Boys

5h Stephen Davoust/ Varsity Boys

4th Nathanael Rodd/ JV Boys (46 riders)

8th Jack Hewitt/ JV Boys

23rd Quinn Haughey/ Sophomore Boys

1st Bryce Gordon/ Freshmen Boys (33 riders)

2nd Charlie Greenberg/ Freshmen Boys

Overall D2:

1st Animas

2nd  Green Mountain Composite

3rd Grand Vallley

12th DHS

Over all D1:

1st Boulder

2nd Fairview

3rd Vail

387 racers from 39 schools