Team Ned Coach Allison talking through the riders’ goals with each of them. PHOTO COURTESY OF JOELLE WISLER[/caption]

The Nederland High School Mountain Bike team had a great weekend at the Haymaker Classic, though a few of the riders had to battle through mechanical issues, flat tires, and crashes. The team is learning that it’s all a part of the love for mountain biking.

Senior Hayden Camp crushed his last regular season race and ended up 18th in the extremely competitive Varsity Boys race. He’s headed to state on October 22-23 in Glenwood Springs.

Additionally, two sophomores and two freshmen on the team are headed to state—Laila Waldron, Grayson Shurr, Halle Peiffer, and Samuel Harkness. Laila Waldron had a terrific third place finish, landing herself firmly on the podium and walking away with third overall for the season in the region. Grayson Shurr crashed midway through his second lap, but was still able to snag an 8th place finish.

Freshman Halle Peiffer had a challenging day in Eagle, getting a flat tire during her first lap.

Ezekiel Fitzer had a heartbreaker of a day for the final race of his high school career. His derailleur malfunctioned on the last lap, stealing his chance at making it to state. But he had a positive attitude about it saying, “There always seems to be some new technique to learn and a new trail to ride. I know I’ll continue to ride for years to come.”

Coach Allison Powers has been an integral part of all of the athlete’s success this year. Powers is one of the most accomplished cyclists in US cycling history. Having a coach of her caliber nurturing the Nederland High School team provides an exceptional experience for these young riders.

Her coaching style is mindful and kind and focuses on each athlete’s goals for riding their personal race. This helps them all feel successful while also pushing them to improve each race. As Ezekial Fitzer said, “Having been coached by Allison Powers for the past three years has really improved my riding, she’s a fantastic coach!”

All of the kids agreed that learning developmental skills as early as possible has been part of finding the joy in mountain biking. Fortunately, there are a lot of opportunities for Nederland kids to do this. They can start as early as first grade with Singletrack Mountain Bike Adventures (SMBA) which practices in the fall, spring, and summer. SMBA even has scholarships available each year that often don’t get used. And middle-schoolers have the opportunity to bike in the fall after school with the Nederland Middle School team, which is a great way to prepare for those high school races.

The Nederland team ended their season in second place in Division Three and we are so proud of all of our riders.

Race Day Results:

Laila Waldron, JV girls, 3rd place

Grayson Shurr, Sophomore boys, 8th place

Hayden Camp, Varsity boys, 18th place

Halle Peiffer, Freshman girls, 19th place

Samuel Harkness, Freshman boys, 42nd place

Ezekiel Fitzer, JV boys, 53rd place

Grizzly Steuck, Sophomore boys, 61st place

Gary Koziel, Freshman boys, 70th place