by Libby Hurley —  photos Todd Bauer MN League Photographer

First H.S. Mountain Bike Race in MN.

Starting another exciting Fall Season, Buck Hill, became the location for the first race in 2014, of the MN High School Cycling League’s mountain bike racing on Sunday, September 7th. Attending were over 425 racers, from 41 teams, who poured in from all parts of Minnesota (Duluth, Crosby-Ironton, Rochester and cities all over the Twin Cities) – the Buck Hill Parking lot was overflowing with tents, bikes and gear from 41 teams!

“Race #1 was a huge success. A heart-felt thank you to each and everyone of our coaches, volunteers, parents and athletes – without you, our continued exponential growth would not be possible,” said MN League Director, Josh Kleve. “We’re all looking forward to another four races yet this season.”

In Varsity Boys, Duluth Composite and Duluth East HS dominated the race and took the top 3 slots. Samuel Olson from Duluth Composite team took the Leaders place with seconds to spare in front of Samuel Hayden from Duluth East. Josey Weik from Duluth Composite took the third slot.

Varsity Girls had veteran racers Jordan Horner from Burnsville taking the Leaders Spot with over a 4 minute lead. Battling for the second slot was Claire Ommen from Rochester Composite and newcomer Anna Christian from Washburn High School. Claire took the second slot with Anna taking third just seconds behind.

Another close finish: Sophomore Boys D1 – Nathan Latz from Hopkins beat Michael Davis from Duluth East HS to the finish by 13 seconds! And, then, Nathan Edstrom from Hopkins, was only 3 seconds behind Michael, to take third place.

Race #2 of a series of five is this Sunday, September 21st, in St. Cloud, Minn. – Find more information below.

Race Results and Photos

Individual results are now posted to the minnesotamtb.org site. Middle School and Team Results are posted below.

Individual Race Results:

Freshman Girls:
1. Moriah Johnson — Duluth East High School
2. Ellie Pfeiffer — Prior Lake High School
3. Hannah Brown — Stillwater HS
4. Katia Swanson — Lakeville North High School
5. Siri Bohacek — Stillwater HS

Freshman Boys – D1
1. Ian Derauf — Duluth East High School
2. Sebastien Frimat — Edina Mountain Bike Team
3. Bowdy Gustafson — Edina Mountain Bike Team
4. Shawn Higgins Jr — Duluth East High School
5. Jack Lange — Stillwater HS

Freshman Boys – D2
1. Braeden Anderson — Cuyuna Lakes Mountain Bike Team
2. Stephen Hatt — Lakeville North High School
3. Mason De Keyrel — White Bear Lake High School
4. Alex Sipe — Wayzata Mountain Bike Team
5. Gavin Yares — Washburn High School

Sophmore Girls
1. Amanda Susnik — Duluth East High School
2. Madeline Pernat — Chanhassen High School
3. Nikita Finnerty — Crosby Ironton
4. Kali Meckle — Washburn High School
5. Sophie Dirnberger — Hopkins High School

Sophmore Boys – D1
1. Nathan Latz — Hopkins High School
2. Michael Davis — Duluth East High School
3. Nathan Edstrom — Hopkins High School
4. Mitchell Melin — Hopkins High School
5. Daniel Mondale — Hopkins High School

Sophmore Boys – D2
1. Connor Rono — Crosby Ironton
2. Will Curtis — St. Paul Central
3. Xavier Mansfield — Minneapolis Patrick Henry High School
4. Luke McDonell — Highland Park High School
5. Rowdy Larson — Roseville Area Composite

Junior Varsity Girls:
1. Josie Welsh — Armstrong Cycle Club
2. Sophie Farrow — Duluth East High School
3. Sydney Carlson — Apple Valley HS
4. Ellie Hedlund — MPLS Southside Compsite
5. Ashley Ball — Prior Lake High School

Junior Varsity Boys – D1
1. Collin Maynard — Hopkins High School
2. Francis Delaney — Edina Mountain Bike Team
3. Jason Colestock — Edina Mountain Bike Team
4. Brandan Eisma — Prior Lake High School
5. Carter Eng — Hopkins High School

Junior Varsity Boys – D2
1. Luke Doolittle — Eastview High School
2. Campbell Karjala — Bloomington Composite
3. Nathan Bich — Duluth Composite Team
4. Wyatt Furois — Roseville Area Composite
5. Dylan Anderson — Crosby Ironton

Varsity Girls
1. Jordan Horner — Burnsville High School
2. Claire Ommen — Rochester Composite
3. Anna Christian — Washburn High School
4. Cianna Swanson — Lakeville North High School
5. Nicole Schneider — Independent HS

Varsity Boys
1. Samuel Olson — Duluth Composite Team
2. Samuel Hayden — Duluth East High School
3. Josey Weik — Duluth Composite Team
4. Marcus Warrington — Independent HS
5. Ethan Depman — Rochester Composite

Middle School and Team Race Results:
These results are still under evaluation and will be posted later this week.

2014 MN High School Cycling League venues and dates:
9/7 – Race #1 – Buck Hill, Burnsville, MN
9/21 – Race #2 – Jail Trail, St. Cloud, MN directions
10/5 – Race #3 – Game Haven, Rochester, MN
10/12 – Race #4 – Mt. Kato, Mankato, MN
10/26 – Race #5 – State Championships: Whitetail Ridge, River Falls, WI
11/1 – Season Awards Banquet

Additional Race and MN League Information
MN League website: www.minnesotamtb.org
MN League Facebook page: www.facebook.com/MinnesotaMTB
MN League Twitter: twitter.com/MinnesotaMTB

About the Minnesota High School Cycling League
The Minnesota High School Cycling League, founded in 2012, serves all Minnesota high school and middle school-aged students, and regardless of ability level, is committed to providing a positive co-ed cycling experience. Each MN League season includes summer camps, a five-race series, wilderness first aid certification courses and a Spring Leaders’ Summit for training and certification of coaches. The MN League exists by virtue of a range of fundraising activities, as well as generous donors, and MN League sponsors including the founding national sponsor, Specialized Bicycle Components; as well as establishing NICA sponsors Easton Foundations, SRAM, and Trek Bicycles; major sponsors, Giro, Clif Bar and Company, Primal Wear, Quality Bicycle Products, GU Sports, Cannondale, Kinetic, Maxxis, CamelBak, Feedback Sports, Optic Nerve, Easton, Athletic Event Supply, Fort Lewis College, Lees McRae, Fox Racing Shox, Sho-Air, Yakima, Lizard Skins, DeFeet and Ritchey Designs; media partners Bicycle Retailer, Dirt Rag, Singletracks, Switchback and Cyclingnews. MN League specific sponsors include Founding Retailers Penn Cycle and Erik’s Bike and Board Shop, AAA, Mt. Borah, Life Time Cycle, Minnesota Mountain Bike Series, Salsa, Peace Coffee Racing, Park Tool, Karma Race Management, Ipsity Marketing, HaveFunBiking.com, Trailhead Cycling and Valley Bike and Ski. For more information on the MN League, visit minnesotamtb.org.