The Sedona School Mountain Bike Club and Mingus School Mountain Bike Club were represented well at the Arizona Cycling Association’s kickoff event at Fort Tuthill County Park in Flagstaff alongside 1,000 students representing 62 statewide teams on Saturday, Sept. 12, and Sunday, Sept. 13.
The weekend began with camping, building community and prepping bikes while students learned mechanical skills and took pride in their rides. Activities progressed to a team ride around the course. As usual the group prepared a high-quality, unprocessed meal to fuel the next day. Time around the campfire capped the evening, complete with learning guitar chords.
The course ran 5.8 miles at 7,000 feet of elevation. Sixth through eighth-grade boys and girls completed one lap. The number of laps increased by division, with varsity riders completing three to four laps. While some chose not to race, others caught the racing bug during the pre-ride and signed up at the last minute.
Sunday was race day, beginning with the sixth grade boys. Michael Farr placed 19th in his first ACA race.
For seventh grade, Max Holton and Gavin Goudreau placed 11th and 29th, respectively.
Hunter Brady finished 34th, and Jaxon “J.B.” Campbell placed 39th after repairing a flat tire during his race.
Among the middle school girls, sixth-grader Luciana Pugliano placed seventh, and eighth-grader Rowen Mandeville placed ninth.
High school riders also saw strong results. Danae Dearden placed third, Greyson Stevens took first in varsity, and newcomer Joseph Weiss won first place in his debut race Junior Varsity 2 race. Vincent Pugliano pushed for fifth in Junior Varsity 1, and Tyne Brady finished eighth in Junior Varsity 2. Quincy Mabery petitioned up to the varsity division and placed 16th.
The next race weekend takes place in two weeks in Prescott as the five-event season continues alongside hundreds of sixth through 12th-grade students.
The event made volunteer coaches and parents proud of the youth and teams, who remain grateful for the ongoing training and community support.
To become a student rider, to volunteer to coach after training or donate to our 501(c)(3) nonprofit which promotes “strong bodies, strong minds and strong character” call or text me at 928-254-7496.
Eric Mace is the head coach of the Sedona School Mountain Bike Club and Mingus School Mountain Bike Club.
