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Jul 31, 2023

Steamboat mountain bike team opens season on top

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The Steamboat High School Mountain Bike Team practiced for just two weeks before earning five podiums and an overall team victory in the Colorado High School Cycling League Series season opener Sunday in Frisco.

Despite having just 25 riders, coach Paul Majors said what the team lacks in size this year, it makes up for in results.

“The team is a little smaller than last year, but overall the team is a lot faster,” Majors said. “One of the things we do getting ready for the season is we do a time trial up Molly’s on Emerald. The average times for the team this year are much much faster than they were last year.”

The course in Frisco was on a new set of trails the team had not raced on before. Majors thought the 5.9-mile course was “pretty fast” but only had one strenuous climb throughout. He believes Steamboat’s trails are much more challenging, giving his team the advantage.

Varsity girls Mary McLarnon and Eva Minotto picked up where they left off last season, taking first and second, respectively, in their ride with McLarnon completing her three laps in 1 hour, 25:54 minutes.

Aidan Haack’s 1:13:05 time granted him second overall in the boys varsity race where he narrowly lost to the race winner in a sprint to the finish line.

In the early afternoon, the JV boys race was paused for lightning. The course was cleared for safety and it was determined the JV boys race and each race after would be cut to one lap instead of the usual two.

Steamboat’s Ryan Montgomery predicted this would happen at the start of the JV boys race and pushed hard early to take fourth overall.

“You can kind of see those storms coming, so we talked about it as a team and strategized to really go hard on that first lap because it might be the only one,” Majors said. “Ryan Montgomery was in fourth place after that first lap, and that was his strategy — to go hard on the first lap and see if there would be a second or not.”

Steamboat’s fifth podium came from Whitney Warnke in the freshman girls category. She completed the individual time trial race in 1:05:22, over a minute ahead of second place.

Steamboat Springs varsity boys bike rider, Aidan Haack, turns a corner during the Colorado High School Cycling League Series season opener in Frisco on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023. Haack earned second place in the race. Jeanne Mackowski/Courtesy Photo

Aidan Haack stands on his second-place podium following an impressive performance at the Colorado High School Cycling League Series season opener in Frisco on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023. Tom Skulski/Steamboat Pilot & Today

Mary McLarnon and Eva Minotto stand on the first and second-place podiums after incredible rides in the Colorado High School Cycling League Series season opener in Frisco on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023. Jeanne Mackowski/Courtesy Photo

Ryan Montgomery took fourth overall in his race of the Colorado High School Cycling League Series season opener in Frisco on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023, thanks to a smart strategy he devised prior to the start. Jeanne Mackowski/Courtesy Photo

Steamboat’s Whitney Warnke celebrates atop the first place podium of the freshman girls race in the Colorado High School Cycling League Series season opener in Frisco on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023. Jeanne Mackowski/Courtesy Photo

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Steamboat will host the next races of the season for the Yampa and Platte regions from Sept. 9-10, with the hometown team racing Sept. 9.

Majors said the team is excited to get on trails they are familiar with and hopefully remain on top with another Steamboat victory.

“This first race is not a fluke,” Majors said. “I think what we are going to see all season is us on top of the team podium. As the racers just get faster over the course of the season and we train them to be in even tougher shape, I think this is the first of many we are going to see.”

RESULTSCO MTB LeagueFrisco Bay InvitationalSunday, Aug. 27, 2023

Varsity Girls — 1. Mary McLarnon, 1:25:54.89. 2. Eva Minotto, 1:30:22.67. 7. Wren Capra, 1:35:46.61. 16. Jesse Weaver, 1:48:58.06. 17. Liz Lipscomb, 1:56:47.60.

Varsity Boys — 2. Aidan Haack, 1:13:05.55. 17. Thomas Miller, 1:22:37.43. 18. Primo Famiglietti, 1:23:08.21. 25. Kyan Strong, 1:25:17.96. 26. Curtis Zanni, 1:25:52.58. 28. Jace Rabesa, 1:26:59.96.

JV Boys — 4. Ryan Montgomery, 14:02.74. 19. Ian McLarney, 15:52.04. 46. Samuel Thomas, 17:18.94. 48. Stovin Briggs, 17:19.70. 87. Xavier Knott, 21:21.00.

Sophomore Girls — 20. Anna Boness, 43:20.50.

Sophomore Boys — 7. Luke Bedell, 56:34.47. 20. Mason Kemp, 1:01:24.49. 40. Elliot Nance, 1:06:16.64. 71. Jackson Sloop, 1:28:56.73.

Freshman Girls — 1. Whitney Warnke, 1:05:22.53. 10. Allison Reznicek, 1:16:11.11.

Freshman Boys — 7. Rowan Hanaughan, 1:04:27.20. 8. Oscar Libin, 1:05:21.53.

To reach Tom Skulski, call 970-871-4240, email [email protected].

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