Georgia State Championship Series #1--Farmington, GA (3/27/11)

OK....so my dad couldn't wait 2 weeks to race in North Carolina and decided that we should go up to Georgia to do the first race of the Georgia State Championship Series in Farmington. Mom has been sick ever since the last race, so it was just my dad and me on this trip.

We left right after my dad got off of work on Saturday, so we didn't get to pre-ride anything the day before like we usually do. We also missed out on the time trial. Apparently, the time trial got rained out too, so anybody who signed up to participate got extra points. Bummer.

When we got to our motel, it was still raining, and it rained until we left in the morning. We found out when we got to the park that the start/finish line and all the racers' pits were under the cover of a pavillion. That was pretty cool.

With it being so wet, my dad and I decided to pre-walk the course for the Kids 9-11 race instead of riding it. By race time, it wasn't raining anymore, but it was getting cold, and I wonder if that's why not too many kids showed up.



This is my serious mountain biker pose.

Dad decided to make a video of all the kids out racing instead of breaking it up into classes, since there weren't many there. The 3 to 5 year olds were my favorite, and the kids on training wheels were so cute, but one little guy without training wheels blew them all away. You can see the action in the video below. Video from my dad's race can be seen at mtbmike.com.



The race was fun, even though it was really wet and muddy on the trail. My jersey and pants were completely covered in orange mud. I knew my mom was going to have a heart attack when she saw it, because it was going to be hard to get clean, but I was hoping my first place finish would make up for it. :)


Because it was so cold and wet out, I didn't ride in the Juniors 11-14 class this time, but I can't wait to try it out next week in Bryson City.

SERC/US Cup East #1--Gainesville, Florida (3/20/11)

The SERC/US Cup East Series started last weekend with the first race taking place at Haile's Trails in Gainesville. It's been about a month since the last race of the Coconut Cup and I was ready to get back into series racing. My goal is to win the series for the 9-11 year olds and to possibly place in the Juniors 11-14 class.

It was a very damp and foggy start to the kids race and I got covered from head to toe in mud.

I wanted to get a good start going into the woods and I did. I got out in front and stayed there all three laps. Even though I got a little tired, I didn't stop because I really wanted to win this race. At the end, I came in first, with my friend Bryce taking second. I was really excited!

You can watch the video of the kids' race below.

This week, my friend Kyley, who was my partner at the 12 Hours of Santos, raced in her first solo race in the girls class. She did great and came in second place! We were all very proud of her.



Kyley at the start of the race. She's the one in blue.



My dad put together a special video of the girls race and the 6-8 year olds' races.

Right after the kids' races were done, I had to get ready to line up for the Juniors' 11-14 race. I was pretty nervous about this one because I didn't pre-ride the whole course the day before. We had been at the airport or on a plane from 8:30 Friday night until 11:30 Saturday morning and we went straight to Haile's Trail from the Jacksonville airport. Kyley and her uncle met us there with our bikes. I was so tired I could barely even ride it and had to bail out half way through, but my mom convinced me that I should at least give the race a try because it would be good experience racing the longer distance against older kids. So I did, and it was tough!

I started out in 5th behind my friend Trent, and with Bryce right behind me, but I think all the traveling from Colorado the day before started to get to me. I got very tired and frustrated during the second lap and couldn't make it up hills that I was able to climb on the first lap. I came in dead last (which was really disappointing!), but at least I finished the race and had a win earlier. Trent and Bryce both made it to the podium--Trent in 3rd and Bryce in 5th.

My dad and I both got first place finishes. It was my dad's first time finishing in first. He was so happy. You can watch the video of his race at mtbmike.com

In 2 weeks we travel to North Carolina for the second SERC race. I can't wait to try mountain biking on actual mountains! Wish me luck.

A Special Spring Break Edition of Mountain Bike Mike

The past week has been really exciting for me. First of all, it was Spring Break, so that meant no school. Secondly, my family and I took a trip out to Colorado to visit friends and do some skiing. It was my first time seeing that much snow and my first time skiing.

This is me on a hike up to the top of Horsetooth Mountain. Isn't the view beautiful?



Me, my dad, and my brother, Ryan at Keystone



Although nothing is as fun as mountain biking, skiing is definitely near the top of the list of my favorite things to do.

LiveStrong YMCA Mountain Bike Challenge--Lakeland, FL (2/27/11)

This past weekend, my mom, dad, and I took a break from series racing to participate in a charity race put on by Red Trail Racing at Loyce Harpe Park (used to be Carter Road Park) in Lakeland, Florida. The name of the race was the LiveStrong YMCA Mountain Bike Challenge and it was held to raise money for the Lakeland YMCA.

All three of us participated in the race. It was my mom's first time and she was pretty nervous. The trail was kind of hard in some places, with some really steep drops and a lot of climbing. I didn't have too much trouble with it, but Mom thought it was the hardest course she'd ever ridden. To get some idea of what the course was like, check out a few pictures taken of the trail, and my dad's video of the race at MTBMike.com.

Even though it was tough riding, the park was really pretty. Mom even saw a little alligator in one of the lakes while she was riding.

When the race was over and the results were in, we found out that all of us had done very well.

Dad raced in the "Serious" men's class and placed third.

Mom raced in the "Fun" women's class and placed third.

I raced in the Junior's 10-17 year-old class and I also placed third behind some boys that were much older and taller than me. Boy was I excited! I tried to do a wheelie at the finish line, but I was so exhausted that my wheel only got about an inch off the ground.

It was a great day for the family and we were all smiles. Mom also won the grand prize in the raffle; a 6-month free membership to the Lakeland YMCA. Because we don't live there and she couldn't use it, she gave it back and took a t-shirt instead. I also won a t-shirt in the raffle. My dad was the only one in the family who didn't win anything, but a lady who was helping run the event gave him a LiveStrong bandana anyway. Mom and I got to pose on the podium with all of the other t-shirt winners for a group photo that we were told "might" be part of a national campaign for the LiveStrong Foundation. How cool is that?

12 Hours of Santos--Ocala, Florida (2/19/11)

This past weekend, Gone Riding hosted a great event at my home trails--The 12 Hours of Santos. My dad and I went down and set up camp on Friday, along with some of our friends, and spent the night before the race at the Vortex. It was a lot of fun!


Our campsite. Our tent is actually the blue one in the back. Bryce and his dad slept in the orange one.



By the time my mom made it over in the morning, there were hundreds of tents, campers, and RVs set up, and all kinds of people with bikes riding around all over the place. Everybody seemed really excited about the up-coming race.

Before the start of the adult race, there was a kids race called the 12 Minutes of Santos. I signed up to ride as a team with my friend Kyley. It was her first time racing and we wanted her to have a good experience. In years past, there were several relay teams doing the race, but this year, we were the only team. Everyone else rode it solo, including my friend, Bryce. We did really well, being the only two racers who could rest between laps, and came in first. Bryce did an awesome job riding the course without a partner and came in 2nd.

Of course, it wouldn't be a race without video to share, so here's this week's video below.

After the kids race was over, the actual 12 hour race started. There were tons of people lined up at the start, including my dad. They had to run up a long hill and through the park gate to where they had placed their bikes. Then, they had to get on their bikes and ride through all the people in order to really start the race. It was mass chaos!

While all the racing action was going on, those of us not racing enjoyed hanging out and playing together. The moms made lots of food and when it got dark, we had a campfire where we roasted hot dogs and made s'mores.

My dad's team came in first in the co-ed division. He was so excited.

Our friends' team came in 3rd in their class and the youngest team in the whole race, 'Underage Rage!' made up of my friends Trent and Nicho, and their friends, Austin and Cameron, actually beat 5 other grown-up teams to place 8th. They were amazing (and very tired too, I bet)!!!

3 Fugitives: Mr. Donovan, Mr. Kovi, Mr. Fernando



Underage Rage: Trent, Cameron, Nicho & Austin

It was a really fun event!  My dad made a couple of videos of the 12 hour race that can be seen on MTBMike.com.

Coconut Cup #6/South Florida Series Championship Finale--Oleta River State Park (02/13/11)



The last race of the Coconut Cup took place at Oleta River State Park in North Miami Beach, Florida. We got to Oleta on Saturday to pre-ride the course. It was our first time riding there and we had heard that it was a rooty, rocky trail, and sure enough, it was.

The day was kind of gray, windy, and chilly, so we didn't spend a lot of time at the park on Saturday. When we went back to the parking lot, Trent's sister, Lily, climbed up a tree and got the surprise of her life when she came face to face with this cute little guy. He was probably more scared than her at first, but he seemed to get used to us and all the moms taking his picture.



The  race itself was not one of my best. I fell off a

bridge near the beginning and that got me in a bad mood for the rest of the race (which didn't make things better). I also slipped on some loose rocks later and was mad at myself for messing up. Some good things did happen though. Nicho was back to race, after hurting his ankle several weeks ago and missing the last 2 races while it healed. Also, Bryce got a good start and finished in third place behind Nicho. Unfortunately, I came in fourth.

 

After the white and yellow wave classes were done, there was a picnic and overall awards for the season. Trent had a perfect season with 6 first place finishes, I came in second, and Bryce got third. The prizes were really cool! We got a plaque as a trophy and a jersey. Mine is a bright yellow and Bryce got red. We wanted to trade, because he liked mine better and my favorite color is red, but his mom didn't want us to, so we ended up keeping the ones we got. I also got a pair of long gloves (which will come in handy when I race in the SERC series starting next month), some new handlebar grips, and a new tire. I feel like a professional racer with all this stuff! It was another great season and I hope to see everybody again at more races in the future.



Cocunut Cup #5--Markham Park (1/30/11)

The fifth race in the Coconut Cup series took place at Markham Park in Sunrise, Florida.

On Saturday, my family and I came over to pre-ride the course. Uncle Louie followed us to the park and rode a little bit with us. This was only his second time on the mountain bike trails after a long time of not riding. He did okay on the kids' course, but when my dad suggested he try the more difficult trails, Uncle Louie didn't do so great. In fact, he went over his handle bars on one tough downhill drop and got scratched up. My mom got mad at my dad and then they bailed out of the trail. She and Uncle Louie decided to ride the "cruiser loop" around the lake instead, while my dad and I continued with some other friends who caught up to us. After a while, the trail got to be very difficult for me and I went back to the parking lot to play with my friends.


Getting ready for a Nerf war

Sunday's race was a lot of fun. We did 3 laps for a total of 3 miles. Trent and I exchanged the lead several times (including one big wipe out going into the woods).

On the third lap I thought I had the race won because I got way ahead, but then I came up on lap traffic in the woods, which allowed Trent to catch up.

In the end, he passed me just before we got to the gate and beat me AGAIN. I was VERY frustrated to lose the lead one more time, but I got over it and congratulated Trent on the win. Watch the video of the race below.



After the race, Trent, Bryce and I led the 3-5 year-olds around for their lap and then went to play. Bryce and Trent taught me to do a wheelie. It was a great day!

My dad and me. He got 4th place in his class.

 **Mountain Bike Mike would like to thank Mrs. Kovi for the action photos I "borrowed" for this blog.**