HS MTB Team Helps Initiate New Season and League at First-ever Race
by Steve Smail
Six HS students competed in the brand-new Tennessee HS mountain bike league's inaugural race on Sunday in Tullahoma.
Six HS students competed in the brand-new Tennessee HS mountain bike league's inaugural race on Sunday in Tullahoma.
After two years of administrative groundwork, the NICA-TN league (tennesseemtb.org) held its first-ever mountain bike race, open to high schoolers from across the state.
On a perfect Sunday morning, USN's team fielded 6 riders from all HS grades for a 12 mile race on a 6 mile loop through tight forested single-track on the AEDC facility near Tullahoma.
Senior Natascha Heckers (who had just competed a cross-country race the day before) was one of only 3 girls entered in the JV/Varsity race. She finished second and earned a trip to the podium for the awards ceremony.
Junior Skye Cameron, who just finished his golf season earlier in the week, battled a large JV boys field, a 2nd lap crash, and several drivetrain mechanical issues during his race but still managed to ride two sub-40 minute laps. Sophomore Sam Markland turned in the team's best lap time of the day at just over 34 minutes on his way to an 8th-place finish in the Sophomore Boys category. Classmates Kevin Chen and Addison Prichard along with Freshman Josh Gabella rode strongly in their first mountain bike races.
Coach Greg O'Loughlin commented on the team's first day of racing: "The team has spent a good deal of time preparing for their first race and it paid off. It was a learning experience for us as a team as well as for the Tennessee High School Cycling League. We have three more races to go for the season and I think each racer has a better understanding of how they can prepare and improve their performance now that we have a race under our belt. Two coaches from other teams made a point of expressing how impressed they were with the sportsmanship and poise of our racers. That was a big win for the day."
Full results can be found here:
http://www.nationalmtb.org/results/tennessee/2013/RiderResults1.html
The team's next race is Sunday, October 6 on a tricky and technical race loop near the St. Andrews/Sewanee campus. More info can be found at: http://www.tennesseemtb.org/events/races/
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On a perfect Sunday morning, USN's team fielded 6 riders from all HS grades for a 12 mile race on a 6 mile loop through tight forested single-track on the AEDC facility near Tullahoma.
Senior Natascha Heckers (who had just competed a cross-country race the day before) was one of only 3 girls entered in the JV/Varsity race. She finished second and earned a trip to the podium for the awards ceremony.
Junior Skye Cameron, who just finished his golf season earlier in the week, battled a large JV boys field, a 2nd lap crash, and several drivetrain mechanical issues during his race but still managed to ride two sub-40 minute laps. Sophomore Sam Markland turned in the team's best lap time of the day at just over 34 minutes on his way to an 8th-place finish in the Sophomore Boys category. Classmates Kevin Chen and Addison Prichard along with Freshman Josh Gabella rode strongly in their first mountain bike races.
Coach Greg O'Loughlin commented on the team's first day of racing: "The team has spent a good deal of time preparing for their first race and it paid off. It was a learning experience for us as a team as well as for the Tennessee High School Cycling League. We have three more races to go for the season and I think each racer has a better understanding of how they can prepare and improve their performance now that we have a race under our belt. Two coaches from other teams made a point of expressing how impressed they were with the sportsmanship and poise of our racers. That was a big win for the day."
Full results can be found here:
http://www.nationalmtb.org/results/tennessee/2013/RiderResults1.html
The team's next race is Sunday, October 6 on a tricky and technical race loop near the St. Andrews/Sewanee campus. More info can be found at: http://www.tennesseemtb.org/events/races/
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Fax: 615-321-0889
Email: info@usn.org
River Campus
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2000 Edgehill Ave.
Nashville, TN 37212
Phone: 615-321-8000
Fax: 615-321-0889
Email: info@usn.org
River Campus
1200 County Hospital Road
Nashville, TN 37218
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University School of Nashville models the best educational practices. In an environment that represents the cultural and ethnic composition of Metropolitan Nashville, USN fosters each student’s intellectual, artistic, and athletic potential, valuing and inspiring integrity, creative expression, a love of learning, and the pursuit of excellence.
University School of Nashville models the best educational practices. In an environment that represents the cultural and ethnic composition of Metropolitan Nashville, USN fosters each student’s intellectual, artistic, and athletic potential, valuing and inspiring integrity, creative expression, a love of learning, and the pursuit of excellence.