Fall weather brings mountain bikers successful race day 

Panther Creek State Park near Morristown, Tennessee hosted the fourth race of the mountain bike team's 2023 season, and despite the long-dreaded hill climb and 40-degree temperatures to start the day, Tiger cyclists inched their way up the standings, once again grabbing some top 10 finishes and also securing our first podium spot — top 3 — of the season.
 
By Steve Smail, Website Manager, HS Science & Art Teacher, and Mountain Bike Team Head Coach

The Panther Creek trails present somewhat of a dilemma for the Tigers because the nature of this particular trail deserves some advance reconnaissance, but at four hours away on the far side of Knoxville, the team's only real chance to pre-ride this course is the day before the event. The course consists of a tough introductory grass climb, followed by a few miles of twisty and up and down singletrack and then a short rocky section with a “crux” rock boulder, followed by a flat but nearly mile long gravel and grass section that leads riders back to the starting hill for multiple laps.
 
The girls category waves started the day and had an extra double challenge of temperatures still in the 40s and some very wet  — and slow  — grass to start the race. Senior Maya Guha '24 averaged 37 minutes for each of the two laps, finishing 11th. Eighth Grader Hannah Mackler '28, who rode upgraded into the ninth grade category, pulled off a great race performance, finding the legs to clock in 27-minute and 28-minute laps, finishing second out of nine competitors and securing USN’s first podium spot for the season. This marks a solid milestone for Hannah’s individual performance and a big boost to the team early in the race day.

Our amazing group of eighth grade girls also powered through their laps with Maggie Weiss '28 breaking an hour for her two laps and finishing in 59:39, which secured her a top-10 finish in eighth place (not too far from finishing in fifth place). Adeline Miller '28 also found her race legs during the day, pulling out two laps and finishing 13th in 78 minutes. Asha Guha '28 and Nora Maragno '28 rode closely together, completing a single lap in about 45 minutes. Sixth Grader Mac Perry '30 had a great, single 40-minute lap, finishing 9th out of 11 competitors to complete the girls waves of racing.
 
Our five middle school boys also showed up ready to ride hard with Eighth Graders Seth Hauser '28, Aidan Harris '28, Basil Broemel '28, and Garrett Northwall '28 representing the Tigers. Seth and Aidan flew through their first lap in 32 minutes, and Seth maintained a 33-minute second lap while Aidan was not too far behind at 37 minutes. Basil and Garrett both clocked in single laps at just above 40 minutes each. Sixth Grader Peter Weiss '30 flew through his one-lap race in just 30:22, finishing 17th out of 35 riders. Points for Middle School were from the finishes of the Maggie and Peter, Adeline, and Asha, giving the squad a 13th place finish out of 24 teams. Overall, the team inched up into 12th place out of 26 teams and have a great opportunity to break into the team top 10 if it can maintain strong riding through its last race in Chattanooga on October 22. 
 
Our determined High School boys category race crew took note from the strong Hannah/Maya performances earlier in the day and capitalized on drier conditions and some warmer temps. Seniors Christopher Haynes '24 and Benjamin Kampine '24 raced junior varsity boys along with Juniors Leo Frein '25 and Tate Green '25. Benjamin clocked in a ferocious 22-minute first lap with Leo just a minute behind, and both maintained or improved over laps two and three with consistent 23-minute laps, finishing only 30 seconds apart in 15th and 17th. Benjamin and Tate matched each other nearly to the second through three laps, finishing only a second apart in a sprint finish after 79 minutes of effort. Freshman Charlie Blau '27 and Avery Savona '27 both started strong on their first lap, but Charlie slowed due to stomach issues during his second lap. Avery continued to motor through, finishing two laps in just under 52 minutes or good for 30th place out of a field of 50 freshman boys. Overall, the High School team received points from the finishes of Hannah, Maya, Benjamin, and Leo, landing them in 14th for the day and 17th overall for the race series. Hannah’s second place finish effectively puts her in the top five overall, and Christopher has moved into the top 20 of 72 junior varsity boys riders. 
 
Our mountain bikers are entering top form for our final and state championship race at Raccoon Mountain outside of Chattanooga on Sunday, October 22. On a tough course with an incredibly tricky and technical two- mile section, riders will need legs, lungs, strategy, and possibly some luck in busy “trail traffic” to ride their final race laps of the season cleanly and consistently. Several riders have the results at this point to stay or move into the top 10 of their competitive fields with some overall season podiums also possibility. After 11 years of mountain bike racing at USN, we know that this last race introduces many variables for individual and team scoring, and riders not near the top of the standings also contribute valuable team points for race finishes. However, over the many moments of an hour of racing or more, our riders know that calm, consistency and confidence in their skills and fitness will be the most important factors to their races ... and ultimately, the complex calculus that determines individual and team standings across nearly 500 riders and 30 teams. See all the details of this reason’s results so far here, and all state championship race details here.
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