Prescott Park Race Report
Rogue Composite hosted race #4 and the final one of the Oregon League series at Prescott Park in Medford last weekend. The weather was perfect, with over 300 riders battling it out on probably the hardest course in the series. The vultures represented well with a podium in every category they had a rider in. After the exhausting race, many folks came out for the social at Dunbar Farms to watch a bike movie, eat tacos, and win raffle prizes. The State Championships will be a chance for the South Conference riders to battle it out against the best of the North Conference riders in a one day event in Klamath Fall on Oct 24th.
Congrats to ALL the podium finishers:
- Grant Heeter, 4th place 6th Grade Boys
- Ryder Sauer, 5th place 6th Grade Boys
- Bella Harrison, 3rd place 6th Grade Girls
- Piper Cohee, 4th place 6th Grade Girls
- Dylan Kuhl, 4th place 7th Grade Boys
- Tahvo Hansen, 5th place 7th Grade Boys
- Jade Savage, 2nd place 7th Grade Girls
- Claudia Stadtmueller, 4th place 7th Grade Girls
- Isa Culver, 1st place 8th Grade Girls
- Paige Cohee, 2nd place 8th Grade Girls
- Rhys Filloon, 5th place 8th Grade Boys
- Owen Kuhl, 1st place Freshman Boys
- Lindson Turner, 2nd place Freshman Boys
- Ossie Dunn, 3rd place Freshman Boys
- Malachi Minter, 4th place JV Boys
- Anders Giardino, 5th place JV Boys
Hood Do Good Race Report
23 Vultures and families travelled to the far reaches of Northern Oregon to race the Hood Do Good Race #3 of the 2021 series. Always a rider favorite due to its similarity to Ashland riding, the course offered shaded climbing single track on tacky dirt, finally merging onto a relentless fire road climb over a mile in length. The end nears as the trees give way to a meadow of bright fall colored foliage, and 1.5 miles of descending bike park trails back to the venue.
Many podiums, top ten finishes, and personal goals were achieved. The weather was perfect and despite the long drive, spirits were high among all riders.
With the next races in Medford and Klamath Falls, riders have positioned themselves nicely in the overall standings in the quest for a coveted Oregon League State Champion title.
Congratulations to our podium finishers:
- Piper Cohee, 3rd place 6th grade girls
- Paige Cohee, 1st place 6th grade girls
- Jade Savage, 4th place 7th grade girls
- Isa Culver, 3rd place 8th grade girls
- Dylan Kuhl, 1st place 7th grade boys
- Tahvo Hansen, 3rd place 7th grade boys
- Owen Kuhl, 2nd place Freshman boys
- Ossie Dunn, 3rd place Freshman boys
- Evan McKinney, 5th place Freshman boys
- Jade Rhode, 1st place Sophomore boys
- Malachi Minter, 5th place JV boys
Cascade Challenge Race Report
There was lots of uncertainty (and high AQI readings) surrounding Race #2 – Cascade Challenge leading up to the event. Even the pre-ride was cancelled due to the high AQI the night before and many of us were wondering if we made a weekend trip up to Bend just to see the Central Cascades in the haze. But we all woke up to a clear, crisp morning and the riders were ready to ride. The racers pushed themselves hard at this challenging course and had a blast. There were some mechanicals that we’ll need to address, but overall the Vultures soared high. We had many podiums:
- 1st place Dylan Kuhl (7th grade boys)
- 1st Place Isa Culver (8th grade girls)
- 2nd place Owen Kuhl (Freshman boys)
- 3rd place Piper Cohee (6th grade girls)
- 3rd place Jade Savage (7th grade girls)
- 3rd place Paige Cohee (8th grade girls)
- 5th place Grant Heeter (6th grade boys)
- 5th place Bella Harrison (6th grade girls)
- 5th place Claudia Stadtmueller (7th grade girls)
- 5th place Ossie Dunn (Freshman boys)
Newport Race Report
Our Middle and High School race team, Rogue Composite, saw 27 racers compete in multiple categories. The course was a mix of steep fire road climbs and singletrack mixed with roots and loam. There were several tricky, punchy climbs that riders needed to use their pumping and bike body separation to overcome. A crowd favorite was the Magic Carpet downhill zone where hecklers lined up to see riders flow over a section of rollers and root jumps.
13 riders lined up for their first ever NICA race, and our team saw the most female participants ever as 6 fast girls took to the course.
Some riders fought through mechanicals such as dropped chains, lost pivot bolts (uh oh!) and a loose axle. Some riders pushed harder than they had ever before, and some finished saying they could have left a little more out there.
A big congrats to all our podium finishers listed below:
6th Grade Girls
Piper Cohee, 3rd Place
Bella Harrison, 4th Place
7th Grade Girls
Claudia Stadtmueller, 4th Place
Jade Savage, 5th Place
8th Grade Girls
Isa Culver, 1st Place
Paige Cohee, 2nd Place
7th Grade Boys
Dylan Kuhl, 5th Place
Freshman Boys
Owen Kuhl, 3rd Place
Sophomore Boys
Jade Rohde, 1st Place
JV Boys
Malachi Minter, 5th place
In addition, we had several top 10 finishes in some of the larger fields.
We saw some great examples of teamwork and camaraderie, including one rider who said, “everyone was passing me, and I was just yelling great job to everyone,” with a big smile on his face. That’s what it’s all about!
Race #2 is at Mt. Bachelor in 2 weeks for some high alpine racing.
