To continue the exciting race season with the Colorado High School Cycling League, the Pagosa Springs DUST2 middle and high school teams participated in their second race of the season in Eagle on Sunday, Sept. 13, entering 16 riders.
The Haymaker Classic features a 6.0-mile counterclockwise lap that was specifically designed for the high school races.
The course includes 600 feet of climbing per lap at 6,600 feet of elevation with moderate singletrack climbs, bridges, short doubletrack roads and a thrilling slalom style descent to the finish. The last winding descent, The Corkscrew, provides a great opportunity for spectators to view competitors on course as they approach the finish.
The theme of this race was superheroes. DUST2 riders showed off their super attire on the preride and throughout the race day. Race themes boost spirit, and those who participate often receive recognition at the end of the event.
The race day started off early with a DUST2 athlete’s parent, Angela Sewell, singing the national anthem and the Middle School Mayhem Race.
This was the first year that the league held the Middle School Mayhem race, allowing seventh- and eighth-graders to compete with other races in a 3.5-mile course.
Four athletes from the Pagosa middle school team competed: Tyson Sewell (eighth grade), Rafe Halterman (seventh grade), Kylie Braun (eighth grade) and Felix Long (eighth grade).
Rolling out at 8:30 a.m. in a mass start formation, Long was the first to come into the finish with a time of 16 minutes, placing 11th overall out of 41 competitors. Sewell came in directly after with a time of 16 minutes, placing 12th. Halterman raced in shortly after with a time of 19 minutes placing 29th.
The girls’ racers began five minutes after the boys, and coming in with a very fast time was Braun with a time of 18 minutes, putting her in fourth place. Braun was the sole Pagosa Springs racer to podium.
The middle school racers had a great opportunity to see what racing was like as DUST2 middle school head coach Amanda Gadomski stated after the race, “This race was a fantastic introduction to competitive racing for our seventh and eighth graders. It was incredible watching them push themselves and get to measure their progress against other athletes. I hope that this experience lights a fire that fuels their growth as athletes for years to come.”
The next racers to embark were the JV and sophomore girls at 9:15 a.m., with two representative athletes in these categories. Gianna Schaeffer (junior) was the only JV girl rider for DUST2 and she rode two laps in 1 hour, 1 minute to place sixth out of 30, gaining 496 points for the team. Quinn Howard was the only DUST2 sophomore rider, and she raced in with a time of 1:06 to place ninth out of 26 to add 434 points.
Followed by a cloud of dust, the JV boys began two laps at 10:40 a.m., with three Pagosa riders.
Jackson Chaney (senior, legacy) was the first Pagosa rider to roll in with a time of 56 minutes to place 22nd (400 points). A legacy rider is an athlete who has ridden all four years of high school. Aaron Sowle (senior, legacy) was the next rider to race in with a time of 57 minutes, placing 25th (388 points). Henley Pickering (junior) came in shortly after with a time of 1:04, placing 56th out of 91 racers.
Rolling out at noon was the varsity racers for their three laps on the course, with two representative participants.
Justin Sewell (senior, legacy) was the only boy Pagosa racer, and he raced in with a time of 1:23, placing 21st out of 28 participants and gaining 440 points for the team. Adelyn Hittle, the only Pagosa racer in the girls’ category, came in with a time of 1:27, placing sixth out of 15 riders to add 531 points to the team total.
Racing in their first mass start, the freshman boys embarked next at 1:50 p.m., with one DUST2 athlete. Pushing through the heat, Elias Gorman came in with a time of 1:07 to place 26th out of 47 participants (344 points).
Rounding out the last category of the day, the sophomore boys took off at 3 p.m., with three Pagosa racers.
The first of the three to finish was Ward Halterman with a time of 57 minutes to place 17th out of 53 riders, adding 385 points to the total. Amon Phillips rode in shortly after with a time of 1:00 to place 26th (344 points). Drake Anderson raced in with a time of 1:02 to place 31st (326 points). Anderson impressively shaved 19 minutes off of his time for this course from last year.
Overall, the team ended with 4,088 points altogether with an impressive day of racing from all. The racers were able to become more comfortable with racing and bring their skills to not only the race itself, but also to the Yeti Skills zone, and the Eagle Bike Park.
All of the high school riders are excited to compete again at the Spring Valley Scramble in Glenwood Springs for the third race of the season on Sept. 26.
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