By Mark Jespersen
It was the first race of the season as Carbon Mountain Bike Team (MTB) took to the trails at Manti along with the rest of Region 5, which includes 1,000 riders from seventh to 12th grade. The team has been working hard all summer at practices: working on their skills, endurance and confidence.
From the first race to the last, Carbon riders found themselves improving their placement in their categories and even finding the podium. Carson Taylor started the day off with an impressive two-minute lead, taking first place as an eighth grader. Betty Olson and Malia Smith also took the leader position with their first race. Michael Monson, a seventh grader, took a respectable second place in his category.
Our Jr. Devo team made for an exciting morning and turned the trails over to the high school group. With riders in almost every category, it was an adrenaline packed day. Riders really made the most of their race, beating expectations and setting themselves up for the next race by improving their position within their group.
Riders like James Tullis will have a target on their back at the next race as he took fist place in his freshman group. One of the more exciting races was Andrew Loveless. In one of the larger groups, Loveless started in 70 out of 71 positions. By the end of the second lap, Andrew passed 67 riders to finish second overall.
The next race for the Carbon team will be at Snowbasin. Send it, Carbon MTB!