September 16, 2021 at 7:08 a.m.
Back on the trails
RNC mountain bike team returns to competition for first time since 2019
Back on the trails
That changed this past Sunday as the WHSCL opened its 2021 season at Minooka Park in Waukesha.
Overall, the Hodag mountain bikers did well - with six of the 18 athletes who competed finishing on the podium in their respective divisions. But RNC head coach Jon Lester said the 22-month gap between the Sunday's race and the team's last competition underscored the fact that there is more to the sport than results.
"It's a lifelong sport that they can do anytime, they can pick up anytime," he said. "I think that's mostly what they got out of it. You don't need the competition necessarily, the competitive aspect of it to still have fun and ride your bike."
Though the 2020 WHSCL season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, calling it a year off for the RNC squad - which pulls in riders from several area high schools, including Rhinelander, Lakeland, Three Lakes and Tomahawk - would be a misnomer.
The team gathered for practice last July like it usually would, preparing just in case there would be competition. When the word came that races wouldn't happen, the team rode on anyway late into the fall. There were adventure rides, different games and even a late-season night trek through falling snow on the Three-Eagle Trails between Eagle River and Three Lakes.
"We did some different adventures things with the athletes and it was a blast," Lester said. "We played mountain bike scrabble out here on the course where we set up letters and had the athletes pick a word and have to go get the letters out on the course. We visited other trail systems, things like that. We made the best of it."
Through it all, Lester said, the squad actually grew in numbers. The program has 32 riders, though not all of them ride competitively.
"Nor do they have to," he said. "They can just come to practice, learn mountain biking skills and have fun because they don't want to play ball sports or whatever their reason it. It's just another fun thing for them to do."
Those who want to race were able to put their skill out on the track for the first time Sunday. Due to the team's size, the WHSCL splits the team into two squads - Rhinelander High School and Rhinelander Northwoods Composite - for classification purposes. The RHS squad placed 13th of 28 teams in Division 1 while the RNC squad, the defending state champions in Division 2, finished first in a field of 53.
Three Lakes Senior Megan Lester, the reigning state girls' JV-3 champion, began the season with a thrilling finish in the girls' varsity division. She completed the 16-mile course in 1 hour, 11 minutes, 3.65 seconds, edging Washington County's Kendra Schmidt to the line by 0.05 seconds for the victory.
"It was such a sprint. Both of them are experienced, so they took good, clean lines," Jon Lester said. "There was no elbow bumping or anything like that. I was probably 200 meters prior to the finish line cheering for her. I couldn't quite see the finish and I was out of my mind like, 'I've got to get over there and see how she did.'"
Joey Belanger claimed victory in the Division 2 boys' JV-2 race, covering 11 miles in 45:35.13 to win by roughly 8.5 seconds over Green Bay's Cohen Slyvester. This was despite Belanger starting deep in a 93-rider field.
"Joey started in 60th position mind you in this race and finished first. He had to fight his way through a tone of people," coach Lester said. "That's pretty impressive."
Lakeland senior Jakob Craig was fifth of 24 in the varsity boys' race covering 21 miles in 1:23:36.94. Craig finished sixth overall in the varsity division two years ago.
"Coming off an injury earlier this summer, we didn't know where he would stand and he didn't really know where he would stand, so that was very impressive," Lester said. "I'm excited to see how he progresses through the season. Now that he knows where he's at, he can try to stick with that next group of boys and build from there."
Junior Jett Biolo was the runner-up in the Division 1 boys' JV-3, covering 16 miles in 1:04:38.48. Sage Flory, the girls' JV-2 champ in 2019, was fifth in the varsity girls' race at 1:15:05.32. Macy Lester finished sixth in the girls' freshman race.
Travis White took 16th in D1 boys' JV-3, Layne Roeser was 28th of 103 in D1 boys' JV-2. Carter Johnson and Tyler Marquardt were 23rd and 24th, respectively, in D2 boys' JV-2.
Lily Gleason finished 24th and Emma Mankus was 35th in the freshman girls' races. Anna Wood placed 33rd in girls' JV-2.
In the middle school ranks, Violet Biolo placed second in the eighth-grade girls' race. Holden Schmitz and Olin Slette were 39th and 47th in the eighth-grade boys' races. Austin Slette finished 40th in the sixth-grade boys' race while Henry Schmitz finished 42nd.
"Our kids stayed safe and healthy and no mechanicals," coach Lester said. "Every one of our athletes, all 18 of them finished. That was a huge plus. We didn't have any DNFs. I was pretty proud of that.
"I'm proud of them all. They all held their position pretty well. Even the ones who didn't get podium positions. If they started 30th, they hung around that 30th area. If they started 20th, they hung around there."
Sunday's race was the first of a five-race WHSCL season in which riders accumulate points for overall series placement. Round 2 will take place Sept. 26 at Lowes Creek in Eau Claire, Wausau's Nine Mile Forest will host Round 3 Oct. 3. Nordic Mountain in Mt. Morris will stage Round 4 Oct. 17 and the series finale takes place in Waterloo Oct. 24 at the proving grounds of the Trek Bicycle Company.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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