Race #2 of the Norcal mountain bike season was held at the beautiful Granite Bay course located on the shores of Folsom Lake near Sacramento. The theme for the Granite Bay race was “Aloha” and the Dragon’s pitzone was decked out in full Hawaiian spirit.
It was an amazing day for the O’Dowd squad so we will cut to the chase to let you know that the Dragons finished the day on the podium as the 3rd place Division 2 team. High school mountain bike racing is a team sport with the top four finishers on each team determining the team score. The O’Dowd top scorers for Race #2 were Matthew Justice ’20, Lily O’Hare ’21, Sarah Tracey-Cook ’22 and Elise Cypher ’19, giving the Dragons a score of 1,873 points just 11 points behind second place.
O’Dowd Mountain Bike Team on the Granite Bay Podium, 3rd Place (right side). Representing the Dragons at the podium ceremony are Elise Cypher ’19, Mia Rahman ’19, Lily O’Hare ’21, Andrew Fee ’21, Sarah Tracy Cook ’22 and Coach Scott Steinwert.
The hard training the athletes have been doing since December is really paying off on race days. The Granite Bay course is known for its tight single track trails, challenging rock gardens and technical climbs. The O’Dowd riders were ready for the challenge with every rider finishing the race.
The O’Dowd women had a great day with both Sarah Tracy Cook ’22 and Lily O’Hare ’21 on the podium in the freshman and sophomore races respectively. The JV girls were lead again by Elise Cypher ’19 in 13th followed closely by team captain Mia Rahman ’19, Bella Walters ’19 and Holly Teeters ’19.
Sarah Tracy Cook ’22 on the Granite Bay podium, 4th place freshman girl.
Lily O’Hare ’21 on the Granite Bay podium, 4th place sophomore girl.
In the men’s race Andrew Fee ’21 had a strong showing in 11th place and Matthew Justice ’20 after starting in the middle the JV field work his way to a an 8th place finish in the JV race.
Andrew Fee ’21 on the picturesque and challenging Granite Bay course.
Next up is Race #3 at Laguna Seca near Monterey California this coming Saturday March 30.
