On August 27th, the SAS Mountain Bike team traveled to Chickasaw Trace Park in Columbia, TN for the first race in the Tennessee Interscholastic Cycling League Race Series. The varsity team performed extremely well with each rider posting strong finishes. Theo Shrader, Sewanee, grabbed first in a field of 64 riders in the competitive Freshman Boys division.  Freshman Harper Thompson, Sewanee, was not far behind, placing seventh after a dramatic sprint at the finish.  Sophomore William Shrader, Sewanee, earned a sixth place finish as the youngest rider in the 16 mile Varsity Boys race. Miren Colbert, Sewanee, placed tenth in the Freshman Girls category.  After being delayed behind a wreck at the start, James Steffner, Chattanooga, fought his way to a 20th place finish in the large Sophomore Boys field.  In his JV debut, junior Kieran McCrorey, Belvidere, delivered a strong performance, placing in the top half in a field of sixty-seven.  New riders, sophomore Quentin Miller, Rock Island, and freshman Brody Scales, Atlanta, each raced well and showed their potential for the upcoming season.  

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The middle school team also demonstrated a strong showing, exhibiting effort, determination, sportsmanship, and skill on the four-mile course.  Four boys raced for the first time in the Sixth Grade category; Will Moody, Dagen Latham, and Jack Roberts completed the course with confidence and look forward to gaining more race experience throughout the season. Alex Glacet finished very strong, placing 10th out of 44 racers. Jane Shealy and Rosa Thompson represented the Mountain Lions in the Seventh Grade Girls category. Shealy beat her time from last year’s race by four minutes and 20 seconds. Thompson placed fifth overall and was awarded for her efforts on the podium.  In the Seventh Grade Boys group, Flynn Allen, Joseph Gray, Archer Ladd, and Cabell Thompson rode hard and completed the course despite a variety of mechanical bike issues. Even though Gray and Thompson had only raced once before, they rode hard and came across the finish line fast. First time racer Martin Brodsky put his skills and fitness to the test for the Eighth Grade Boys category, which required two laps of the course. Brodsky navigated the course with ease and rode exceptionally well for a first-time racer. Grayson Clark picked up right where he left off last season, near the front, just barely missing the podium in sixth place. Dylan Bruscato and Will Roberts also competed well and are looking forward to another successful racing season.

The team will race next at Pugh Bourne Park in Jackson, TN on September 10th.  

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