2012 Race Calendar

Listed below is the 2012 Race Calendar for the St. Francis Golden Knights. We will be racing against other high school teams in the SoCal League. Come out and support us if you can!

February 26th - Vail Lake Challenge (Temecula)

March 11th - Hog Canyon Classic (Yucaipa)

March 25th - Cruise the Keys (Keyesville)

April 15th - Victory at Vail (Temecula)

May 6th - Power the Pinnacles (Lake Arrowhead)

May 20th - State Championships (Los Olivos)

Introducing the 2012 Golden Knights Mountain Bike Team

Back Row, Left to Right: Coach Marshall, Coach Kubly, Hunter Nalley, Matt Misetich, Cameron Aubert, Carl Demolder, Andy Acosta, Sean Bird, Chris Sercel, Nicholas Bedford, Remi Roth, Philip Saulny, Daniel Balsam, Coach Donovan, Coach Bird.

Middle Row, Left to Right: Scott Marshall, William Towne, Christian Breitschwerdt, Connor Haas, Matt Kubly, Steven Ayoob, Austin Hamilton, Skyler Payne.

Front Row, Left to Right: Keenan Koch, Michael Togneri, Nathaniel Blakely, Calvin Lau.

18 Riders up Brown

Thanks Coach Kubly for the GREAT picture!

The Golden Knights are ready for the 2012 Season

Since December 1^st, the St. Francis Mountain Bike Team has been preparing for the upcoming 2012 SoCal League High School Mountain Bike series. As one of the first members of the SoCal league, the Golden Knights will be entering their 4^th season racing against other Southern California high schools.

Under the guidance of Head Coach Lee Bird and Assistant Coach Patrick Donovan, the Golden Knights are hopeful that they will be able to continue building upon a stellar 2011 season that saw many podium and top-10 overall finishes, including a 5^th place finish in the 2011 State Championships.

The team includes returning Seniors Cameron Aubert, Steven Ayoob, Christian Breitschwerdt, Connor Haas, and Matt Misetich. Christian, Connor, and Matt all finished in the top-10 overall of the D1 JV class in 2011. “Our Seniors have been great role models and leaders on our team. Many have raced since they were freshman and really understand the dedication and hard work necessary in the sport”, Bird says. “I’m hopeful that we will be able to have 2 or 3 of these strong riders represent us in the Varsity class”.

Representing the JV class for the Golden Knights will be Juniors Carl Demolder, Matt Kubly, Scott Marshall, Chris Sercel, Michael Togneri, and Sophomore Sean Bird. The JV team for the Golden Knights is deep, and should be able to post some good results this season. Returning racers Matt Kubly and Scott Marshall both finished in the top-10 overall of the D1 Sophomore class and Sean Bird was 5^th overall in the D1 Freshman class in 2011.

Bumping up to the sophomore class will be Daniel Balsam, Keenan Koch, Calvin Lau, Hunter Nalley, and Will Towne. Daniel, Keenan, and Hunter all raced as freshman and have improved significantly. Calvin and Will are new to the team this year and have worked hard in training to get themselves prepared for the upcoming season. “Daniel and Hunter really push each other hard in the practices and races, and Keenan has shown incredible improvement over the last year. I’m really excited to watch the three of them battle it out with the other schools this year”, says Coach Bird.

Representing the Golden Knights in the freshman class will be Nicholas Bedford, Nathaniel Blakely, Austin Hamilton, Skyler Payne, Remi Roth, and Philip Saulny. “It’s exciting to see the new talent come into the program each year. Students are excited to be able to race mountain bikes for St. Francis”, says Coach Bird. Austin and Skyler both have prior mountain bike experience and have looked very strong in practices. Nicholas, Nathaniel, Remi, and Philip are working hard on the skills necessary to compete on the mountain bike and will be strong contenders for the Golden Knights.

“I am very grateful to the administrators and staff of St. Francis for supporting our team. The school sees the value of our program and has really supported us since the beginning”, says Coach Bird. “I am also grateful to the parents and parent coaches for all of the time that they have put in to help make this program strong. Because our races are all over 2 hours away, there are lots of logistics and coordination that requires many volunteers. I’m grateful for their help”.

Follow the Golden Knights all season on their website at http://stfrancisracing.blogspot.com/.

GO KNIGHTS!

The 2011-2012 Cycling Kit!

The 2011-2012 Team Kit is designed and ready for purchase! This year, the orders will be placed online through the manufacturer, Louis Garneau. The online store is only open until 11/13/11, so be sure to place your orders SOON! The online order store is open to all students, alumni, friends, and groupies of the St. Francis High School Mountain Bike Team!

You can access the Louis Garneau store by clicking HERE.

Pancake Breakfast - November 6th

On Sunday we will all be meeting up at Henninger Flats for the Mt. Wilson Bicycling Association Pancake Breakfast. You can hike, walk, run, or bike up the 3 mile toll road to Henninger Flats. If you would like to ride with us, meet us at the gate at 2260 Pinecrest Drive and be ready to roll at 8:00am. (Please be aware that there is NO PARKING on Pinecrest. You need to park a block or so away). Parents, friends, siblings, everyone is invited. A flyer for the event is below. Bring money for the breakfast and raffle tickets and wear your St. Francis cycling kits, sweatshirts, or t-shirts. There are going to be a lot of SF alumni attending and we’re going to do a big group picture.

Important Dates

Team - Our first official team event isn't until December 1st, but we have a lot to do between now and then. Listed below are some important dates and events:

October 25^th at lunch - Student club meeting in Coach Donovan’s room. (The Music Room).

November 1^st at 6:30pm – Mandatory Parent’s meeting in Coach Donovan’s room. (The Music Room).

It is very important that at least one parent attend. We will be reviewing the program, goals, equipment, clothing, costs, and paperwork. The SFHS Mountain Bike club is based on the SoCal Cycling League. (www.socaldirt.org) I will be covering lots of information and will be able to answer all (hopefully) of your questions then. If for some reason your parent is not available that night, please have them email or call me to make other arrangements.

November 5^th, 8:00am to 10:00am – Bike Inspection at SFHS in front of the theater.

This inspection is also mandatory for all new students. We want to make sure that all mountain bikes are safe before the riding begins. Recommendations on equipment condition will be made then.

November 6^th – MWBA Pancake Breakfast at Henninger. 

November 29th at lunch - Student club meeting in Coach Donovan’s room. (The Music Room).           

December 1^st after school – First ride.

December 2^nd at 6:15am – First morning workout.