St. Francis Racing

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

2013 California State Championships

The St. Francis GOLDEN KNIGHTS Mountain Bike Team

“California State Championships”, Novato CA – May 19, 2013

The 2013 season for the Golden Knight’s mountain bike team concluded on Sunday with 13 members of the team traveling to Northern California to participate in the NICA California State Championships. Over 650 students would test their mountain bike racing fitness and skills against each other in this one-day event featuring the largest race fields ever for high school mountain bike racing. The race site was at Stafford Lake Park in Novato and featured a purpose-built technical course with over 5 ½ miles of distance and 700’ of elevation gain per lap. All classes would compete on the longest circuit of the year.

The Golden Knight freshman team started the day off with high-hopes. Unfortunately, Andrew Schiller and George Orloff both crashed in the first turn and were soon chasing from last place behind the field of 84 riders in their 11 mile race. Teammates Michael Vega and Andrew Palaski, who have both improved tremendously this year, would be the first Golden Knight’s in to the finish at 23^rd and 30^th place. Andrew Schiller would earn the “hard-charger” award, passing 49 riders to finish in 35^th position, with George Orloff also working extremely hard to fight back for a very respectable 43^rd place.

Four members of the St. Francis Sophomore Division 1 team traveled to Novato, but only 3 were able to race. Remi Roth would be unable to compete because of the flu, a disappointment for Remi who had worked very hard all season. In his place and ready to work hard were Skyler Payne, Owen Shain, and Nathaniel Blakely. Out of the 62 Sophomores who lined up, Skyler Payne would finish a season-best result of 12^th place, covering over 16 miles! Also having a season-best was Owen Shain in 28^th, with Nathaniel Blakely coming in at 37^th.

Next up was the JV team. Not only would the lap distance be longer than normal for this race, but the JV and Varsity teams would race for 4 and 5 laps respectively, instead of the traditional 3 and 4 laps. The extra distance and time on the course would prove to be challenging for most of the riders. Like the freshman race, the JV race would see a huge field of 82 riders lining up. Hanging in there for over 22 miles of racing was Austin Hamilton, finishing in a very fast race in 23^rd. Teammates Keenan Koch and Kenny Larsen battled and worked through tough conditions to finish in 65^th and 72^nd. Kenny Larsen said after the race that “it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done”.

The Golden Knight Varsity team was once again represented by junior Sean Bird and senior Scott Marshall. The deep Varsity field of 51 riders would be on course for over 2 hours, covering more than 27 miles! Sean Bird dropped back on the first lap because of mechanical problems, but clawed his way back to finish in 18^th place. Scott Marshall wrapped up his high-school mountain bike racing career (over 20 races) with a hard-fought 41^st place.

For the 5^th season in a row, the Golden Knight mountain bike team completed every race without a single DNF! This is unheard of in a difficult sport where physical and mental challenges are commonplace, but testament to the hard work and dedication of the students. The Golden Knights will begin recruitment for the 2014 team in September, with the first practice on December 1^st.

The Golden Knights mountain bike team is 100% volunteer managed and coached and is very grateful for all of the support they have received from the parents, alumni, and their generous sponsors, including: Design Imports, Hollandays, Merchants Building Maintenance, Mountain Pine Shutters, Strategic Law Partners, Nu-Hope, Kevin Martin/UBS, Stratz & Company, Financial Guaranty Insurance Brokers, Lucas Horsfall Murphy & Pindroh, Lantern CycleWorks, Montrose Bike Shop, Crescenta Valley Insurance, and Church and Larsen. GO KNIGHTS!

Andrew Palaski

Owen Shain

Michael Vega

Andrew Palaski

Sean Bird passing 5 Varsity riders

Kenny Larsen

Keenan Koch - Smiling

Skyler Payne - That face says it all - Tough Sport!

Scott Marshall celebrating the finish of his final high school race!

Friday, May 10, 2013

A very special morning...

On Sunday, May 5th before the start of our race at Los Olivos, Brother Christoper arranged for Father Bobby to say Mass for us at the team's pit-zone. What an incredible treat and privilege.

Familes, friends, and students all enjoyed the opportunity to worship together as a community of St. Francis.

Thanks to Ken Marshall for the pictures below.

Monday, May 6, 2013

Cow-Pie Classic - Los Olivos - Race #5

The St. Francis GOLDEN KNIGHTS Mountain Bike Team

“Cow-Pie Classic Race”, Los Olivos CA – May 5, 2013

It was the final race of the 5-race SoCal High School Mountain Bike league series, held at the Dirt Club mountain bike venue in scenic Los Olivos. Seventeen members of the Golden Knight Mountain Bike Team battled epic weather conditions (50 mph wind gusts), new single-track trails, and the longest course of the season for a difficult season-ending mountain bike race.

The strong 4-man Golden Knight freshmen team had another great showing at Los Olivos. Andrew Schiller gave it his all and was overwhelmed at the end of the race with his season-best 7^th place finish, which also earned him a podium award for being 8^th overall for the SoCal league series. Close behind was Michael Vega who also had his best result of the year, an impressive 11^th place. Battling the tough conditions was George Orloff in 13^th. Andrew Palaski had two mechanical problems that required lengthy repairs, but soldiered on to finish in 38^th. This impressive freshman group finished every lap of every race, and is certainly a bright spot for the future of St. Francis mountain bike racing!

All five riders from St. Francis for the Sophomore Division 1 class were in Los Olivos. Earning his 4^th top-10 result in what became a remarkable break-out season was Nathaniel Blakely in 9^th. Close behind in an equally impressive break-out season was Remi Roth in 10^th place. Skyler Payne finished in 16^th, with Owen Shain close behind in 18^th, his season-best result. Rounding out the sophomore group was Alex Marshall in 22^nd.

The St. Francis JV team was again well represented with 6 riders showing up to battle Los Olivos. Austin Hamilton had a fantastic race, narrowly missing his first podium of the season coming in 6^th place, only 3 seconds behind 5^th. However, Austin was awarded a well-deserved 6^th place overall for the season in the JV division with solid results all season long. Senior Matt Kubly has competed in every mountain bike race for the Golden Knights since his freshman year, and has been an inspirational leader for the team this season. Matt wanted to go out feeling good about his hard work, and did just that with a season-best 19^th place! Also earning a season-best result was Hunter Nalley in 24^th, followed closely by Kenny Larsen in 27^th. Will Towne battled illness to finish in 33^rd, with Chris Perez close behind in 35^th.

The Golden Knight Varsity team was once again represented by junior Sean Bird and senior Scott Marshall. Like Matt Kubly, Scott Marshall was racing in his final SoCal league race and had something to prove. Scott has worked hard all season, improving his results each race. This week was no different with Scott Marshall finishing with his season-best 13^th place. Sean Bird has also raced extremely well this season, his first in the Varsity class. Sean narrowly missed the podium with another great 6^th place result, and also earned a 4^th place overall for the Varsity class for the season. Like all of the St. Francis Golden Knights, Sean completed every lap this season and earned bonus points that helped lock up his 4^th place overall result.

In two weeks, 14 members of the Golden Knight mountain bike team will travel to Marin County in Northern California to compete in the NICA California State Championships. If the results in Los Olivos are any indication, it looks like the Golden Knights are peaking at the right time and can hopefully achieve great results.

Even though it's a race weekend, they still have to do homework. Dissecting a pig.

What are they looking at?

The Los Olivos venue is the most beautiful location that we race at.

Owen Shain has worked hard all season.

Coach Nick doing what he does - VIDEO!

Andrew Palaski rippin' it!

Remi Roth had another great race - 10th place!

Sean Bird on his way to a great 6th place in Varsity.

Matt Kubly in his final race being cheered on by alumni Christian Breitschwerdt

Can yoou tell that Coach Bird is happy with the overall results? Andrew Schiller in 8th place Freshman, Sean Bird 4th Place Varsity, and Austin Hamilton 6th place JV.

Michael Vega and Andrew Schiller were "cooked" after the GREAT race! 11th and 7th in Freshman D1.

Time to celebrate those results! (L to R) Austin Hamilton, Hunter Nalley, Sean Bird, Andrew Schiller, Andrew Palaski, and alumni Matt Misetich.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Keyesville Race Report - it was WINDY! - Race #4

The St. Francis GOLDEN KNIGHTS Mountain Bike Team

“Cruise the Keys Race”, Keyesville CA – April 14, 2013

Nineteen members of the Golden Knight Mountain Bike Team made the long journey to one of the most scenic race courses in California for the Cruise the Keys race in Keyesville, near Lake Isabella. Gusty winds and a very dry course made a difficult venue even more challenging as the riders would cover more than 6 miles per lap on an undulating course. Coming off of the school’s spring break, the riders would need to find their “racing legs” to prove that they were again up to the challenge.

The first race of the day featured four Golden Knight freshmen taking on 49 other freshman riders from throughout Southern California in the largest field of the day. The freshman racers have really stepped up this season and have shown continued improvement. “I’m really proud of the freshman this year. These guys have worked hard and have improved all season long, becoming a very tough group”, said Coach Bird. All four Golden Knight freshmen finished in the top-20, with George Orloff narrowly missing a top-10 finishing in 11^th. Michael Vega had his best race of the season in 13^th, with Andrew Schiller close behind in 14^th. Rounding out the Golden Knights was Andrew Palaski in 20^th.

Four riders from St. Francis represented the Golden Knights in the Sophomore Division 1 class. All four of these hard-working young men had their best results of the season at this race. Getting closer to the podium were Nathaniel Blakeley in 8^th, Skyler Payne in 9^th, Owen Shain in 19^th, and Alex Marshall in 20^th.

St. Francis again had the largest number of riders of any team in the JV Division 1 race with 9 guys lining up for the start. Unfortunately, a bad accident 100 yards into the start of the race hampered most of the Golden Knight JV racers with bad positions and mechanical problems. Escaping in front of the pile-up was Austin Hamilton who again rode extremely well to an impressive 7^th place finish. Coming from dead last after the accident was senior Matt Kubly who wore a tough game-face to fight for a respectable 23^rd finish. Close behind with their season-best results were Kenny Larsen in 25^th and Keenan Koch in 27^th. Close behind were Will Towne in 29^th, Carl Demolder in 30^th, and Daniel Balsam in 34^th. Rounding out the JV team were Hunter Nalley in 39^th and Chris Perez with his season-best 40^th. Chris Perez was also a 3^rd place winner in the Felt Bicycle sponsored essay contest for the SoCal League and received recognition at the race for his essay about what the St. Francis Mountain Bike Team has meant to him.

The Golden Knight Varsity team was once again represented by junior Sean Bird and senior Scott Marshall. Sean worked hard all-day and passed two riders on the final lap to earn a solid 6^th place, which moved Sean into 4^th overall for the season in the Varsity class. Having his best ever result in the Varsity class was Scott Marshall with a hard-earned 18^th place finish.

Even with the horrible pile-up at the start of the JV race, The Golden Knights again showed grit, courage, and perseverance to have all 19 riders complete their race. That’s 23 straight races without a single DNF! The Golden Knights head to race # 5 in Los Olivos in three weeks for the final SoCal League race with hopes of getting all riders qualified for the State Championships in May.

Andrew Palaski

Chris Perez - Essay Contest 3rd Place Winner!!!

Our "Top Chef" Coach Marshall

Owen Shain heading into the switchbacks

Chris Perez

Carl Demolder

Hunter Nalley

Sean Bird in close quarters at the Varsity start

Matt Kubly battled back from a bad crash at the start

Sean Bird

Will Towne

Not where Matt Kubly wanted to be at the start

Michael Vega on his way to his best finish, 13th!

Nathaniel Blakely worked hard for 8th!

Scott Marshall

Sean Bird

The Keyesville venue - Beautiful!

Monday, March 25, 2013

Beach to Boulders - Lake Perris - Race #3

The St. Francis GOLDEN KNIGHTS Mountain Bike Team

“Beach to Boulders Race”, Lake Perris CA – March 24, 2013

It was a day of many firsts – the first podium of the season, and the first ever Varsity podium for the St. Francis Golden Knights mountain bike team! Held at the beautiful Lake Perris State Park, the Golden Knights tackled a very unusual mountain bike course, one that featured sand, asphalt, and very fast speeds with each 5.2 mile loop taking the riders from the beach sand to high in the mountain boulders. High temperatures and challenging conditions tested the riders to the fullest.

The first race of the day featured four Golden Knight freshmen taking on 46 other freshman riders from throughout Southern California. In only his 3^rd mountain bike race, George Orloff showed his strength and power and continued improvement with a fine 8^th place finish, his best result yet. Close behind were his teammates Andrew Schiller and Andrew Palaski, in 12^th and 14^th, and battling through the tough conditions was Michael Vega in 20^th. Once again, the Golden Knight freshman team showed great ability and represented the Golden Knights well.

Four riders from St. Francis represented the Golden Knights in the Sophomore Division 1 class. Remi Roth used his climbing talents to full-effect to gain ground on his competitors and end up with his best result ever, a fantastic 7^th place finish. Nathaniel Blakely earned 12^th, and Skyler Payne and Alex Marshall battled through the heat to earn 20^th and 23^rd.

By the time the JV Division 1 race got started at 1:00pm, the temperature had reached close to 90 degrees. Austin Hamilton paced himself well with very consistent lap times within 10 seconds of each other to earn a solid 8^th place. Daniel Balsam was the next Golden Knight JV rider in 19^th. Matt Kubly rode the final mile of the race through sand and deep grass with a flat tire and narrowly missed a top-20 result, coming in 22^nd. Hunter Nalley and Kenny Larsen both had their best results of the season coming in 26^th and 35^th. Will Towne worked hard through the heat for 30^th, and rounding out the Golden Knight JV field were Keenan Koch in 42^nd, Carl Demolder recovering from a flat at the beginning of the race to finish in 45^th, and Chris Perez with his best result of the year finishing in 46^th.

The Golden Knight Varsity team was once again represented by junior Sean Bird and senior Scott Marshall. Sean felt that the fast-paced course would be well-suited to his road race background, and he was right! Sean helped set a very high-paced tempo and led or was in the leaders group most of the 4-lap race. Sean sprinted with another rider out of the beach sand to the finish line and narrowly missed a win, but still earned an incredible 2^nd place finish. This was the first Varsity podium result for the Golden Knights in their 5 season history, and the first podium result for the team in the 2013 season. Scott Marshall also rode a smart race to narrowly miss a top-20 result, coming in 21^st.

The Golden Knights again showed grit, courage, and perseverance to have all 19 riders complete their race. That’s 22 straight races without a single DNF! The Golden Knights head to race # 4 in Keyesville (near Lake Isabella) in three weeks. More intensity in their upcoming training should help them improve on their speed as they enter their final two races and the State Championships.