Our OBRA Juniors were again graced with gorgeous cross weather—no extra layers or heat mitigation needed—and everyone’s drivetrain remained immaculate at the fourth race of the Junior Cyclocross Series (JCS). With a mix of slow, awkward off-camber sections, a number of surface transitions, and long, fast straightaways, the Cyclocross Crusade PIR Heron Lakes course made for competitions that were tight—until they very much weren’t! The return of the dreaded six-pack of barriers and ever-daunting monolith—with the option for a wedge-jump B-line—added further technical challenges for racers. This round’s guest photographer, Bertrand Mejia-Morin, is putting together a gallery that we’ll share soon.
See the current OBRA Junior Cyclocross Series standings.
The Open 9-10 field saw Cru Weaver (River City Bicycles) claim a win on debut ahead of Nicholas Rinaldi Ceroni (Biciclista). Nicholas continued his podium streak; with his two wins and two second places, only a pair of wins from Wyatt Russell (A&B) could put the two of them on equal footing for the series. Hank Hathaway faded after a fast first lap, but held on for the final podium spot. Jude Smith and Kiger Walters (Corvallis Junior Cycling) are now tied for third place in the JCS, each just eight points behind Wyatt.
The Women’s 9-10 race held another round of rivalry between Eliza Hazboun (Corvallis Junior Cycling) and Edith Brown (Fast Fun Nice Racing p/b Steeplejack), with Eliza putting in three consistent laps for her third win in a row ahead of Edith. This leaves just six points betwixt them.
Moving to the Junior Women 11-12 contest brings us to what has thus far been a perfect season for Vivi McManuis (Team Booger). Although she conceded the Yakima Hot Lap contest to Gabby Linn (who was racing 13-14) this week, Vivi engaged the afterburners for lap two, forcing her teammates Bobbi Buswell (finishing second) and Willow Buswell (finishing third) to ride at their own paces for the remainder of the race. With four wins, Vivi has the series lead wrapped up with two rounds to go, but the Buswells are separated by only six points for the other two podium positions.
The overall JCS standings were also wrapped up in the Open 11-12 race this week, with Luka Dedrick (Grouptrail Cycling p/b Ruckus Composites) taking his third win in four attempts over Everett Hawes (Corvallis Junior Cycling) in second and Cyrus Brown (Fast Fun Nice) in third. Everett and Cyrus went back and fourth throughout the race, changing the lead every lap, with Everett saving just enough for a decisive sprint. They, too, will be going down to the wire to decide the order of the JCS podium for this category!
After putting in a blistering first lap to take the Yakima Hot Lap in the Open races, Dylan Glazer didn’t look back, and now leads his Team Booger teammate Carter Hayden in the Open 13-14 series competition. Carter placed second on Sunday and is only four points away from third place in the JCS. Carter’s strong finishing lap saw him catch, and pass, Liam Campaigniac (Corvallis Junior Cycling), who wound up third. Liam’s teammate Benjamin Krawchuk-Miller added to his series point total by placing fourth ahead of Eli Baraff (Grouptrail), who is currently second in the JCS.
This might be the tightest top-five in the JCS, with only 26 points separating the riders.
Meanwhile, Gabby Linn (Mettle Cycling) took her fourth-straight victory in the Women 13-14 field, shortly before a podium in the Women Category 3 field, and has cemented an overall win in the JCS.
Ari Tabish (Team Booger) returned from a CX hiatus as fast as ever to take an uncontested win in the Junior Women’s 15-16 race. Despite spending the majority of her race solo, she clearly found a rhythm, with all laps falling within ten seconds of one another. She’s tied with Kadence Helm (Eugene Composite) for the lead in the series.
Garrett Hawes (Corvallis Junior Cycling) claimed his first win of the season after a trio of near-misses. Leading Logan Trost (Bicycle Attorney) home by considerable margin, Garrett is within touching distance of locking up the JCS overall. Axel Weaver (Team Booger), who finished third at Heron Lakes, will need to win each of the final two rounds to best Garrett. Andy Emmett (CORE Devo) and Bjorn Swanson (Dirty Fingers) are tied for third, with the JCS title now out of their reach.
Lincoln Sanchez (Team Booger) duplicated sibling Ari’s consistency with his solo win in the Open 17-18 category, with a similarly tight span of lap times. With two races left, this category is wide open. Lincoln is tied with teammate Jack Abel and Zach Tristan (Grouptrail) for the lead, and Bennett Gassner (Team Booger) and Meko McDaniel (Corvallis Junior Cycling) are only a few points back.
I’ve been eagerly awaiting a return to Independence, Oregon, since our first cyclocross race there last November! Although it currently looks like we won’t get more mud this time around (and I can confirm that there will be no mandatory water feature), I’m told we’ll have the pleasure of starting and finishing on the main street of Independence, and that there will be even more singletrack for those who like to mix their XC and CX together.
In case you haven’t heard, Juniors will race for free, and I’m quite excited to help hand out some state championship jerseys to go along with the series leaders! The race will be hosted by series sponsor and OBRA lynchpin Sellwood Cycle Repair. I want to thank them, along with series sponsors Castelli (who will also be providing our state championship jerseys), Yakima, and BikeTiresDirect, for their continued support.
As ever, my final appreciation goes to OBRA parents. I hope this fall has been a bit less busy in the realm of drivetrain maintenance, even if the collective, familial race days are unchanged!
—Robin