Tag: Cascade Locks

  • 2026 JCS Race Recap #1: Cyclocross Crusade Cascade Locks

    Our juniors were greeted with sunshine and warm weather in Cascade Locks—two rare occurrences in what I think might just be the rainiest part of the Columbia River Gorge—for round one of the 2026 Junior Cyclocross Series (JCS) courtesy of Cyclocross Crusade.

    Familiar to anyone who’s had the opportunity to race it, the course had a bit of single track, lots of rocks (visible this year due to relatively dry conditions), the biggest run-up in OBRA Land and plenty of sand. The dry weather made the sand especially challenging this year with the lines changing lap after lap, with no consistent riding lines developed. For those with the eyes and awareness to take advantage of this dynamic part of the course, there were lots of opportunities to make up time, and/or save energy. During the morning races, I joined some of our young racers in tempting some of their parents and peers with an assortment of hand-ups. Before we knew it, it was time to get the JCS properly started.

    Unsurprisingly, things were competitive from the start. An assortment of goodies from Yakima for the new Hot Lap contest for the fastest first lap spiced this up a bit (thank you, Marie!), but I do suspect it made only a fractional difference in the early efforts expended. The winners of the Hot Lap clearly didn’t burn themselves out, as both ended up winning their categories overall, with Bjorn Swanson (Dirty Fingers) and Gabby Linn (Mettle Cycling) nabbing the honors.

    Bjorn was joined by Garrett Hawes (Corvallis Junior Cycling) in second and Zach Tristan (Grouptrail p/b Ciclo Wealth) in third on the Open 15-16 podium. He must not have been satisfied with a single win on the day, as he hopped back out onto the race course to join in the Category 3 Open race shortly after finishing—one of our many juniors who doubled up! Gabby bested Bella LaDolce in the Women’s 13-14 race and has thus earned the right to wear one of the new Castelli leader jerseys next week. 

    Jumping down in age groups to the Women’s 11-12 race, Vivi McManuis (Team Booger) and Bobbi Buswell (Team Booger) were locked in a tight battle during the first laps, but Vivi opened a gap on lap three and left no doubt who would be atop the podium by cutting nearly 90 seconds off that time for the fourth and final time around the course. Phoebe Hogue (Team Booger) and Willow Buswell (Team Booger) were in a similarly compelling competition for the final podium slot, with Phoebe winning out courtesy of a fast last lap of her own.

    The Open 11-12 race saw Cyrus Brown (Fast Fun Nice Racing p/b Steeplejack) open a lead over Luka Dedrick (Grouptrail Cycling p/b Ruckus Composites) and maintain an impressive level of consistency in his laps and line choice to hold on for the win; Everett Hawes (Corvallis Junior Cycling) regained some time after a rough first lap, but ultimately ended his day in third. 

    Dylan Glazer (Team Booger) put in a dominant ride to finish ahead of his teammate Carter Hayden in the Open 13-14 competition. Eli Baraff (Grouptrail Cycling p/b Ciclo Wealth) found an extra gear or two in the last ten minutes of racing, but still couldn’t manage to reel Carter in.

    The final competition of the day saw a well-earned victory for Wyatt Russell (A&B Bike) in the Open 9-10. I’m not sure exactly how, but I do imagine the dirt jumping he does—far beyond my own skillset—played a role in the win! Nicolas Rinaldi Ceroni (Biciclista) and Jude Smith joined Wyatt on the podium in second and third, respectively.

    Unfortunately, I will miss the next two rounds—at Heiser Farms and Willamette Superchamps—but have secured more-than-capable substitutes, including Summer Newlands and Taylor Pasquariello. Summer is my friend and teammate, and possibly the best bike handler I know. Ask her for some tips! Taylor is a fixture in our community and pet lover. They’ll be under the same OBRA tent where you usually find me, and I’ll be sure to emphasize the importance of supplying our junior racers with hand-ups before, during and after their races!

    A few updates and reminders. First, our photographers are working hard to provide photos of both race and overall series podiums as soon as possible. Hot Lap prizes are also being distributed just after the races. Second, our end-of-season celebration with medals, prizes, a raffle and jerseys (for those who haven’t already claimed theirs) will be concurrent with Cyclocross Crusade’s annual bash. Details TBA!

    Think you finished well in the individual race or series standings? We encourage junior racers and their parents to stick around after the race to wait for results. Either myself or a parent volunteer have physical spreadsheets to quickly confirm where things stand. This will help us award leader jerseys and grab podium photos.

    Thank you to our OBRA promoters, our sponsors Castelli, Yakima, BikeTiresDirect, and Sellwood Cycle Repair, and most of all, the parents of our junior racers—we could not do any of this without you. As always, don’t hesitate to reach out to me with questions or feedback!

    —Robin

  • Junior Cyclocross Series Race #5 Recap: Cascade Locks

    Junior Cyclocross Series Race #5 Recap: Cascade Locks

    If our juniors dipped their toes into wet cyclocross conditions two weeks ago at Heron Lakes, the fifth and penultimate round of the 2025 OBRA Junior Cyclocross Series (JCS) at Cyclocross Crusade: Cascade Locks this past Sunday was a proper muddy bath! Following a day of wind so severe to cause the cancellation of the last heat of racing, we were blessed with intermittent precipitation and only a hint of an occasional breeze during our races.

    The racers braved corners consisting of standing water, slippery mud—and even slicker hidden rocks—the most sand of the year and the inevitable, fading braking power of worn pads such conditions engender. I got to see lots of muddy teeth courtesy of finish line grins, sure signs of a fun race!

    Caleb Farley of Team Booger nabbed his fourth win out of five races in the Open 9-12 Category 3/4/5s, maxing out the number of points he can claim in the series and wrapping up the overall title with one race to go. Everett Hawes of Marys Bicycle Club placed second on the day, opening his overall lead to Ryan Kraemer Steigerwald, and Ryan also claimed third at Cascade Locks.

    The Open 13-14 3/4/5 field saw Everett’s older brother Garett Hawes (Marys Bicycle Club) take his first win of the 2025 JCS, just two seconds ahead of Booger’s Dylan Glazer, with Logan Trost of Bicycle Attorney in third. Dylan leads Garett by just two points with one race to go! Bjorn Swanson of Team Finger took the overall lead for the Open 15-16 Category 3/4/5 competition with a win ahead of Andrew Chapin (Team Booger), and is also leading by just two points.

    Vivi McManuis (Valkyr Cycling) continued her series dominance with her fourth straight win and has earned the overall title in the Junior Women 9-12 3/4/5 with the maximum possible point total. Phoebe Hogue of Team Booger placed second and moved into the same place for the series. They were accompanied by Grouptrail’s Lily Thayer-Osborne, who occupied the final step on the podium. The top two places in the 3/4/5 13-14 Junior Women’s race went to unaffiliated racers Isla Hundhausen and Gabby Linn, and Ada Souders (Team S&M) placed third and consolidated her series lead over Gabby.

    Team Booger’s Maya Feldman-Wang took the 15-16 Women’s 3/4/5 victory and Taylor Ferdaszewski placed second to move into the series lead on behalf of Dialed Cycling. We did not have any representatives from the Open or Women’s 17-18 3/4/5 fields at this race, meaning that Oliver Woods (Planet PDX Cycling) can rest easy as the winner of the former and Kepri Sroka remains the leader of the latter.

    The Junior 1/2/3 13-18 races saw two victories for Team Booger, with Johnie Hogue snagging his third win of the series in the Open category to cement his overall title, and Whitney Hayden moving into the lead in the Women’s field. Whitney was followed home by Addison Temple, and I’d like to give a shoutout to her team, Boise Young Rider Development Squad, for making the drive out from Idaho for the weekend!

    As usual, our abundance of local photographers has resulted in lots of media! Chloë Spritz has a dedicated JCS album as well as a more comprehensive one for anybody interested in reviewing their own muddy escapades, and Jay Ortiz also captured loads of junior racing action in his recent post on Insta.

    I can’t believe that next Sunday, November 2, is the final stop of the 2025 OBRA Junior Cyclocross Series! It will be the second day of another Cyclocross Crusade doubleheader weekend, this time at McMenamins Edgefield in Troutdale. I hope to see the highest turnout of the year! I haven’t had the opportunity to race this revamped classic course, but I’m told it has considerable climbing and some tricky off-cambers, and looking at this week’s forecast, I think we’re in for some serious mud!

    I’d be remiss to not mention that Saturday’s race is also Costume Day! If you haven’t yet been to an OBRA Halloween race, the atmosphere is unmatched, and you’ll get to see seriously silly costumes.

    A final reminder that our end-of-season awards party will be at noon on Sunday, November 23, at Steeplejack Brewing Company on NE Broadway, in collaboration with Cyclocross Crusade. I look forward to celebrating all of the hard work that our junior racers have put in over the past two months with all of you!

    —Robin