California High School Leagues field contingent for US nationals

Capping a landmark year for high school cycling, the NorCal High School Mountain Bike League and SoCal Interscholastic Cycling Leagues will be represented by 30 riders at the US National Mountain Bike Championships in Granby, Colorado at the Sol Vista Bike Park this weekend, July 16-19.

Nine riders who attended the Invitational Camp were selected for the NorCal Travel Team. The remainder will travel to nationals individually or with the Whole Athlete Travel Team. Riders qualified for the nationals at the California High School Mountain Bike Championships, Sunday, May 17 at Boggs Mountain, California.

"It's an exciting year, because of the sheer number of NorCal League riders who qualified for Nationals," said Matt Fritzinger, NorCal League founder and Executive Director. "These riders have been training very hard this summer, and I speak for all in the NorCal and SoCal Leagues in wishing them success in achieving their personal goals. Having these young riders represent our schools and our entire league community is something of which everybody who has had any involvement is is very proud."

The nine riders on the NorCal Travel Team, is comprising six boys and three girls, were selected based on their performance at the 2009 Invitational Camp. They are Zachary Valdez, Karli Haugen, Nik Dommen, Lauren Catlin, Sofia Hamilton, Drake Pirates, Andrew Taylor, Bryan Duke, Adam O'Camb and Noah Hanagen. Katie DeClerq is directing the travel team with coaching assistance from David Curtis and Maureen Kunz. They will be hosted by the Gary Fisher team for the full pro-racer experience.

"I've been focusing on specific training," said Duke, who has tailored his training for the Colorado venue. "I've increased my climbing and done some hill repeats. The race should be interesting due to the elevation and the standard of competition."