The high school mountain bike series came to a close May 18 on the North Shore with the Chatelech junior/senior girls claiming a North Shore championship.
The final race in the series, the North Shore championships, saw riders from Chat and Elphinstone put in another day of top-notch results.
Jessica Marquis and Emily Duncan Hansen both won gold medals, finishing first in their divisions with top points. Laren Pudek took home a silver medal in juvenile girls, and Grace Stanhope and Eric Dillon both won bronze in their divisions.
Chat's juvenile girls and juvenile boys won second place in the team division, and Jess, Emily and Kirsten Calder-Sutt brought home the banner that will hang proudly in the Chat gym.
"Congratulations to all the other members who tried their hardest and were excellent team members," said coach Jessica Marquis. "For many of them this was their first racing season, so we look forward to seeing them race next year. The other riders who deserve recognition include Jonas Lomax, Louis Dillon, Ben Eaton, Dylan Eaton, Duncan Bryson and Jordan Wilson.
At the provincials in Salmon Arm, May 28 to 29, Chat again had an impressive showing.
Emily, Laren and Eric brought home gold and two bronze medals.
After finishing second and third at the past two provincial championships, Emily set a goal for herself at the beginning of the year to finish first and didn't disappoint. Laren and Eric had equally strong rides in their respective categories.
The senior boys riders showed their resolve and toughness, with Jonas surviving a spectacular over the handlebars crash on the steep downhill portion of the course, dusting himself off and finishing strong.Following a fast first lap that had him in contention for a top 10 finish, Louis had some unfortunate luck suffering a broken chain and had to run the last half lap with a broken bike. Duncan had his best performance of the season that had him second after the gruelling hill climb and finishing strong in the large contingent of Grade 9 riders.
Jordan, the Eaton brothers and Grace all raced hard in their respective divisions, showing the province just how good Coast riders can be.
For Elphi, the standout once again on May 18 was Matthew Clough, who won the senior boys race and also the league standings. He placed first in every race this season and squeaked out the win in the championship race.
"He was leading the entire race, but was passed when he had a minor mechanical problem, then battled back to regain the lead and the win at the end of the last lap," said Elphi coach Mark Goerzen. "Although it was the wettest season I can remember, it was a great year. The entire team made progress and should be proud of their efforts."
