Also on the XC2 line was Jesse Ansley, who got off to a great jump and settled into the class in mid-pack. The dusty conditions made passing difficult as Jesse stayed patient and checked in at the end of the first lap in 10th place XC2. Ansley and his team continued playing this race like a game of chess, making one move at a time and looking at the big picture as they stopped every other lap to fuel up and change air filters. Ansley stayed strong and consistent as he made pass after pass until he worked his way into 6th place in XC2 and 15th overall. Finishing in 6th would match his best in class finish for the year and confirm to Jesse that the hard work is paying off as he went on to say, “As for momentum, I think I’m showing it right now. It’s easy to put in the work and keep doing good when the results are better. I plan to just keep doing what I’m doing, not overthink, and hopefully keep getting better and better.” 

As the green flag waved in the WXC class, Taylor Johnston had a rough start to her day as she was last off the line and into the woods. Passing her way up on the first lap Taylor moved to 6^th place and spent the first two laps fighting to hold that position in class. As the white flag waved marking the final lap, Johnston, who had been riding cautious all day due to the conditions, decided to put in a sprint lap to see if she could break into the top 5. This final push was just what she needed as she caught up to the 5th place rider, Taylor played it smart and waited for a good opportunity to make the pass. As her competitor made a small mistake she pounced, made the pass, and rode smoothly into the finish to take 5th place in the WXC class. This finish is Johntson’s first in the top five, which she is thrilled about as she said, “I think this finish has given me confidence with my racing for the last few rounds. This was by no means my best race of the year, even with it being my best finish, But I learned that I can hold a faster pace for longer and further into the race and that will help increase my overall performance in the last two rounds.”

On the150A class line Brayden Nolette got a great jump off the line and headed into the woods in 2^nd place. Brayden soon after made the pass for the lead and put his head down to fight to keep the lead. With minimal mistakes made and pushing himself to the limit Nolette continued to hold onto the first place position for the entire race as he drove to climb up in the overall standings. Nolette made precautionary pit stops throughout the race as he stated, “The dusty conditions definitely made it a battle of keep my bike running well throughout the race. Especially trying to keep the air filter from not getting too clogged and also staying out of deep dust berms.” Nolette charged himself and his bike the entire race and as he crossed the finish line he took the 150A win by 7 minutes and 45 seconds, as well as taking home 26th overall.