Hi Everyone,

We are going to be sharing stories from some of our Trailcraft riders for you to read and share with your kids.  We are hoping this will be fun for everyone to read! If you have a rider at home that would like to be a part of the action please let us know!  We would love to feature them on our blog with their own adventures and pictures.

Our first rider is TJ Hyser from Alabama.  He is an amazing rider with a ton of endurance and a lot of super sweet skills!  He is going to be sharing about his last NICA season and the Enduro racing he will be doing this summer.  He might even have some great tips and "how to video's" to share for us later this summer so please stay tuned!

Hi.  My name is TJ Hyser.  I am 11-years-old and currently ride an orange Trailcraft Timber 26”.  I just finished my first NICA season on May 6^th.    NICA (National Interscholastic Cycling Association) is a cycling league for kids 6^th-12^thgrade.

My first race of the season was back in February at Tannehill State Park. Each race has its own name:  The Feud at the Furnace, The Crank Down in Tiger Town, The T-Town Throw Down, The Space Race, and The Rumble on the Ridge. I took 2^ndplace for the first four races out of about 50 boys in 6^thgrade.  I took 4^thplace at the final race.  It was a really hot, dry course; flowy and fun though.  I think NICA is a great place for kids to learn and test their mountain biking skills.

So far my first race of the summer was an enduro race called the “Siege of Monte Sano.”  An enduro race is when you are racing the downhills, which are called “stages”. Then you can take your time climbing to the next stage start.  You are only timed on the downhills.  There are usually about five stages in a race.  The winner is the person with the fastest combined stage times.  The “Siege of Monte Sano” was about 25 miles of riding on insanely rocky trails with gnarly climbs back up to each stage.  I ended up being out there for five hours in the blazing Alabama heat!  I  placed 4^th in the 17 and under division, which was pretty good being the youngest rider out there by about four years.

My amazing Trailcraft Maxwell 26” held up great!  I can’t wait to do my next enduro.  Stay tuned for my next blog post where I review some of the amazing trails we just rode in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Thanks for reading and happy trails!

TJ