Three 1st place finishes at the young talent competition in Böhringen

On 28 and 29 May 2022, the second national junior race as part of the Alb Gold Junior Cup in Böhringen/Römerstein. Under clear to cloudy skies and in cool temperatures, the Bike Junior Team achieved top placings on both competition days. Only the U17 boys had to contend with periods of rain, which made the course on the meadow sections quite dangerous in some corners due to the risk of slipping.

On the first day, the individual time trial had to be mastered, where after the start at the sports field, a short ramp led to the "bike park" with several pump track sections, numerous tight bends and a stone field. Afterwards, there were around 400 metres of grassy track to complete before the finish, where "pushing qualities" were required.

On the second day, the individual time trial course from the previous day was integrated into the overall cross-country course. Apart from the bike park section, the course was not very technical, but with many bends in the meadow and short, steep climbs, it was challenging.

Race report by Elias Hückmann, U15:

On Saturday, I felt very comfortable and fast during the time trial on the tough pump track. The surface was very dry, but quite slippery in the bends due to the rubble. After an unfortunate start (... didn't get into the pedals straight away), I quickly found my rhythm and achieved the best time in the U15 class. I was able to hold on to this until the last participant, who had achieved the best results to date in the national junior classification. This was my first victory in the 2022 national junior classification, which made me very happy and proud.

The final XCO race was on the programme on Sunday. As on the previous day, I was very motivated and wanted to score even more points in the junior classification with a top placing. So I started my race at 9.00 a.m. on the strenuous but not very technical course. I got off to a very good start and dominated the field from the beginning. Lap after lap, I was able to extend my gap to the chasing pack and take another victory. All in all, it was a tough race weekend for me, but I'm more than satisfied with my performance and I'm looking forward to the next races of the national junior classification.

Race report from Lucie Hückmann, U17:

The individual time trial and the XCO race in Böhringen were my first competitions in the national junior series this year. So I was quite excited. After all, I wanted to finish in the top 5. I was able to achieve this goal in both competitions. In the individual time trial, I hit my intended riding line perfectly and managed 5th place.

With this result, I was able to start from the front row at the XCO competition on Sunday. My legs already felt very good on the roller during the warm-up and so I was able to lead a group of four for a long time. On the short climbs, I tested whether I could break away from the group with short bursts of speed. In the end, I did this and was able to extend my gap to the chasing group until the end. I crossed the finish line in second place behind Paulina Weigelt from KTM Youngsters Team Bayern. I'm very happy with my very first 2nd place in the BNS and I'm already looking forward to Gedern.

Race report from Dennis Krimmel, U17:

Time Trial on Saturday: It was a very difficult day for me because I was struggling with a lot of mental problems. I wasn't as focussed as usual before the start. In the end, I made the best of it and still managed to finish second, two tenths of a second behind the winner. I'm glad that I made it onto the podium despite my lack of focus, but I'm annoyed that I missed out on the win by such a narrow margin. After the TT, I went out on the XCO course with Primin Sigel to focus on the race on Sunday.

Cross-country on Sunday: When I woke up in the morning, I felt that my legs were in top form. But the choice of tyres was on my mind, the weather forecast predicted rain and I expected the course to change. Nevertheless, I decided to go for the finer tyres: Schwalbe Thunder Burt. After the starting signal, I stayed in the large leading group for the first lap and a half. When the rider in front of me crashed in the forest, I decided to go on the attack. By stepping up the pace, I managed to have a 15-second lead at the end of the forest.

I was now able to keep up a constant pace and extended my lead to 30 seconds. As the rain became heavier, the track became much more slippery in the final laps. To avoid risking a crash and jeopardising my good starting position, I took my time in the technical sections. In the end, I was able to cross the finish line with a 15-second lead. I'm very happy that I made it to the top step of the podium in the XCO race for the first time at a BNS. This motivates me to continue to train with great focus and prepare for the upcoming races.

Race report from Paulina Lange, U17:

Saturday Time Trial: I got off to a good start and made good time on the pump track. I was able to ride everything smoothly, but didn't risk too much in the slippery corners. So I completed the lap well and am quite happy with seventh place. Seventh place in the TT was also the starting position for the XCO race on Sunday. That meant first row on the grid and was a good starting position for the race.

Sunday cross-country: After a rather poor start with short stumbles, I was able to make up the lost places straight away and get into the leading group. My legs felt really good. In the following laps, I fought for third place in a group of three. The fight was very exciting right to the end, but unfortunately I had to admit defeat in the final sprint. Fifth place is still very satisfying for me and I'm really looking forward to the competition in Gedern!

Race report from Max Ebrecht, U17:

Unfortunately, my first race weekend in Böhringen didn't go quite as well as I had hoped. I had a good feeling in the time trial on Saturday, the course suited me quite well. I was then able to secure a solid 14th place, which meant a third row start for the XCO race on Sunday. I'm very happy with this performance because unfortunately I had bad luck with crashes in the qualifying races last year.

Unfortunately, I wasn't so lucky on Sunday. I crashed right at the start in a collision and my rear derailleur got stuck in the spokes. Unfortunately, it took a lot of time to untangle the rear derailleur, chain and spokes. Half a lap later, my chain also got knotted and I had to run to the next tech and feed zone. There I got a new chain, but the gears could only be fixed in the second highest gear. So my race became a tough singlespeed race.

On the last lap, I was then lapped by my team-mate Dennis Krimmel, who later deserved to win the race. Despite the bad luck, all in all I'm satisfied with my performance. My lap times weren't much worse than those of the front runners, even though I had to race on the climbs and only had one gear.

In Gedern on 5 and 6 June, the BIKE Junior Team will once again be competing for points in the cross-country race and time trial at the national junior classification.

Placings at the BNS-Böhringen

Time trial on Saturday

• 1st place - Elias Hückmann, U15 m
• 5th place - Lucie Hückmann, U17 w
• 7th place - Paulina Lange, U17 w
• 2nd place - Dennis Krimmel, U17 m
• 14th place - Max Ebrecht, U17 m

XCO on Sunday

• 1st place - Elias Hückmann, U15 m
• 2nd place - Lucie Hückmann, U17 w
• 5th place - Paulina Lange, U17 w
• 1st place - Dennis Krimmel, U17 m
• 46th place - Max Ebrecht, U 17m (defect)