TEAM Borealis wraps up season at state championship

CHISHOLM- Team Borealis wrapped up its mountain bike season this past weekend at the state championship races at Redhead Mountain Bike Park, with several riders posting strong finishes in the largest fields they had faced all season.
The state meet drew 80 teams and 1,462 finishers to the trails at the Minnesota Discovery Center, where the course is carved into the walls of a water-filled former mine pit. Warm, dry weather left the trails loose and dusty, adding to the challenge for riders.
Addison Kannas had the top finish for Team Borealis, placing fourth in the JV2 girls race in 36:06. James Townsend added another top-ten finish, taking eighth in the seventh-grade boys D2 race in 18:45.
Beck Sponholz placed 12th in the freshman girls race in 37:01, while Siiri Nelson was 29th in JV2 girls in 41:11.
Ava Wohnsen finished 47th in the freshman girls race in 46:07, while Sawyer Kannas was 58th in seventh-grade boys D2 in 21:52.
Senior George Sponholz closed out his final season by placing 69th in the varsity boys race in 1:03:14. Sponholz has competed in every race Team Borealis has attended since the team started six years ago.
Coach Mark Sponholz said the team’s state qualifiers showed the payoff from a long season of training and travel.
“The commitment bikers and their families have shown throughout the season is incredible,” Sponholz said. “Most venues where we compete are a four-hour drive so it’s usually an all-weekend affair. All of these riders have been training since mid-July when the team started practices, but most of them have been riding all summer to prepare for these races. It’s awesome that we’ve had eight individuals see all that hard work pay off and qualify to race at the state championships.”