Meet Ryan Nolan...FINALLY!

"I THINK I CAN SEE MY HOUSE FROM HERE!"

Here is a run down on my year so far,
Things started off well my first race of the year. I placed 7th in the Diablo Domination race #1. Since this was the week before the US OPEN there were a ton of racers so finishing 7th out of 90 something wasn't to bad. The next week at the US OPEN I went down in practice and had a hard time walking let alone riding, so during my qualifying run I went down and did not qualify. Then was Mt. Snow I had never been there before and I had tons of fun, definitely one of my top 5 favorite places to ride. Friday I raced duel slalom Expert 19-29 and got 5th place in that. It was my first ever duel slalom race. I had a lot of fun doing duel slalom, I did it mostly because I had room to take the bike with me and I figured it was extra riding time. I think that next time I race duel slalom or 4X that I will take it a little more serious and hope to do even better. Saturday was the downhill race. I went d own in practice again hitting the same knee that had just recovered from the US Open and I think that slowed me down some mentally in my race run. I was disappointed to see a 19th place finish. I will definitely go back next year and work harder on that course. My next race was Diablo Domination race #2 I wasnt able to go to the Saturday practice so when I got there Sunday I knew I really had to focus. This ended shortly though with a broken derailleur and no spare because I had used my spare at Mt. Snow So I decided to run the race with no chain. With a quick running jump off the start I was on my way pumping off anything I could for the first 500ft or so, then I got a flat rear tire. My luck seemed to be getting worse and worse. I didn't let it bother me though I just kept on going down the course with the flat and no chain. It suddenly became a game to see how fast I could go with out a chain and a flat tire so by the time I got down I was happy to see a time of 2.52.
First in my class had a time of 2:28 and the first place pro a 2:18. So in my mind I won my game of getting to the bottom with a flat and no chain. After that finish I sit in 16th place in the Diablo Domination series standings out of over 72 racers
This is my up to date race report

Ryan Nolan is an uber-fast downhiller that joined the team this year, thanks to DH squad captain Jay Schippers. Recently out of High School, Ryan has been blowing up his Expert category on the East Coast. He will be moving soon to Kentucky, and will be able to help Jeff Williams hold the fort for Backbone's Eastern Division race squad. Ryan finally managed to send us some pix from the Vermont NORBA's, and here they are! Thanks to Ryan for taking it to the hair back there, and we hope to meet you soon. RYAN WILL BE LANDING IN L.A. in the next few days, so if anyone is NOT going to SONOMA and would like to ride with Jay and Mr. Nolan, call or e-mail Jay right away! Thanks for the shots Ryan, and we'll see you soon...

Chris