Sports Stories, Crash at Hawk Mountain 5: Track Damage
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On Saturday morning Riley put her Supertrek on the bike rack and climbed into the car with the rest of her family.
"Ready, Riley?" Mr. Clark asked as they drove toward the tryout trail.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Riley murmured.
"She's ready," Jordan said. "I have confidence in her."
"Me too," Mrs. Clark said.
"Hey, what's going on?" Riley said as they pulled into the parking lot at the field.
Two police cars sat side by side, their lights flashing.
"Oh no . . . ," Jordan murmured. The Blue Demons' new trail was filled with deep holes and tire tracks from several large vehicles.
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"Maybe vandals drove all over the soft dirt," Mr. Clark said.
Riley nodded. The jumps were gone, and trash was strewn all around the track.
Coach Adams and two other men were talking to the police officers as riders looked on, disbelief and anger on their faces. Riley and Jordan joined the group.
"The track is toast," Delaney said when he saw them. "Some jerks in four-wheel trucks thought it would be fun to trash our track."
Sofia's eyes burned with anger. "We spent a year raising money to build this track. Then in one night, somebody ruined it!"
"Do the police know who did this?" Jordan asked.
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"Mr. Ravi, the guy who sold us the land, saw a bunch of guys driving trucks past his farm last night," Delaney replied. "But it was late. He didn't get a good look at the drivers."
Coach Adams called for everyone to gather around.
"First, thank you for coming today," he began. "As you can see, we've got a problem. Last night vandals damaged our track, and it's not usable today. The police assure me they'll find out who did this."
He glanced over the crowd of eager riders. "Racing season starts soon so we need to hold our tryout quickly. Luckily, the racing community has stepped up to help."
He motioned for the second man to step forward. "This is Coach Hopewell, the head coach of the Racing Raptors."
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Everyone looked at each other in surprise. The Racing Raptors were the Blue Demons' biggest rivals. What was the coach doing here?
"Coach Hopewell has offered to let us use their track instead," Coach Adams went on.
Riley gasped and clapped a hand to her mouth. The Racing Raptors' track was on Hawk Mountain—where Jordan had her accident!
"This feels like a bad omen," Riley thought.
The crowd broke up, and everyone headed to their cars for the thirty-minute drive up Hawk Mountain to the Racing Raptors' track. Riley was quiet as her family pulled out of the parking lot.
"You'll be fine," Jordan said quickly. "The Racing Raptors' track is almost exactly like the Demons' practice track."
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Riley shook her head. "I didn't get to test much of the practice track, remember? I crashed. Plus, the Racing Raptors' track is where—"
"Never mind," Jordan cut her off. "Stop thinking about that, and focus on your ride."
Riley nodded and then turned to stare out the car window.
At the Racing Raptors' track, Mrs. Clark went with Riley to the sign-up table. Mrs. Clark signed the waivers, and Riley showed her USA Cycling membership card without saying a word.
Sofia handed her a race number. "Good luck, Riley."
"Thanks."
Riley and her mother headed to where Mr. Clark had set up chairs to watch the race. Riley handed Jordan her number, and Jordan carefully pinned it onto Riley's jersey.
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"Sixteen is my lucky number," Jordan said with a smile.
"And it brought you terrible luck!" Riley burst out.
"Riley, listen to me. You're going to have a great ride. And you're not me. In fact, you're a better rider than I am. You've got a lot more determination than I do. I've always been jealous of that."
"Really?" Riley stared at her sister, surprised.
"I might be the speed queen, but focus and determination are the things that win the race," Jordan said firmly. "Wherever the brain goes, the body follows."
Riley threw her arms around her sister in a strong hug, afraid if she said anything, she'd burst into tears.
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Jordan hugged her back. "Good luck."
Riley nodded. "Thanks." Then she suddenly spotted Quinn among a group of riders. Her fancy bike shone like it had just come out of the store, and several people stood admiring it.
"Maybe I'll wish her luck," Riley thought.
Quinn was annoying, but good sportsmanship was important. Especially if they were going to be on the same team after today. Riley approached the other girl.
"Hey," Quinn said coldly.
"Look, I'm sorry about what happened in the gym," Riley began. "I didn't mean to sound like a know-it-all."
"Whatever." Quinn looked down at her feet.
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"Well, good luck with your ride," Riley said. "And trust me, I'm really not trying to sabotage you." She smiled. "When I make the team, I'll need a good teammate like you." She turned to go.
"What do you think of this trail?" Quinn asked abruptly.
Riley halted. "Everyone says it's a lot like the Demons' practice trail. But it's longer and has a couple of extra jumps. One of the jumps is pretty tough."
"Have you ever made it?" Quinn asked, eyeing the track.
"Nope," Riley replied. "It's my first ride here. But this is the trail where Jordan had her accident."
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"Oh!" Quinn exclaimed. She looked closely at Riley, and Riley suddenly flushed. Why had she just blurted that out—to Quinn, of all people?
Riley waved before Quinn could say anything more. "See you later." Then she hurried back to her family to wait for the tryout to start.
A few minutes later Coach Adams lifted a megaphone. "Good morning, riders. I truly appreciate your patience with our last-minute location change. It's finally time to get this event started."
"Woo-hoo!" Riders cheered loudly.
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"As you know," the coach went on, "today's race is for riders to qualify for the Blue Demons team. The two riders in each age group with the best times will make the team. We'll start with the junior division, ages 9 to 12. Good luck, everyone!"
The riders lined up according to their age and gender. Riley and Quinn were the oldest to try out in the girls' junior division, so they were at the rear of the line.
Riley looked over the younger riders. One or two girls were fast riders, but they were probably nothing to worry about. Even if Quinn posted the fastest time, Riley could still win a spot on the team.
She swallowed hard. If she didn't get spooked by those jumps.