Steven Walton Archives - Page 3 of 10

August 25, 2022

Gravity Fest & Enduro World Series Sugarloaf

KHS Pro MTB rider Kailey Skelton races down the Dual Slalom at Gravity fest in Big Bear, CA.

Massive doubleheader race weekend for Team KHS Pro MTB. We would have Kailey Skelton and Steven Walton holding down the Gravity Fest event in Big Bear, California. It would be Nik Nestoroff all the way across the United States of America holding down the World Enduro series in Sugarloaf Maine. On the West coast Kailey and Steven would be holding down Dual Slalom along with Downhill. On the East Coast it would be Nik Nestoroff holding down the top international field of racers in the Enduro category.

Big Bear, California has been hosting some of the best gravity races since the 90s and it would be one of the best race organization groups Team Big Bear who would be hosting the event along with Kyle Strait who spent multiple hours conducting probably one of the best Slalom tracks in the past decade. Friday would fire off with Slalom practice for both Kailey and Steven along with Slalom qualifications. Slalom consists of the top 32 riders in both men and women who will be taking to the finals which will be conducted on Saturday. The dual slalom track was the closest track to Supercross style riding which was very unique and a great step forward to futuristic tracks that should be implemented throughout the US and race events to come. Unfortunately, bad news would strike Steven Walton on his second run out of two he would sustain a crash which seated him 33rd place and not making the round of the 32 cuts. Kailey Skelton would make a few mistakes but would qualify in six position and onto the final for Saturday evening.

KHS Pro MTB rider Kailey Skelton on the podium after winning the downhill event at Gravity Fest.

Saturday evening would be firing on all Cylinders for the final dual slalom final, the crowd was roaring with over 1000 spectators viewing. Kailey Skelton would make it through her first two rounds, but unfortunately in her round of eight she would miss a gate and get docked 1.5 seconds back against the current Dual Slalom US National champion competitor she was facing. With that Kailey still would put the hammer down and try her best to overcome this one .5 second deficit but would cross the line short and end her night in 6th overall. Kailey was really enjoying the SX type track and technical jumps that came along with that, she does not spend a lot of time in this discipline and acclimated on an above. She will be looking forward to more of these types of events.

KHS Pro MTB rider Steven Walton on the podium after winning the downhill event at Gravity Fest.

Sunday morning would kick off with Downhill finals Kailey and Steven would take a few practice laps on the famous Miracle Mile track that has been raced for over three decades from the best competitors in the world. Both Steven and Kailey would make huge redemption for Sunday’s final Downhill event and would both take the top spot for the men and women’s Pro Downhill event!

KHS Pro MTB rider Nik Nestoroff on track at the EWS race in Sugarloaf Maine.

3000 miles across the US would be Nik Nestoroff competing in the high mountains of Sugarloaf Maine. He would fire off Saturday with one of the Pro stages which was definitely very slick technical and physical conditions he would fight his way through to 11th position. Sunday would have five more stages that were all very technical and high demand. Throughout the day Nik would grab some top 15‘s in multiple stages and also grab a six place overall in one of the stages, which was absolutely phenomenal since he was competing against the absolute best racers in the world. Before the last stage Nik was running 11th place, which was unbelievable and amazing to see Nik throwing down some of the best results of his career. On his last stage he would push very hard to capitalize on a top 10 but would have a minimal crash that would set him back overall in the top 20 which was still one of his and the team’s goal to break into the top 20.

The whole entire team will be traveling throughout the US to all meet up in Brian Head, Utah for the Big Mountain Enduro series that will be hosting some of the best rocky mountain terrain mountain biking has. It will be Nik Nestoroff, Kailey Skelton, and Steven Walton holding down the pro men and women’s fields for the Big Mountain Enduro. We also want to give a shout out to our Junior Pro who was still healing up from his broken collarbone Nate Kitchen, we will be seeing him soon in the U.S. Open being held later in the season in Killington Vermont. Once again, the team wants to thank all our dedicated sponsors, family, friends and fans. We definitely couldn’t do this without all the support from everyone above. We will see you guys all soon in Brian head, Utah!

July 28, 2022

2022 USA National Championships

KHS Pro MTB rider Kailey Skelton wins the 2022 US National Downhill Championship in Winter Park Colorado.

What an amazing race. The 2022 US national championship was definitely one for the books from start to finish. Held in the high-altitude mountains of Winter Park Colorado this was one to Remember. Team KHS Pro MTB would be racing events such as Dual Slalom, Enduro and Downhill.

KHS Pro MTB rider Nathan Kitchen on track at the USA National Downhill Championships.

Practice for Downhill and Enduro would fire off early in the week starting Tuesday. Everyone on the team will be competing in Downhill. It would be Nik Nestoroff holding it down for the Enduro category. Wednesday and Thursday would consist of two-hour sessions on the downhill track. The team would be dialing in the lines and making their best efforts to have the track completely in tune for Saturday’s seeding.

KHS Pro MTB rider Nik Nestoroff on track at the USA National Downhill Championships.

Friday would consist priorly of Dual Slalom. Steven Walton and Nate kitchen would be practicing, qualifying and racing finals all within six hours on Friday. Both athletes would qualify within the top 10 to seed them perfectly in the round of 32. The track was short, snappy and very physical. Steven Walton would make it through his first round and go onto the round of 16, from there would have some tough competition and be eliminated in the second round with good efforts and showing high amounts of speed against the best build in America. Nate Kitchen would be holding it down in the junior pro category and would make it all the way to the second to find round battling for third and fourth position on his final run when he would unfortunately have a massive crash due to his bicycle crank arm coming in contact with a flag and taking him down hard. His crash would result in a broken collarbone and be taking him out of Sunday’s final downhill race. Nate was definitely one tough cookie and even with his costly crash he would be holding down a national podium for junior pro and would be fourth overall for the day.

KHS Pro MTB rider Steven Walton on track at the USA National Downhill Championships.

Saturday would entail all the best American Enduro riders all fighting for a title there were four grueling stages all very physical and high demanding. Winter Park has always been known to be more on the physical side instead of the talent side. Nik Nestoroff would complete all three stages and head into the final stage in the top three positions. 30 seconds before the final stage he would have a big mechanical that was completely out of his control with losing his chain derailleur and unfortunately finish eighth overall in the pro men’s Enduro category. On top of the Enduro final going on Downhill seeding was late that afternoon; it would be the first top to bottom timed run to see where all the athletes would be sitting. With a solid run for Kailey, she would seed first and gain great confidence going into Sunday’s final. Both Nik and Steven would seed in the top 20 positions and have a lot more in the bank to give in the finals come Sunday.

KHS Pro MTB rider Kailey Skelton on track at the USA National Downhill Championships.

Sunday would start off with bright blue sunny sky with an awesome practice session from all the athletes. As the amateur ranks made it down the mountain for their final runs the athletes were waiting their turn to head up the gondola for their final race run, literally lightning struck and the US national championship downhill race was on hold due to severe rainfall and lightning. Within 30 minutes there was approximately 3 to 4 inches of rain dumped down on the track changing conditions dramatically and making for an unknown run for all the riders with wet slippery conditions. Steven Walton would try his best to acclimate to the ever-changing conditions and with a clean solid run he would finish 32nd out of the field of 150 pro downhill racers. Nik Nestoroff would have a blazing run and hold down the hot seat for a good portion of the race until overall he would finish ninth place. It would all be up to Kailey Skelton to back her 2021 national championship title up. She would be the last woman down the racetrack with tremendous pressure on her shoulders not only to back up her first place seeding run but to back up her 2021 national championship title. Kailey would have a massive bobble at the top, nearly almost crashing but keeping the rubber side down and putting the bottom half of the course to her advantage. Kailey crossed the line and would win her second national title ever in her career. The emotions would fly high for the entire team with Kailey claiming her second title and becoming the 2022 US national Pro women’s downhill champion.

The team will definitely be celebrating all of their achievements and hard work over the weekends, but not for too long most of the team will be heading off to West Virginia for the UCI World Cup Downhill being held next weekend. Once again, we’d always like to thank all of our sponsors, friends, family and fans for all the tremendous support. It was another amazing national championship event with KHS Bicycles claiming another title!

June 2, 2022

KHS Pro MTB Podiums at Mountain Creek

KHS Pro MTB rider Steven Walton racing at Mountain Creek resort in NJ.

The team was firing off on all cylinders for the second round of the Downhill national series hosted at Mountain Creek bike Park, in Vernon, New Jersey. The team would be arriving Wednesday to get acclimated to the East Coast conditions and get the bikes all prepped and built up from the long travels. Thursday would kick off with track walk which would consist of a very explosive track Mountain Creek has always had some of the best downhill tracks in America. With super steep conditions, lots of rocks challenging lines and an overall physically demanding track there was not much missing from being an absolutely amazing track.

Friday would be day one of practice and we had some heavy competition on the mountain Dakota Norton from Factory Intense along with Neko Mulley would be among the field which was your current and past national champions. The whole team had a solid day of practice besides a massive crash from Kailey Skelton that would have involved a severe sprained wrist. Unfortunately, this would sideline Kailey for the remaining event and even put her overall championship title hopes on the fence.

KHS Pro MTB rider Nik Nestoroff racing at Mountain Creek resort in NJ.

Saturday which would be qualifying day would intel of big weather changes that would now put rain into the equation. It would change the track dramatically and make for a completely new track to get down. With the new slick conditions, the team would qualify with Steven Walton sitting in 10th position, Nik Nestoroff 5th position and out Jr. Pro Nathan Kitchen grabbing 4th. All the athletes would have their work cut out for them come Sunday finals. Good news the weather was not sticking around it would be lining up Finals to make out with perfect conditions!

KHS Pro MTB rider Nathan Kitchen racing at Mountain Creek resort in NJ.

Sunday finals would bring out massive crowds and fans to cheer on the full day of racing! All three athletes would take a look at the ever-changing lines on track to make sure they were set for their final run. Our Jr. Pro would stay consistent on all track conditions coming in a solid 4th place. Steven Walton would throw down a blistering time and come in podium position taking 5th place. It would be Nik Nestoroff who would be holding down the hot seat for some time but would end up 3rd place with a stellar run! All three athletes did an excellent job throughout the event and kept in the hunt for the championship title!! The team has a moment off till round 2 of the BME Enduro series up in Big Sky, Montana. The team would like to continue to thank all our sponsors, friends and family for all the amazing support.

January 27, 2022

Podiums for the KHS Pro MTB at Southridge Winter Seires

KHS Pro MTB rider Steven Walton on the track at the second round of the Southridge Winter Series.

Fontana, California would be hosting round two of the Southridge Winter series. Success was continued with our third race of the season. The race team would start off Saturday with three stages of Enduro which would keep all athletes on their toes. They would have to manage each race and have no mistakes to get the lowest time to win.

KHS Pro MTB riders, Nik Nestoroff and Steven Walton standing in first and second place in the Enduro event at the second round of the Southridge Winter Series.

It would be Nik Nestoroff who would win his second Enduro Regional race of the year, keeping his race machine ahead of all the other competitors. Steven Walton would be hot on his heels with a solid second-place finish. All the athletes have really been enjoying their new KHS Bicycles 6600 Enduro machine which is new to our fleet.

Sunday would move onto the downhill racing event; it would be another demanding physical track. Not only with many physical and mental obstacles to overcome it was quite short, so times would be tight.

KHS Pro MTB rider, Kailey Skelton standing in first place at the second round of the Southridge Winter Series.

To continue her third win in a row, Kailey Skelton took a large win in the Pro Women’s Downhill division.

KHS Pro MTB rider, Nate Kitchen standing third place at the second round of the Southridge Winter Series.

Nate Kitchen, our junior expert rider, would come in a solid third place, racing some of the fastest junior racers in the West Coast.

KHS Pro MTB riders, Nik Nestoroff and Steven Walton standing in first and third place at the second round of the Southridge Winter Series.

In the men’s division it would be Nik Nestoroff who would keep the 2022 win streak alive now claiming both Fontana’s and the Nevada State championship! Another solid podium for Steven Walton and continuous success for the whole team!

KHS Pro MTB rider Kailey Skelton at the start gate during the second round of the Southridge Winter Series.

After three straight demanding weekends of racing the team finally would have a couple weeks off to continue the preparation for the big nationals and international events. We always want to thank all our family, friends and sponsors who continuously help us achieve our goals and most of all have fun at the races.

January 19, 2022

Nevada State Championship at Bootleg Canyon

KHS Pro MTB rider Nik Nestoroff on track in Bootleg Canyon for the DVO Winter Gravity Series.

Unbelievable weekend at the Nevada state Championship race in Boulder City, Nevada hosted by Bootleg Canyon Mountain bike park. Bootleg Canyon has been on the map since the mid-80s and has always seen some of the best World Cup riders like Sam Hill and Steve Peat! It’s a one-of-a-kind terrain that is very rocky, loose and gravelly. It takes a very highly skilled athlete to navigate the treacherous terrain of Bootleg from top to bottom and put in a solid race run.

KHS Pro MTB rider Naish Ulmer on track in Bootleg Canyon for the DVO Winter Gravity Series.

Friday was the first day of practice/training. It was no walk in the park, unfortunately weather conditions with over 45 mph winds that would make it very difficult for all the athletes to get down the hill. Everyone was trying their best to maintain lines and navigate the course. Saturday would be a better day of weather for the team. With bluebird skies and a high of 60° weather, they were finally able to have a great day at practice and dial all their line selections in for the finals come Sunday. Also, with Saturday highlights the Enduro category which would be held down by our athlete Naish Ulmer, he would put in a solid three stages with some of the best racers in the West Coast competing. Naish finished a solid six place in the pro men’s Enduro field representing our grassroots program at a higher level.

KHS Pro MTB rider Nate Kitchen on the Jr. podium at the DVO Winter Gravity Series.

Sunday’s final Downhill event would start off with a super huge result from our newly signed athlete representing us in the Junior Pro division. At only 16 years of age, Nate Kitchen would take the win over a nine second gap. He was competing against some of the best junior riders in the business with factory riders from GT Racing and other top brands. We were very proud of Nate’s State championship accomplishments.

KHS Pro MTB rider Kailey Skelton on track in Bootleg Canyon for the DVO Winter Gravity Series.

To keep the ball rolling it would be the professional women’s Downhill category with Kailey Skelton to come down last, which would create a lot of pressure on herself. Kailey was used to that kind of high-pressure situation and would come blazing across the line with a +30 second lead in front of her competitors. Kailey would also take the Nevada state championship in the pro women’s category, to add another title to her trophy set.

KHS Pro MTB rider Steven Walton on track in Bootleg Canyon for the DVO Winter Gravity Series.

Last but not least would be Nik Nestoroff and Steven Walton representing the KHS Pro MTB team in the Downhill men’s professional category. They both had their work cut out for them competing against some of the best American Downhill racers in the business. With a very physically long demanding track it would be Nik Nestoroff who would claim first place by a 4 second margin. It would also be his fourth consecutive Nevada state championships, since Logan Binggeli back in 2015. That would make it KHS Bicycles 8th consecutive NV, State Championship. Steven Walton was still warming up to the season and under the weather with a cold, he would come in a solid fourth place to round out an amazing weekend with all competitors of the team on the podium.

KHS Pro MTB rider Kailey Skelton on the podium at the DVO Winter Gravity Series in Boulder City, NV.

Bootleg Canyon has always treated the KHS Pro MTB team very great, and we always appreciate all the respect we get from all the fans, family and locals. We want to thank all our sponsors who continuously dedicate their time and effort into keeping the team supplied with the best product in the market. We understand times are very tough and product is limited, we are always grateful to have some of the best equipment to support us through these professional races. Next week we will be at round two of the Southridge Winter Series in Fontana, California. We plan to keep the ball rolling and continue on the success!