WE MADE IT! TIME TO PARTY!
Our final Event Weekend was nothing short of AWESOME! So many fun moments, accomplishments, and great memories! To be honest - that describes this entire season — so much FUN was had…so much PROGRESS was made, and countless memories — all thanks to our fantastic athletes, their parents, coaches and leadership. THANK YOU TO ALL!!! Please read here for a few loose ends as well as PARTY DETAILS!!!!
END OF YEAR PARTY!!
WHO? All Driftless MTB student-athletes, their families, coaches & their families!
WHAT? An end-of-year all-out celebration! So many great memories, laughs and also fantastic food to share!
WHERE? The Whyte Family hangar in Waunakee - located at 6010 Woodland Drive in Waunakee. Please plan to drop food off at the house, then park on Simon Crestway! (A huge thank you to the Whyte Family for hosting!!)
WHEN? Doors open at 5:30 PM, Potluck Buffet at 6:15 PM, and Program at 6:45PM.
OTHER IMPORTANT DEETS:
Dress warm! The hangar door is open to the great outdoors!
We blew the grid last year with all of our crockpots, so please note all warm dishes can be brought warm, in a crock pot, then transferred to chafing dishes provided by the Whyte Family. (Chafing dishes are large serving pans with lids that are warmed from underneath.)
**Please RSVP here. Please also sign up here to bring a dish to share.**
Do NOT miss out on the fun!! We look forward to seeing everyone!!
THANK YOU!
We absolutely cannot stress enough how incredibly grateful we are for EVERYONE involved with Driftless MTB.
Our student-athletes are the best athletes coaches could ask for. Your attitudes, spark, determination, willingness to push hard, your character, and the way you include and support riders of all ability levels is nothing short of astounding. You amaze us, and you should be SO proud of yourselves!
Parents - we absolutely understand how many moving pieces there are to this sport and organization. We “get” how much time is involved in reading the details of all the requirements, the events, the logistics, the equipment…. WE APPRECIATE YOU! Without your willingness to make sure your kids have what they need, are signed up, registered, prepared and get to where they need to be (even in the midst of occasional last-minute changes), we wouldn’t have the pleasure of coaching your kids.
Coaches - as Ian mentioned in one of our most recent practices, none of this could (or would) happen without you! We all hear “we couldn’t have done it without you” many times — but in the case of NICA and Driftless MTB, we truly could NOT do this without you and all your time and effort! We understand you all have very busy lives and jobs and families, and we very much appreciate your willingness to volunteer and give of your time and energy! So, from the bottom of our hearts, please know how very much we truly appreciate you ALL so much!
CHANGING OF THE GUARD
Mt. Horeb Head Coach & Team Director - Dirk Horne
Coach Dirk has been involved with the team since 2017, becoming co-Team Director in 2018, then full-on Team Director and Head Coach for Mt. Horeb MTB (formerly known as Blackhawk Composite) in 2019. What a run he’s had! He will be stepping down from the TD/HC role after this year. Words cannot express how thankful we are for the countless hours Dirk has contributed to our teams (former and present), growing the organization from what was once a very small Blackhawk Composite team to what is now Driftless MTB, encompassing Mt. Horeb MTB and all of Driftless MTB. His enthusiasm can be heard (quite literally) far and wide — and it’s clearly contagious! He helped to nurture, guide and teach riders of all ages over the years — students and coaches alike -- sharing his passion for biking, and helping to create innumerable lifelong riders. To say he has given 110% of himself is an understatement. With sincere gratitude, our hats are off to you, Mr. Horne.
Waunakee Team Director - Em Meier
Coach Em has been Team Director for Waunakee MTB for 3 years and will also be stepping down after this year. Her enthusiasm, organization, inclusiveness and down-right STOKE for this sport, for her fellow coaches, and for all of our student-athletes is unbelievable! Her ability to garner the attention of a group of athletes (who can be quite squirrelly after sitting in school all day) is truly amazing. We are so thankful, especially, for her initiatives within the GRiT community — reaching out to newer female-identifying riders and instilling an awesomely profound sense of strength and confidence as they attempt obstacles they likely wouldn’t have otherwise, especially in a male-dominated sport. Always encouraging, always moving forward with a smile on her face, Em is an incredible role-model for those around her.
Bottom line — these two have been absolute pillars within the Driftless MTB community over the past several years. The growth that’s been experienced under their leadership is amazing. Providing the leadership to help student athletes (and also coaches) successfully tackle difficult, daunting obstacles through hard work, practice and determination gives them something that can’t be bought. That feeling of accomplishment upon tackling something initially thought of as not doable is truly amazing — impossible to quantify and tough to put into words. We are so very fortunate to have had both Coach Dirk and Coach Em on our leadership team, and for the groundwork that has been laid. With sincere gratitude, many, many thanks to you both.
Welcome, Steve!
Steve riding outside of Boulder, Colorado, where his oldest daughter attends school.
Yes, the rumors are true! We have an awesome new leader joining Waunakee MTB along with head coach Brad Kerl. We are incredibly stoked to welcome STEVE LOWERY as our incoming 2024 Team Director! Steve brings quite a bit of experience in coaching a variety of other youth sports. As a long-time member of the Waunakee community, Steve will be an amazing asset in the process of continuing to grow the Waunakee team as a school sport! His stoke for learning the sport of MTB and passing along his new knowledge to riders is so appreciated and impactful.
Here’s a little bit more about Steve, from the man himself…
During the day, I work from home as a Software Engineer for Zendesk. When I'm not working, I enjoy biking (obviously), skiing (both water and downhill), hiking or generally just being outside.
I have been married for 22+ years to my wife Sarah and we have 3 kids; Sam on the team is a Freshman. I also have a daughter Sophie that is a Junior and my oldest Stella is a Sophomore at Colorado University in Boulder. We also have 2 Labradoodles that used to attend Driftless practices before I started coaching.
While I'm new to MTB, having both bought my first bike and started coaching in 2022, I have coached quite a bit in the past including soccer, basketball, baseball and lacrosse.
Steve has already stepped in to many organizational volunteer roles this year - we appreciate him and Sarah with their help of spearheading yard signs, banners, and more. We are looking forward to the energy and new ideas that Steve will bring to Waunakee/Driftless MTB. Thank you, Steve, for stepping up and helping lead our teams in 2024!
LEVEL 2 & 3 COACHES
Please remember to turn in your First Aid Kits at the party on Nov. 2. If you’re unable to attend, please drop off your kit with a Head Coach or Team Director near you. You may KEEP the whistles. Thank you!
