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Members and coaches of the Gilmer Cartecay Youth Mountain Bike Team are set to start the season at the beginning of July.
The Gilmer Cartecay Youth Mountain Bike Team will be entering its seventh year of competition when the Georgia Cycling Association season begins in July.
Recruitment for new riders is open, inviting participation from all youth, sixth through 12th grade boys and girls, regardless of experience or ability.
Founded in 2017, Team Cartecay sought to create an opportunity for area youth to discover a sport and a physical activity they could enjoy throughout their entire lives. However, much more blossomed off the vine that eventually became Team Cartecay.
Team members immediately saw the benefit of riding in the north Georgia mountains that make up our Gilmer home. Fitness, fellowship, family, fun, success in competition, exploration, self-reliance, backcountry competence and mechanical savvy were characteristics and experiences experienced in some measure by all team members.
Mountain biking and Team Cartecay have been positively impacting area youth and families in unique ways, and the team anticipates carrying that legacy into the future in 2023.
Team growth has spurred the need for Team Cartecay to have two racing squads for 2023, which include Team Cartecay and Team Cohutta. Team Cohutta will be led by head coach Chris Harbin, and Cartecay will be under head coach Doug Moore.
The squads will continue practicing together as one family under a unified nonprofit status; however, each squad will race under distinct banners during the five fall league race events and during state championship.
The mountain bike season begins July 1, and an informational meeting is planned for May 16 at the Victory Christian Center at 6 p.m. Registration for the Georgia Cycling Association race series opens in April, with reduced fees available for early bird registration.
For more information about the team and the upcoming Georgia Cycling Association season, visit Teamcartecay.com.