Hough High School freshman Jay Fesperman won first place in the US Open of Downhill Mountain Biking (junior men category) at the Diablo Mountain Bike Park in Vernon, N.J., May 27-29, 2011. The event draws hundreds of competitors in Pro and Amateur categories for Downhill and Giant Slalom mountain biking.

“When I crossed the finish line, I wasn’t sure how I had done. I was stoked to see ‘leader’ on the board when I looked up,” Jay said afterward.  The Diablo course is known for its extremely difficult, rocky terrain, which is Jay’s forte. [ To see a video of the course, visit http://diablofreeridepark.com/usopensub.html.]

Fesperman also won the US Nationals downhill competition (13-14 yr. old. category) last summer in Granby, Colo. He hopes to duplicate his efforts at this year’s US Nationals downhill competition which will be held at Beech Mountain, NC (Sept. 23-25).

This summer, he also will attempt to capture the Snowshoe/Powerade race series title for a third time in West Virginia.

Jay, who is a team member of Specialized/GROM Racing, has been racing since the age of 10. Downhill mountain biking pits a rider against the clock, racing as fast as possible down a mountain side course over rocks, roots and mud. To learn more about Fesperman and his team, visit www.GROMRacing.com.