By: Ozzy Tobiczyk
Hello, my name is Ozzy Tobiczyk and this is my first year on the TAMJD team. I am 14 years old and a 9th grader at Milford High School. I have been riding my bike ever since I could walk. Living in Milford, Mi has given me access to so many mountain bike trails, it was only natural to get into mountain biking. I joined the Huron Valley United Racing (HVUR) team in 5th grade and raced my first MiSCA race in 2020. I was hooked from that point on. What I love about cycling is the scenery on the rides, jumps, and having a fun group of people to ride with. This year I will be racing varsity on HVUR.
I joined TAMJD because I wanted to push myself, become a better rider, explore all types of cycling, and have fun while doing it. I have learned a lot about how to properly fuel myself before a race as well as how to mentally prepare for a race this past year. I know I have a lot more to learn and that is another reason why I joined TAMJD.
My goal for this season is to be in the top 10 in Varsity and to get first place in my age group in Iceman and Peak to Peak. I am really looking forward to racing more gravel races. I am also starting to learn road racing techniques and have been racing in the Waterford Hills Summer Road Racing Series on Wednesdays. I had the pleasure of going to TAMJD training camp in Brevard, NC during spring break this year. It was so much fun. We had been training all winter to climb Mt. Mitchell which was about 44 miles up a mountain and 44 miles down. I think my top speed going down was around 49 miles an hour! It was awesome and I loved the views! I also really liked spending time with my teammates and going into town. We rode the mountain bike trails and roads in Pisgah National Forest and DuPont State Forest. It was a great experience and I can’t wait until next year!
I have been to many places in the United States to ride bikes but my favorite place to ride is in Marquette, Mi. My family and I go up there every summer for the Ore to Shore race and to camp for the week at Rippling River. I love the South Trails and the jumps on the Eh Line. My favorite race is Iceman. It’s such a fun venue. I like not knowing what the weather will be like. It’s always a surprise and different.
I like doing non-bike things too. I really love snowboarding and wish it was something I could do year round. I built a mini park in my backyard this last winter which really had the neighbors talking. I joined the boardercross team at Milford High School this year and rode varsity on the team. We won the state championship, which was really cool! I also have started to really like fishing and plan to do a lot of that this summer. I like hanging out with my friends too.
I’m really glad I joined the TAMJD. In the short time that I have been the team I have been introduced to so many things that I wouldn’t have done on my own, like road racing. Next up, I will be traveling with the team to the Tour of America’s Dairyland where we will have 5 days of Crit races in Milwaukee, WI. Wish us luck!
The post Welcoming JD Rider Ozzy Tobiczyk appeared first on Team Athletic Mentors.