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THE FRONT ROW WITH JASON ELLIOTT: Need for speed taking Erickson around world

| September 26, 2020 1:15 AM

As mountain biking enthusiasts, Todd and Jennifer Erickson had to bring their youngest daughter, Ella, along for the ride when they were living in Ellensburg, Wash., during Jennifer's time in graduate school.

"We didn't have a lot of family or friends there," Jennifer Erickson said. "We'd end up shuttling each other to the top of a local mountain and riding back down. We just sort of roped her along with us, and thankfully, she liked it."

FOR ELLA, a senior at Coeur d'Alene Charter Academy, the love of riding all started with some local races.

“I’ve been riding bikes my entire life,” Ella said. “I started out racing BMX bikes at Cherry Hill Park (in Coeur d’Alene). My parents also rode, so while I was racing BMX, I also started riding downhill. I did a race at Silver Mountain (in Kellogg) for fun and really enjoyed doing those instead of riding BMX.”

And the excitement of flying downhill didn’t hurt either.

“Once you try it, you can’t stop,” Ella said. “I just kind of have a need for speed I guess, and it’s a great way to do that.”

Ella Erickson, 17, competes in the Northwest Cup Series, as well as a few races a year on the national circuit through USA Cycling.

“I’ll normally do 12 races a year,” Ella said. “This year, there has only been a couple of races because most of them have been canceled because of the coronavirus.”

Ella, a two-time World Junior champion, will get to compete in the UCI World Mountain Bike Championships in Leogang, Austria, on Oct. 7-11 after recently being selected to the U.S. team.

Ella's event, the Junior Girls downhill, is scheduled for Oct. 11.

“You’ve got to get a certain amount of wins each year,” Ella said. “But as long as you’ve got a license through USA Cycling, you can compete at nationals.”

Winning the past two national titles in her age group also helped considerably in getting chosen for the world championships.

“I won the last two national titles when I was 15 and 16 years old,” Ella said. “My times would have beaten the rest of the 17- and 18-year olds this year.”

Ella is the lone girl competing for the U.S. in the Junior Girls downhill.

Ella added there’s a few anxious moments that come with each race, but she’s got a routine that has helped with that.

“I used to get a lot more nervous beforehand, but now have that under control,” Ella said. “I usually listen to ‘Smooth Sailing’ by Leon Bridges, and that’s been my good luck charm. Most of the time, I’ll eat smoked salmon before a race. It seems to be the easiest thing to bring with you and is a good protein source.”

DUE TO the COVID pandemic, Erickson’s parents — like all other parents of the junior competitors — are not allowed to travel to the event. No fans will be present for the world event either.

“I’m a little nervous about traveling alone,” Ella said. “I can go because I’ve got an exemption because professional athletes are considered essential workers in Austria, so I’ll be staying with some of the other athletes that are going and a mechanic to work on our bikes.”

Ella recently returned from nationals in West Virginia. The world team was announced prior to nationals.

“It’s interesting,” said Jennifer of Ella’s trip. “It will be weird not to go to worlds with her. Neither my husband or I have been to Europe at all, so for her to get to go before us is kind of a funny thing. I’ve got the numbers of some of the other parents, and we’re all in the same boat, so we’ll be supporting each other for sure.”

Team USA does not cover expenses for junior athletes, so all costs are up to Ella to take care of.

“I’ve got a GoFundMe page (www.gofundme.com/f/send-ella-to-2020-uci-mtn-bike-world-championship) and have received a lot of support from Doma Coffee as well,” Ella said. "The support we’ve received has been great so far.”

The finals of the event will be broadcast on RedBull.TV.

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for The Press. He can be reached by telephone at (208) 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at jelliott@cdapress.com. Follow him on Twitter @JECdAPress.