Shuster wins biking title

Port Washington High School freshman Beckett Shuster won the junior varsity 3 race in the inaugural National Interscholastic Cycling Association Central Region Championship last month in Fayetteville, Ark.

Shuster, competing for the Ozaukee County Composite team, won his 87-rider division that included 10 state champions.

He finished the two-lap course of the 3.2-mile route in 34 minutes, 52 seconds and won by one-third of a second.

“I felt adrenaline racing a new course with new people,” Schuster said. “The course was tougher than I was used to. I feel lucky to have raced with other state champions.”

Schuster said the support of his teammates and the energy of the competition helped push him to perform his best.

“I was really motivated to do well for my team,” he said.

The competition featured riders from 11 states, but Shuster and his fellow Wisconsin riders had an edge. The temperature dipped below 40 degrees, which was nothing new for the dairy state’s bikers. Wisconsin claimed 13 of 40 spots on the podium of 506 competitors.

The victory closed a dominant season for Shuster, who won all five Wisconsin Interscholastic Cycling League races.

The Ozaukee Composite Team, part of the OZ MTB Club, has grown the past few years to 65 riders this season. The team includes middle and high school students from across Ozaukee County who compete in NICA’s statewide league.