The award will be passed twice annually, and bear the recipient’s name, and represent their story to inspire us all.

The first honoree is our own # 426, Beginner4(50+ rider) Mr. Scott Burrows!!!

Racing mountain bikes to our Jupiter Award winner is a big deal. At press he’s 5^th in the Beginner 4 Class for the 12 week Over the Hump Summer Series.

Scott finished 6 months of relentless chemo last April. He was down 25 lbs at the end of of it all and didn’t have the strength to put on his socks or take the lid off a water bottle.  Couldn’t drive, walk his dog, shop, empty or load the dishwasher, work or put on a shirt by himself.  Many times Scott just stayed in bed until morning so that someone could help him get up.

Scott was diagnosed with metatastic melanoma, a large tumor on his left lung.  It was his second time with metatastic cancer – the first was 1994.

The cancer was discovered after he became out of breath while riding and couldn’t understand why he felt so out of air.  That led to scans and eventually two oncologists telling him not to expect to live.

That journey began in September of 2009.  And it followed brain surgery, just 4 months before, to remove a brain tumor not related to the cancer.   That tumor was not cancerous, but the surgery caused him to lose his balance nerve and hearing in his left ear.  He had to re-learn to walk, let alone ride a bike.  But he got back on the bike a month later (road only) and two months later he was on his mountain bike.  No more wheelchair or cane.  Life was good!  Then he found out he had cancer, and things went downhill pretty fast.

He finished chemo April 6, 2010.  His body was wrecked, but the cancer was gone.  HE could hardly wait to ride again.  But didn’t have the strength to balance on a bike, or put weight on his handle bars. His friend Tim walked along his bike and held him as he learned to ride around the driveway just like a 4 year old getting on a bike for the first time.

That was June 2010.  After that it was a ride to the stoplight and back. Then eventually Newport Coast (he had to stop 3 times and rest).  And slowly his strength and weight came back. Eventually He was back on his mountain bike and riding his old rides again.

The big test was “I Think I Can in El Morro”.  To ride that trail was a victory.  He used to race up it. This time it was just to finish. He did it.  Now he has the 7th best time on Strava.com last he checked.

Matt Wenger (left), John Russell (right), present Scott Burrows with the Oakley Jupiter Award

He’s back…self admittedly he’s not the strongest racer.  Scott says he’s strong enough. Riding is a victory. Racing is the Cherry on top.

When we asked Scott what he had to say about his journey, Scott Said, “Just racing is victory enough for me. And I thank God that I can just come out and compete with everyone.  That’s a blessing enough to me.  And hopefully an inspiration to others who face challenges they never expected – or wondered if they would survive.”

The Oakley Jupiter Award allows us to celebrate victory over challenges, monumental people and personalities. It’s a good reminder of life lived to the full, within our local riding community. We’re proud to honor Scott Burrows as a man who embodies what Over the Hump and the Oakley Jupiter Award is all about.

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and by far the largest. Jupiter is more than twice as massive as all the other planets combined (the mass of Jupiter is 318 times that of Earth)(nineplanets.org) . Unnoticed, but Super Awestriking…. we’re looking for the rider, who most resembles Jupiter. Maybe a sleeper, or maybe just the largest and brightest of the OTH Racers.

This year Oakley introduces the Oakley Jupiter Award. The Jupiter Award will go to a rider that INSPIRES US ALL, among the Over the Hump Community. It’s a  perennial (actually awarded two times a year) to riders at Over the Hump. It’s a huge honor to be handed the Award.  Two times a season a riders’ name will be added to the trophy, they’ll carry it home until it returns to be set in the hands of the next racer elected to be honored as the Oakley Jupiter Award recipient.

The Jupiter Award goes to Over the Hump’s MVR (Most Valuable Rider)! It’s not the fastest pro, or the most accomplished sport, or the winner of the Single Speed Class presented by F&M Bank (our latests addition).  It’s not male, or female, or youth specific.  It’s an honor.

So give us your best stories, nominate the rider who is most deserving;  maybe it’s a comeback from injury, a rise in ability, an effort that benefits the OTH community, a gift or donation that changed the way someone was able to participate, or even live better.

It’s your job to nominate, and we’ll announce the inaugural Oakley Jupiter Award Winner after the 1st half of the season at Over the Hump Race #6 on June 28, 2011.

Tell us the OTHer’s name and story. To submit your nomination to jupiter@overthehumpseries.com

Justin was injured during the 2010 Baja 1000 last month and is in San Diego, in a coma, showing signs of progress. Join us as we join his friends, team JCR Honda, and sponsors as we help raise funds to aid and encourage him in his recovery. Some of our friends at Over the Hump spearheaded this event and we’re excited to be a part. Join us and a slew of celebrity Moto Legends including Johnny O’Mara and Johnny Campbell (perennial Baja 1000 winner)

Check out the rest of Jason Zindroski’s photos from HighRevPhoto.com We’re going to miss him being at the next race…any aspiring amateur photographer’s out there. Email us -

Here’s the rest of the gallery: OTH #5 photos now up! http://www.highrevphoto.com/photos/index.php?do=photocart&viewGallery=2040.

Tuesday’s race drew mountain bikers from all surrounding counties.  The grass by the lake was alive the entire afternoon.  Families, kids, sponsors and Over the Hump Volunteers were milling around. The anticipation and excitement of the 2^nd race getting underway was obvious. A couple of simple changes to the event area made it a great place to pull up a lawn chair, visit the sponsor’s tents, shake off some pre-race jitters, or stop by one of the local shop’s tent for  quick bike adjustment.

Racers getting ready before the race

If you weren’t there it might be hard to believe, but Tuesday was a testament to the fact the Orange County Mountain Bike Community is powerful, motivated, and most importantly ready to play! 400+ spectators came out to cheer on Over the Hump’s second and final inaugural season sold out race field.  It was a bit cooler, by the lake, than in August, and as the sun set over the hills, the energy continued to peak as the crowd rolled in.  We had several spots to sell on sight, and the line to get those spaces started at 3:30pm, a half hour before registration opened.

Hans Rey strikes a pose, Matt Wenger and Trail Angel’s Jacke Van Woerkom by the lake

As six o’clock rolled around trials and adventure mountain bike legend, Hans Rey, kicked off the festivities.  Hans said “I’m super stoked. This is much needed and I’m glad we now have a place to race. Good job…keep it up!” It was a contagious energy hovering around the start…I got goose bumps  just looking out over the deep crowd of racers, all lined up to take off chasing  after not just  a race win, but also grab another set of points to add to the series standings.

SHO-Air pros Sid Taberlay (left) and Manny Prado (right) were shoulder to shoulder much of the race (Photo courtesy IHarris)

As the horn blew local SHO-Air Pros Sid Taberlay, Manny Prado along with August 26ths Women’s Expert winner Tonya Bray led out Expert racers along with the other 371 racers. Expert racers had 4 laps ahead of them, Sport 3, Beginners and Juniors 2.  The road out of the staging area was busy with two way traffic for the next hour and a half, with the dust tamed by a water truck that ran the course right before the race.

There were some great race highlights, as Sport Beginner and Juniors, alike,  were passed by the Expert pack that stayed 8 strong through the first 2 laps.  It later broke up, bringing home a repeat top 3 finish for the Expert Men and Women.

Of course the stories go much deeper from Tuesday’s race than just the pros performance and speed.  More than a handful of racers came up to Over the Hump staff and thanked us for such a great event.  Doug, a Beginner 40-49 racer said, “Thanks so much. I haven’t raced in over 10 years, and this just made me feel like a kid again.”  He wasn’t the only one, and the smiles said more than any encouragement, or words could.

Makayla Dulac (11)

We spotted another notable story, as we stuffed race numbers in envelopes on Monday night prior to the race.  As I alphabetized the entries, there was 1,2,3,4,5 Dulacs.  Mom, Dad, and daughters Samantha (12), Makayla (11), and Danielle (9).  5 people, 3 under 13 years old. It’s important to us to be providing a venue to develop new racers, and allow kids, beginners, enthusiasts, experts and pros all to hit the dirt together in a very unique mountain bike race experience. It was so cool to see future mountain bike star, 9 year old, Danielle Dulac, race on the same course, at the same time, as 1st Place Women’s Expert and former pro Tonya Bray.  In fact as the race went on, we realized we now had a Women’s Junior’s Class to add to the mix, which was missing in the August 26^th race. All 3 Dulac girls not only finished the race it was a 1,2,3 finish for the Dulac girls!

After the race the crowd gathered out on the grass for the race results, and the final series points finalists to be reveiled.  As we waited, Project Rwanda’s raffle took place and winners were announced who received a Crank Brother’s JoplinR seatpost, a Park Bicycle tool set, a month supply of Sambazon among other prizes.

Crank Brothers, held a semi-secret competition, which was had a hi-end purse.  John Dang, who raced Tuesday was sporting a Crank Brothers wheel set and went home with the title “Biggest Crank Brother’s Fan” and a new $400 set of 4Ti pedals.

Oakley equipped fasted young rider Series Winner, Matt Tenure( Men’s Sport 1 (under 29)) with a Holeshot watch valued at $650.

Expert Series Final results were:

Women’s category: 1^st Place – Tonya Bray, 2^nd Place – Vicki Chernoff, and 3^rd Place – Annabelle Nenninger.

Men’s category: 1^st Place – Sid Taberlay, 2^nd Place – Manny Prado, and 3^rd Place – Dana Weber

Winners took home these beauties!

All 2009 Over the Hump Series race and series winners can be found at http://overthehumpseries.com .

As we sit on this side of the last 10 weeks we’re  excited by the way Over the Hump Mountain Bike Race Series has taken on a life of its own.  A life fueled by racers and fans from counties wider spread than just Orange, of every age, level and ability.  Some have experienced racing for the first time, and promise to be back, and many seasoned racers have told us how much they enjoyed the vibe and race at Irvine Lake…they too plan to come back.

Over the Hump will continue in 2010 by bringing Orange County a full weekly series, along with plans for an Endurance race, and a few other plans along the way. Stay up to date, and find all the results and other info on Over the Hump Mountain Bike Series at http://overthehumpseries.com

Thanks again for coming out and supporting Over the Hump Mountain Bike Race Series. It’s been a fun ride, and we look forward to seeing you on the trail.

Oakley, an Over the Hump sponsor,  covered the race on their website…. “Over the Hump is a ‘grassroots’ event, which brings the Orange County Mountain Bike community together for a midweek, laidback, fun race.”

Check out the post at: http://www.oakley.com/sports/mtb/posts/1569

Thanks to all of our Over the Hump Sponsors who have made the race possible.  Visit them at http://overthehumpseries.com/sponsors/