Pepper Harlton, a Grade 12 student at Roland Michener School, is breaking new ground in the sport of mountain bike racing. Harlton recently tried out for and made the Alberta team that will compete at the Western Canada Summer Games for Alberta.
“It’s in Selkirk, Manitoba August 1 – 6,” she says.
Pepper started bike racing just last year when she and her mom Judy competed in a handful of events. She did quite well at the races, well enough to attract the attention of the Albert Bicycle Association. Earlier this spring the ABA asked her to try out for the Games team.
The tryouts took place in recent weeks in various locations. The first was a race in Stony Plain, where she placed seventh out of 17 and second among those trying out for the team. Judy Harlton also competed in the race and won her Master Sport category.
Next up was something entirely unfamiliar – racing a track bike in a velodrome in Edmonton. After a bit of practice, Pepper raced and came first against an all-boys field.
That was on a Tuesday. On Friday she had to do a road race at Cochrane, a race that turned out to be plagued with mechanical difficulties for many racers, Pepper included. Her brakes locked after hitting a pothole and by the time she figured out how to release them there was no way to catch the pack.
Saturday and Sunday of the same week were more time trials at which she did well. Lastly, the tryouts called for hill climbing at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary. Following that event, Pepper found out she had made the team.
She’ll race in both mountain and road bike categories, and over the next few weeks will be training in both disciplines. The training schedule includes competition in weekend bike races, including the 24-Hours of Adrenaline event in Canmore.

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