Summit High School senior Aila Harmala is a fixture in the county. Although she has not yet entered full adulthood, Harmala has proved over the last few years that she is wise well beyond her years.

A few weeks ago, Harmala wrapped up her final Colorado High School Cycling League mountain biking season with the Summit Tigers. During the fast-moving fall season, Harmala raced spectacularly.

Having the best season of her career so far, Harmala placed within the top five in four out of the five races she participated in this season. Harmala’s best finish occurred at the Yampa Region race in Fruita, where she triumphantly took second in the varsity girls race and was crowned the overall regional points champion.

“My senior season was a great season for me,” Harmala said. “I raced varsity last year, and that really gave me the experience for racing bigger races this year. … My consistency is what led me to win the region. I didn’t get first place at a single race, but because I kept showing up and I was consistently on the podium is why I won the regional championship award.”

At the state competition in Glenwood Springs, Harmala felt like she did not have her best day, but she was still pleased with taking 26th among a competitive race field. 

“States was not my best race,” Harmala said. “We all have our bad races, and states just wasn’t mine. It was a bummer that it was the last race of my high school career, but I still had so much fun.”

Although Harmala was disappointed with how she raced at the state-championship event, she was soon overjoyed to find out that she was being honored with the “Outstanding Student Athlete” award by the Colorado High School Cycling League.

“Winning this award was the greatest thing I have experienced within the sport of mountain biking,” Harmala said. “It was better than winning any race. I feel like it was a great honor, and I am so glad I was nominated and selected for this award.”

The prestigious award goes to one boy and girl from the thousands of athletes that compete each year. Due to her standout races, excellence in school and involvement in the community, Harmala was named the high school girls’ Outstanding Student Athlete for 2024.

Beyond her performances on the bike, Harmala was selected for the award because of the impact she has made on the cycling community in Summit County. While Harmala’s race results makes it seem like she has been biking since she was a little kid, she has only been mountain biking seriously since she was in the sixth grade.

“I really got into mountain biking with The Cycle Effect back in sixth grade,” Harmala said. “I biked a little with my family before then, but not really. The Cycle Effect really introduced me to racing. Ever since then, I have been racing in the local series, and when I got to high school I joined the team.”

The Cycle Effect is an Eagle-based organization whose mission is to empower young women through mountain biking in hopes of creating brighter futures and building stronger communities on Colorado’s Western Slope.

The Cycle Effect not only inspired Harmala to pursue mountain biking at a competitive level, but it also invigorated her to give back to the sport by becoming a junior coach.

“I started coaching earlier this summer, and I really wanted to coach because I wanted to help younger girls fall in love with mountain biking the same way I did.” Harmala said. “I wanted to provide a safe space for them to learn and develop new skills. Their positive attitude and smiling faces is really what brought me back.”

Over the last few months, Harmala has been a nominal leader for The Cycle Effect. Not only has Harmala shown up consistently throughout the fall riding season, but she has also elevated her coaching to a level that makes it hard for people to discern her from one of the full-time, adult coaches. 

“She was pretty incredible right from the start,” The Cycle Effect’s Summit County manager Erin Buena said. “When I learned that Aila was still in school I was really surprised, because from what I had witnessed and observed from her in our practices, she stands out as a leader. Her level of maturity is beyond what I assume of most high schoolers.”

“(Girls) can leave all (their) stress behind from the day and come to the team and know that Coach Aila is going to support (them),” Summit Tigers mountain bike team director and The Cycle Effect coach Sam Streletsky said. “Having that type of impact on middle schoolers is really cool.”

Streletsky and Buena could not think of a better person than Harmala to earn the Outstanding Student Athlete award.

“Us coaches really saw how she embodies everything that award is looking for,” Streletsky said. “She is really dedicated to her athletics, and she is an IB diploma student with exceptional grades. She is really dedicated to school first and still finds the time to be an excellent junior coach outside of The Cycle Effect.”

Although Harmala’s high school mountain biking career has come to an end, the Summit senior plans to pursue mountain biking at the collegiate level next year. 

“I’m definitely planning on racing bikes in college,” Harmala said. “All of the schools that I have applied to have mountain bike teams that race through USA Cycling. I just love the sport so much.”

Harmala is currently interested in attending a wide swath of in-state schools that all have mountain biking teams. Wanting to potentially pursue a degree in the engineering, Harmala has applied to schools like Colorado School of Mines, Air Force, University of Colorado, Colorado State University, Fort Lewis College and Colorado Mesa University. 

No matter where Harmala winds up next school year, Streletsky is certain she will be successful.

“I think she is going to make an amazing addition to any collegiate team she chooses to compete on,” Streletsky said. “She is going to come into the team working on her goals and bringing the best possible rider for her team, but she is also the type of kid that when she joins a new team she is looking at that bigger picture.”