This year’s Silver Fox Trot freestyle race hosted by Ford Sayre at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center was a huge success! Despite the event falling unusually early in the season, nearly 300 racers showed up to partake of this long-time running Popular competition. The Craftsbury Outdoor Center did a fabulous job ensuring there was ample snow to ski on, with an undulating 2km race loop, room to warmup and areas for kids to play on skis. The enthusiastic crew from Ford Sayre showed up in force and ran a very smooth event.
On the racing side, the participants ranged from Bill Koch Youth Ski League competitors to a healthy contingent of masters athletes, with many collegiate and junior skiers mixed in. Due to the short loop, this year’s event was run as interval start minimizing course congestion. A new twist taken for NENSA’s summer rollerski series saw the fastest open athletes being seeded by best U.S. Ski & Snowboard points, regardless of gender – it was very cool to see the men and women mixing it up side-by-side. Another twist on past events was the masters recognition, where all the age group winners of each gender were brought together to celebrate their accomplishments on the day. It was quite amazing to see so many pillars of our New England ski community join that ceremony!
M2 – Allison Crocker – Ford Sayre
M3 – Sara Graves – Stowe Nordic
M4 – Jessie Donovan – GMVS
M5 – Amy Caldwell – Caldwell Sport
M6 – Rosemary Shea-Cobb – Mansfield Nordic
M7 – Ellie Bouffard – Mansfield Nordic
M8 – JoAnn Janowski – Craftsbury Ski Club/Rossignol
M1 – Scott Lacy – Crosscut
M2 – Tyler Magnan – NWVE
M3 – Jeremy Huckins – Stowe Nordic
M4 – Eli Enman – NWVE/Rossignol
M5 – Hugh Pritchard – Onion River Nordic
M6 – Phil Lawson – Craftsbury Ski Club
M7 – Richard Costanza – Craftsbury Ski Club
M8 – Rob Bradlee – Freedom Trail Nordic
M9 – Jim Fredericks – Craftsbury Ski Club
In the Open field, the UVM men and women led the way, sweeping both podiums. A strong contingent of junior racers was close behind trying to make inroads into the pace set by the collegiate skiers. The Silver Fox Trot also featured the largest masters field to date this season with more than 50 jumping in the event! The day was finished off with Bill Koch races. Each two-year class group began as a mass start, rocking around the Lemon’s Haunt before climbing back to the upper stadium for the finish. All totaled nearly 100 BKL skiers competed on the day.
Thank you Ford Sayre and the Craftsbury Outdoor Center for a wonderful event! Up next racing action moves from Mt Van Hoevenberg, Lake Placid, NY for the Rikert Grand Prix Eastern Cup Opener, hosted by the Frost Mountain Nordic Ski Club on Saturday & Sunday December 17-18th.
