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NENSA Announces December Club Challenge

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While we don’t know what the beginning of this season is going to look like NENSA is working hard to try and keep our population enthused, excited to ski, and provide some incentives for your clubs to work together as a team!  We’ll be unrolling our Popular race schedule next week – which will include Virtual Events so people can participate in BKL, Club and Zak Cup racing regardless of where they live.  Our Club Cup rankings have taken on new meaning this season with the gracious support of Marty and Kathy Hall – with a carrot of $5000 going to the top ranked club at the end of the year, $3000 to the second place club and $1000 to the 3rd place club/school.  This ranking will be based on rollerski races we hosted, Eastern and Vermont Cup races, and the Popular Race calendar (which will include Virtual events).

To kick us off and get teams together we created the December Club KM Challenge – it’s designed to be simple and driven by the leaders and coaches of our awesome NENSA clubs.

Current Club Cup Champions. Mansfield Nordic poses at Sleepy Hollow, Vermont.

December Club KM Challenge  #DCKC

Join NENSA clubs of all walks for an inclusive kilometer logging challenge.

Club points will be awarded to 2021 Club Cup rankings – A Hall Mark of Excellence Award.

The team with the most kilometers skied (or rollerskied) will net 300 points, 2nd – 200, 3rd – 100, 95, 90, 85…

REGISTER HERE

NWVE winning the 2018 Club Cup Championships. Craftsbury, Vermont.

The goals of the Challenge are to:
– Bring some certainty to the beginning of the season.
– Unite teams and clubs that might be physically separated during this period.
– Log some of your first kilometers of the year.
– Get clubs psyched to ski and boost club participation.

CSU Juniors at a training with special guests Jessie Diggins, Sophie Caldwell, Julia Kern, Ben Saxton and Simi Hamilton.

How it will work:
– NENSA coaches or club leaders register their team / club on SkiReg
– Challenge runs from December 1 to midnight December 31
– Clubs are encouraged to report kilometers weekly:  add photos / videos and share notable moments – impressive skis, beautiful scenery.
– No cost for NENSA clubs.

St. Lawrence Ski Team at the 2019 Climb to the Castle. Whiteface, New York.

What do you get:
– Winning club will get #25in20 branded Skida headbands (until our supply runs out)
– Clubs score points toward the yearlong A Hall Mark of Excellence Award  of  $5000 1st place, $3000 2nd place and $1000 for the 3rd place club/school.
– Get stoked and fit for the 2021 Season
– Add your club’s kilometers to our season long goal of logging 250,000 K as a community!!

BKL’ers with folk hero’s Ida Sargent and Bill Koch.  Great Glen Trails. Gorham, New Hampshire.

49 Pineland Drive, New Gloucester, Maine 04260 | (207)688-6503 | Fax: (207) 688-6505

Swix and LL Bean NENSA Sponsors

2024 NENSA Club of the Year: Dublin XC

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Lindsey Masterson, the long-time leader of Dublin XC’s BKL, says that one of the most magical moments of every ski season in Dublin, New Hampshire, is a two part act.

First, the set up: “we start the season with a trail day before the snow comes in,” says Masterson. Then, the payoff: “the adorable moment when we’re out there on skis for the first time, and the kids say things like ‘it looks so different with snow,’ or ‘wait is this the same place we cleaned up!’ Something about the whole experience of trail day transition to snow time is magical.” 

Dublin BKL out for a ski (Photo: Dublin XC)

From the youngest members to their Masters then, the guiding spirit of Dublin XC is true. Down in the hills of southern New Hampshire, there’s a group of skiers that work with wonder and creativity year-round; the set-up, so that the pay-off; winter, is full of those things for us all. With that dedicated spirit, Dublin XC has grown from a couple families to a regional hub for everything from Coaches Symposiums to Eastern Cups and College Carnival racing. They are also all contribute to the reason why NENSA is proud to announce that Dublin XC is 2024 club of the year.

Dublin XC started as the extension of cuts and juts through the woods on Beech Hill surrounding the Dublin School, both literally and figuratively. Literally, there was a long-existing set of old-school trails (in style, and in that they dated back to the Dublin School’s founding in the 1930s. Figuratively too, nordic had already cut tracks. Dublin school had a competitive nordic program in the late 40s through the 60s, coached by Nathaniel “Buddy” Bates. In the late 2000s, Nathaniel’s son Brad Bates became the Head of School, and with a generous grant from Dublin School founder’s son Michael Lehmann, who had been part of those Bates-led Dublin School nordic teams, the pair started dreaming big. The full story of how the result, an FIS-homologated 5 k course, came together was reported on by FasterSkier upon its completion in 2016, and can be found here.

Along with a new course came a new community-oriented Nordic Center, founded in 2014, and a group of long-time nordic skiers coalesced into the beginnings of Dublin XC. Early Dublin XC youth programming started with two pairs of siblings, the Bates (Calvin and Lilly), and the Macys (Aggie and Clint), and quickly blossomed to include a Competitive Team with a full BKL club in tow.

Aggie Macy and Lilly Bates out racing for Dublin XC (Photo: Courtesy Image/Brad Bates)

Through the club’s growth, a steady presence of leadership has been provided by Coach Kathy Maddock, who set out with a vision to tap into the existing energy around competitive nordic skiing that already existed in Southern New Hampshire, and in turn, “hoped not only raise the level of competitive skiing in the Monadnock area, but in New Hampshire as a whole.”

For Maddock, that included fostering an excellent culture within Dublin XC, but also looking for the opportunity for the club to become the key ambassador for competitive skiing in the region. She developed the popular Dublin XC Summer Camp, looking for opportunities to host New Hampshire high school races and Eastern Cups. The growing snowmaking capabilities matched a base of volunteers that was eager to continue the trend they saw every December, when the large groups of skiers from nearby high school teams like Keene, and farther-flung like Eastern Mass XC, chose to make Dublin their first stop for snow. All of the steps taken to make Dublin a community hub for skiers from across the region has culminated in some special moments. In particular, Maddock indicated that she was proud of how New Hampshire became team champions at the 2023-24 NENSA Eastern High School Championships “not only because many of the racers were DXC skiers, but also because other New Hampshire skiers had been to DXC camps, or used the Dublin Nordic Center as their training grounds, and several of the coaches had coached at our camps, and gone to coaches clinics at Dublin.”

Last year’s Dublin Dryland camp (Photo: Dublin XC)

Throughout the process of nominating for Club of the Year, Brad Bates has expressed that “it felt weird nominating our own club.” That Dublin XC seemed a little too new, and a little too small. Ultimately, NENSA is proud to recognize Dublin XC because they are a testament to how strident energy and passion overcome metrics like time and size. Lindsey Masterson wrote that these days in Dublin, “when you stand in the stadium area after the BKL skiers leave the stadium and look up the trails all you see are little ones skiing behind the coaches like little ducklings, falling, and laughing, it echoes through the woods.” A ski program that’s grown from four to seventy skiers means that the chorus of laughs is louder these days, and it’s that scene, more skiers, enjoying more skiing, that is ultimately the lasting impression. 

When you are on the long climb up Beech Hill towards Dublin Nordic Center, and catch a first glimpse of the sweeping trails, you can’t but feel it is the kind of place in New England that was just meant to have a ski trail. Thanks to the hard-work of those at Dublin XC, New England is getting to have that quintessential experience more often than ever before.

Quarry Road Ski Club & Quarry Road Trails to host 2025 Bill Koch Festival

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The New England Nordic Ski Association (NENSA) is excited to announce that the 2025 New England Bill Koch League (BKL) Festival will be hosted at the Quarry Road Trails in Waterville, ME with the Quarry Road Ski Club on March 1-2, 2025. The BKL Festival is the marquee event of the Bill Koch Youth Ski League whose mission is to introduce young people to the lifelong sport of cross-country skiing, and the many associated health, fitness, and social benefits, in a fun, inclusive, and safe environment.

Once a year children, families, coaches, and caregivers from ski clubs from all over New England and New York come together at the annual Festival for a weekend of fun on cross country skis featuring racing as well as a wide range of winter activities for skiers of all ability levels from kindergarten up to 8th grade. For 2025, NENSA is thrilled to be working with the Quarry Road Trails and the Quarry Road Ski Club on this fun and inclusive event featuring relay and individual races by age group, as well as an engaging, fun, and educational mix of non-racing activities that all can enjoy. Quarry Road Ski Club “aims to provide accessible and fun ski programming for all ages and ability levels”. They have achieved this in their local community and beyond by hosting BKL events including Maine’s 2021 BKL Mini-Fest and the NEBKL Festival in 2022. We look forward to returning to Quarry Road for the festival and can’t wait to experience all the “Wicked Winter Weather” themed activites for all festival-goers!

All Festival information will be posted on our website HERE and lodging information can be found HERE. You can also sign up for our Trail Tales newsletter HERE to get updates delivered directly to your inbox. Registration will open in mid-December. General questions about the Festival can be directed to mackenzie@nensa.net. 

2023-24 Zak Cup and Club Cup Season Wrap Up

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The Zak Cup series is named after Vlastimil Zak and commemorates his enthusiasm and dedication to our sport. The Zak Cup is a season-long series to determine the best skiers in each five-year age group over 30 and Seniors (20-29). All events that are part of this series are scored for Club points, with all participants earning at least one point for their club. 17 of the 20 scheduled Zak Cups were held during the 2023-24 season, showcasing New England’s varied terrain and snow conditions and resilience in low snow conditions! Many thanks to the host clubs, volunteers, venues and skiers who make these events well-run, fun and social ski events. Here are a few photo and video highlights from this season:

December:

Quarry Road Opener Volunteers – the snow magicians – Justin Beckwith photo
Rodrigues Sprints – Royal Court action – Fred Bailey photo
Kendall Classic – Heidi Lange photo
Jackson Jaunt – Fred Bailey photo

January:

Gunstock Freestyle at Holderness – Fred Bailey photo
Bogburn Age Group Winners – Justin Beckwith photo
Post race excitement at the Geschmossel – Fred Bailey photo
White Mountain Classic – Heidi Lange photo
Fun times at the Stratton Terrain Challenge – Justin Beckwith photo

February:

Great Caribou Bog Race – Fred Bailey photo
Silver Fox Trot fun – Mackenzie Rizio photo
Flying Moose Classic – Daryn Slover photo
Mansfield Skiathlon – Justin Beckwith photo
Downeast Loppet at Quarry Road – Fred Bailey photo
Lollipops in action at the Dublin Winterfest: Ski Your Heart Out – Fred Bailey photo

March:

Lining up for the Rangeley Loppet – Photo courtesy of Rangeley Lakes Trails Center

There were tons of great events and camaraderie this winter. The energy of the season is really summed up in this video:

Silver Fox Trot Start Video – Mackenzie Rizio clip

The Zak Cup winners in each age group are NENSA members that completed at least three races, with the best six races counting for SR-M6 and best three for M7+. Note there were several ties this year! The age group winners for this year are as follows:

SR women – 1st: Annika Landis (Enjoy Winter Factory Team)
SR men – 1st: Will Meehan (St Michaels College), 2nd: Gaelan Boyle-Wight (NWVE), 3rd: Thomas Clayton (NWVE)

M1 men – 1st: Chris Burnham (NWVE), 2nd: Dennis Page (Nansen Ski Club), 3rd: Nathaniel Duquette (Ford Sayre)

M2 men – 1st (tie): Sam Quintal (Putney Ski Club) and Nick Laurence (Holderness Nordic Club), 3rd (tie): Sam Evans-Brown (Concord Nordic) and Tristan Williams

M3 women – 1st: Kasie Enman (NWVE)
M3 men – 1st place: Tyler Magnan (NWVE), 2nd: Jake Hollenbach (NWVE), 3rd: Dennis Claire (Gunstock Nordic Ski Association)

M4 women – 1st: Jessica Bolduc (NWVE), 2nd: Cipperly Good (NWVE), 3rd: Michele Smith (Cambridge Sports Union)
M4 men – 1st: Damian Bolduc (NWVE), 2nd: Eli Enman (NWVE), 3rd: Tyson Weems

M5 women – 1st: Rosalie Wilson (Ford Sayre)
M5 men – 1st: Rob Riley (Gunstock Nordic Ski Association), 2nd: Carl Ring (Holderness Nordic Club), 3rd: Eric Darling (NWVE)

M6 women – 1st: Elizabeth Ransom (Gunstock Nordic Ski Association), Karen Alence (Mansfield Nordic Club), Kathy Maddock (Dublin XC)
M6 men – 1st: Jeff Palleiko (Gunstock Nordic Ski Association), 2nd: Stuart Kremzner, 3rd: Frank Feist (Ford Sayre)

M7 women – 1st: Amy Patenaude Gunn (Black Water Nordic Ski Club), 2nd: Ellie Bouffard (Mansfield Nordic Club)
M7 men – 1st (3 way tie): Kirk Siegel (Bethel Outing Club), Ed Momm (Gunstock Nordic Ski Association), and Stephen Wright (NWVE)

M8 women – 1st: Lisa Doucett (Cambridge Sports Union)
M8 men – 1st (tie): Charlie Gunn (Black Water Nordic Ski Club) and Mark Lena (Maine Nordic), 3rd: Robert Burnham (Eastern Mass Nordic, inc (EMXC))

M9 men – 1st (3 way tie): Rich Barker (Freedom Trail Nordic), Bruce Katz, and Dhyan Nirmegh (NWVE)

M10 men – 1st: Jud Hartmann (NWVE)

Post-race Celebration at the this year’s Geschmossel – including many of this year’s age group podium winners – Fred Bailey photo

Congratulations to Jessica Bolduc (NWVE) and Will Meehan (St Michaels College) for being the overall winners this year of the Zak Cup series! For the women, Rosalie Wilson (Ford Sayre) is 2nd overall , and Annika Landis (Enjoy Winter Factory Team) is 3rd. In the mens category, Gaelan Boyle-Wight (NWVE) is 2nd overall, and Sam Evans-Brown (Concord Nordic) is 3rd place.

The Club Cup rewards participation by lots of club members across many races and various age groups (up to three deep per gender). The strongest clubs generally are scoring in several age groups at many of the races. For overall Club scores, the Masters heavy NWVE came in 3rd place, with the multigenerational teams of Ford Sayre in 2nd and Mansfield Nordic Club coming in first this year! Click HERE to find rankings for age categories, overall, and club points.

Congratulations to all those who participated in the Zak Cup and Club Cup series, and thank you to the Clubs and host venues for continuing to put on great races in New England. Bids are now open for the 2024-25 season. Click here for more info on how to bid!

Zak and Club Cup Scoring Rules

All NENSA members are scored and ranked for Zak Cup Scoring.
This criteria was updated November 22nd, 2024.

Masters age categories are as follows:

SR ages 20-29M1 ages 30-34M2 ages 35-39M3 ages 40-44
M4 ages 45-49M5 ages 50-54M6 ages 55-59M7 ages 60-64
M8 ages 65-69M9 ages 70-74M10 ages 75-79M11 ages 80-84
M12 ages 85-89M13 ages 90-94M14 ages 95-99M15 ages 100+

Race age is as of December 31, 2024

Zak Cup Points and Scoring

– ALL classes: Best 3 finishes

Rules Interpretation:
Racers who meet the minimum number of completed races are celebrated at year end awards.  The winner of each age class will be honored with a NENSA Masters Mug at the 3/29/2025 – Zak Cup Finale.  ‘Best’ refers to the the highest scoring placement.

  • Scoring of Zak Cup points, both overall and within NENSA age classes, follows a modified World Cup system with points to the top 15 as follows: 25, 20, 15, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0 for 16th and higher. 
  • All NENSA members will be scored.  Competitors are responsible for providing their number at registration.
  • Ties are resolved by overall Zak Cup points.  If a tie still remains then multiple awards will be given.
  • Select marathons (bolded below) will be scored for overall Zak in both, age appropriate distances.  If an M7+ does the longer race and they are in the points – they score.  M6 and under do not score in the shorter distances.

Club Cup Points and Scoring

  • Club Cup Standings will include all Popular and select Eastern Cup races for the winter of 2024-2025.  The goal is to bring the entire community together across our competitive programming and provide an overall ranking of Club participation and performance.  (You can read about Eastern Cup scoring under section #8 here)
  • Skiers are responsible for selecting their NENSA club at registration (pay special attention to the dropdown menu).
  • Up to 3 skiers from a club score in each category.  Skiers after this displace points from skiers behind, rather than scoring direct points (i.e. if you’re 4th from a club and you earned 6 points for your finish place, you keep the points, the finisher behind you only gets 5, even if they count to their club’s 3-person scoring total).
  • Winners score 60 points per category.  Each place is worth a point: 1 – 60, 2 – 59, 3 – 58…
  • U16 and combined U18/U20 age groups will also be scored in Club Standings at Popular races.
  • All timed events will be scored to Club Standings — including events that have multiple distances.
  • The select Eastern Cup races for the 2024-25 season:
    • Both Henchey Memorial Eastern Cup at Craftsbury, VT races: 10 k Freestyle and 10 k Classic on Dec. 21st and Dec. 22nd, respectively.
    • Roy Varney Memorial Eastern Cup at Quarry Road 10 k Freestyle on Feb. 2nd.
    • Frost Mountain Eastern Cup at Rikert Nordic Center 10 k Classic on Feb. 15th.

Virtual Events will not be factored into scoring, but are encouraged when appropriate to make racing more accessible.

Discrepancies or suspected scoring errors should be reported to Ben Theyerl.

One Day State Championships (at the White Mountain Classic)

Competition Rules:

  1. Minimum team size is 7, any combination of Men and Women allowed.
  2. Skiers receive points based on their age group placement (i.e. 1st = one point, 2nd = two points, etc.).
  3. No upper limit on team size.
  4. State Team is determined by residence as given on SkiReg or other registration form.
  5. Scoring age groups are Senior (includes U23) and older age categories. All five year masters classes will be scored (M1-M12).
  6. The NENSA Masters Committee will do the final team scoring.
  7. Scoring will be based on best 7 place finishers within the age classes scored. Ties broken by best 8th place finish.
  8. The State Team will be announced at the Luncheon as close to 1 PM as possible. The winners will receive a custom certificate designed by the youth that the event supports.  The certificates are mailed after the event.
  9. The NENSA scoring committee reserves the right to delay awards in event of race timing or other scoring problems.

One Day Club Championships (at the White Mountain Classic)

Competition Rules:

  1. Minimum team size is 4 Men or 3 Women (genders awarded separately).
  2. Skiers receive points based on their age group placement (i.e. 1st = one point, 2nd = two points, etc.).
  3. No upper limit on team size.
  4. Only NENSA member Clubs are eligible for scoring
  5. Club as given on SkiReg or Day or Race registration form.
  6. Scoring age groups are Senior (includes U23) and older age categories. All five year masters classes will be scored (M1-M12).
  7. The NENSA Masters Committee will do the final team scoring.
  8. Scoring will be based on best 3 (female) or 4 (male) place finishers within the age classes scored. Ties broken by best 4th (women) or 5th (men) place finish.
  9. The Club Plaques will be presented at the Luncheon as close to 1 PM as possible.
  10. The NENSA scoring committee reserves the right to delay awards in event of race timing or other scoring problems.

NOTE: The One Day Mountain Championships are not administered or scored by NENSA Staff. Questions and discrepancies must be reported to the NENSA Master’s Committee.

New England Club Relay Championships

  • The New England Club Relay Championships will be scored for Club Cup points in each of the six age group categories:
    • women combined age under 100
    • women combined age over 100
    • men combined age under 100
    • men combined age over 100
    • mixed combined age under 100
    • mixed combined age over 100
  • Teams will be scored as follows: 240 for 1st (60×4), 236 for 2nd (59×4), 232 for 3rd (58×4), 228/4th, 224/5th, 220, 216, etc (decreasing by 4 points per place)…
  • Skier affiliation is based on the honor system at registration.
  • Each club can score two teams per age category and points will be added to each club’s total points.
  • Only current NENSA club teams will be scored and non-NENSA club teams will not displace in scoring.
  • Mixed Club teams are allowed and will be split proportionately.
  • Protest should be addressed to Ben Theyerl within seven days of posted results.

Zak and Marathon Series 2024-25 Schedule

BOLDED = Also listed to the NENSA Marathon Series

Zak Cup Race NameDistanceDate
Kendall Memorial, Craftsbury, VT7.5 k ClassicSun. December 8th, 2024
Quarry Road Opener, Waterville, ME5-7.5 k (depending on snow availability) FreestyleSun. December 8th, 2024
Bogburn Classic, Ripton, VT~13 k ClassicSat. January 4th, 2025
White Mountain Classic, Jackson, NH30 k ClassicSat. January 11th, 2025
Geschmossel, Bretton Woods, NH12 k-15 k ClassicMon. January 20th, 2025
Craftsbury Marathon Classic, VT50 k ClassicSat. January 25th, 2025
Silver Fox Trot, Hanover, NH5 k-7.5 k FreestyleSat. February 1st, 2025
Flying Moose Classic, Bethel, ME25 k ClassicSun. February 9th, 2025
Hard’ack Challenge, St. Albans, VT10 k FreestyleSun. February 16th, 2025
Dublin Winterfest: Ski Your Heart Out, Dublin, NH10 k FreestyleSat. February 22nd, 2025
Rangeley Loppet, Rangeley, ME50 k FreestyleSat. March 2nd, 2025
Zak Cup Finale, Craftsbury, VTTBDSat. March 29th, 2025
Subject to Change Based on Snow Availability
Marathon Series Race NameDistanceDate
White Mountain Classic, Jackson, NH30 k ClassicSat. January 11th, 2025
Craftsbury Marathon Classic, Craftsbury, VT50 k ClassicSat. January 25th, 2025
Craftsbury Marathon Skate, Craftsbury, VT30 k SkateSun. January 26th, 2025
Great Caribou Bog Classic Race, Orono, ME30 k ClassicSat. February 1st, 2025
Flying Moose Classic, Bethel, ME25 k ClassicSun. February 9th, 2025
Rangeley Loppet, Rangeley, ME50 k FreestyleSat. March 2nd, 2025