By: Ben Theyerl and Isabel Caldwell

Smack dab in the heart of April, much of New England woke up this morning to hints of a winter that continues to linger. Up in the high peaks, there was a big douse, but down in the intervales and street-scapes, more of a dusting. All of it though, a reminder that this year, winter loved us very much.

NENSA’s Popular Series acts as the purest expression of skiers’ attempts to love the season back. That is, after all, the foundational wonder of nordic skiing. Taking what’s cold and making it warm. Taking the snow that ought to be impassable, and letting you skate (or kick) on and away. In our Championship events and the other Competitive Series we put on, there’s a celebration of skiing as a medium to do big things. See the world, push each other, push on to the next challenge. In Popular racing though, there’s a constant reminder of what has to power that urge towards more. In the Popular Series, there’s a celebration of skiing as an end to itself, pure and true. This year, over 2,500 skiers took part in that celebration!

To match a big winter then, came a big year in our popular series. One which celebrated the different ways that those in on the little wonder of skiing find it. There were big races. There were small races. There were races that weren’t really supposed to be races at all! Through fields, through forests, up and down mountains and valleys and occasionally over a river too. All out competitions, and events that stood purposefully against the notion of competition too. Diversity is the key, but insomuch as that diversity does point towards some commonality. After all, there has to be something coursing through it all. What did it all lead to then? Well, for one, smiles. Smiles though, that allude to a point. The diversity is the point. Each event, homegrown by the unique communities that form the patchwork of skiing in New England, is meant to build that community. Skiing, as a reminder, as a celebration unto itself.

* NENSA WANTS TO HEAR FROM YOU *

As we look forward to the 2025-26 season, we’re collecting community feedback on the ways and places we gather as a community most. Please consider taking 2 minutes of your time to fill out our Popular Series Community Survey below:

Popular Racing: Zak and Marathon Cup Race Series Recap

By: Ben Theyerl

If the whole of the Popular Series is to celebrate skiing as an end unto itself, then Popular racing is to celebrate racing as an end unto itself. The Zak Cup again returned to track this across a relatively standard subset of competitive events throughout the winter, with Sarah Pribram (Northwest Vermont Endurance) topping the Female Overall standings and Justin Freeman topping the Male Overall standings. The full rankings, compiled and scored graciously by Chris Naimie, are available HERE. Age Group winners are posted at the end of this recap. Gratuitous snow conditions for the first time in a couple of years meant it was also a banner year for Marathon racing across New England. Damian Bolduc (Northwest Vermont Endurance) and Bruce Katz led the way as Marathon Challengers completing 5 marathons apiece stretching from the White Mountain Classic in January to the Rangeley Loppet in March. Sarah Pribram again led the way in the Female category, racing 3 marathons throughout the year. The full Marathon Challenger List (completed 3 Marathons) is posted at the end of this recap, and available HERE.

The marks of the Popular Racing Series speak to the marked consistency of the Popular racing community in New England. The color though, added beyond Chris’ shading, came in the variety and dynamism of those that joined in on the races this year. The ever-unpredictability of New England winter did feature, even if it was more of a low buzz than a roar this season. When it did, however, it only led the community to rally around new and different places in the calendar to form. The first weekend of 2025, the Bogburn saw its usual rousing showing of over 100 racers at Rikert on Saturday. The Gunstock Nordic Association, however, fretting about low snow in New Hampshire, chose to re-locate up to Holderness once again for its race on Sunday. A whole community followed, with another 100 or so racers showing up to make for the largest Gunstock Freestyle Race to date. The next weekend, the varied teams and youthful energy of the USCSA College circuit joined in with New England’s Popular racers for a combined White Mountain Classic/Jackson Jaunt in Jackson, New Hampshire. The result? A race that was so new-school, pulled off on a strip of snow cultivated by the Jackson Operations team, that it became old-school, featuring a “forced-herringbone” off course to create a full-on loop.

Usual stalwarts continued to be usual stalwarts as the snow later filled in across New England. The Craftsbury Marathon again marked a mid-winter reunion for skiers from all points across the East, while the Mansfield Skiathlon and Silver Fox Trot forged ahead on making big community races bigger by adding more communities. The traditional finale of the Maine citizen racing calendar at the Rangeley Loppet and Burt Kettle Classic in early March took on a new shine, literally, with the addition of Titcomb Mountain’s Starlite Sprints on the Friday night before. Meanwhile, the unofficial award for “most hardcore crowd” goes to the folks who showed up to race the Hard’ack Challenge on that Sunday after Valentine’s Day – where winds across New England blew in at over 60 miles per hour (that’s nearly 100 kph, for those who haven’t shaken counting things like distance via metric yet) and somehow it was still kind of raining.

Interspersed in the races that were races, there were also plenty of competitions where bibs were present, but the ends perhaps were more than just a podium. Bill Koch League (BKL) racers persistently gathered week-after-week to take their first strides at striding fast! Well some races, like the Stratton Terrain Challenge, were fine to leave skiers rolling around in the hay (literally).

The scope of NENSA’s Popular Race Series across the season is undoable by any one skier, and that’s somewhat by design. Our season poster is supposed to read more like an epic than an epigram. For an endeavor that’s motivated by the desire to push and explore more, NENSA wants to do its part to make sure there is always more to explore. As we look back on a season of racing, we’re also looking ahead. To more skiers, in more places, skiing better, and skiing together.

Scenes from the Winter: 24-25 NENSA Popular Series

This season we had over 2,500 people line up on a start line of some kind at NENSA Popular Races! Some starts were in the bitter cold and others on warm winter days. Scroll for a panorama through a winter in New England (PLUS, FULL Zak and Marathon Cup Winners list below). A HUGE thank you to the talented photographers around New England who helped us capture this winter in its full glory. We are extremely grateful for your work!

Zak Cup Award Winners

FULL ZAK CUP RANKINGS

FULL MARATHON STANDINGS

FULL POPULAR RESULTS

NENSA extends its gratitude to Chris Naimie for putting his time and expertise towards creating Zak Cup scoring for this season.

Female 

Overall Top 3

1. Sarah Pribram (NWVE) – 65 points.
2. Rosalie Wilson (Ford Sayre) – 60 points.
3. Jessica Bolduc (NWVE) – 55 points.

Age Group Winners

Senior – Lola Villafranco (Colby College)

M1 – Mariah Cleveland 

M2 – Margaret Dembinski 

M3 – Tricia Groff 

M4 – Jessica Bolduc (NWVE)

M5 – Rosalie Wilson (Ford Sayre)

M6 – Sarah Pribram (NWVE)

M7 – Elizabeth Ransom (Gunstock)

M8 – Gina Campoli (Craftsbury)

M9 – Mary Heller Osgood 

M10 – Trina Hosmer

Male 

Overall Top 3

4. Justin Freeman (Holderness Nordic Club) – 75 points.
5. Eric Tremble – 50 points.
6. (TIE) Scott Magnan (NWVE) – 48 points.

(TIE) Colin Pogue – 48 points.

Age Group Winners

Senior – Colin Pogue

M1 – Micahel Dillon (Mansfield)

M2 – Darrell Hoy 

M3 – Tyler Magnan (NWVE)

M4 – Justin Freeman (Holderness Nordic)

M5 – Rob Riley (Gunstock)

M6 – Anders Vikstrom 

M7 – Stephen Wright

M8 – Nathaniel Lucy

M9 – Dhyan Nirmegh

M10 – Jud Hartmann

Marathon Challengers (3 Completed Marathons)

Damian Bolduc – NWVE

Bruce Katz – Independent

Victor Golovkin – Freedom Trail Nordic

Jud Hartmann – Independent

Gaelan Boyle-Wright – NWVE

Rob Burnham – EMXC

Art Copoulos – Ford Sayre

Eric Darling – NWVE

Book Hodgeman – NWVE

Mark Lena – Independent

Tyler Magnan – NWVE

Dhyan Nirmegh – Independent

Jeff Palleiko – Gunstock

Gordon Scannell – Schussverein-Drifter XC (SDXC)

Sarah Pribram – NWVE

Thank you for taking part in the NENSA Popular Series!