Justin Beckwith

2018 New England Junior National Team

Justin Beckwith · February 21, 2018 · Leave a Comment

NENSA is pleased to announce the 2018 New England Junior National Ski Team who will compete in Soldier Hollow, Utah from March 6^th – 10^th. Forty-four skiers from Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont will represent our division, vying for National Championships— and working together to try and defend the Alaska Cup, the overall team award for the fifth year in a row.

Team New England, will travel with 13 staff members, and compete on the 2002 Winter Olympic and 2017 Junior World Championship courses. The US Ski and Snowboard XC Junior National Championships brings together racers from 10 regions of the country – including New England, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Central CXC/Great Lakes, High Plains, Rocky Mountain, Intermountain, Far West, Pacific Northwest, and Alaska for three individual races and a relay event. You can read more about the Championships on the https://www.xcjuniornationals2018.com/ website.

Skiers qualified for the New England team through our Eastern Cup Series, and specified out of region races. The level of competition at our regional races was very impressive this season and we were fortunate to have great venues and conditions for racing. You can view final rankings and see the depth of our skiers for the 2018 season here: U18/20 Women, U18/U20 Men, U16 Girls, U16 Boys. NENSA would like to congratulate all of our skiers on a great beginning to the season and continued success.

We thank the entire region for pushing forward the level of skiing and making a fun environment for our athletes to thrive. Please stay tuned for event updates as these forty-four exceptional New England athletes compete against the best skiers in the country.

Master’s Report from the Stowe Eastern Cup Weekend

Justin Beckwith · February 5, 2018 · Leave a Comment

Guest writer, Damien Bolduc is back at it – candidly reporting on our Zak Cup Series with his patent humor. Look for updates to Zak and Club standings in Wednesday’s Kickzone, including the Craftsbury Marathon and Stowe. And don’t forget this weekend’s back to back events, with the Bretton Woods Marathon on Saturday and the Mt. Washington Cup on Sunday. Both registrations are open on SkiReg. Some event pictures. And complete results. Here’s Damien!

“The Master’s returned to the Eastern Cup this weekend! It was another exciting weekend of racing in Craftsbury. After a move from the Trapp Family Lodge earlier in the week due to thin conditions, racers were set to contend on the Craftsbury Race Loop. Feelings were mixed on the move, though both courses are extremely challenging with a lot of climbing and not much recovery.

Conditions in Craftsbury were excellent. They retained all the snow from last week’s marathon and gained a little more here and there. Temperatures were also cooperative making the races easy to prepare for.

Both days of the Eastern Cup were contested on Craftsbury’s Homologated Race Loop. The base was solid with plenty of snow coverage. Courses were groomed impeccably and set up nicely for both days. They held up well throughout the races.

Conditions on Saturday were cold. The day started well below zero, then a huge temperature increase to the positive teens. Since it remained so cold, the swing was not much of a factor. Trace amounts of snow fell throughout the day. The tracks were firm and deep. The Homologated loop starts out relatively easy but then tests you with some well-placed climbs. Saturday was a 10km interval start classic race. So two loops.

There was much testing of wax for this Eastern Cup. People were attempting to outsmart one another with what concoction they could put on the ski. I went simple mixing green and blue wax as conditions were in-between green and blue wax range. Some were adding in klister; some opted to stick with either green or blue. The surface was abrasive but not as harsh as last weekend. Most of the track had a snowy bottom, making for a softer surface for skiers to race on. Klister seemed to compromise skis giving them a grainy feel over the snow versus the nice buttery feel of what I had on my ski. In a 40m comparison test with another individual, they demanded I turn over my wax and re-worked their skis.

Alexandra Jospe CSU was the only female master that contested the 5km race. She held her own in the combined College Carnival/Eastern Cup field, but CSU’s skis were not as hot as we have seen them earlier in the season. What was described as “a little goop” added in may have been the culprit? Paralympian Dan Knossen also competed in the 5km distance traversing the course from the back of the start order working his way up into the field.

There was a spirited contingent of Master’s men for the 10km event. Mostly grouped close together at the end of the start order the race started with a quick photo-op of those preparing to take on the much younger field. With all of the collegiate big dogs racing no masters cracked the top 100 on Saturday. Mark Johnson was the top M finisher coming in 107 with a 30:29 on the difficult course. After a friendly exchange between myself, Frank Feist (CSU), Tom Thurston and Bob Arnot (Stowe Nordic), the race was on. I started 15 seconds in front of Frank, then Bob with Tom as the next skier. I knew Frank has been having a good season and has had some decisive results against me in the last two marathons. I took it out fast for the first kilometer hoping to get an advantage before the first hill so that Frank would have to reel me in on the difficult climb. I also wanted to keep Tom at bay for most of a lap. Tom caught Bob by the solar panels and began focusing on Frank and I. The plan seemed to be working as it took them over 3km to catch me, and when they did, I was able to latch on to Frank who was trying to hang with Tom. Phase one of the plan went well. I was feeling good and I knew Frank had put himself into a deficit. I also knew my skis were running very good as I was overtaking other ranked skiers on all parts of the course. As we looped through for the lap Tom gapped Frank and I pulling ahead to make up time on the rest of the field. I also overtook Frank hoping to use Chip Hill to make him crack going into the second lap. Phase two worked as well and all I had to do was ski aggressively and hope for the best on the second lap. I continued passing people and my skis were as good as ever. Tom slowly pulled out of sight, and I could hear a skier on my tails. Peter Milliken (Ford Sayre) had started further back in the order and worked his way into the mix but was unable to catch our cluster due to the time gap. In the final Mark kept an advantage, Peter took second, Tom was third, Matthew Tornianinen was 4^th, I was 5^th, Frank came in 6^th and the most senior of us all Bob was 7^th. Chris Burnham also competed but was off his game due to illness. He still turned out a great time and was happy to race.

It was an exciting Day 1 with a lot of fun dynamics. Conditions were about as perfect as they can be. However, the Master’s Main Event was yet to come on Sunday.

While the mercury read significantly warmer, Sunday felt cooler due to a persistent wind that blew in accumulating snow showers. The race was a mass start 10km for Women and 15km for Men. Snow did not start falling until after racing began and initially mixed in well with what was already on the ground brightening things up. A special Master’s wave that started five minutes after the main field was a popular option. In the future, I suggest a one minute delay as being sufficient to optimize the ranges of all the athletes dwell times on the course.

Eight Women got things started. Alexandra Jospe (CSU) elected to start with the Open Field, but the remaining seven took advantage of the more refined wave. Kathy Maddock (Dublin) dominated the Master’s wave from wire to wire with an impressive ski. On her first lap, she was able to reel in some of those who had a five minute lead on her. The chase group was led by NWVE duo Jessica Bolduc and Sarah Pribram. Mansfield’s Joann Hanowski lurked within range, as well as Cheryl Carlson (Ford Sayre), Anna Rehm, and Ellen Chandler (Ford Sayre). After about 3km Jessica and Sarah broke away and the rest of the pack fell apart. Kathy was out of range and not to be caught, but the battle for second was on with the teammates working together to increase their lead over the rest of the field. Jessica’s skis were fast and the day’s conditions were turning in favor of the powerful skiers. As the Master’s Women rounded coaches’ corner for the final time, it was clear that there was going to be a sprint for second. Even Bill Koch watched intently to see how the intra-team battle would turn out. Out of view of the spectators who clambered to get to the optimal sprint viewing positions, Jessica put in a late surge to gap Sarah hoping to avert a sprint showdown. She crested Wilbur’s alone before the final runout into the finish. Sarah was 10 seconds behind. Joann finished 4^th still a little fatigued from a road trip to the World Masters Championship. Cheryl finished in good spirits happy to have a good Eastern Cup Result. Anna Rehm had a lot of family support that was excited to see her racing and hoping that she will reconsider her one race per year limit! Ellen Chandler cruised in not far behind putting an uncharacteristic skate race under her belt. It was fun watching the Women’s race and how things panned out from lap to lap.

After a snowy intermission, it was time for the Men to race. During the break, the snow intensity picked up and started to change things on the course. At first, the additional snow seemed like a good thing. 22 Men started in the master’s wave, a number we have not seen in an Eastern Cup for some time. It was announced that this would be a showdown of who’s who in New England as we received our instructions and commands. The race started with the youthful Jake Hollenbach setting the pace. The remainder of the field let him hang off the front for a while before reabsorbing him around the 1.5km mark. The field stayed together fairly well for about 4km of the race when things began to turn interesting. A group had split off after a crash that took down Stowe Nordic’s Neal Graves. The chase pack lingered about 100m back by the time they looped through the stadium. Jake remained a force at the front pulling teammates Eric Darling, and Tom Thurston. A dark horse donning a ski race suit for the first time, Mansfield’s Andy Bishop, was also pushing the pace even taking the lead for the masses gathered at Coaches Corner. Closing fast on the elite pack was Neal Graves. A couple who could not hold the pace fell back and then another group formed behind the aggressive skiing of Tyler Magnan, Rob Bradlee (CSU) and myself. Barry Kitch (CSU) was hanging in with this group as we all took turns trying to shake each other off. Bob Gray (Ind) was at the helm of the next pack which included Christopher Naimie (Bow Nordic), and NWVE’s Tim Cowan and Perry Bland. While the fresh powder was on top of the snow things seemed to be going good, but as it got worked in with the icy mix below, things started changing. Tyler’s skis bogged down, as did others. Skiers could feel the changes in the snow underfoot. This, as well as fatigue, added significantly to the dynamics later in the race and those with high power output began pulling away from those who rely more on efficiency. By the start of the 3^rd lap Neal had caught the front pack and taken a few moments of respite to catch his breath. He popped off the field with an impressive surge up Chip Hill and was not to be caught. Jake, Eric, Andy, and Tom slowly drifted apart over the last lap. Rob gained the upper hand over me as I started to feel Saturday’s race in my legs. Tyler had a frustrating last lap as his skis continued to slow as the racers tilled the course more and there was nothing he could do about it. Bob Gray made a move drawing only Christopher and leaving the rest of the pack behind. Bob would continue to drive the pace dropping Chris on the final climb up Screaming Mimi. Tim and Perry skied it out happy to return to EC action. Tim found it entertaining that some of the first Elite Open racers opted to draft him a bit into some windy sections rather than just go by. It helped him pick up the pace a little. Bob Arnot had a little company skiing away from Dan Ott on the final lap.

NENSA’s effort at making the EC more inclusive and appealing to Master’s racers was a great success! Master’s appreciated the format and responded well with easily a doubling of their registrations for these events. The inclusive atmosphere was topped off with some sweet prizes from Laughing Moon Chocolates. Skiers enjoyed the rest of the day skiing and cooling down off the race loop enjoying the return of winter.”

White Mountain Classic and One Day Club Championships

Justin Beckwith · January 23, 2018 · Leave a Comment

Kris Freeman, bib 94 and overall winner, leading the field out of the start of the 2018 White Mountain Classic.

The Jackson XC staff and their trails put on an amazing show for the 2018 running of the White Mountain Classic. Racers awoke to sunshine and warming, but seasonable temperatures and a beautifully groomed and truly cross country track. Throughout the course competitors experienced varied conditions, which rewarded both proper waxing and adaptable technique.

We are pleased to offer you an account of the race by guest master writer, Damian Bolduc, from NWVE. Damian offers colorful insight into the race and the healthy rivalries that exist between some skiers in New England. Complete results are available on our Results Page and updated Zak and Club rankings can be found on our Rankings Page. If you are looking for more pictures visit us on facebook.

We look forward to continued Marathon Racing next weekend at the 2018 Craftsbury Marathon Ski Festival presented by Fischer. Click here for registration.

In the meantime enjoy Mr. Bolduc’s recap of the 2018 White Mountain Classic and see you on the trails.

CSU Women – 2018 NENSA One Day Club Champions

NWVE Men – 2018 NENSA One Day Club Champions

The NENSA Marathon Series kicked off with the White Mountain Classic. The day began with a little Olympic Fanfare as NWVE ceremonially delivered the Team Championship Plaques to race headquarters. Some questioned what was going on, others coveted the award, and a few wondered if returning the Plaques to be displayed at registration was a sign of weakness (like training). But the trophy deserves to be on display so that all clubs can be motivated by the possibility of taking one home for a year.

After a little fun with the plaques, we got down to business with testing wax. Testing went a little better this week. The reminders from the Geschmossel kept us on task and gave us confidence in our choices. As with last week, several options were working fine, though with the tough climbs this week not many were up for a double pole. I believe the only person on the starting line with no kick wax was Kris Freeman (Caldwell Sport). That is not to say that others did not have limited kick, but that was by accident. It was fun to see all the different decisions on wax. NWVE stuck with the predicted wax of alternating layers of purple and red hard wax for the most part. It was working good, had little consequence and covered the rapid warm up.

Tom Thurston and Neil Graves leading a group of skiers.

While we were warming up so did the temps. It seemed as though within a matter of 5 minutes it went from the low-twenties to the mid-thirties. The snow was slower to warm-up, but there was a lot of variabilities depending on if the sun was hitting it, it was windblown, wind-swept, if the river jumped the banks, in the woods, in the fields or littered with tree debris. I found my skis to have reasonable kick everywhere throughoutthe race. They were slow for the second half of the first lap but improved with the warming.

After some brief instructions that mainly said go right and stay to the right, the commands were given. The field was a little smaller this year due to the Master’s Worlds drawing a few of the usual contenders. The reduced numbers made for a good start and most racers got on course in an orderly fashion. It is a fast double pole start and the glazed tracks aided in maintaining speed.

Chris Burnham, Tom Thurston, and Eric Tremble led the charge for NWVE off the line. Kris Freeman immediately took control of the race, but he was accompanied by a couple of other younger racers. For a good part of the first 5km of the race. Chris, Eric Tremble, and Tom were part of a chase group. Eric Darling was taking a more conservative approach remaining just out of contact with the group at the start. Tyler Magnan as well as Stephen Wright were there too. I settled in behind Kyle Darling for the flat start as there was some wind, my skis were not rockets, and Kyle smoked me last weekend. Patrick Cafferky and Kasie Enman were not far behind, and Manny Betz, Jessica Bolduc, and Perry Bland kept good company with some of the other masters. Cipperly Good and Brad Ketterling were also excited to get the race underway skiing with a few that Cipperly raced at the Geschmossel. This was how the first part of the WhiteMountain Classic panned out. It begins with a nearly 3km drag race to Yodel. Yodel is a 1km climb that brings athletes to the primary race loop. This climb thins the field, and those that may not have been too speedy on the flats can begin to make up ground on this climb. Once on the Eagle Mountain Trails, the loop was expanded. The organizers utilized the field a little more, but a majority of the extended distance on the Henry trail off the 5km race loop in the woods. This was approved by participants and provided a little more climbing, but some fun trails to race on. The Wave was nicely groomed with only one set of tracks, making it easier for skiers to negotiate this thrilling downhill. After going back into the field and past the feed station racers skied along the Wildcat Brook. This is where one of the most significant factors of the day was in full force. The wind was extreme on the upper section of the course and made an impressive variable. Skiers had to find the fastest snow, and modify technique. One gust lifted a skier right off the trail landing few feet away in the rough.

There was a lot of action in the upper section of the course. The technicality of the trails, the climbs and the wind all made for exciting racing. Groupings formed, but few packs stayed together. There was a lot of cat and mouse in play as variable conditions suited different strengths. Chris Burnham would ski through a few that could not hold Freeman’s pace, Ford Sayre’s Joel Bradley did the same working his way up to third place. Neal Graves (Stowe) was in a good pack with Tom & Eric T., Charlie Cobb (Mansfield) Chris Bean (Onion River), John Sakalowski & Frank Feist (CSU).This group would remain relatively close though Neal was able to pull away with Evan Wetzel (Waukesha). Eric Darling was on his own much of the race overtaking skiers that dropped off the elite and chase packs. He almost closed up to Frank in the final kilometers as he fell off the pace of the chase pack. Tyler Magnan had a good race going with Jimmy Burnham (CSU) and Torin Laliberte (Unattached). These guys kept each other within sight for much of the race which helps keep the pace going. Dennis Page (Nansen) had a great result as he chased CSU’s Ari Ofsevit. He looked strong in the wind. I had a back and forth race with Elissa Bradley (Ford Sayre) Brian Lavoie (Stowe Nordic) and Owen Searle (Unattached) for the first lap, but began to fade when hitting the flat sections. On the second loop my skis were much faster, but not fast enough to regain the ground lost when the snow was powdery. CSU’s Andrew Milne came within striking distance, but in a mission to hold of Ava Thurston (Mansfield) I made a hard effort to ski the second lap perfectly. Stephen Wright looked good often leading a small group with strong double poling. He too, skied through them advancing many places from where he was at the top of Yodel. Something was not agreeing with Kyle after a superb start of the race. As that worked its way out, Kasie Enman caught up with him. They skied together on and off depending on if the grade was positive or negative. Robert Burnham, James Doucett, and Steven Moreau, all of CSU, kept a solid pack going throughout the race using teamwork to get by Kasie and Kyle. There were lots of Burnhams’ taking age group wins today playing a key factor in many results. Leigh Mallory did his own thing as he picked off skiers one by one. He must have liked the conditions and racing as he decisively won the M8 division this week which was one of the most contested. Patrick Cafferky became a little frustrated with some skating taking place on the course by other athletes but channeled the energy to his legs. He skied up to Victor Golovkin (CSU) who agreed that there was some egregious technique violations buy other skiers but he was not too phased by it. Todd Taska surmised that we have good snow in Northwest Vermont as we have not had a big presence in Craftsbury. He uses this race as a tune-up for other major events but generally avoids classic technique. Jessica Bolduc and Manny Bets skied most of the race together and were joined by Doug Armstrong (Mt. Washington) who was pleased with the day. Jessica got away from Manny for a bit, but on the return down Yodel he closed in almost overtaking her. Did I say something about the M8 division? Leigh hit it out of the park. John Lazenby (Onion River) was a distant second, but Doug Armstrong, Gordon Scannell (Pineland), Donavon Freeman (Mt. Washington), Bill Holland (Onion River), Bruce Kats (Unattached), Jud Hartmann (Unattached), PerryBland and Roger Wilson (Drifter XC) were all in the fight for third. Perry was in good spirits after a two-week battle with a bad cold. He was happy to be racing and is looking forward to one of his signature events next week. Brad Ketterling gave something blue for NENSA Executive Director Amie Smith (CSU) to chase. It was Brad’s first race with the club for the season as he has been doing more biathlon related skiing. He liked the course and had a lot of fun on it. Amie has been lassoed by CSU to up her registrations to earn points in an attempt to bring the Club Series title back to Massachusetts. Cipperly Good had the advantage in a photo finish with Jody Newton as they raced wire to wire. M11 Larry and Sara Mae Berman were on hand to keep their club in check in their pursuit to retake the One Day Club Championship prize. They also showed some much younger competition how it is done.

The big thing ended up being the wind. While we were worried about the temperature swing, all we could talk about was how tough the wind was when you were skiing against it. To train for this condition, I will have to upgrade the oscillating fan near the club Ski-Erg to a 42″ belt drive drum fan. You might think that double poling in place would be enough for this condition, but the wind really made your arms burn up, and you had to change your stance to keep from going backward.

After a cool-down and some tabulation, we headed over to the Community Center for some lunch and awards. The company was good, and we traded stories about the wind and the debris it put on the course as well as some of the great racing we had. Age group prizes were given out with NWVE and CSU taking many of the top honors. Suspense built for the Club Championship results. CSU’s Andy Milne added a few notes of the long-standing rivalries in the sport, some of which predate the existence of NENSA and NWVE, and under protest awarded the Men’s title to the defending champions NWVE! On the Women’s side, there was a tie that needed to go into tie-breaking rules. On this day the defending champions got Berman’d with Sara Mae doing what it takes to make the difference that put CSU ahead. Overall it was an excellent outcome for another great race. Thanks to all the racers, volunteers, people cheering, (especially Ron Newbury and Justin Beckwith) and staff at Jackson for making the White Mountain Classic another success!

Rikert Eastern Cup – Sunday Distance Races

Justin Beckwith · January 17, 2018 · Leave a Comment

On Sunday, two hundred and seventy-six skiers competed at the Rikert Nordic Center in interval start skate races. Racers were greeted with firm and fast track conditions under blue skies and single digit temperatures. The groomers continued to work their magic — creating challenging 2.5km (U16) and 3.7km (Open) loops for the 5 and 10 kilometer competitions. The modified course layout created fun and fair competition for all despite the dramatic weather event on Friday.

The day kicked off with the U16 boys. Brian Bushey of the Green Mountain Valley School had a breakthrough performance, besting the field with a time of 12:43, to secure his first Eastern Cup victory. Aidan Burt of the Mansfield Nordic Club, who is currently ranked as the top U16 boy in New England, showed his strength with a solid second place finish. Finn Sweet from Craftsbury took third place and maintained his second place ranking for U16’s.

Nina Seeman of the Stratton Mountain School secured her third Eastern Cup victory of the season with a time of 14:40, and currently stands alone as the top New England U16 girl. Craftsbury/Mansfield standout, Quincy Massey-Bierman, who sat out Saturday’s sprint event added another second place finish to her 2018 résumé and Shea Brams of the Cambridge Sports Union placed third. The podium of Sunday’s results match the current ranking for the top U16’s girls in New England.

The open women’s field was an international affair with Montanan and Stratton T2’s, Erika Flowers, taking the overall win covering the three lap 10km course in 29:36. Anne Marie-Comeau from the University of Laval made the trip to Ripton, Vermont as part of her bid to represent Canada in the 2018 Olympics. Her second place finish gave her a 100 point FIS race and gets her one step closer to Pyeongchang. Brazilian and Olympian, Jaqueline Mourao, rounded out the podium, which she stood upon with her two children.

Rena Schwartz of the Green Mountain Valley School was the top junior in the race. The U20 covered the course in 31:15. U18 Sophia Laukli of Yarmouth High placed second and Lillian Bates, also a U18, of Dublin XC placed third.

Ben Ogden (U18) from the Stratton Mountain School topped the open men’s field with a time of 25:44. The standout junior skier will represent the US Ski Team in Goms, Switzerland later this month in the 2018 World Junior Championships. Second place belonged to Adam Martin of the Craftsbury Green Team, who started just ahead of Ogden and the two spent the entire race in within each others sight. Jorgen Grav, a former UVM Catamount, who now represents Ford Sayre took the final step on the open podium.

Northern Michigan skier Daniel Streinz (U20) was the second junior on the day and Scott Schulz (U18) from NYSEF was third.

Results from all of the races can be found on barttiming.com or on the NENSA results page.

New England Junior National Rankings. Please note as per 5/2017 ADC decision sprint races are being re-scored with distance points to bring parity to sprint and distance events for JN qualification. (The Senior National Sprint OOR qualifier will be updated tomorrow on the ranking page to reflect final results vs. qualifier).

Eastern Cup racing will resume February 3rd and 4th at the Trapp Family Lodge with two distance races.

NENSA would like to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to the staff of Rikert, the organizing committee, Bart Timing and the race officials for making this weekend of racing so successful!

Rikert Eastern Cup – Day One Report

Justin Beckwith · January 11, 2018 · Leave a Comment

The staff of the Rikert Nordic Center overcame one of the most dramatic winter events in recent history and provided a top notch Eastern Cup racing experience today in Ripton, Vermont. Despite losing the majority of their natural snow in yesterday’s torrential rain, the groomers were able to tie together a 1.4km sprint course as temperatures plummeted into the single digits early this morning. As teams arrived to the venue they were greeted by windblown sleet, however by competition time the precipitation turned to snow and the wind subsided.

Today’s event was a classic sprint with qualification starting at 11am. The afternoon was filled with head to head heat skiing by the top thirty overall skiers, and the next 12 fastest U16 racers in male and female categories. Daniel Streinz (Outdoor Sports Institute) of Hersey, Maine and Anna Lehmann (Stratton Mountain School) of Windham, Vermont were the top qualifiers on the day. Streinz turned in a time of 3:21.91 and Lehmann 4:14.02.

Callie Young of Craftsbury Nordic Ski Club took the overall female victory of the day winning the Women’s A Final. Mae Chalmers of the Stratton Mountain School placed second and Pheobe Sweet of Craftsbury was third.

In the Men’s A Final Daniel Streinz showed he was the class of the field by taking the overall victory after qualifying number 1. James Kitch of the Cambridge Sports Union secured his first Eastern Cup podium by placing second. He was followed by John Henry Paluszek of Gunstock Nordic in third.

The top three U16 skiers of the day in both the boys and girls races qualified and skied in the Open heats. For the girls, Nina Seemann of the Stratton Mountain School took top honors, placing 15th overall. Magdalena Lelito of Mansfield Nordic took second in 17th overall and Adrienne Remick from Craftsbury was third on Lelito’s heels in 18th.

Will Koch of the Stratton Mountain School was the top U16 boy finishing the qualifier and the open rounds in the 12th position. Aidan Burt of Mansfield was the second U16 on the day placing 2oth overall and Finn Sweet was third with a 26th overall placement.

In the U16 rounds Carl Kellogg of the Green Mountain School took the victory in the A Final followed by Linden Niedeck of CSU and Gavin Blauch of Stratton. Although five other U16 girls finished in the top 30 overall, it was Ali Priganc of Mansfield who skied to victory in the U16 A Final. She was followed by Samantha Nolan also of Mansfield in second and home town skier, Malia Hodges in third.

There were three masters skiers in the Men’s field and Brad Bates of the Dublin School took top honors. He was followed by Mark Rajack hailing from Trinidad and Tobago and Joel Bradley of Ford Sayre.

Racing resumes tomorrow with individual start skate races. Temperatures are going to be near zero and rising into the single digits — dress warm and come check out the action at the Rikert Nordic Center.

Complete results can be found on the NENSA results page.

Photos by Dave Priganc.

Detailed information including schedule and course maps for Sunday’s race can be found on the Virtual Team Captains Meeting (VTCM) page.