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NENSA News
STOWE DERBY 2019 WELCOME RACERS 74TH ANNIVERSARY THIS SUNDAY 1/13
Online Registration is now open until 9pm Friday, Jan 11, 2019
LONG COURSE INFO
Skating Race Starts @ 10:00am on Sunday 1/13
Classic Race Starts @ 12:00pm on Sunday 1/13
Finish Location Trapp Family Bierhall, 1333 Luce Hill Rd, Stowe
Early Bib Pick Up is SATURDAY, January 12th, 3-5pm at
Town & Country Resort located at 876 Mountain Road Stowe
Late Bib Pick Up is SUNDAY, January 13th, 7:30am-9:30am at Town & Country Resort.
YOUR RACE PACKET: Race BIB, 2 Elastics AND one LIFT TICKET AND Post Party Ticket. All very important. Do NOT bend the ticket or it will damage the electronic device & not work. Racers also pick up a free t-shirt at registration.
DERBY SHUTTLE: BUSES START LOADING AT 8:00am. Racers can ride the Official Derby Shuttle from Town & Country Resort to the start at Mt. Mansfield Base Lodge. Racers will finish at Trapp Family Lodge Bierhall, 1333 Luce Hill Rd, Stowe. The Derby Shuttle will be available to bring you back to Town & Country post-race. You might need to wait just a bit for the shuttle. Allow an hour to get yourself to the mountain.
The Derby Shuttle is a courtesy to our racers, so give your bus driver a high five. Load as early as you can to get to the mountain. NO FAT BIKES ALLOWED ON DERBY SHUTTLE. DERBY MEISTERS & FAT MEISTERS YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN TRANSPORTATION.
WHEN AT STOWE MOUNTAIN: Use the “Lookout” Double Chair immediately at the top of the stairs behind the Mansfield Base Lodge. DO NOT fold your lift ticket or it will not work. At the top of the lift look for race timers, Bill & Cap. Please line up by Bib Order. Remember your start time begins when your bib number is up whether you are there or not.
BECAUSE OF LIFT LINES ALLOW 40 MINUTES for riding the Lookout Lift TO THE START. When you get to the top of the lift go LEFT TO THE TOLL ROAD TRAIL. Make sure to give a shout out to our timers, Bill & Cap! It’s Show Time…get ready to race. Be safe & have fun!!
Minimum total time from town to make it to your start is 1.5 hours.
WARM-UPS & EXTRA CLOTHING:
Clear plastic bags are available at bib pick up. Write your name and bib number on the bag and take it with you to the start. You may pack your things in these bags and pick them up at the end of the race, outside Town & Country Designated Clothing Drop. If you have a lot of clothing please double up the bag as they can rip. We do everything possible to reunite you with your gear BUT SUGGEST you do not put anything of real value in your bag. MMSC cannot be held responsible for lost clothing. Any unclaimed gear will be brought to MMSC’s clubhouse.
FINISH: AT THE Trapp Family Bierhall. Timing ends at 3:00pm.
Water, we are trying to cut down on the number of water bottles that need to be recycled at the end of the race so PLEASE bring your own water. We will have limited water at the finish.
AWARDS PARTY IS BEING SPONSORED BY TOWN & COUNTRY RESORT FROM 3-5PM. Chili, Beer, Raffle. Bring your POST PART ticket & cash for drinks and raffle tickets. Non-Racers are welcome to attend for $15.
Winter and Zak Cup Racing Returns at Gunstock
While much attention has been focused on US Nationals over the past week, recent snowfall has allowed for the return of citizen racing in New England. Read on for an always entertaining and informative race report from the Gunstock Zak Attack Freestyle Race by Damien Bolduc of NWVE. Also this coming weekend is a doubleheader of Zak excitement with two awesome races: Saturday the 12th – the Bogburn Classic and Sunday the 13th – the Stowe Derby. Click on the race names for race info and links to registration. Both races are ON and we will keep you posted with updates this week!
Zak and Club rankings will be updated shortly here.
New England’s Master Skiers converged at the Gunstock Nordic Center for the Zak Attack today. The annual freestyle race was held in great conditions on a nearly complete race loop. We were not limited to a shortened man-made snow loop, but utilized some great natural stuff reinforced with man-made in key areas. The trail keepers at Gunstock had things in superb shape for the race and even the cool down was race-ski-worthy. Participants were very pleased with the course, conditions and competition!
The weather cooperated with a gradual overnight warm-up bringing temps into the low thirties. Skies remained overcast for the race, and a very light mixed precipitation fell for about a half hour during competition. The course was groomed well with at least 2 lanes throughout, plus one set of classic tracks. The snow was mostly natural and packed down/glazed as the event progressed, improving speed. The course held up great thanks to the addition of man-made snow on the tight turns and in the sun-exposed sections. The loop was very close to the advertised 4km making the race full distance! Skiers started in the stadium and dropped onto Dryfire as they exited. They then connected with Cobble for a rolling loop around the core of the center until turning onto Longbow eliminating the treacherous turn onto Crossbow. Once on Longbow skiers made their way to Quiver back to the stadium for the lap/finish skipping the Broadhead section of trail and the 180 off camber turn into the stadium.
Skiers were seeded alphabetically. For both the Men and Women it was Barden followed by Bolduc to get things started. This was definitely a bold risk taken by the director to have the top of the order in both races stacked with this kind of intimidation. Skiers mingled, warmed-up, and were ready for the 15-second interval start. The announcer counted down the minutes to the race and all of the sudden we were on course. Brendan Barden led the way up Dryfire, but I started on a mission. Having participated in a few sprints and watching the US Nationals, I was very pumped-up at the beginning of the race. It did not take too long to be reminded of my 3.5hr ski on Thursday as my heart rate plateaued, and my muscles fatigued. It began to look like I was only going to be able to Zak Attack one racer. Brendan pressed on, and when all the results were sorted, his back and forth battle on the results page was not in his favor. Bow Nordic’s Chris Naimie edged him by one place. On a positive note, even with a recent ankle sprain, Brendan was ahead of Mt. Washington’s Freeman. At around the 3km mark, I encountered a wrong way skier getting spooked that there may have been more following him and was caught by racers 4 and 5, Thomas Clayton and Cameron Cogburn (CSU). The wrong-way skier turned around and joined me for the rest of the race. I was happy he got back in it as we were fairly evenly matched. I did not encounter any other racers coming at me.
The Confession of a Wrong-Way Skier:
I am a Gunstock regular and a devout acolyte of Nina, the coach there. Nina is always chiding me for my absent mindedness (it could be that I’ve left the iron on in the wax room more than once) and today I paid a heavy price for my absent mindedness. Coming out of the gate, I forgot the route I’d warmed up on and instead swerved right—and off course- less than 50 yards from the start line. Like a dog trotting out onto his favorite walking route, I skied up my Quiver, a trail I’ve skied a thousand times, not thinking, just plunging forward through the chute created by the trailside barriers. Eerily, there were no spectators, no sounds aside from my own skis and poles on the snow. I was alone on my journey. When I got to the bottom of Cobble, there was a guy there tasked with raking the snow. He looked away from me, not wanting to make eye contact, and I was starting to sense that I was doing something very wrong—perhaps even shameful.
I climbed up the hill anyway (at this point, what else was I going to do?), and when I saw you, then the next two I figured, “Well, I could still actually race, even if it’s not going to count.” I immediately turned around and began chasing you down the hill…. Bill Donahue
As the loop ended, there was a couple of hairpin turns, and you could see who was coming up on you. It was easy to tell Jake Hollenbach was closing especially when he gave a friendly cheer to me. Jake and Neal Graves came by around 6km cruising along at a fast clip. They were very smooth up the only loose section snow on the course and easily dropped me. Jake and Neal would stick together for most of the race until the same spot on the next lap when Neal pulled to the side to let Jake by in the act of surrender. Jake continued, putting another 15 seconds on Neal in the final kilometer to take a decisive overall victory. Eventually with a kilometer to go, I bagged my second Zak Attack (3rd if you count that it took me 10km to recover from my start), dropping the wrong-way skier. Reid Greenberg (EABC) had a great race against CSU’s Eli Gallaudet with both of them staying within sight of each other for the whole race. This type of contact helps you stay focused, producing an improved result. The Greenberg’s had a stellar day with Tabor taking the overall in the Junior Race. Tyler Magnan, coming off a big win at the NWVE Citizens Alumni Race last week hoped for a repeat at the Zak Attack to help solidify his overall lead in the Zak Standings. He skied through several racers in the field to earn the second NWVE Podium of the day! Tyler was glad he made the trip and felt better after the race than he did before. Nansen Ski Club’s Dennis Page was in good form sporting a sick Mutton Chop Beard redolent of the late Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead for his debut in this year’s club series. Speaking of rock stars, notably absent was the Trent Reznor of Nordic Skiing, Steve Crafts (MNC). Steve loves this race but more importantly, while watching The Defiant Ones, a documentary about music producer Jimmy Iovine, every time Trent spoke all I could think was “man that’s totally Steve Crafts.” See for yourself, you will agree. Getting back to the race. Michael Millar (MNC) filled in for Steve and rocked it making the podium for M1s. John Thompson continues to enjoy club racing. Today was the longest skate race he has ever competed in and won the U20 division. He is much more used to the 5km distance and felt his endurance was lacking but retaining that 5km speed will serve any skier well over the long run. Luke Shullenberger was a late entrant yet cranked out a 6th place overall finish skiing through the field from the back of the start order. Luke’s result should shake up the top 5 in the Zak Cup. Bryce Wing was Ford Sayre’s only racer. He looked good throughout the race and improved on his EC result earlier in the season. He was eager to report back to the club.
As the Men’s race wrapped up, the Women got underway at 10:45. As stated earlier it was Barden and Bolduc starting things out for the field except for this time it was Hannah and Jessica. The field was smaller and remarkably friendly! As the skiers looped through it was noted how polite they were to each other. Jessica and Hannah were happy with their course preview and were looking forward to the race. The small field and niceties did not diminish the race nerves as Susan Garneau (Unattached) tried to get a jump on things by skipping a spot in the start order. Realizing her mistake, she stated, “I’m so nervous I forgot how to count.” Jessica and Hannah were passed by the race leaders, but not without incident. Sara Graves (Stowe Nordic) took herself out trying to pass on an uphill. She recovered quickly and made up the lost ground taking second overall. Catherine Stow (GNA) had an outstanding performance on her home course taking the overall win as a U16. Amy Gunn (Black Water Nordic Ski Club) looked great on course. She had watched the men on one of the technical turns and was impressed with the different approaches. Especially John Thompson’s alpine turn. Amy came to the same spot among traffic and worked her way through flawlessly. Jessica and Amy conceded the race to each other as they checked the results only to find out they were both wrong in a tie! Vanessa Genakos (GNA) was the final racer to start but worked her way through the field to third overall for another Gunstock podium! Christine Pasterczyk represented CSU as their lone entrant in the Women’s race by winning the M5 category.
The alphabetical seeding certainly made for some exciting racing! After the race, participants congregated in the T. Gary Allen Clubhouse for a delicious home-cooked post-race feed. Stories were exchanged as racers caught up on all the things that happened during the offseason. We poured over the results, and a spirited awards ceremony on the porch capped the event! People took their time departing, hesitant to leave such a fun event, and awesome conditions. Thank you to all made this race happen. Your hard work was noticed and greatly appreciated giving us all a treat today!
Eastern Cup Opener Wrap-Up
Day two of the NENSA Eastern Cup Opener at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center saw the return of winter and high quality races from elite skiers, US and Canadian juniors, college skiers, and a strong masters field. Due to icy conditions the races were changed from mass to interval start for safety to the competitors. However this did not slow down the action, with competitors entering the course every fifteen seconds, creating dynamic tactics and constant action for spectators.
The first race of the day was the U16 Boys – many contesting for a spot on the New England Junior National Team. Aidan Burt of the Mansfield Nordic Club led the charge winning the 5km with a time of 12:32 and improving on his second place finish in Saturday’s sprint. First year U16, Trey Jones of the Green Mountain Valley School (GMVS), continued to show his speed crossing the line just 15 seconds behind Burt. Mathias Boudreau-Golfman of the Stratton Mountain School had a breakthrough race finding himself on the U16 podium for the first time in the third position.
The U16 Girls were seeded among the open women’s field also competing in a 5km. In a similar flip-flop of top positions it was first year Ava Thurston of Mansfield besting Quincy Massey-Bierman of Mansfield/Craftsbury with a time of 14:30, with Massey-Bierman just 11 seconds back. Camille Bolduc, also of Craftsbury took her first trip to an Eastern Cup podium with a third place finish and a time of 15:08.
In the both the men’s and women’s open races there was impressive talent at the top of the field with skiers with World Cup, World Junior Championship and NCAA experience. Caitlin Patterson of the Craftsbury GRP, who sat out the sprint was able to secure the victory with a time of 12:53 a mere four seconds ahead of Jessica Eaton of APU. Julia Kern of SMS T2 showed her versatility and found herself on the podium for the second time in two days taking third with a time of 13:07.
Ben Lustgarten of the Craftsbury GRP put on a display of technique and strength for his home crowd on his way to overall victory in the men’s race – skiing the 10km course in a blazing fast 23:20. Look for Lustgarten starting the Tour de Ski this coming weekend in Toblach, Italy! Kris Freeman, Caldwell Sport, showed that despite his “retirement” from professional ski racing he still has form enough to find the podium – placing second, just 13 seconds behind. Zane Fields of Colby College showed the strength of the EISA circuit with a third place finish just three seconds off Freeman’s heals.
The heart of both days fields were filled with U18 and U20 skiers vying for the New England Junior National Team – a Team that has led the US at Junior Nationals for the past five years and a testament to the depth of talent in the Eastern region. Taking top honors for the boys on Sunday were: Ben Ogden of the University of Vermont for the U20’s and Brian Bushey of GMVS for U18. For the girls it was: Sophia Laukli of SMS for U20 and Abigail Streinz racing for Craftsbury for U18.
At the conclusion of each race there was a masters competition which was scored for Zak Cup competition and all ages were scored to Club Cup. NENSA is proud to support racing of all levels and promote participation of club skiers from throughout New England. Taking the top three positions for the masters men were a trio of Northwest Vermont Endurance (NWVE) skiers: Eli Enman, Tyler Magnan and Tom Thurston. For the women it was Alex Jospe of the Cambridge Sports Union with an impressive time of 15:01 to lead the field and Kasie Enman and Jessica Bolduc both of NWVE.
All of the weekends races have been scored to the NENSA rankings page, where you can find up to date JN, Zak and Club standings. Thank you to Craftsbury, the competitors, spectators and volunteers who made this opening weekend such a great success! Citizen racing (and Zak Cup competition) resumes on January 5th at the Gunstock Zak Attack and Eastern Cup competition resumes at the end of January at the Lake Placid SuperTour and NENSA Eastern Cup #2 at Mt. Van Hoevenberg
Happy New Year from NENSA — we look forward to seeing many of you at US Cross Country Championships starting January 3rd.
Eastern Cup Opener at Craftsbury: Sprint Recap
Over 300 skiers from throughout the US and Canada traveled to Craftsbury for the opening Eastern Cup race of the 2018-2019 season. Despite the unfortunate warm weather of the past days the grooming staff was able to provide racers with a fair track for the mornings qualification. During the course of the morning the temperature dropped 20 degrees allowing water to drain from the snow and make a fast surface.
The afternoon was full of heat action – starting with Masters, then Open (which included junior and senior skiers), then U16 and U18/U20’s. Competitors, coaches and spectators were as excited to kick off the competitive season as they were to welcome the more seasonable temperatures and the return of a gentle snowfall. The races were augmented with the rich voice and historic commentary of Peter Graves.
Tomorrow’s Freestyle Race has been changed to an interval start due to snow conditions – stay tuned to the VTCM for start lists and updates. See you tomorrow.