NENSA News

This past winter, skiers all across the northeast participated in NENSA’s fourth annual virtual XC Ski Bingo game completing activities ranging from creating obstacle courses to gliding contests to trying another winter sport.  Participants could get Bingo by completing a row or column of activities and this year we also offered a Bingo card for adults and juniors for the second year! This winter there were a total of 27 participants in 5 states (NH, VT, ME, MA, NY) at 33 different trail areas. Collectively, participants also attended 19 NENSA Events this season. The pictures and tales from participants was encouraging, despite a challenging winter weather-wise. Below are some stories and photo memories from the participants themselves:

“I love our Maine ski community! I’ve made so many friends all over the state, and it’s great to cheer everyone on at races- like we’re all on the same ski team:)”

“I went on a treasure hunt ski with my Maine West BKL friends. We found donuts and chocolate in the woods!”

“I broke my leg, so I spent a lot of time mastering the sit ski”

“I set some big goals this season and NENSA events helped me train to win MJSL STATES!!! XC skiing is amazing and I made so many new ski friends this year!“

“It was super fun!”

“Despite the difficult snow conditions this winter, Sleepy Hollow has done a fantastic job providing skiing opportunities. We took advantage of some nice natural snow and we were was motivated to “Ski to the high point” to finish Bingo, despite the frigid temperatures! We had a fantastic full moon night ski at Sleepy Hollow and some fun BKL sessions this year. A little more snow would be great for February so we can enjoy the races and try out some new ski areas!”

“Building ski jumps and going off are no joke.”

“Don’t ever let your big brother talk you into testing out the ski jump you built first.”

“My friend launched herself flailing into the air trying to do a double pole start!”

“Challenged to skate ski backwards!”

“Lots of fun time with friends“

Junior athletes named to the NENSA Elite/Devo teams will receive the first invitations to the Eastern Regional Camp (REG) to be held June 29th-July 3rd at the University of Vermont. NENSA is also working on Regional Development Group Camp (RDG) invitations that will go out on Thursday, May 2nd after the REG camp attendees are finalized. This year, we will also be naming 20 alternates for REG (10 Men and 10 Women) in the case that invited athletes decline their spots.

Our NENSA Summer Camps are a great stepping stone for coach development. Any US Ski and Snowboard certified coaches who have interest in supporting either REG or RDG please fill out this short application. Reach out to [email protected] with any questions.

REG Invitees (Mid-Atlantic nominations to come)

This year, athletes that are initially invited are asked to accept or decline their REG camp nominations by Thursday, April 25th. At that time, alternates will be contacted in the order they appear by NENSA staff and will be allowed to accept or decline the invitation to REG on Wednesday, May 1st.

In order to accept or decline your REG camp nomination, please fill out THIS registration form.

“Junior Nationals represented an awesome opportunity for New England athletes to show what they do best, sometimes in crazy snow conditions that may have deterred other regions from even putting skis on. From prank wars to podiums, it was a week filled with fast skiing, supportive teammates, and the occasional surprise lobster-in-a-bathtub..!” – Adam Terko, Mansfield Nordic Club

The US Ski and Snowboard Junior Nationals is one of our annual highlights here at NENSA, and this year’s event was no different. Our Junior athletes have worked incredibly hard to qualify and be named to the New England Junior National team to represent our division in the week-long, four race series. The 2024 edition of the event was special, and not just because we increased our Alaska Cup winning streak to sixteen out of the last twenty years of competition. Racing returned to an Eastern venue for the first time since 2017 meaning that not one skier named to the trip this year has ever been able to showcase their skills in front of a home crowd like this at this event before in their careers. Because the event was only driving distance, many parents, coaches, family members and New England skiing fans flocked to Lake Placid to cheer the athletes on.

Collectively, New England athletes claimed 68 All-American finishes, 27 podium finishes, and 12 National Championship titles. New England defended the Alaska Cup with a total of 1,212 points, a 315 point lead over the runners up, the Intermountain division. These statistics are impressive, but the real magic was in all of the special moments sprinkled throughout the week. Numerous personal bests, long-term goals achieved, the perseverance of every New England athlete through some quintessential March weather, a 1-4th place podium sweep with some of your best friends and long-time training partners are just a few examples. But don’t take it from me, hear directly from our fabulous volunteer staff about their experience below:

“I was so impressed with our skiers’ ability to handle whatever the week threw at them with grace and resilience. Outside of our incredible wax techs, the U18 girls experienced the most race-day whiplash of anyone on the day the organizers delayed the mass start classic indefinitely due to icy conditions. But here they are, having finally raced, wanting to stay at the venue even longer to cheer on their friends in the U20 women’s event.” – Audrey Mangan, Craftsbury

“Championship weeks are about performing under pressure. It was awesome to watch the age group coaches working with their athletes to help each of them get ready to do just that. I saw lots of great coaching and I know it helped so many skiers to bring their best. I was grateful to have a chance to put some of my experience to work in support of New England and NENSA, which have been such huge part of my athletic and professional career in skiing. And above all, it was really fun!” – Chris City

“We are so lucky in New England to have such a collaborative and welcoming team environment!” – Alex Jospe, Stratton Mountain School

“My role as an Age Group Coach consisted of a variety of athlete focused duties. Each day I would support the 11 athletes within my cohort by doing everything from driving the group to the venue, meeting individually to plan race strategy, leading group meetings, building team culture, and providing assistance and encouragement on course during races. An additional part of the trip all coaches help extensively with is ski preparation. Our eight person wax staff tests wax pairings round the clock to work to make skis function optimally at each moment of the day and in all conditions – ultimately this means that there are over 1000 pairs of skis to wax over the course of the week!” -Evan Kendall, Dublin School

Some of our wax staff hard at work throughout the week and some outside of the box thinking on how to reheat pizza. (Ruth Krebs and NENSA photos)

“It was an honor to be a member of the coaching staff for JNs this season. A big highlight for me was watching the dominant performance from the New England U20 boys in the 15k classic mass start going 1,2,3,4 in a warm and grueling race.” – Andy Rightmire, Ford Sayre

“First, I would like to thank NENSA for the opportunity to coach at JNs this year as the U20 women’s coach.  It was an incredible honor to work with such an amazing group of young, talented skiers.  Day after day, they fought through ever-changing conditions on one of the most challenging courses out there.  All the while, they brought the passion and dedication needed to excel in one of the toughest sports in the world.  Once again, these champions achieved greatness, and did it with style and while having fun!” – Rob Rothe

“Thinking back to JNs, I have a few moments that stand out to me as my time as an age group coach. The U16 girls gave it their all over the four races, throughout challenging conditions, and had many exciting finishes and podiums. Beyond the racing component of the week, it was incredibly rewarding to watch them come together as a team to support each other. Some highlights include rainbow loom bracelet making, a pancake cook-off with the U16 boys, and skiing their cool-downs as a group on training days and for their post-race cool-down.” -Mia Shifrin, Gould Academy

There are so many amazing photos from the event, relive the excitement by checking them out:

• Charles Swabey photos
• Mark Tarmy Photos
• Phil Belena Photos

Bullitt Timing Results

Junior Nationals Event Video by Ruth Krebs

Big thanks to all of our NENSA sponsors that help us support this group of athletes each year- especially Salomon, Fischer, Nordic Skater, LLBean, and Swix, who helped us with a one-year-only special edition race suit for the event!

NENSA is proud to name our 2024 Elite and Development Teams, highlighting the continued success of Eastern athletes regionally, nationally and internationally. 

Nomination to these teams is based on U.S. Ski & Snowboard List 10 Overall Points and highlights the interplay of junior, collegiate and national competition.  Athletes nominated will receive further communication and invitations to attend events and camps throughout the 2024 training year.  You can read more about criteria and Team Benefits here: Elite, Development.

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:

January:

February:

March:

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)

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!