New England Nordic Ski Association

You are here: Home / Race Rules

Race Rules

2020-2021 Season – Updated Jan/6/2021

Subjects covered in this section:

1.     Eastern Cup & Vermont Cup Primer – 2020-21 Season
2.     NENSA Junior Ranking List (Eastern Regional Championship Qualification, typically JNQ)
3.     Race Rules
4.     Sprint Rules
5.     2020-2021 Races Scored to the NENSA Junior Ranking Lists (No Out-of-Region Races this season)
6.     Eastern Cup & Vermont Cup Scoring
7.     2021 U.S. Ski & Snowboard Nordic Competition Guide (USSS) – Rules, Races and Rankings

1. Eastern Cup & Vermont Cup Primer – 2020-21 Season:

All Eastern Cup (EC) & Vermont Cup (VC) race registrations will open on SkiReg.com in the weeks proceeding the event.

Please note all competitors who intend to attend multiple EC, VC or FIS races should purchase a bib and rent a chip – the third wave of registration is open January 7 – 31.

Here is what YOU need to know to be ready to race in the first Eastern Cup or Vermont Cup in December:

  1. All racers must have valid NENSA and U.S. Ski & Snowboard (USSS) membership to race – please note a $10 daily NENSA membership is available. **Due to our expanded calendar there are several EC’s and VC’s that will not require a USSS membership –  EC: February 7.  VC’s: January 24, February 7. 
  2. Purchase or renew your your NENSA membership here.
  3. Purchase or renew your U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership here.  Those over 18 years please complete background check, SafeSport and take online avalanche course or you will be on the PENDING LIST and unable to attend events.
  4. Foreign membership options updated (11/26/2019).
  5. Purchase both your NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard memberships early to ensure proper validation at registration.
  6. All EC & VC racers will be listed in the overall race results, regardless of your U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership type ($20 general or $115 competitor).  If you want to be listed on the National Ranking List (NRL) you need to purchase a U.S. Ski & Snowboard competitors membership.  Competitors 17+ (who will turn 18 during the 2020-21 season need to purchase a Competitor membership to comply with SafeSport regulations.
  7. For the 2020-21 Season all junior competitors from New England will be ranked to the NENSA Junior Ranking List (best 3 races for both U16 and U18/U20).  This list will serve as the qualification list for the Eastern Regional Championships.
  8. You can upgrade to a U.S. Ski & Snowboard competitors license later in the season (points may not retroactively apply to previous races).
  9. Each Eastern Cup has a Virtual Team Captain’s Meeting (VTCM) an information page for updates: on venue, times changes, and important racer/coach information.
  10. Registration will close at 5pm on the Wednesday before each Eastern Cup weekend.  Please note all competitors must also fill out a Health Screen Form on this day in order to compete – the form will be sent via SkiReg to all competitors and coaches on Wednesday.
  11. Seed lists will be posted on Thursday (using points from the current NRL / FIS lists)
  12. Start lists will be posted on Friday by 6pm for Saturday and Sunday races.
  13. Eastern Cup race results can be found here.  Live results links will be made available on the EC event pages.
  14. Eastern Cup and Vermont Cup races will be scored by U.S. Ski & Snowboard (except for the 5 races listed under #1 above), and updated to the NRL.  Races marked as (FIS/NRL) are also scored by FIS.
  15. NRL and FIS listing dates can be found in the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Nordic Competition Guide. 
  16. SEEDING:  All racers will be seeded by their best of either, NRL or FIS points.  If you have a U.S. Ski & Snowboard general membership, or have 990 points you will be seeded randomly at the end of the field.
  17. U18/U20 Junior Ranking List:  Best 3 EC or VC races.  Scored by USSS points **see 2. Junior Ranking List Points.
  18. U16 JN Junior Ranking List:  Best 3 EC or VC races.  Please note for the 2020-21 season U16 will be scored by USSS Points – the same way as U18/U20.

2.  Junior Ranking List (JRL) – Eastern Regional Championships Qualifying Points:

JRL points are used to determine qualification of U16,U18 and U20 Juniors for the Eastern Regional Championships.  JRL points are scored as U.S. Ski & Snowboard Points earned at Eastern Cup and Vermont Cup races.
*Sprint race points are calculated with NRL distance points, to make distance vs. sprint points more consistent.
**Please note 2020 JRL race points also vary from 2020 List 10 as an “adder” is applied by USSS at the end of each season to make NRL and FIS points more consistent. Refer to page 20.

3.  Race Rules:

NENSA runs all Eastern Cup and Championship Events following general FIS guidelines.

SEEDING for NENSA Eastern Cup Races:

PLEASE NOTE as per our COVID Considerations all Eastern Cup and Vermont Cup races are scheduled to be Individual Starts.

Individual Starts:  For individual starts, athletes are seeded based on U.S. Ski & Snowboard or FIS Points. The first 15 athletes are seeded in the “A” group, and the “B” group contains the next 15 athletes. After the “B” group, athletes are seeded in groups of 30 (C, D, E, etc.) until all ranked athletes are seeded.  All unseeded pre-registered athletes (990 seed points) will form a single seed group at the end of the field.  In most races, the B group will start first followed by A, C, D, E..

Sprints:  Athletes are a straight seed by lowest to highest points and the first seeds may be randomized (U.S. Ski & Snowboard / FIS Rules).

Mass Start:  For Mass Start races an “A” group is created based on the strength of the field.  Within the A group, the highest ranked athlete gets the most preferable start position, followed by the second ranked athlete, etc.  The “B” group contains all other pre-registered athletes.  The “C” group includes all unranked athletes (990’s) and will be randomized. There is no late or day of race registrants for mass start races. The A group gets the most preferable start position, followed by B, C and D.

U16 seeding:

For open field:  U16 field is seeded according to their NRL points when entered into an open field.

For U16 only field:  A and B seed groups contain 8 athletes each, followed by a C seed for pre registered athletes with NRL points.  The D seed will include pre-registered athletes with 990 points.  All late or day of race registrants will form a seed group at the end of the field. In most races, the A group will start first, followed by B, C, D, etc.

For U16 sprints: Athletes are seeded from lowest to highest points and the first seeds may be randomized. (FIS/U.S. Ski & Snowboard Rules). For sprint qualifier U16’s are seeded with open field as mentioned above in open field.

Results:

Race results are unofficial for 15 minutes following the time of posting. All protests of results must be submitted within these 15 minutes to the Competition Office. Clerical errors, such as name spelling, incorrect U.S. Ski & Snowboard# or NENSA#, etc. must be cleared up prior to the start of the race.  It is each racers responsibility to confirm their correct information prior to the start of each race.

All Eastern Cup and Vermont Cups intend to have live timing for the 2020-21 season.

Protests:

All protests must be submitted in writing to the Competition Office at the event during the protest period (start of race to 15 minutes after unofficial results are posted).  Sprint Heats (except for the final) may not be protested.  Instead, sprint heats are “refereed” by a 5-member jury.

Jury:

Each NENSA Eastern Cup and Championship Event is governed by a jury with at least three members.  The jury is composed of:  Chief of Competition, Technical Delegate (TD), Technical Delegate Assistant (TDA) or NENSA Rep.  For sprint races, the jury is expanded to five members with two assistant Technical Delegates added to the jury.

4. SPRINTS:

Qualification Rounds: 

Racers start at intervals of 15 seconds.  U.S. Ski & Snowboard scores all sprints for NRL from the qualifying round.

Heats:

 PLEASE NOTE as per our COVID Considerations there will currently be no Sprint Heats this season.  VTCM should be referred to for how specific events might run a “bonus round” – this guideline will be updated once the final disciplines for all EC & VC are determined.

NENSA Eastern Cup events will hold two* official sets of heats: 1.) “Premier” and 2.) U16 heats.

Premier Heats: feature the top 30 racers by qualifier time.

  • Quarterfinals: 5 heats of 6 racers. Top 2 in each heat advance along with 2 “Lucky Losers” **
  • Semifinals: 2 heats of 6 racers. Top 2 in each heat advance along with 2 “Lucky Losers” **
  • A-Finals: Finish places 1-6 for the day.

U16 Heats: feature the top 12 U16 racers by qualifier time not advancing to the Premier (or U18/U20) heats.

  • Semifinals: 2 heats of 6 racers. Top 2 in each heat advance along with 2 “Lucky Losers” **
  • A-Finals: Finish places 1-6 for the day.
  • U16 heat placement counts for JRL ranking, but do not count for NRL points.  U.S. Ski & Snowboard scores sprints for NRL off the qualifying rounds.  U14 skiers racing up are not eligible for JRL points and will not be advanced to the U16 heats but will receive NRL points.

*Additional Heats: Run at Race Director discretion.

  • U18 / U20 heats featuring the top 12 combined U18/U20 skiers not advancing to Premier heats.
  • If scheduled and run, U18/U20 heat placement will count for JRL ranking.

** With Timed Heats:

  • The top 2 in each quarter final advance
  • The two third or fourth place finishers with the fastest heat times advance.

** With Untimed Heats:

  • The top 2 in each round advance
  • The two third place finishers with the lowest bib#’s advance

Results:

  • Places 1-6: A-Final order of finish
  • Places 7-12: B-Final order of finish
  • In the case of no B Final, the athletes are ranked according their ranking in semi-final.

Order of finish placings (based on FIS rules):

  • 13th – 15th/16th rank, the 3rd place finisher from each heat in the quarter-final, who did not advance to the semi-finals will be assigned based on their respective ranking in the qualifying round
  • 16th/17th – 20th rank, the 4th place finisher from each heat in the quarter-final will be assigned based on their respective ranking in the qualifying round. (Exception, if one of those 4th place finishers will advance to the semi final)
  • 21st – 25th rank, the 5th place finisher from each heat in the quarter-final will be assigned based on their respective ranking in the qualifying round.
  • 26th – 30th rank, the 6th place finisher from each heat in the quarter-final will be assigned based on their respective ranking in the qualifying round.
  • 31st to last rank, the results from the qualification round will be used.

General Rules of the Sprint Race:

  • A competitor must ski the entire course in each heat in order to be ranked, otherwise they will be ranked as the last of all qualifiers.
  • If a competitor does not start a heat, he or she will be ranked last in that round.
  • If a competitor does not start or finish a heat due to force majeure (verified by a protest) he or she is ranked last in this heat.

Bracket:

A bracket is set up after the qualification round. The initial bracket includes all of the qualified athletes filled in for the opening round. As the event progresses, brackets should be a) filled in on a large board and b) printed and posted between each round on the official results board. See attached for a sample bracket.

Protests:

Protests will only be accepted after the finals (as it is in normal competitions). Due to the timeline pressure of running successive heats it is not possible to allow for protests during heats and semifinals.

Notes for Race Directors:

  • If race organizers choose to have more athletes compete in heats, they must be isolated from the official heats; they may not be mixed with official heats.
  • The heats do not need to be timed.
  • A consolation final may be provided for semifinalists who do not advance.
  • Provide qualifier times in results.

5.   2020-21 Races Scored to the NENSA Junior Ranking List:

** Distances and techniques are listed here as scheduled and may change.  If conditions mandate changes to distance/technique, the race that is held will be scored.**

Craftsbury – Rodrigues Cup – Vermont Cup #1 – (NRL)
Craftsbury, Vermont
Hosted by Craftsbury Outdoor Center 
January 16, 2020

 5/10/15k CL interval start

  • Registration.   Please note competitors must have a U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete.
  • Racers must rent a bib and timing chip from NENSA in order to enter these events (see link for details). Bib and chip rental are not included. You must complete the season-long bib and chip rental from NENSA in addition to registering for this event.

______________________________________________________________________

Prospect Mountain – “Vermont Cup” Weekend #2 – (NRL) Saturday / (NENSA) Sunday
Woodford, Vermont
Hosted by the Prospect Mountain Association
January 23-24, 2021

January 23: Classic sprint 1.2k

January 24: Classic interval 5k U16 / 10k men & women

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date.   Please note competitors must have a NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete on Saturday, Sunday’s race will be sanctioned solely by NENSA, and will provide points toward the NENSA Junior Ranking List. ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page

_______________________________________________________________________

Gunstock Eastern Cup – Eastern Cup Weekend #3 – (NRL) Saturday / (NENSA) Sunday
Gilford, New Hampshire
Hosted by the Gunstock Nordic Association
February 6-7, 2021

February 6: Classic Interval start, 5/7.5/10k

February 7: Freestyle Interval start, 7.5/10/15k 

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date.  Please note competitors must have a NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete on Saturday, Sunday’s race will be sanctioned solely by NENSA, and will provide points toward the NENSA Junior Ranking List. ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page

Woodstock – “Vermont Cup” Weekend #3 – (NRL) Saturday / (NENSA) Sunday
Woodstock, Vermont
Hosted by the Woodstock Ski Runners
February 6-7, 2021

February 6: Classic Interval Start, 5/10/15k

February 7: Freestyle Point to Point 7k

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date.  Please note competitors must have a NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete on Saturday, Sunday’s race will be sanctioned solely by NENSA, and will provide points toward the NENSA Junior Ranking List. ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page

_______________________________________________________________________

Dublin Eastern Cup – EC Weekend #4 – (NRL)
DAY ONE – Dublin, New Hampshire
Hosted by Dublin School 

February 20, 2021: Classic sprint

Craftsbury “Vermont Cup” Finals – VC Weekend #4 – (NRL)
Craftsbury, Vermont
Hosted by Craftsbury Outdoor Center 

February 20, 2021: Freestyle Interval start, 7.5/10/15k men **open distances subject to change**

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date. Please note NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership requirements ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page for complete information and updates.

__________________________________________________________________

Cheri Walsh Memorial Eastern Cup – EC Weekend #4 – (NRL)
DAY TWO – Holderness, New Hampshire
Hosted by the Holderness School Nordic Club 

February 21: Freestyle interval start 5/5/10k

_______________________________________________________________________

Sugarloaf Eastern States Cup
Sugarloaf, Maine
Hosted by the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center
March 19-21, 2021

Event details to come.

______________________________________________________________________

Craftsbury “Race Into the New Year” – “Vermont Cup” – (FIS / NRL) 
Craftsbury, Vermont
Hosted by Craftsbury Outdoor Center 
January 2, 2020

January 2: Sprint Qualifier 1.5k and Interval Start Freestyle 10/15k

______________________________________________________________________

Sugarloaf Eastern States Cup – EC WEEKEND #2 – (NRL) Saturday / (NENSA) Sunday
Sugarloaf, Maine
Hosted by the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center
January 23-24, 2021

January 23: Classic sprint

January 24: Freestyle interval 5/5/10k

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date.  Please note competitors must have a NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete on Saturday, Sunday’s race will be sanctioned solely by NENSA, and will provide points toward the NENSA Junior Ranking List. ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page

Prospect Mountain – “Vermont Cup” Weekend #2 – (NRL) Saturday / (NENSA) Sunday
Woodford, Vermont
Hosted by the Prospect Mountain Association
January 23-24, 2021

January 23: Classic sprint 1.2k

January 24: Classic interval 5k U16 / 10k men & women

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date.   Please note competitors must have a NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete on Saturday, Sunday’s race will be sanctioned solely by NENSA, and will provide points toward the NENSA Junior Ranking List. ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page

_______________________________________________________________________

Gunstock Eastern Cup – EC WEEKEND #3 – (NRL) Saturday / (NENSA) Sunday
Gilford, New Hampshire
Hosted by the Gunstock Nordic Association
February 6-7, 2021

February 6: Classic Interval start, 5/7.5/10k

February 7: Freestyle Interval start, 7.5/10/15k men

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date.  Please note competitors must have a NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete on Saturday, Sunday’s race will be sanctioned solely by NENSA, and will provide points toward the NENSA Junior Ranking List. ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page

Woodstock – “Vermont Cup” Weekend #3 – (NRL) Saturday / (NENSA) Sunday
Woodstock, Vermont
Hosted by the Woodstock Ski Runners
February 6-7, 2021

February 6: Classic Interval Start, 5/10/15k

February 7: Freestyle Point to Point 7k

  • Registration will open SkiReg.com closer to the event date.  Please note competitors must have a NENSA & U.S. Ski & Snowboard membership or an active FIS license to compete on Saturday, Sunday’s race will be sanctioned solely by NENSA, and will provide points toward the NENSA Junior Ranking List. ($10 daily NENSA membership available).
  • Link to Event Page

_______________________________________________________________________

Dublin Eastern Cup – EC Weekend #4 – (NRL)
DAY ONE – Dublin, New Hampshire
Hosted by Dublin School 

February 20, 2021: Classic sprint

Craftsbury “Vermont Cup” Finals – VC Weekend #4 – (NRL)
Craftsbury, Vermont
Hosted by Craftsbury Outdoor Center 

February 20, 2021: Freestyle Interval start, 7.5/10/15k men **open distances subject to change**

__________________________________________________________________

Cheri Walsh Memorial Eastern Cup – EC Weekend #4 – (NRL)
DAY TWO – Holderness, New Hampshire
Hosted by the Holderness School Nordic Club 

February 21: Freestyle interval start 5/5/10k

6.  Eastern Cup Scoring:

** No Out-of-Region Races will be scored to the JRL for the 2020-21 Season. **

All designated Eastern Cup and Vermont Cup races are officially scored by U.S. Ski & Snowboard to the National Ranking List (NRL), usually by no later than the Thursday after the race weekend.  NENSA updates the JRL lists as soon as possible.  Athletes with U.S. Ski & Snowboard General Memberships are not scored to the US Ski & Snowboard NRL, however this season all competitors at any EC or VC will be scored to the NENSA Junior Ranking List.  All competitors are listed in results.

To determine the overall Eastern Cup Champions (the Gallagher Cup winners) at the end of the season (one male/one female) – the best 7 of 8 (VC) or best 6 of 7 (EC) of the Vermont Cup and Eastern Cup races are scored to determine the overall winners.  If calendars are reduced, the “best” number will reduce as does the number of cancelled events.

7.     US Ski & Snowboard Nordic Competition Guide