Weekend in Stowe

This past weekend we had three races up at the Stowe nordic center. On Thursday, we drove over to Stowe with the Carnival crew. We were able to ski the course on Thursday evening before settling in at the Town & Country.
On Friday morning, the girls kicked things off with the 15 km mass start classic. All the girls put themselves in it early and skied to strong finishes. Nat lead the way with a 10th place finish. Kir came next in 15th, followed by Beth in 23rd. Megan skied well ending up in 26th. The scorers skied well enough for a 4th place finish on the day.
The men went off next, in the 20 km mass start classic. They skied well, with Jordan posting a season-best 23rd. Lucas continued his return with a solid 42nd, followed by Pete and Sean in 46th and 47th, respectively.
On Saturday, we were joined by the Eastern Cup crew for the 5/10 km skate races. For the college racers, the girls had yet another strong day, putting four skiers in the top-20. Kir, Nat, Beth, and Megan all had good races finishing 11th, 12th, 14th, and 17th. It was good to see all of them ski so strongly, and we are definitely excited about what they can do over the final few weeks of the season. The guys also skied well, with Jordan improving on his previous season-best (from Friday) with a 21st place finish. Lucas and Sean were our next two scorers. Sean was skiing a great race, but had some bad luck with breaking a pole. After the races on Saturday, the carnival crew headed back to Bates, and did their OD down at Pineland yesterday.
A small crew stayed on at the Kuzio's in Vermont and jumped in the race on Sunday. Kelsey and Caroline skied in the 10 km classic race, and had good races. Danny had a strong race in the 15 km classic. Many thanks to the Kuzio's for hosting the team (again) and also to Cory and the UNH crew for letting us share their waxing space on Sunday.
Overall it was a really solid weekend for the Bobcats, and it just made us more excited about the last three weeks of the Carnival season. The team is skiing well right now, and things are starting to come together on all fronts. Thanks again to all the friends and families who came out to cheer on and feed the team!! We've got the Dartmouth Carnival coming up this weekend as well as a crew heading up to Bethel to ski the Flying Moose Classic. Stay tuned!

Chummy Broomhall Cup

Natalie out in front early

This past week we've had great skiing at both Lost Valley and Pineland. We were able to get a few good sessions in at each, including some fun downhill practice at Lost Valley. Yesterday, we headed up to Rumford for the annual Chummy Broomhall Cup, the Maine State Collegiate Championships. This year's events were two 10 km mass start classic races. The women went off first at 11 AM. Natalie took the lead from the start and never relinquished it, bringing home the individual State crown. Kirsten had yet another strong race and came in 2nd. Andrea had a great race and ended up sixth, with Megan also in the top ten with an 8th place. As a team, the girls came in first by ten points.
The men's race went off at noon, with the same format. The guys didn't have their strongest outing, with Jordan leading the way with a 10th place finish. Jimmy was close behind in 11th, and Pete rounded out the scoring in 14th. Alex also snuck into the top-15.
Here are some pics from the day....

Megan and Andrea

Caroline in a pack

Sam

1st...

2nd

Start of the men's race

Filly

Lucas is back to racing

Chummy...

Thanks to all our supporters who came out to cheer and provide food for our athletes!!

Colby Carnival

Apologies for this post being a little past due. This past weekend we had a solid couple of days up at the new Bond Brook Trails up in Augusta. It was nice to be able to stay on campus for this Carnival, especially after the long travel to Lake Placid the weekend before. The trails are designed by John Morton, and were fun to ski, though we ended up skiing on a shorter loop due to the "half-pipe" on course.
The races on Friday ended up being changed to 10 km individual start for both men and women. Weather conditions were a little rough, with heavy snow falling all day. The men kicked things off with Jordan and Alex once again leading the way, finishing in 33rd and 42nd, respectively. Pete was our next scorer, ending up in 50th. By the time the women went, the tracks were a little hard to see, but they battled through. Nat led the way with a 6th-place finish, her second top-ten of the season. Kir and Beth were our next two scorers, coming across in 20th and 22nd. The three scores were good enough for 4th.
On Saturday, we had our first relays of the season. The women kicked things off in the morning, with Kir skiing a phenomenal scramble leg, tagging off in 2nd place. Beth skied great and kept the pace keeping the women in 4th. Megan anchored the team, bringing the women home in 4th on the day. The men's team was comprised of three first-years, and they were pretty fired up to ski in their first college relays. Jordan scrambled (another great effort) and tagged off in 3rd, leading a train of about 6 skiers. Filly skied a great second leg, hanging tough with a couple of UVM skiers. Pete anchored, and brought the men home in 8th place, their best finish of the season.
The next couple of weeks we'll be on campus, as there is no Carnival this weekend. Sunday is the Chummy Broomhall Cup, which serves as the Maine State Championships. Colby has won the last couple of years, so our aim is to win it back. It should be a good day: two mass start 10 km classic races at Rumford. Hope to see a lot of support up there!
As always, thanks to all the parents and families who came from near and far to support and feed our racers this past weekend!!