Bates Carnival

We just wrapped up the Bates Carnival at Black Mountain - the season is finally underway. It's been a decent weekend. Our team score wasn't anything too exciting, but a lot of our people did some good racing these last couple days. Colman was our top skier in the men's 10k classic yesterday, finishing 42nd in a huge field. We had a solid cluster of guys a little ways behind him, including Niko, who's making a nice comeback from his rollerski-free semester in Denmark. The women showed good depth as well, with Courtney leading the way in 64th and Erin right behind in 66th.

Today's 15/20k skate race was solid. The mass start was set up with a short uphill double pole zone - interesting way to start a skate race. The women's race sorted itself out with a few bumps, but our women held it together well. Courtney got herself in the middle of the pack and moved up gradually, ending in 54th - very nice result for a big open carnival. Elissa and Olivia both had some difficulties mid-race and could have dropped out, but I was thrilled that both of them pushed through to salvage respectable finishes. I'm really happy with how our women skied. It's clear that this group has taken a step forward, even on a weekend when not everyone was on. I'm positive that we haven't seen their best yet, so these next few weeks should be exciting.

The men's start was rather messy. Colman got tripped up right at the start, and Nat was trampled shortly afterward. Spencer got out well, near the front of the pack after a few hundred meters. He decided that he'd better ease up a bit, at which point a few dozen people skied over him and left him with a broken pole. Everyone recovered well from their mishaps, though, and we ended up with another train of Bowdoin guys moving up through the field. Scott had the day's best race, passing dozens of people to end up in 44th - a great start to his college career.

We ended the day with a fine lunch set out by some stalwart team parents in a howling wind. We had great support at this carnival, with several Bowdoin students cheering us on along with the parents. Once again, the Mawhinneys were kind enough to put us up at their house, which helped make it possible to bring our massive men's team on the road. Thanks to all of our supporters!