SuperTour Finals

The SuperTour Finals just wrapped up in Craftsbury. Due to the rapidly dwindling snow, the races were held on a 1.6k loop. Craftsbury has done a stellar job making and stockpiling snow this year, and it's a minor miracle that they had enough to pull off even this small loop. Our team was ably represented in last weekend's races by Spencer and Kaitlynn. Spencer had a solid performance in the 3.3k skate prologue, finishing 40th. He was the 10th EISA skier, with almost all of the top EISA skiers in attendance, so this was a very good showing, especially in his first crack at the prologue distance (not quite a sprint, but far shorter than our typical distance race).

The following day was a 10/15k classic mass start. With the snow disappearing rapidly, the course was reduced to a 1.6k loop. The tiny loop meant limited snow access, which gave racers very little chance to test wax and make adjustments to their race skis. Spencer ended up choosing his zeroes, which worked well during the brief testing window before the race - unfortunately, by race time the conditions had changed enough to render them useless. This made for a tough day, but he hung in there and raced respectably considering that he had almost no kick. With this lesson learned, they were able to pull together a workable klister combination for Kaitlynn; her skis weren't great, but she skied a solid race. It's tough enough to do a classic race without someone to help you with waxing and testing, and on a tricky waxing day with limited snow access it's even tougher. Still, I'm proud of these guys for giving their best in trying circumstances.

RESULTS

Even though it's almost April, Spencer still hasn't had enough; he's headed back to Craftsbury for tomorrow's 50k skate race - THIRTY laps on the 1.6k loop. Luckily, some intrepid teammates will be there to cheer him on and, more importantly, count laps. Should be an interesting race.

Sugarloaf 25K

Last weekend, Riley and Spencer jumped into the Sugarloaf 25k. In spite of the ridiculously warm weather throughout New England these past few weeks, the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center has held onto its snow remarkably well. At the gun, Spencer and Riley quickly formed a 3-man lead pack with Jordan Buetow of Bates. Riley led for the first several kilometers before falling back, leaving Spencer and Jordan to ski together until the finish. Spencer was able to hold off Jordan in a sprint finish, winning by a mere tenth of a second. Jordan is one of EISA's top skaters, as well as one of the best sprinters, so this was an impressive win for Spencer. Riley cruised in for a solid 4th place finish - a good showing for both Eusdens.

RESULTS

Here are a few photos, courtesy of Steve Fuller of Flying Point Road.

Bretton Woods 2012

Jackson and Kaitlynn raced the Bretton Woods 50k classic last weekend. They were fortunate to have a dedicated and capable support crew (Spencer, Riley, and Steph) in attendance - these guys tested waxes and got the skis dialed in, and then headed out on course for feeds and cheering. Both of our racers had strong performances, so the wax techs obviously did a great job. Kaitlynn finished 2nd for women, while Jackson was the 8th man, close behind a group of college skiers who all scored NCAA points this year. Both of them were right in the mix - another great learning experience about skiing in groups and pacing a distance race.

50k Results

The following day, Spencer raced the Mt. Washington Cup, a 15k skate race - he skied to a convincing victory over a strong group of skiers. In a sport where only one out of dozens or hundreds of competitors gets to win any given race, winning is nice - it's a rare and special thing to cross the line first.

15k Results

Rangeley 2012

Last weekend we continued our annual tradition of racing the Rangeley Loppet, with Drew, Alec, Jackson, Erin, and Shelby all taking part. This race is a fun way to wrap up the season, and it's a great experience for the skiers. It's good chance to practice tactics, fueling, and pack racing, and also to get comfortable with a 50k - the longer distance helps put our 15/20k EISA races in perspective. This year featured perhaps the deepest field I've seen in this event - lots of college skiers and a few fast seniors and masters. It had snowed a few inches the night before and was snowing on and off that morning, even switching over to ice pellets at one point. Even though the course had been groomed a few hours before the race, high winds had blown dry powder all over the course. It was slow, sloppy skiing, and the lead pack went out at a very relaxed pace, allowing Alec and Jackson to settle in and cruise for the first several kilometers. By the end of the first lap, Jackson was still hanging in there among a group of 10 or 12 pretty elite skiers. With the course now well-packed by a couple hundred skiers, things sped up considerably, and the pack gradually splintered. Remarkably, although he skied alone for much of the 2nd lap, Jackson was able to keep a steady pace and pick off a couple other skiers in the final kilometers to finish 9th overall and 2nd in his age group - an impressive performance, especially for a 50k rookie. Alec skied a good tactical race, working with a 3 person chase group to pick off places as the 2nd lap went on - he ended up second in a 4-man sprint to claim 12th place overall and 3rd OJ. Shelby also brought home a sweet age group medal - she skied a steady race in her first 50k ever, finishing as the 13th woman and 3rd OJ. Drew paced himself well - when I saw him at 45k, he was pushing the V2 well into the lower section of a long climb, and I thought, "Who is that guy?" (he was wearing his Ely race suit, so I didn't recognize him at first). He had a huge grin on his face and was really flying - he passed several racers in the final 5k to finish in style. Erin had a pretty massive bonk - when she saw me late in the race, she was feeling woozy and stopped to tell me about this strange tingling feeling she was having throughout her entire body. I was a bit concerned that we'd be carrying her off the course, but I kept this to myself and told her that it was just a little bonk and she'd be fine. Oddly enough, this seemed to reassure her, because she took off and skied strongly for the last few kilometers. It was a nice display of determination and a fitting way to finish her Bowdoin career. Overall, a good showing by our team and a fun day for all of us.

RESULTS

With that, we're done with team races and practices for the year - sad but true. Still plenty of winter left, though - in fact, we have more snow at Pineland right now than we've had for the past 2 months. There's lots of skiing and racing to be done for the rest of the month - I'll keep the post-season updates coming as always.