SLU Carnival

Carnival season is over already!  Every single year it goes by quickly, so it shouldn't be a surprise at this point, but somehow it always seems that the season ends right after it's begun.  Fortunately, we went out on a good note with a really fun weekend at the SLU Carnival in Lake Placid.  Once again, we had cold temps, but the wind stayed low and the sun stayed out and we had two perfect days of racing.  In Friday's 5/10k skate, Jackson led the men in 36th, with Hannah Miller in 21st for the women despite feeling the effects of a lingering cold.  Ellie and Louisa scored PRs, and H. Marshall had her best race of the season as well.  A very good day overall, especially for the women's team.  That night, we had the long-delayed conclusion to Maine vs. World.  Clutch performances by the seniors gave Team Maine a victory in the trivia competition and its first win in the overall since 2009.

Saturday brought perfect conditions for a classic race - sunny and cold (but not too cold).  We've really been incredibly lucky with the conditions this year!  The seniors all skied well - Tyler scored one more top-30 finish to lead the men, with Jackson right behind in 32nd, while Shelby chased down 3 skiers in the final lap to go out on a high note.  Our younger skiers were pretty scrappy as well - good solid races for August and Ellie, and Rachel skied with good fire to post her best race of the year.  Jake and Sam were in a crash at the start and left the stadium well behind the pack.  Jake made up a tremendous amount of ground to ski his way back into the thick of things - definitely the best classic skiing we've seen from him so far.  Sam also showed a lot of grit, skiing with Jake to get back into contact before his ski, which had been damaged in the crash, finally fell apart.  Even so, he was able to get a replacement and pick up a few more spots before the finish - a great display of perseverance.  After the races, we celebrated with a cake for the seniors, courtesy of Deb and Ron Aseltine.  As always, the parents have been fantastic this year - we'll miss the parents of our seniors!  Overall, it was a fun and happy day for our team and a fine way to end the carnival season.

Of course, the season's not really over yet.  Hannah Miller qualified for NCAAs - our third straight year with an NCAA qualifier!  This is really a remarkable achievement, especially for a sophomore - she's made a big jump forward this year.  We're headed back to Lake Placid next week for the championships - looking forward to seeing what she can do against the best college skiers in the country!  Plenty of action for our other racers as well - Mac and Ellie are on their way to Truckee for JNs, with Sarah accompanying them as a coach for Team New England.  We also have several skiers planning marathons and other fun stuff for March, starting with the Bretton Woods Marathon this weekend.  Stay tuned for updates!

Here are some photos from the classic race from Everett Marshall: