Author Archive | Adam Terko

Eastern Cup in Lake Placid

The first Eastern Cup has been moved from Rikert to Lake Placid. This is a big change, but luckily the new venue is not TOO far from us. Some notes and links that are important:

  • Registration closes WEDNESDAY at 6PM! There is no day-of-race registration for these competitions, so you MUST sign up ahead of time.
  • Additionally, you must have all of your proper licenses and forms completed. If you need information on this, please see this page posted not long ago.
  • View Adam’s Virtual Team Notes page here.
  • We do not have a team trip for this race, but there appears to be some good lodging options available at reasonable prices in Lake Placid. It is worth also noting that both Keene and Saranac Lake are within 30 minutes of the venue and are additional good options to broaden a search for lodging.
  • One option may be to drive over day-of on Saturday and only stay one night. Check your race start times here to determine if this might be an option worth exploring.
  • As mentioned in the Virtual Team Notes, please try to get skis to Adam as early as possible this week, as prep begins in earnest. In fact, skis that were in use this past weekend have already begun prep, as they were kept in the trailer after skiing at Craftsbury…the first layers have already gotten onto the bases!
  • Our order of suits and gear from Podiumwear shipped at 3:55pm last Thursday. This was all supposed to arrive on November 30th according to Podiumwear, so they are behind schedule, but everything should ideally be in-hand just in time for the first Eastern Cup.

 

Our last trip to Lake Placid back in the fall…more snow will be present this time!

Racing kicks off in New England

The racing season is underway! The Silver Fox Trot on Saturday brought together our Masters, Juniors, and BKL skiers for a big snowy day at Craftsbury.

Incredible how just days earlier, there was no snow to be had. These two photos were taken on Tuesday and Saturday, respectively:

Bounding under the lights with St Mikes on Tuesday evening

Gathering for a quick photo after the 7th/8th grade race on Saturday

Thanks for pulling off the incredible once again, Craftsbury! It was a busy day with the first “real” races, not considering the Thanksgiving timetrial. With a packed field and 2km loop the skiers were blasting by in packs, and the MNC group was looking great. Some were starting off their senior or post-grad year with close races against college competition, and others were just starting their first race on snow with MNC (or even the first DAY on snow this year!).

Emma on the podium with some UVM women. Those blue jackets really pop!

We had many masters out on course, and everyone was loving some bright some and wintry temps. Another highlight was sticking around after the citizen’s race to watch the younger athletes…our Junior squad cheered on their siblings and other younger racers alike, and it was pretty cool to have MNC be a presence throughout the day.

Juniors showing their support for the tutu-clad legend Bella!

The following day, we returned to Craftsbury for a classic timetrial, and we can now safely say we’re fully ready to take on the Eastern Cup in Lake Placid this coming weekend!

 

 

Our Masters ski day @ Craftsbury

Thanks to massive snowmaking efforts (and machinery), Craftsbury was able to re-build a melted loop and create awesome conditions over the weekend. A good crew of Masters raced in the Silver Fox Trot events alongside MNC Juniors and BKL skiers, and on Sunday we had a really great turnout for our Masters ski day.

Over 15 skiers gathered after lunch for some klistering and ski prep in the MNC trailer, and then met with coaches Adam, Sara, Kristen, and Rosemary for drills and skills before taking a few laps of the 2km manmade loop.

Sara leads some drills as the group gathers in the upper field

We were fortunate to end the week with a bit of snowfall, as right after we began the flakes started coming down. All of a sudden, the brown landscape off the loop was looking more like winter. It was great to get some daylight skiing in, take some video, and meet up with new and returning skiers in the program.

Pascal cruising up by the cabins in some fresh snow

Some of the crew opted to head home after the classic portion, but a group switched to skate skiing for an additional hour of snow time. We got a quick group photo of the skate squad by one of the multiple Pisten Bully groomers Craftsbury uses to help create some fo the best snow around.

Winter is off to a slow start, but cold temps and some incoming snow may help us out. We’ll need to stay flexible with Range access and snowmaking/lighted loops such as Sleepy Hollow, but skiing is finally starting to come around. Thanks to all that joined us yesterday!

Updates for this weekend

The Kendall Classic race has been cancelled and will no longer happen on Sunday. Please note the following changes (or lack of changes!) to our weekend plans:

SATURDAY

Juniors: All are encouraged to race the Silver Fox Trot, the skate race which is still ON for Saturday. Registration is open until 5pm tonight (Friday) at the link below. The race begins at 10AM for the open categories: look for the MNC tent and trailer in the lower lot which will be home base.

Silver Fox Trot Registration

Masters: If you’re interested in racing, the Silver Fox Trot on Saturday is a great chance to enjoy what looks to be very nice freshly-made snow on a relatively tame course.

BKL: The Silver Fox Trot was, and still is, the primary BKL event for the weekend!

SUNDAY

Juniors: We will meet at Craftsbury at 10AM for a classic ski. Meet at the trailer in the lower lot, which will stay on-site overnight. Those that have not classic skied more than 2-3x this season will get in a distance classic ski. Those with more classic under them this season will do some classic intensity…exact format TBD. Note there will be no van for this session as Adam needs to remain at Craftsbury for our Masters event.

Masters: Our group ski event is STILL ON and still happening at 1pm. Nothing has changed with regard to this ski!

BKL: Snowmaking temps may have allowed other areas such as Rikert or even Sleepy Hollow to open up some terrain, so this is a good day to take a rest if you raced Saturday, or seek out some more snow!

 

Coming to the Range

Hello everyone!

While our Range days are limited in December (and the lack of snow makes it difficult to have a “traditional” session in the first place) we have access occasionally and I’d like to just put out information on the arrival process as a refresher.

  • If you have signed up for MNC Programming (including Range Access, not just coaching) your name will be added to our “command list” which is kept at the front gate.
  • When you drive in, you’ll need to show a photo ID to the gate guard and specify that you’re on the MNC/Mansfield Nordic Club list. For younger skiers, a school ID is fine! For the smallest skiers (elementary school) it’s likely ok to just have a parent in the car who can provide names.
  • Always remember to go the speed limit, or even better BELOW the speed limit!
  • Need specific directions to the Range itself? Check out this document below

Range Directions

 

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