Author Archive | Adam Terko

Things continue to change rapidly in the Junior world. Many of us are now aware of Vermont’s updated travel guidelines: travel for out-of-state sports competition requires quarantine, and travel into VT for sporting events is severely restricted. In essence, Vermont is “on its own” this year for ski racing.

We couldn’t live in a better state for this.

At an Eastern Cup, even in other states like Maine and New Hampshire, you may have noticed the makeup of the race field is nearly 75% Vermonters. Our state has the most competitive and deep fields in the country at these races, not to mention a very competitive high school scene. With racing limited to individual states only three come to mind as having the infrastructure, leadership, field depth, quality programming, venues, and race organization to make a season feel “real”.

These states are Vermont, Alaska, and Minnesota.

So what does this mean for all that FIS license/USSA license/Points races/Eastern Cup races, and the like?

Craftsbury FIS/Open Weekends

The original structure of the Craftsbury weekends will remain, with Saturday and Sunday events. However, there had been some confusion over which event would be the best competitive option for Juniors, especially with the stated requirement of a FIS license needed for Saturday. Race director Ollie Burruss summed up the new plan best in a recent email:

“Saturday [will] be elite development days, with FIS race formats on homologated trails, and then Sundays are just open interval starts, probably a bit longer (still would have a U16 category, but then more like 10-20k for open). The Saturday events would be open to anyone with an NRL [USSA] license, with everyone scoring NRL [USSA] points and FIS license holders scoring FIS points. This way kids who are on the edge and don’t need FIS licenses for points and all that but would benefit from racing FIS fields on occasion can race with those fields. And the junior clubs, college kids, and senior athletes all can come on just one day.”

That means that we will look to Saturdays as the best competitive option for Juniors. These are the races to expect elite teams, ski academies, and college racers in attendance. Sundays racing will cater to more to an experienced adult or Masters crowd, based on formats and distances.

Eastern Cup Weekends

The plan in the works is to reschedule and reorganize the Eastern Cup weekends. Instead of 4 weekends across New England, Vermont will host 4 weekends across the state at great venues, with strong organization and a structure that still involves USSA points and the National Ranking List/system. This is where my earlier paragraphs come into play…Vermont is one of the ONLY states capable of doing this, and I’m incredibly proud to say I think we will have some of the best racing of any year, with incredibly strong competition AND the benefit of way less travel and no overnight hotel stays! That savings of $ will be great for the club and families alike.

In Summary

Things change day-by-day, so thank you for continuing to stay updated on news from both the State and from MNC/NENSA/USSA.

We still await some news on High School sports and the HS ski season, for which a meeting will take place Nov. 4th. Keep visiting the MNC pages, and STAY POSITIVE!

-Adam

Sunday was a great day for a rollerski race! Safety protocols were followed and NENSA and Craftsbury put on an incredibly cool event. With timing chips, real bibs (including coach bibs), a rollerski loop course, Bullitt Timing and a wand at the start, and all the fencing and spectacle you’d see at an Eastern Cup, it really made for a real race that got the winter excitement bubbling.

Oh, and don’t discount the fact that Jessie Diggins, Susan Dunklee, and others were all racing too! What an opportunity. I have to say I am a bit bummed that more of our crew didn’t jump at the chance to get this race in…it was as ski-specific as you can get, a fun challenge, and we really don’t know how many races we’ll get to do this winter. I got the question of “where are the MNC Juniors?” from multiple parents and fellow coaches alike.

That’s not to discredit the great racing by our contingent of Brady, Taylor, Farmer, Isabelle, plus Masters skier Michael G and UVM Club skier and friend-of-the-Pugs Sam Holt. Despite not having the Range at our disposal, these skiers handled the roller track like nobody’s business and got to share the loop with some big names.

You can find some results here, a gallery of photos from John Lazenby here, and a video recap video below!

There are many questions swirling around this season. While I (Coach Adam) don’t have all the answers, I want to share what I know in an accessible place. Keep in mind that things are changing by the week, or even day, as guidelines become established or altered. Without any delay…here are some of the most pressing questions for Juniors this year.

1) Will there be Eastern Cups?

As of right now, October 26, 2020, there WILL be Eastern Cups in the upcoming season. The schedule is in a constant state of flux so please continue visiting the NENSA homepage as a key resource, and thoroughly read every edition of the Kickzone newsletter when information is shared.

These Eastern Cups will be individual start, and to compete in them you will be required to purchase your bib and timing chip for the season well in advance. Find more info on that here.

2) Will MNC have Team Trips (van, lodging, etc) to Eastern Cups?

This is TBD. But we are unlikely to use the van for Eastern Cup transport of athletes (though it may carry coaches and equipment). The first Eastern Cup is scheduled for Rikert and that will be a day-trip for all. We will wait to see how other race venues, COVID outcomes, and travel guidelines play out for races outside of VT.

3) Will there be Junior Nationals? What about Eastern HS Champs? What about U16 Champs?

Junior Nationals is tentatively moved to a “Regional Championship” event. This is slated to take place in Lake Placid the first weekend in March. The qualification for this event is two-fold:

-Skiers can qualify via traditional JN pathway: points at Eastern Cups lead to a “JN Team” named consisting of the same quotas as a typical year

-An additional group of skiers from each state can qualify, in addition to the traditional “JN Team” quota, based on State criteria. For Vermont, these “State Quota” skiers for the Regional Championship are likely to be selected via the VT EHS/U16 Qualifier races.

Eastern HS Champs and U16s has moved to a State-based model with limited information here from NENSA.

4) What licenses do I need to get?

If you are competing in Eastern Cups, you WILL NEED A USSA LICENSE. If you are under 18, you may purchase a General Membership ($20) and if races end up needing to be scored to the National Ranking List for points, you can upgrade to a Competitor membership at any point during the season. The points you scored as a General member will carry over and be updated. If doing this, you will need to upgrade before the end of the season.

For those over 18, you will need a competitor membership regardless because Safesport training is a mandatory prerequisite for all. The Safesport course takes a bit to complete and even longer for processing, so please sign up for this membership well in advance of the season. Prices go up Nov 1.

It is not likely that many MNC athletes will need a FIS license. While Craftsbury is hosting a series of FIS races on multiple Saturdays this winter, there are corresponding non-FIS races on those Sundays. Unless you are looking to compete at the international level, there should be ample competition at the Sunday races from college and regional athletes/teams.

5) Will there be High School racing?

It seems likely that HS racing will happen, given the success of safe events for XC runners. We are fortunate to compete in an outdoor sport, but expect plenty of restrictions and guidelines for those events much like all other competitions currently. There is a VT high school coaches meeting on Nov 4th when more will be finalized.

6) Where will Juniors train this winter?

Our Juniors will train at both Bolton and Sleepy Hollow, primarily. With a $75 season pass and a newly-negotiated Bolton pass of $65-85 we achieved an early goal of access at both areas for under $200 for our Juniors. We have put a lot of work into Picnic Loop at Bolton which will have critical lighted skiing infrastructure and low-snow grooming possibility. We will also lean on Sleepy Hollow for its snowmaking capability. Tues/Thurs training will be at Bolton unless snow conditions dictate otherwise. Training on Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun will depend on conditions, races, individual schedules, and more. Flexibility is key.

7) When does Winter training start?

Junior winter training begins Dec 1. You can find registration now open here.