As we wind down our season, we ask our athletes to please take the time to fill out a brief program survey. It can be filled out below are at the following link.
NWVT BKL Mini-Fest!
Relays were the name of the game at this year’s NWVT BKL Mini-Fest held this past Sunday! Instigated during the pandemic last year, our NWVT District liked our mini-fest so much that we decided to do it again with a relay twist! The Frost Mountain Club at Rikert stepped up to the plate to host and organize the event. There was a lollipop race, age group relays and a mini-marathon to Bergen Cabin where skiers could warm up with hot chocolate and cookies. Luckily, last Friday’s snowstorm blessed Rikert with about 8 inches of powder and the skiing was great! We had a strong turn-out from Mansfield Nordic Club and some awesome skiing from Lollipop up through Grades 7/8!
Oliver and Bella with Hanna who led out all the races. Thank you Hanna!
Mo and Lena ready to warm up for the 7/8 relay.
Ryley and Kate have paired up many times over the years!
Pearl and Astrid made for a fast team!
The start of the 5/6 relay. You can see Astrid and Oakley (49).
5/6 skiers are off!
Craftsbury Day!
The Wednesday during school vacation week is always Craftsbury Day for BKL. With about 130 kilometers of beautiful trails and impeccable grooming it is a mecca for cross-country skiers in the east and we are so lucky that it is within a 1.5 hour drive for most of us.
This year, a small but hearty crew of MNC BKLers met at Craftsbury, toured the trails, had lunch together and then finished the day with relay races. Fun was had by all and Coach Nancy’s cookies were delicious and greatly appreciated! Some pictures below.
Jack Rabbits on a tour with Coach Peter.
Jack, Oliver, Bella and Rory ski up this hill with ease!
Waiting for their relay partners!
Liam, Astrid, Pearl and Coach Tom did an adventure ski with Coach Rosemary. Where? We’ll never tell!
BKL Practice: Week of 3/01
Tuesday, 3/01: Classic Relay Day!
We will all do some fun relays today and practice relay tag-offs as well.
Penguins: Please bring a stuffed animal (one that you won’t mind getting a little snowy!).
Jack Rabbit Parents: We need some parent helpers for Jack Rabbits 1 and 2 during our March sessions. Sign-up here:
Thursday, 3/03: Skate
We will all build our stamina with a long, keep-moving, tour today and Racers will practice some starts and finishes.
Racers: BKL Festival Weekend- March 5 & 6:
For those going to the Festival: Souring Over Snow is the theme! Time to work on your costume: wings, bird hats, capes, glitter. We can dress up for the parade.
Plan to clean classic skis after Tuesday. You will need to wax Skate skis after Thursdays’ practice (or use an extra pair of skis). I will try to post a wax recommendation on Wednesday.
Soon to come: BKL Fest Virtual Meeting
MNC Juniors sweep the Eastern Cup season
This year, NENSA implemented team scoring to Eastern Cup races. Much like high school running or skiing races, clubs were awarded points for strong finishes by all members, across all age groups in a given Eastern Cup weekend.
MNC came out strong and won the first Eastern Cup in Waterville.
- Mansfield Nordic Club
- Craftsbury
- EMXC
Next, the team travelled to Lake Placid. While senior team members from the Green Racing Project and SMS T2 scored a lot of points overall, the junior scoring had MNC on top again for EC #2.
- Mansfield Nordic Club
- EMXC
- Ford Sayre
In Craftsbury, a Supertour field meant more pro skiers, but among the junior scoring it was once again MNC taking the top spot in EC #3.
- Mansfield Nordic Club
- EMXC
- Craftsbury
With our club’s strongest racing of the year, possibly ever, the club took a commanding win in Dublin to solidify the full sweep of Eastern Cup weekends.
- Mansfield Nordic Club
- EMXC
- Craftsbury
After a season of racing only within Vermont during the deep winter of the pandemic we knew our skiers were strong, but everyone longed to get back to racing against the rest of the region.
On social media and on the internet in general, I (Adam) have tried to refrain from overtly posting results and wins. Other teams cap off every weekend by highlighting the medals and awards won by their skiers, but there are plenty of great athletes competing for MNC that won’t necessarily win a medal or stand on a podium. The great thing about this team scoring format is that success doesn’t just depend on skiers at the very top: everyone contributes, and our group was motivated throughout the year to prove what they were capable of.
So yes, it’s time to share an announcement about a result and a rank because it was achieved by our whole crew of athletes…
In the 2021/2022 season MNC was the strongest junior team in New England.
Our club has the strength at the top, and the depth throughout the field in all age groups, to take on the best clubs and ski academies in our region and come out on top. But heavy is the head that wears the crown! For sure, our competitors will be training hard to beat us next year, just as we’ll be working hard to stay at the top…that’s what makes everyone stronger!
But for now, I want to congratulate all of the MNC athletes who took part in Eastern Cup races this year. This group of Pugs came out on top!
You can view the NENSA rankings over various events here. Note that Junior scoring occurs on the far right for the Lake Placid and Craftsbury weekends (which omits professional, adult racers).
