Fresh snow. Fierce wind. Cold air. We’ve hit on a pattern this winter, and while we are relishing some of the best snow in years (maybe a decade?) there can be too much of a good thing, it turns out. Heavy snow, dangerous roads, and extremely violent winds big roles in our final Eastern Cup weekend, but we were 100% “go mode” until the very last second!
Things actually got going with races on Friday. By virtue of his competitive sprint points, Anders was granted start rights in the EISA Middlebury Carnival classic sprint, where he qualified for the heats and battled right to the line! A really cool way to start things off.
UNH, Middlebury, Laval, UNH, MNC, Dartmouth
On Saturday it was time for the whole team to lay down an individual start classic race. We’re pretty darn strong at classic skiing, and the U16/EHS Qualifier a week prior had given us a nice bit of “home field advantage” as the course was just a slightly longer version of that 3km event.
Like any year, JNs looms large over the last Eastern Cup. I’ll reiterate what I believe I said after the first weekend…In 2024 we qualified an astonishing 10 skiers to the Junior National Team. Soon after, we graduated 7 of skiers into collegiate programs, while another two skiers moved (literally!) to other states. With that background, I’m happy to admit my own mistake in underestimating our group of athletes this year. I told one parent of another club that it felt like a rebuilding year was on the cards, but right away from the first Eastern Cup I was proven wrong. That same parent sent me a note after those races: “I thought you said it was a rebuilding year? It doesn’t look like it to me.”
Throughout the year I was proven wrong about this re-building phase again and again…so I will henceforth refer to ’24/’25 as the keep-building phase, where we proved our ability to continue learning from our previous hard work, teammates, and former accomplishments and put those skills and lessons to work right away. Even with a younger and less experienced team of racers, the MNC Juniors didn’t miss a beat.
In the men’s 10km Pat, Niko, Lorenzo and Jonah all skied great on trails that required the smoothest classic skiing finesse you could imagine. Starting one bib apart, Jonah and Lorenzo skied basically the whole race together, while a few bibs up ahead Niko continued a very impressive string of distance races to solidify his spot on the JN team.
Back to 100% health after a busy stint in Europe competing in biathlon, Seven absolutely tore it up and proved that she would’ve been more than in with a shout at going to Soldier Hollow with a few more races: but how can you turn down the chance to race in Poland and Germany, and often as the top American competitor in her field to boot? This sport is always a game of tradeoffs…whether it be kick and glide, or one race trip or another. Charlotte held strong in another big classic race that should set her up really well for the upcoming State meet!
Seven continuing our club’s trend of “biathletes who are really strong classic skiers”
For the U16 racers it was a single lap of the 5km course, and starting bib 1 was James. It is almost inevitable that nearly every club will have someone “on the bubble” for JNs on the last weekend. James was sitting in a tie for the final spot on the U16 boys roster, meaning it could very well come down to this weekend. With all that pressure, AND the intimidating situation of starting bib 1 on a one-lap course (meaning James would just have to essentially grind out a solo timetrial with no competition but his own breath and muscles) it could be easy to crumble. But James did the opposite and stormed up every hill, carrying speed into the descents and across every part of the course like you wouldn’t believe. It was obvious watching him that it was his best day yet, and indeed he landed on the podium for the first time!
Atop the podium was Jorgen, aka “Mr Rikert” as I call him, because he is from just down the road and is always espousing how wonderous these trails are. Jorgen used true home course advantage to ski to a dominant win, and having his best race of the season and first top-20 was Gabe who also can claim home course advantage as another member of our “Addison County MNC Contingent.” With his health back under him, Isaiah completed the grouping of our really strong U16 boys.
Gabe up at the last climb before the long descent to the stadium
While it was fun to sweep the U16 girls podium in Waterville at Eastern Cup #3, the thing about sweeping spots 1-2-3 is…you need three people to do it! Astrid was out sick, having stayed home from school during the week overcoming a fever. It was tough to miss this one for Astrid because she loves to classic ski at Rikert, and sickness aside her current form would’ve put her in a strong position yet again. Nothing indicates you are a real racer at heart like wavering back-and-forth about racing when deep down it’s not for the best, and as a coach I’m really proud of Astrid’s resolve.
Everybody will be sick at some point, and miss critical races: it’s just a fact! We can do our best to control it, but there will always be the risk.
If a 1-2-3 wasn’t going to happen, Mia and Acadia were not going to rest and made sure at the very least a 1-2 happened, with Mia storming to her first Eastern Cup win. After leading the classic race in Waterville before her crash, and then putting together an insanely impressive classic race against older (and internationally-experienced) competition at the EHS qualifier a week prior, you just had the sense that all the pieces were coming together for Mia. She particularly stormed through the long third cloverleaf section of the course with intent, and captured the win by 30 seconds. Acadia joined Mia right on the next step, making it a 1-2 finish!
At the end of the day, it was hard not to feel both excitement and relief. Skiers on the bubble for JNs, like James, had put together some of their best races. Others had continued upward trends toward their goals and shown just how far they’ve come in a really competitive field.
The following day, we awoke to lots of new snow. Driving up the gap, the winds continued to get stronger and stronger…until we reached the venue where fences were blown sideways, tree debris littered the trails, and the race had been called off. It was a bit of a subdued end to the Eastern Cup season, but safety took precedence.
It also meant the end of the Junior Ranking List…MNC is sending 8 athletes to Junior Nationals! I believe in a quick count that we are (for the second year in a row) matched with Green Mountain Valley School as the club sending the most athletes as a part of team New England. Ford Sayre and Craftsbury are not far behind, meaning the depth and competitiveness within our immediate area is really the strongest in our region, if not the whole country. Junior Nationals is a big goal for so many of our skiers, and there will always be amazing skiers who do not get to experience this trip. However, it’s important to realize that those on the JN team certainly wouldn’t have gotten there without having their friends and teammates challenge them, push them, and help everyone grow together. Pugs all the way!
Pug Podiums…featuring our “campaign sign” of the season: LOCK IN, DON’T WALK IN
If you’d like to support the MNC athletes headed to JNs as they embark on this (absurdly-expensive) journey, you can do so at the fundraising page below! Thanks!
