Wow, what a great day for a ski race! Thanks to Sleepy Hollow for the awesome venue, Christine Massey for being our race director, and all the volunteers, racers, and spectators who came out to be a part of the fun.
With bright sunny skies, beautiful deep snow, and an atmosphere of Nordic passion, the 2020 edition of our Skiathlon race will be one to remember. The location change to Sleepy Hollow meant hosting a race right in our backyard, bringing this big race back to Chittenden County. Although we had the whole round barn for indoor space, the pleasant weather meant that most people chose to enjoy the day out on the snow. Overall we had 135 racers!
Things began with the “What The Heck, I’ll Try It” 5km race, undertaken by a number of folks who have skied but never raced before! And even as that race was still underway, the Open skiers lined up for the longest event of the day.
A first-time racer and a not-so first-time racer getting after it! Steve’s first time rocking that hairdo
Rick and I had devised the course a week prior, meeting with Eli and Christine to ski various options, measure out lengths, and settle on a reasonable route. Our goal was a course that included mostly gradual climbing for both classic and skate techniques (the race would be the same loop for each technique) without terrifying descents. Given that Sleepy Hollow was operating in full swing, we were tasked to create the course on the Northern side of the trail system.
From Molly’s Meadow, racers headed downhill briefly before swinging onto Potato Farmer. This provided the first gradual uphill, which is the perfect gradient for striding. Some more rolling climbs on Bear Claw, ending with another straight and gradual striding climb, brought racers to Ridge Road. Normally skied in the opposite direction, this part of the course was a fast but very straight tucking downhill.
The last part of the loop is what could be argued as the “technical” section, the trail known as Zig-Zag. True to it’s name, the course features long gradual/flat straighaways that change direction with a few short punchy switchbacks (mostly herringbone in classic, or V1 or coaches-skate in freestyle). A return to Molly’s Meadow either meant another lap (2 laps per technique) or a switch to the skate skis.
Kickwax was definitely a bit interesting with temps warming during the course of the race and some variability between sun and shade. A few who opted to go speedy on the kickwax (Rode T-lines) ended up slipping more than they would have preferred, while others going the Toko Red/Toko Yellow route were in a slightly better position. Despite this being a non-fluoro race, the snow during the skate leg was extremely fast due to ideal weather and grooming conditions!
Off to the races!
MNC Juniors taking the race SUPER seriously!
MNC packed the results sheet with a TON of racers. Thanks again to everyone who came out!
But the day was just getting started, as BKL races were lined up for the whole afternoon. Whether they were racing for a lollipop or sprinting for a lunge with a fierce competitor, all the kids seemed to have a great time and especially enjoy the swoops, turns, and jumps of the skier-cross course which has been a highlight of Sleepy’s grooming this year and, of course, had to be included in the race.
Pack of youngsters ripping through the Nordic Cross course
will race for lollipops!
temps roughly 30 MNC Masters turned out the event. After the initial photo, the group split of into multiple groups and routes that led them on a 20-30K point to point ski back to the touring center. If you missed out, don’t worry there is talk of this being an annual event!
