What a time...

These past few weeks involved some heavy racing, some flying, a lot of driving, and snow...

I never thought about how much time I actually put into my competitions, but having spent almost more time away from campus in the past few weeks than I have on campus, it's been a weird period.

Scott Nichols photo

Things led off with the first Saint Michael's carnival since 2011. It was nice racing at my new home course, even though it was a double classic weekend. The races didn't go all that well, it was bitter cold and snowing all weekend, but I managed a 49th place finish in the 10k, while my relay team placed 28th.

'Twas a cold and snowy day... (Silke Hynes/EISA photo)

Dartmouth was better, much better. Day one was a skate sprint, which, although not my forte, did not go horribly. I ended up 104th overall in the Supertour results (52nd in collegiate). The men's sprint course at Craftsbury is a doozy, with a tough climb through the 1k mark. It was there where I somehow managed to pass the starter in front of me.  Neat.

It was also cold for the sprint. (Silke Hynes/EISA photo)

Day 2 was also skate (a nordic combiners dream). Even better, it was a 10km. When I woke up that day, I honestly wasn't really ready to race. My legs still felt tired from the day before, and it was still pretty chilly. But somehow, everything clicked. 

The Craftsbury 5k Race Loop is one of my favorite courses to ski, and I loved it that day. I ended up 64th in the SuperTour, and recorded my first top-40 finish on the Carnival Circuit, coming in 33rd.

I was the eighth starter. I was the third one across the line. (Silke Hynes/EISA photo)

That night, I was in Salisbury, CT, prepping for the Eastern Ski Jumping Championships the following day. It was a long drive. The jumps went alright, as it was my first time jumping since August. 

In flight. (Scott Nichols Photo)

That night I drove back, in a storm, from Connecticut back to Burlington. Ugh.

Jump to this past weekend. Middlebury Carnival double 10k weekend. 10k classic, 10k skate. This weekend, I had my career best classic finish, a 46th place that felt about accurate. It was cold, so cold that they delayed the start of the race by 3 hours.

Why has it been so cold!!! (Silke Hynes/EISA Photo)

Following this was the 10k skate. Yes. Mine again. I surprisingly did not feel that great, nor did I look great out on course, but I somehow pulled out another top-40, coming in 39th, in a tight group where 30th was only 15 seconds away.

Still cold. (Silke Hynes/EISA photo)

After Midd, I travelled to Holderness, NH for the Cheri Walsh Memorial Classic Race, another 10k and my last shot at qualifying for Junior Nationals. I did well, 38th overall, but not well enough to drop my points. Oh well. Now to focus on the rest of my collegiate season and planning my spring skiing adventures!

.tl

Bates Carnival and EC #2

One down, five to go.

This past weekend, the team traveled to Rumford, ME for the Bates College Carnival and the second Eastern Cup of the season.

This venue is known for hosting some high caliber races, and the competition there was just that. On Friday, we started things off with a 20km Classic Mass Start. Now, if we remember back to last season, I raced in one 20km Classic at Dartmouth, and did not finish. Well, this time went a little differently. I was not (as) sick, and I wasn't alone. 

Definitely not alone. (Silke Hynes/EISA Photo)

The race was tough, as any 20km race is. But this one had the added pleasure of a 10 minute snow squall coming in halfway through the second lap (it was a 4 lap race). 

Remember that sunny start? Me neither. (Silke Hynes/EISA Photo)

This changed things dramatically, and what was once a 2 minute gap between myself and the leaders quickly opened to 4. 5. 6... Eventually I finished somewhere around 6:30 back. And it had warmed up in that time. A lot.

I had ditched my gloves on lap 3. (Silke Hynes/EISA photo)

I ended up 69th overall on the day, with a time of 1:07:02.3.

Day 2 went a bit better. It was a 10km Freestyle, which is more of my race. The catch though was that it had cooled to dangerously cold temps the night before, and the start was delayed so that it could be warm enough. And it was still cold.

Temp went from 0-12 not too quick. (Silke hynes/EISA Photo)

It was a tired race, but i felt that it went better, especially for early season. I ended up placing 51st for the collegiate class, and 86th overall. 27:17.50, 4 minutes behind the winner.

Getting that lunge in. (Silke Hynes/EISA Photo)

Lastly, Sunday. Sunday was the Eastern Cup Classic Sprint, so not my event. It went about as well as expected. After 1.4 km I ended up in 55th overall, 2 seconds out of making the junior heats (3:42.37 vs 3:40.47). On the bright side, it meant that I could get out ahead of the crowds impending doom that was the weather.

Season in review.

Well, this is awkward...


So, I've been kinda busy as the author of the SMC Nordic blog, so if you want to see the results from the EISA circuit, see here.

Well, where to begin...

On New Years Eve, I made my way out to Lake Willoughby, VT for the Mt. Hor Hop, a 10km Skate on some very technical trails. This race tends to bring out some good skiers, such as North Conway's own Sean Doherty, who won this years race. I bonked on the second lap, but still managed a 6th place effort.

After the second SMC training camp, Silke and I ventured out to Lake Placid, NY for the Harry Eldridge Memorial Classic Race and JNQ. That day, it was about 45 degrees and raining, so waxing for the 7.5k race was a little challenging. The race was held at the base of the K90 and K120 ski jumps, and featured a single-track obstacle course right after the start, or a pond-skim if you so chose. First lap, I chose the pond, and was immediately soaked from the chest down. Silke toughed it out as my support crew of 1, and I finished 16th overall, after SMC alum Colin Delaney won it. The day was capped off with a trip to Adirondack Chocolates and a quick tour of Lake Placid.

The struggle of warm weather racing in the rain. It is real.

Up next came the first college race of the year, the Colby College Carnival. It was rough, a 2.5-ish kilometer loop to ski a 10 and a 15km race on, things got pretty monotonous. 

On friday, it was a 10km classic, in constantly changing conditions. It was the opening carnival, so I wasn't expecting huge things, but nothing really went as I had hoped. it ended up being a 10km double pole with almost no kick. Turns out yellow klister isn't always the answer...

The next day went a little better, 15km skates are my preference anyways. That day, I started in a pack of very strong skiers, and ended up racing trying to fend off Paddy Caldwell and Akeo Martucci, two of the strongest skaters in EISA. I lost count of laps on lap 4 (kinda like this race), but was back on track the next time around thanks to the rest of the team. It was a tough race, and I ended up 63rd overall.

To finish up the weekend, I competed at the Eastern Cup at Rumford, a 10km Classic. Things didn't quite go as I had hoped, but I needed to try and get my points down. I was 58th.

The season continued with collegiate racing (again see here), and towards the end of February came the last Eastern Cup, my last shot at qualifying for JN's. 

It came the day after the Williams Carnival, at the Holderness School in NH, my second triple of the season. It went rather well, not being passed by anyone and coming in what I thought was a respectable 30th, my second best classic result all season, in what felt like a very solid, relaxed race. But, the points didn't line up, and I was well out of the running for a JN's bid, by almost 15 places. 

After that, I started figuring out what I needed to do for next season, and prepped for the EISA Championships. They went much better than I had expected, and I hope that I showed some other coaches what I can accomplish, in beating their JN-experienced athletes. I was 55th in the Classic, a race that I finished as the last one across the line, and was 52nd in the Skate Mass start, after leading a train of UNH and Colby skiers for 10km. It felt good, and hopefully things go better next year.

-tl..