Get ready for the MNC Skiathlon this Sunday! Join us at Sleepy Hollow as we put on (and compete in) our home race for the club!
You can view the registration page here.
To volunteer, please email race director Christine Massey: safety@mansfieldnordic.org
See you on the trails!
Skiathlon start 2024
Some snow has fallen in the hills, and it looks like moderate temperatures for the Bogburn on Saturday.
Just a quick note, however, that this wax recommendation is coming to you from 5F and dark Anchorage, AK so please take all notes as a “best guess” scenario without knowing the actual snow condition. MNC coaches never apply kickwax for a race before the morning of the race itself, when we’ve had a chance to size things up!
Look for the MNC tent and team area with coach Liz, coach Sara, and coach Kristen on race day up at Rikert!
The snow report indicates very little new snow from the recent storm system. Therefore expect a mostly machine-made/transformed base with temps in the 20s, meaning snow could start icy and become sugary.
For glide wax, a simple warm/mid-range option like Toko Red or Swix HS8 would be safe. For kick, klister could very well be involved so please hold off on applying a hardwax binder. Coaches will likely be able to apply a quick spray klister or roller klister binder job if it is called for.
Thurs AM Update: Tomasi received 6″ of new snow overnight, so we are going to classic ski today at Tomasi. See below for full details.
Happy New Year! We are hoping that January will bring the return of winter. There are a bunch of different things happening this week and regular practice resumes this Thursday. (I had mentioned a possible family ski on New Years Eve, but we’re going to cancel that due to snow conditions.)
Sub-Groups and Coach Info
Parent Meeting Notes
Season Long Schedule
Weekend Race and Event Schedule
Tuesday, December 31: Devos Practice at Sleepy Hollow. See the Junior Training Doc for details and check before you head out (the weather might require plans to be updated).
Wednesday, January 1: This is the first Sleepy Hollow Wednesday Night Worlds of the 2025 season! It’s a low key, ultra customizable (distance and technique) weekly ski race that continues through January and February. Potluck following each race. A great option for kids that love racing, families that want a little more. It’s on your own, but there will be MNC BKL kids there throughout the winter. $10 kids and $17 adults. More Info
Thursday, January 2– JackRabbits, Arctic Foxes, Racers and Devos
Location: Tomasi Meadow
Time: 3:45pm-5:15pm
Details: We will be classic skiing today. Come a few minutes early if you need to wax and find us at the wax bench setup on the side of the parking lot near the trailhead. If you wax at home try using Toko Red or Swix Violet.
Parking: The Tomasi lot on Mountain Rd. Please park tight, so there is space for everyone. Please don’t park on Pinacle Ridge (it’s a private driveway). Underhill Central School is an overflow parking location.
Reminder: There is no inside space or bathrooms (go before heading over). Wear a headlamp.
Saturday, January 4 : Bogburn is a classic race hosted by Rikert. BKL races are in the morning and adults races are in the afternoon. This race is open to all BKL Skiers. MNC Team Info – Race Info – Registration – Let coaches know you are coming
What a busy few weeks! Early snow has made a lot of great things possible…from bluebird days at Craftsbury to rainy intervals at Sleepy Hollow…we’ve experienced all types of winter and snow conditions thus far. What will 2025 bring?
Here’s a quick recap of three cool stories from recent weeks…
1) Masters/Juniors intervals @ Sleepy
We have a very speedy group of “Onyx” level Masters skiers. They are always looking for a challenge, and Coach Sara suggested to me that maybe we could coordinate a joint Master/Junior interval session one evening. There was a HS ski race earlier in the day, which means a large portion of the MNC Juniors already got in their intensity. However, the addition of a squad of 6-8 Masters in the evening meant that the Juniors who didn’t race earlier had the same size group…everybody got to push each other, the groups mixed quite well in terms of speed, and it said a lot about the cool things a club like MNC is capable of!
Nighttime doesn’t make for the best photos but…they are off together!
2) Eastern Cup 1 @ Craftsbury
As I told our team during our evening meeting on Saturday, after the conclusion of the first EC race (a classic sprint)…different skiers, new names others might not have heard before, and a much younger team on the whole…but we picked up right where we left off!
It was an awesome first Eastern Cup weekend, with too many highlights to fit into one blog post. How about Mia and Astrid qualifying for the open heats as U16s? Or Seven winning the Junior Heats, followed closely by MNC alum Elsa Sanborn (freshman at Bates)? Or Anders making a return to the Pugs with a 4th place overall again the stacked college field? Jonah and Niko made the open heats and finished as 3rd and 4th U18s. Oh yeah, then at the end of the day Jorgen won his first U16 Eastern Cup in the first event of the season!
Gabe, Acadia, and Sylas also raced their first Eastern Cups ever, and Charlotte returned to the mix after a totally epic running season that ended in Portland at the Nike Nationals. James and Isaiah had their first top-10 races on Sunday.
And on and on…it was a fun time, and great to have things close-to-home to kick off the season. Thanks to our awesome coaching staff with Sara, Kristen, Tom, and Danny! Next up is Lake Placid in January.
3) Bluebird winter break skiing
It’s hard to beat sunny skies and sparkling snow. Our intervals on Thursday were pretty darn amazing, with images and videos that look worthy of the biggest-budget ski movies out there.
Special thanks to Meredith who joined us to help out! Now with warm temps and rain threatening our nice snow it may be back to snowmaking loops for a bit…
It’s still early season conditions out there and we have both rain and snow in the forecast for the week.
Sub-Groups and Coach Info
Parent Meeting Notes
Season Long Schedule
Tuesday, December 17 – Penguins, JackRabbits, Arctic Foxes, Racers and Devos
Location: Mills Riverside Park, Jericho
Time: 3:45pm-5:15pm
Details: Dryland practice for all – wear shoes or boots that you can run and hike in – Penguins (no poles) and everyone else bring classic length poles for some running/hiking. Wear your headlamp.
Reminder: There is no inside space or bathrooms (go before heading over).
Thursday, December 19– JackRabbits, Arctic Foxes, Racers and Devos
Location: Mills Riverside Park, Jericho
Time: 3:45pm-5:15pm
Details: Dryland practice – wear shoes or boots that you can run and hike in. Bring classic length poles for some running/hiking. Wear your headlamp.
Parking:
Reminder: There is no inside space or bathrooms (go before heading over). Wear a headlamp.
Saturday, December 21 – Racers and Devos Practice at Sleepy Hollow for a Skate ski. Meet Coach Nate at 10am ready to ski on the trail outside the lodge and finish up about 11:30. Please RSVP to bkl@mansfieldnordic.org, so we have an idea of how many are planning to come. You can watch the Sleepy Hollow conditions and web cam here.
Vacation Week – We will be off from December 21 – January 1. Here are some ideas on how to stay active over school vacation.
JackRabbits having fun playing games in the snow.
Click through to check snow conditions at Tomasi Meadow (Underhill) and the Range (Jericho). These conditions are submitted by on-the-ground reports and are as current as possible. Read More about “Snow Conditions”…
Join us on Sunday, December 15th at Craftsbury for our Masters Mini Camp. We’ll work on both skate and classic, gather for lunch, and review video and talk technique! Read More about “Masters Mini Camp @ Craftsbury”…
Masters athletes…are you looking to build strength and train with friends and teammates? Join us at the Mansfield Nordic Community Center on Wednesday nights! Read More about “Masters Strength @ The MNCC”…