How far are you willing to drive to race your heart out? The Pugs took on central Maine this past weekend for the second Eastern Cup of the season. While a 1.5k loop was used for the skate race on Saturday, that particular event was held in a massive blizzard that dumped a bunch of new snow. That meant a 3.5k loop for Sunday’s classic mass start events…quite a big upgrade considering what we’ve seen so far this season!
Photos are still rolling in so what I can offer now are just ones pilfered from the internet…
Saturday: 5/10km Freestyle
Things got underway with the U16 men’s 5km. Going out in bib #1 was Greg Burt, intent on matching his bib number on the results sheet. After a lonely first lap Greg linked up with Kai and the two skied much of the race together. In the end the two Huntington boys would finish 2nd and 9th, with Ben Ogden from SMS nabbing the win by a scant 7 seconds. Timmy was not far behind in 11th…barely missing out on 3 Pugs in the top 10!
Aidan got his first taste of Eastern Cup experience (as a 7th grader) and was, as usual, the smoothest skier on course. You’re not gonna bring him along for 6 hours of driving and not let him race!
Timmy in the storm…good indicator of the weather!
Welcome to the Eastern Cup Aidan!
The open women’s race saw a great performance from Eliza, who skied smoothly through the ever-growing piles of snow on course to a fine result that was within the same second as her teammate and long-time friend/training partner/biathlete Marika. Rachel fought well and was also happy with her race, sliding in nicely among some familiar college competitors.
In the open men’s race, the top performance of the day came from Charlie Cobb who felt great and had objectively (points-wise) and subjectively his best Eastern Cup performance to date. Despite starting extremely late in the field, he skied a consistent race to finish ahead of some key rivals. Will had and off day but looked to rebound for an exciting mass start on Sunday.
Sunday: 5/10km Mass Start Classic
An overnight low of 15 degrees, packed powder snow and 3 tracks set the whole way around the course??? The wax testing on Sunday morning was some of the best skiing this year, with blue hardwax underfoot and sunny skies. That sun heated things up quick, though, making for an extremely enjoyable day of racing. I have to say we had it easy with this particular weather, but it was nice to have the first big classic race out of the way and end up with everyone very happy with their kick even as the temps rose and the tracks got greasy (thanks Toko Yellow!)!
The U16 men’s 5km was intense from the gun, with Greg jumping right in behind Ben Ogden to chase that elusive victory. Unfortunately, a fall on a far part of the course caused Greg to lose contact with the front of the race. In a short 5km, there is little room for error but Greg fought back to 5th in a duel with Sam Hodges from Frost Mtn. It was a big race for winter SMS skier and summer MNC training member Conor Munns who got 2nd place for his second podium in 2 days! Tim battled it out for 14th and used his climbing skills to shoot up every long hill.
Greg leading Sam Hodges from Frost Mtn (photo: Gary Solow)
College Pugs: Amy and Rachel, still racing (in person and in the results) neck and neck!
The women’s race was a battle from the start, with aggressive packs breaking up around the course. Amy and Rachel (racing in Aidan’s MNC suit: thanks Aidan!) were pretty much in the same group the whole time. Rachel fought hard the whole time and pushed to perhaps her best-ever Eastern Cup result, top-40 in this very big field! Eliza felt the hard effort the day prior and said she lost some energy but held together a smooth pace for another great effort.
Rachel battling Dartmouth and Colby while getting sendy on the downhills! (photo: Gary Solow)
Seeded 46th, Will had a pretty great start position and capitalized. He went fast off the line, and stayed fast as pace changes and shuffling occurred. The long training hours were paying off as Will covered moves from competitors and reacted to those around him. In the finishing stretch he was boxed in traffic during a 4-way sprint, the front led by NYSEF’s Everett Sapp. Despite missing out on a few places in those final hundred meters the effort marked the first really good race of the season for Will, just in time for the second bout of EC racing in a few weeks. Not far behind was Charlie who quietly put together 2 solid races in 2 days and, more importantly, now knows he is back to full potential in both techniques!
Will taking an aggressive line…and rocking the T-shirt (photo: Gary Solow)
Saturday: 5km classic HS race
Many Pugs defended their home turf here in VT this past weekend, with the first classic race of the high school season at Sleepy Hollow. The report is that the blizzard falling in Maine was more of a wet, wild experience in Vermont. Through it all some stellar performances were had, as Peter and Ben Longenbach helped CVU to a podium sweep in 2nd and 3rd, respectively. Ben Carnahan was not far behind in 5th.
In the women’s race, Chloe made a pretty phenomenal comeback to take 2nd place after dealing with lower-leg issues all summer and fall. She proved her great classic TT at Craftsbury the other weekend was no fluke with another strong performance. Congrats!
The CVU team races again today at Rikert, and on Friday all eyes will be on the Range for the yearly Pursuit Race…possibly the most highly-anticipated regular-season HS race each season!
Who needs wax trailers when you have the Airport Budget Host Hotel late on a Friday night
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