Mt.Top Eastern Cup Recap

We had just finished unpacking from Utah when it was time to repack and head to Vermont for the Mt.Top Eastern Cup. With the weather predicted to be in the 60's here in Rochester it was an easy decision to pack up and head East. Though throughout the drive on Friday the temperature continued to rise and I had my doubts of whether they would be able to hold the races ! 

We were all presently surprised when we arrived Saturday and the courses were still in great shape. Now that we knew we were racing the next step was to get in to sprint mode and try to qualify for the heats. Here in NY we do not have the opportunity to compete in many sprint races. They are not a format used in High School racing and we also do not have any of them on the JN qualifying schedule. This was a great opportunity to get some practice in, but first we had to make the heats !

Fortunately we had a great day !  Gavin led the way for the boys qualifying 19th overall and making the open heats. He was unable to advance out of his first heat but still had a great day based on his qualifying. Peter was the next fastest guy and qualified 45th overall but was the 10th junior who did not make the open heats so was able to qualify for the Junior Heats. 

He took advantage of this opportunity and was able to finish 3rd in his first heat moving on to the A final .The A final was super exciting and also matched him against HFL alum Kevin Hoose now at Bowdoin College. Peter had a good gap coming out of the woods and was able to keep a small gap until the base of the final climb when the field put in a push and got on his heels, I thought it was over but Peter thought differently and was able to put the hammer down and take the WIN ! ! It was awesome I was so stoked for him  !

(Peter on the way to the W)

(Peter all smiles after winning the Junior Sprint) 

(Peter on the top step ! )

On the girls side Riley led the way placing 26th in qualifying and making the open heats as a J2 ! ! Like Gavin she was unable to make it out of her first heat but still had a great day. Jenna also had a good qualifier and her HFL teammate Hanna had a good one making the junior heats and made it all the way to the Junior A final placing 4th ! All three girls made the trip with Bernie G who is the head coach at HF-L. He was my highschool coach as well and it was awesome to hear his voice cheering on from the sidelines again !! 

(Riley finishing her heat)

On Sunday the guys had a 10k classic and the girls 5K. Gavin led the way again placing 40th overall. The results were funny in that there were 6 NY'ers within 35 seconds of each other. It is great to see a lot of NY'ers not only racing and doing well but also coaching ! The girls had another good day. Hanna B who is now at Harvard was right behind Hanna C HFL in 25th and 28th overall which was spectacular ! Riley had another good one placing 33rd overall and was the 2nd J2 ! Jenna bounced back from the sprint and finished 79th ! 

All in all it was an awesome weekend not only for RNR but all of NY ! The NYSEF crew had some awesome results both day's as well as the HFL crew and a bunch of other athletes from around the Mid-A scene ! It's exiting to see !

(Things were getting soft Sunday afternoon) 

 Currently we are suffering the same thaw as everyone else went through and had to bust out the roller skis yesterday. I'm hoping that the cold weather that is coming includes some snow but if not hopefully the snow making gets fired up at Bristol. 

(I thought that these were done for the season after we got dumped on before leaving for U.S Nationals, I was WRONG) 

Senior Nationals Recap

We just got back from Senior Nationals in Utah. The trip went very well and we had some very good results. Like anything there are positives and negatives to take away from the event. The best thing about going to Senior Nationals is that you find out RIGHT NOW what YOU GOT ! 

The week defiantly started out on a high note for us. Everyone has there best results of the week right out of the gun in the classic sprint. Maile who was traveling with us from (NYSEF) led the way qualifying for the junior heats and posting the 10th fastest J1 qualifying time. She ended up finishing 3rd in her heat but the 'Lucky Loser" was based on qualification and not heat time so her day was over, but what a great day it was !  Gavin also had a good qualifier posting the 11th fastest J1 time but just missing out on the junior heats. Adam was the 48th J1. 

(Maile getting ready to start here heat)

The next race was the freestyle skate race. Gavin led the way posting the 16th fastest J1 time. Adam was close behind posting the 19th J1 time. The boy's had to race 15k with the big boy's on a big boy course it was a good reminder at just how hard the sport is and the responded with excellent efforts! Maile was the 32nd J1 and fought hard on a day that would of been easy to give up on, sometimes it's not about the result but about the effort.

(Gavin and I after the 15k Skate (Audrey Mangan Photo)

The final race was the Mass Start Classic race. The boy's battled from the back to have good days. Gavin was 35th J1 and Adam was 38th J1. Both of them fought up from there starting positions to battle it out. It's hard to be in the race when your starting in the back, but that's part of the game and the one you need to play to move up. Maile was the 27th J1 and even had a harder time moving up since her race was only 5k. All in all I think the classic races went well even though they were a little disappointed in the result.

(Gavin and Adam moving up through the pack)

Besides the racing just being at Soldier Hollow was awesome ! The skiing was great, the views priceless, and a great way to get totally STOKED on skiing !!

(The view from our condo) 

(As weird as it may sound it was great to be back in the wax room) 

All in all it was an amazing trip and was an early season reminder at just how great the Nordic Ski community is in the U.S.  Not just as athletes, coaches, sponsors, race organizers, equipment suppliers, and parents but as friends,  family, and support ! !

We are a small team from a small division but the support is LARGE ! ! ! A huge thanks to everyone that made this trip happen ! A special thanks to Lori for opening her doors and making some unbelievable meals and letting us crash before our early morning departure. Also to Bill for letting us use his waxing equipment and lending his local knowledge, and last but not least the parents, coaches and support that make this all happen ! 

www.rochesternordicracing.com