January 15, 2005 (Pomfret, Vermont): Perhaps not believing there was really enough snow to race on, Dartmouth’s Alison Crocker (Poughkeepsie, NY) brought her rock skis to the 21st Annual Vomax Bogburn race. Just back from U.S. Nationals, where she won a silver medal in the women’s 5km classic race — missing gold by 2 seconds, Crocker this time missed gold by 8 seconds. Whether it was the skis, or the fact that she’d traveled 2,000 miles and raced 50kilometers of races at altitude in the last week, “Ally†was beaming and laughing with her Dartmouth teammates too much to say. Ford Sayre’s Dorcas Wonsavage had the benefit of chasing Crocker throughout the race to grab first place, while UVM’s Kate Crawford (Waitsfield, VT) and Carina Hamel (Southampton, MA), and Stratton Mountain School coach, Amy Caldwell (Windham, VT) all finished 3,4,and 5, 23 seconds apart. The top Masters Women included M3- Pennie McEdward-Rand (Richmond, VT), M4 – Ford Sayre’s Cheryl Carlson (Lebanon, NH), and M3-Irina Kotlova (Newton, MA).
Race organizer, Bob Haydock, had to put a photo on the Nordic Ski Association’s website to make people believe there was enough snow for this race, the second of the Banknorth Club Series. By 9am the small parking lots around his family’s home in Pomfret, VT were filled with parents and kids ready to ski in the youth Bill Koch League events, where everyone gets a candy bar, a ribbon and a hug.
Just as the kids were leaving with their ribbons, the racers began arriving to test kick wax for the men’s 10km classic race and the women’s 5km race. The course, built by Haydock himself over the years, winds through second growth forest, using the hilly terrain Vermont is famous for. This is not a race of endurance, this is a race for the experienced skier who is able to ski narrow trails and ski tracks that wobble, bobble, tilt and often disappear.
Jon Arne Enevoldsen, coach for the Green Mountain Valley School, knew how to ski the tracks, finishing with a time of 35:44, 20 seconds ahead of UVM’s Anders Osthus (Burlington, VT). Youngster Jimmy Ades (Shelburne, VT) finished a terrific third, just 45 seconds behind first.
Also showing they knew how to ski ‘trails of yore’ were 17 year old Cameron MacKugler (Stratton Mountain School/Londonderry, VT) —5th, and 16 year old Patrick O’Brien (Putney Ski Club/Putney, VT) —8th. Top Master Men were: Ford Sayre’s Chris Nice (Hanover, NH) M5/11th overall. Cambridge Sports Union’s Rob Bradlee (Reading, MA) — M4/16th overall. Ford Sayre’s Erik Stange (W.Lebanon, NH) M1/18th overall. CSU’s Frank Feist (Concord, MA) M2/20th overall. Team Rossignol and KUA coach, Bill Farrell (Meriden, NH) M6/30th overall. And former Olympian, Bob Gray (Newbury, VT), skiing for the Putney Ski Club M8/36th overall.
Complete results and photos at www.NENSA.net
The Banknorth/NENSA Nordic events continue next weekend, January 23rd, at the Jackson Ski Touring Center in Jackson, NH, for the 24th annual Jackson Jaunt 15 and 20km classic races.
