Cross Country Alaska held its second weekend of Besh Cup racing on Jan 22 & 23 in Soldotna, Alaska on the Tsalteshi Trail system. The Besh Cup series is used to determine the Alaska Junior National team.
On Saturday the racers did a classic sprint. All the racers did a 1K preliminary race in the moring and then the top racers went head-to-head in the afternoon heats. There were action-packed heats in the J4, J3, J2, and Masters (M3+) classes, while the J1, OJ, Senior, M1 & M2 racers all went together in the 'open' class.
In the men's open race, the juniors displayed some impressive sprinting speed. They hung right with the seniors, placing two in the final. But they couldn't quite catch UAF's Bart Dengel, who used a powerful double-pole to take the win, ahead of Mike Hinkley (Alaska WInterStars), Andy Hunter (APU), and and Nate Berry (Chugiak).
The women's final was an all-APU affair, as Erin Quinn-Hurst took the win ahead of teammates Aelin Peterson, Elizabeth Quinley and Tazlina Mannix.
