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NorAm

The field wasn’t as deep as usual and the stakes weren’t quite as high, but the final NorAm weekend at Parc National du Mont-Orford left participants with plenty to talk about. They skied atypical courses, some saw crashes and everyone braved unbearable temperatures at the two-day event. Some notched their first wins of the season; others raced with old rivals. While Kevin Sandau of the Alberta World Cup Academy had already locked up the top regional spot and...

After Concussion, Goldsack Ready for Another Shot

When you start skiing at 5 and stay in the game for 25 years, odds are you’re bound to experience injury. Two-time Olympian Drew Goldsack has seen his share of setbacks, including a serious foot injury that required surgery in 2009. Seven or eight years ago, the Canadian Senior Development Team member said he crashed particularly hard on his mountain bike, hitting his head and blacking out on the spot. Goldsack eventually came to and...

Once Burnt Out, Ammar Finds New Fire for Racing

When Amanda Ammar first saw the start list at the Sovereign Lake Nordic Centre in Vernon, British Columbia, she couldn’t help but think it was comical. Next to her name where her points total should have been was nothing – zero, zilch, nada – as if she had never raced before. Six years earlier, the Alberta native was one of the best cross-country skiers in Canada, making the 2006 Torino Olympics at age 19 and...

Marshall Captures First NorAm Victory of Season

Three months may not seem like a long time, but Alysson Marshall couldn’t wait much longer. Since her first race of the season on Nov. 13, the Alberta World Cup Academy and Canadian Senior Development Team member had aimed for the top spot on the podium. Maybe she didn’t expect it in Europe, especially at World Cup races in Kuusamo, Finland, and Düsseldorf, Germany, but she wanted it at home. In six of eight NorAm...

It’s not as if one of the top two men on this year’s NorAm circuit really had an advantage. While Kevin Sandau had more recently heaved himself up the grinding hills at the Canmore Nordic Centre with his Alberta World Cup Academy teammates, both he and Brent McMurtry (Pierre-Harvey National Training Centre) spent plenty of time training there with the Canadian National Ski Team. Both Senior Development Team members, Sandau and McMurtry also grew up...

Standing at the starting gate in bib No. 107 on Sunday, Brent McMurtry of the Pierre-Harvey National Training Centre (CNEPH) looked out and saw only space in front of him. Numbers 106 and 105 weren’t present, leaving empty race spots and more time waiting for the countdown. While some would view not having someone to chase in an interval start as a disadvantage, McMurtry liked it. On the last day of NorAm competition in Whistler,...

On a blue sky day in Whistler, BC, Emily Nishikawa (Alberta World Cup Academy) skied away from the rest of the NorAm field for her first win of the season. She completed the 15 k skiathlon at the Whistler Olympic Park in 46:03.0, just 7.0 seconds ahead of runner-up Alysson Marshall (AWCA). Alana Thomas (Nakkertok) took a close third (+7.2). The lead women skied in a pack for the classic portion of the race, and...

Diggins Takes the Long Road, Secures NorAm Sweep

ROSSLAND, British Columbia — Emerging from a curved and wooded downhill into the open-aired Black Jack stadium, Jessie Diggins suddenly felt an unfamiliar pang of dread. Looking around her, the Central Cross Country and U.S. Ski Team member realized she was alone and not where she wanted to be. She hadn’t lost the race, but could have been out of it entirely. The leader of Sunday’s NorAm 9.9 k freestyle mass start, Diggins immediately pulled...

NorAm Racers Roll with Punches, Ready for Rossland

ROSSLAND, British Columbia — The thing about competitive ski racing is, one has to be prepared for the unexpected. It’s not as if Jack Carlyle, a junior racer for Thunder Bay’s national development center (NDC), could have anticipated his bags would be stolen in the 15 minutes they were outside his house, but he dealt with it. NDC head coach Eric Bailey, who was supposed to drive him to the airport, told Carlyle to sit...

Flora Continues Resurgence in Rossland, Edges Grey

Veteran Lars Flora (APU) posted his first win of an already-successful 2011 season, capturing the top spot in the men’s 10km skate in the second day of the Rossland NorAm mini-tour. Flora edged Canadian World Cup skier George Grey by 2.1 seconds on a fast 5km loop, while fellow Canadian Drew Goldsack was third, +6.9. With a winning time of just under 22 minutes, Flora thinks it may have been his fastest 10k ever. “I...

Kuhn Edges Teammates in Rossland Mini-Tour Sprint, and Punches His Ticket to Oslo

So far this year, Drew Goldsack has been tearing it up on the NorAm sprint circuit. Goldsack, a member of Canada’s senior development team, had won every sprint he entered coming into this weekend’s mini-tour in Rossland, British Columbia. But while he had proven that he was the North American not on the World Cup circuit, he hadn’t had the chance to test himself against his teammates in Europe. Until now. On Friday, Goldsack was...

While the SuperTour kicked off two weeks ago, the Canadian domestic series, the Haywood NorAm/Teck Sprints begin this weekend at Sovereign Lake Nordic Center, in Vernon, British Columbia. This year the series opens with a classic sprint, and a 10/15 k freestyle race. Home to some of the best and most consistent early season skiing in the country, Sovereign Lake is a regular on the Haywood NorAm series. According to National Development Center (NDC) Thunder...

The Nakkertok Nordic Ski Club hosted the Haywood NorAM Eastern Canadian Championships this weekend in Cantley, Quebec. Graham Nishikawa of Whitehorse and Brook Gosling of FHNC swept both events. For Nishikawa, this weekend solidified his lead on the NorAm leader board, making him the FIS regional series leader for this period.  The women’s leader is Dasha Gaiazova, who did not race this weekend.  Both Nishikawa and Gaiazova will get an expense paid trip and start...

Gaiazova Takes First Two Races in Valcartier NorAm Series

The Myriam Bedard biathlon center in Valcartier, Québec, is hosting three races of the  Haywood Noram series, which started this weekend. The races are also serving as qualification for Canada’s U23/Junior World Championships teams, so the field is stacked with top Canadian skiers. In addition there are a number of US skiers present, primarily New Englanders who chose not to make the trip to Anchorage. The series started with a continuous pursuit. The men went...

Canadians swept the finals in both the mens and womens finals of the Haywood NorAm sprint with the exception of  Laura Valaas (US) who placed 6th and was the only US skier in the top 10. In the men’s race Stefan Kuhn outsprinted his competition for the top of the podium. Drew Goldsack and Sean Crooks followed in second and third, respectively.  Mark Iverson was the first US skier, in 7th. The women’s race saw a...