Feb 1, 2005 It was a crazy weekend as Team Rossignol racers tackled four major cross-country ski events in various regions of the country. Over 1,000 skiers flocked to Vermont for the 24th annual Banknorth Craftsbury Marathon – part of the prestigious American Ski Marathon Series and the New England Marathon series. A 50km point-to-point classic event was graced with ideal trail conditions, perfect weather, and the enthusiasm of racers and hundreds of spectators. The race course travels alternately through narrow sections in the woods and across wide open farm fields with great views as it makes it’s way from Highland Lodge in Greensboro, VT to the picturesque town common in Craftsbury. Vermont resident and Subaru Factory Team racer David Stewart was this year’s overall winner in the men’s 50k race. Right from the starting bell, Stewart pushed the pace hard up the first several kilometers of climbing.

After one of Stewart’s Subaru Factory teammates dropped off the back, the only other skiers at the front were Team Rossignol’s Eli Enman and Nick Trautz. After skiing together for 30km, Stewart put on an incredible surge which Enman later described as being a full-on 5k race pace. Neither Trautz nor Enman were able to hang on and were left to battle it out for second place. Going into the final long climb with 2k remaining, Enman had roughly a 15 second lead over Trautz. But, Trautz put on a final push to overtake him for second place, just over ten minutes behind Stewart’s winning time of 2:45:13. Team Rossignol’s resident physiologist Nick Mahood had a strong showing in 7th place while his teammate Chris Blanchard of Montreal, Quebec placed 9th. A noticeable absence from the field was Team Rossignol’s marathon champion Marc Gilbertson who had just become the father of a newborn baby girl on the day prior to the race. We would like to offer a big congratulation to Marc and Whitney on making Katharine Fe Charlotte Gilbertson the newest member of Team Rossignol. On the women’s side, it was Kate Underwood who worked with teammate Dorcas Wonsavage throughout the race to take the top two positions respectively. Not far off the podium pace was Local Hero racer Trina Hosmer in 5th place. A note of interest, Trina was on the first U.S. Women’s Olympic Cross Country Team long before the first four racers were even born.

In the 25km event it was Team Rossignol’s Local Hero Racer Gretchen Czaja from Woodstock, VT in a commanding first place finish. On the Midwestern front, Team Rossignol racers were split between three races over the weekend. Telemark, WI was the site of two Super Series events as the Team Rossignol women once again made a fine display of their depth against the strongest field of competitors since the U.S. Nationals. In Saturday’s 10km classic event, it was Tami Kochen of Northern MI University who narrowly edged out Team Rossignol’s Karin Camenisch for 1st place. Close behind Karin was Rossignol skier Johanna Turunen, U of AK Fairbanks in 4th followed by Team Rossignol racers Kate Whitcomb in 7th, Hilary Patzer 11th, Kate Pearson 12th, and Brooke Baughman in 13th.