March 30, 2011 (Sun Valley, ID) – It was “back to the weekend” at the  Lake Creek Trails in Sun Valley on Wednesday, as Kris Freeman (US Ski Team/Waterville Valley and Kikkan Randall (US Ski Team/APUNSC) both set a solid, steady tempo that no one else could sustain in their respective races, and cruised to comfortable victories.

Randall garnered $900 on the day, taking $500 for the win, and winning all four sprint preems – two at the top of the Hammer Climb, and two in the stadium at the end of laps one and two.  She also consolidated her position on top of the mini tour standings, with 15 bonus seconds added to her victory margin, and to her existing 20+ second lead.  It’s going to take a huge effort from someone to make the chase for the top spot in the tour standings.

Freeman, second yesterday in the Prologue, moved into first in the Tour rankings, with a definitive victory, despite having some blood sugar problems in the final 3km, which he attributed to the altitude.  The Waterville Valley skier  picked up $800, missing out only on the first stadium preem.  Approaching the sprint line, he and Canadian Drew Goldsack (Canada NST/AWCA) picked up the pace while skiing adjacent to one another, but when Goldsack upped the ante about 20m-30m before the sprint line, Kris backed off and let the Canadian take home the US C-note.

Jessie Diggins (CXC) was second, coming back on APU’s Holly Brooks after Brooks had blown up the chase group with about 1.5km to go while ascending Hammer. Diggins overtook Brooks after the Horseshoe, on the return ascent of Coaches Climb, and barely held off the APU skier in a 75m double-pole shoot-out.

The men’s chase pack was two-thirds Canadian, with Goldsack, Brent McMurtry (Canadian NST), Kevin Sandau (Canada NST/AWCA) – 2nd in the 50km on Saturday – and Graeme Killick (Canmore Alberta) comprising the group, along with Americans Noah Hoffman (US Ski Team/Aspen Valley SC) and Tad Elliott (CXC) of the US. Goldsack put in a big move on Hammer during the final lap skiing away from his erstwhile companions, then held his gap up and over Coaches’ Climb to cement the runner-up position.

Sandau, McMurtry, Killick and Hoffman had started to ski away from a herring-boning Tad Elliot on Coaches’ Climb with less than 1km to go, but Hoffman and McMurtry went down in a tangled heap after cresting the summit.  During the several seconds that they spent disentangling, Sandau and Killick skied away from them, and Elliott took advantage of the opportunity to close the five-second gap, and then some, and move into fifth place.  At the finish Elliott was about 10 seconds ahead of McMurtry and Hoffman, who sprinted for sixth and seventh.

Meanwhile, Simi Hamilton (US Ski Team/Sun Valley SEF), wearing bib number one signifying his tour leadership, was back in 13th place, 1:09 behind Freeman.

Freeman said that, as in Saturday’s race, he just found a solid pace and kept it there.  On Willy’s Climb on the North End on the second lap, he said he found himself with a gap and just kept going, but didn’t make a special effort to surge and expand the gap.  From that point onward he was never threatened.

Goldsack was very pleased with his effort, and was especially happy to be able to ski in a pack with three of his fellow Canadians.  He said that when Freeman went he tried to go with him for a short while, but soon thought better of it and backed off.

Fourth-place Killick, originally from Fort McMurray, Alberta, got caught out in the early going.  He said that when the tracks reduced after the start, and then again shortly thereafter, the pack was squeezed backward from the leaders.  He found himself back in 20th place or worse, and had to chase for more than a lap-and-a-half to make the five-man chase group a six-man group.  He rejoined right at the foot of Gnar, and the pack surged a little at that moment, but he was able to hold on.  Killick was also a beneficiary of Hoffman and McMurtry’s misfortune.

Elliott, whose best results have always been in skating, said it was his best classic race ever. He hung with the main chase group until things strung out up Hammer, then was able to close things up a little. Going up Coaches Climb he was herring-boning (which he attributed to “operator error,” not bad wax) and losing time.

Because he was redlining it he didn’t see Hoffman and McMurtry go down in front of him, but when he saw a writhing pile of lycra beside the trail (Hoffman and McMurtry) he made the most of his chances.

Hamilton was reasonably satisfied with his 15km race, which he avers is a difficult distance for him.  He believes that with a top performance in the sprint he can reap some substantial time bonuses and move back among the leaders entering the hillclimb on Saturday.

The women’s chase group was very similar in composition to the 30km chase group, with Maria Graefnings (University of Utah),  Brooks and Diggins forming the core of the group. Sadie Bjornsen (APUNSC) was there early, but dropped back and faded to seventh, behind APU teammate Kate Fitzgerald.

Morgan Arritola (US Ski Team/Sun Valley SEF) had what she described as a “terrible” start, but patiently and steadily worked her way back up through the strung-out line of racers, and eventually joined the chase group.  She wasn’t super-happy with the race, but was glad to see what she felt was a little improvement from the prior races here.

Randall said she just kept a steady pace and didn’t need to surge to get her gap.  Once she had the gap, it was never seriously threatened, although Holly Brooks appeared to be reducing the margin very slightly when she launched an attack on the last trip up Hammer.

Brooks said in retrospect that she went too early, then got tired before the finish which allowed Diggins to close a substantial gap, and shortly thereafter overtake Brooks.  Diggins said that when Brooks went away on the big climb that she was thinking “I seem to be number three in these races, so third place isn’t that bad.”  However, her skis were running well, and she again exhibited a tremendous will to compete, which brought her back to Brooks’ tails, and then to second place by half a ski length.

Graefnings tried to go with Randall on the second trip up Hammer, but couldn’t hold the pace, and suffered for the effort later, dropping from second place at that point to fourth, which was where she finished.  She said that the surge definitely hurt her, but she was glad that she made the effort, and learned by testing herself in that manner.

There is a rest day on Thursday, during which skiers will be able to recon the Dollar Mountain hill climb course, as well as take a look at the sprint course at Lake Creek.  Friday’s sprint begins at 9:00AM with the qualifying round.

When Diggins was asked whether she was looking forward more to the rest day or the sprint, she thought for a moment then declared:  “Saturday’s hill climb.”

Women’s 10km Classic results HERE.
Men’s 15km Classic results HERE.
Mini Tour Standings after 10/15km Classic HERE.