January 22, 2017 (Lake Placid, NY) – The 2017 EISA Nordic season began Friday, Jan. 20, with a 1.5-kilometer classic sprint at the Mt. Van Hoevenberg cross-country ski trails in Lake Placid, NY on day one of the Saint Lawrence Carnival A relatively flat sprint course featuring a gradual climb out of the stadium followed by a gradual descent back in led to tight qualification times and competitive heats. Going into the qualifier, a relatively easy course profile and fast snow conditions led many to consider double poling on skate skis rather than opting for kick wax and traditional classic skis. New this season too is the FIS imposed pole height rule which requires skiers to use poles 83% or less in comparison to their height in an attempt to deter double poling which often benefits from additional pole length. Despite this new rule, double poling on skate skis was common as much of the women’s field and almost the entirety of the men.

The 2017 EISA Nordic season began Friday with a 1.5-kilometer classic sprint at the Mt. Van Hoevenberg cross-country ski trails in Lake Placid, NY on day one of the Saint Lawrence Carnival.

A relatively flat sprint course featuring a gradual climb out of the stadium followed by a gradual descent back in led to tight qualification times and competitive heats. Going into the qualifier, a relatively easy course profile and fast snow conditions led many to consider double poling on skate skis rather than opting for kick wax and traditional classic skis. New this season too is the FIS imposed pole height rule which requires skiers to use poles 83% or less in comparison to their height in an attempt to deter double poling which often benefits from additional pole length. Despite this new rule, double poling on skate skis was common as much of the women’s field and almost the entirety of the men.

Qualification proved to be competitive as both the men’s and women’s top-30 qualifiers were separated by less than 15 seconds. It was Silje Wilson of UNH who led the women’s qualification in 3:34.9 on classic skis. Behind her both double pole only and classic skiing proved successful for other qualifiers. For the men, the University of Laval’s Alexis Morin led qualification in 2:58.2.

After a brief break competition resumed with five quarterfinals, two semifinals, and one final heat of six skiers for each gender. In the quarter finals, top qualifiers appeared dominant as the likes of Wilson and UVM’s Mattie Watts won their heats easily for the women and Morin and Colby College’s Andrew Egger did the same for the men.

One of the biggest surprises of the day came in the semifinals when Wilson took a fall around the final corner to drop from first to last, giving her an early end to the day in the women’s first semifinal. On the men’s side, most top qualifiers advanced to the final, however, Dartmouth’s Luke Brown who qualified 4th narrowly lost out on a lucky loser spot.

In the women’s final, it was Mattie Watts who opened up a lead on the field and tasted victory in the first race of the season. She was followed by Stratton Mountain School’s Katherine Ogden in second and Olivia Amber of Colby College in third. Alayna Sonnesyn (UMV) was 4th, Emily Hyde (Dartmouth) was 5th, and Laurel Jortberg (Dartmouth) was 6th in the final.

On a day where many of the women faced the difficult decision in deciding if they should commit to skate skis, Watts felt confident in her decision. “I felt that double pole was a great choice each round,” she said. Rather than choice in technique, it was her mindset, Watts felt that made the difference and propelled her to success. “Right before (the final) I was just like, OK we’re going to hammer, it’s going to be a great day. Friday’s win leaves her optimistic for achieving more goals as the season progresses.

Also on the podium, Amber noted that she also felt confident that she would find success on skate skis. “I felt really confident. The race seemed like it was won or lost in the flat backstretch after the downhill. Everyone who was striding seemed to be getting caught by people who were double poling.” While Watts and Ogden pulled away early, Amber was left to battle for the last podium position with the rest of the field. “The rest of us came together after the downhill and it was an all-out double pole sprint on the home stretch,” she noted. Amber felt excited about her result noting that while sprinting isn’t generally her strong suit, her strength in classic skiing showed on the course.

In the men’s final, Fabian Stocek of Dartmouth College powered ahead of his competitors to win the competition.  Behind him finished Morin in 2nd and Peter Holmes (UNH) in 3rd to complete the podium. Other racers included UVM’s Henry and Bill Harmeyer in 4th and 5th respectively and Andrew Egger (Colby College).

Stocek was excited to lead both Dartmouth and the EISA on the first day of competition and was pleasantly surprised by the win after qualifying in 7th. Learning in his quarterfinals that leading from the start would be difficult, Stocek decided to wait until the finish to make his move in the final. “I got caught up in my quarter and I realized that leading was not the best idea,” he said, “I realized that where the race gets decided is in the final horseshoe turn.” In the final, Stocek felt that his strategy played out perfectly and that the decisive moment came when he was able to slingshot past Morin around the final turn.

Holmes was also happy with his placement and thanked “the weather, the snow, and the great attitudes” for his success. Like Stocek, Holmes used the final turn to make a move past the competition and secure his third-place spot. Although a little disappointed from his qualification, Holmes noted that he kept a positive attitude which he felt was critical to his final success.

Racing in Lake Placid continues tomorrow morning with intervals-start distance skate races. The distances will be 5/10k for men and women respectively. Results link below…

Saint Lawrence Carnival Day 2: Dartmouth Leads the Way in Nordic Competition

EISA action continued Saturday morning in Lake Placid, NY with individual start distance skate races. The challenging 5-kilometer course used for both the women’s 5k and the men’s 10k race featured a series of grueling climbs out of the stadium to the course’s high point located just after the 3-kilometer mark and was followed by a series of sweeping descents back to the finish.

Warm temperatures, a light mist, and a firm base greeted the start of the women’s race. As the morning progressed, conditions softened creating arduous climbs and challenging corners by the time the men’s race was underway.

In both races, it Dartmouth College that reigned supreme as both Lydia Blanchet and Cal Deline from the big green took victories. The success continued behind them as Dartmouth achieved five out of six EISA podium spots for the day.

In the women’s race, Blanchet skied to a narrow victory, covering the course in 14:43.7, three seconds faster than runner-up Alayna Sonnesyn of the University of Vermont. She was followed by Lauren Jortberg (DAR). For the team result, Dartmouth won the day with 135 points to runner-up UVM’s 99 points. UNH was third with 89 points.

“I love 5k skates,” Blanchet said after the race, “I was very excited going into it.” Given the extended climb, Blanchet explained, her plan was simple. “My strategy was to just take it out as fast as I could and ski hard. My legs felt great so I climbed as fast as I could.” Going in to the race hoping for victory, Blanchet was excited with her result explaining that after an injury this fall she was unsure what sort of fitness she would come into the season with.

Sonnesyn too was happy with her perfomance. “I’m very tired from racing all four rounds yesterday so I think where I ended up is a really good day for me,” she said. In contrast to Blanchet, Sonnesyn felt that her focus on transition areas carried her to success. “The uphills were hard but I felt like I made up a lot of time on the rolling sections on the top part of the course,” she said. “Coming into the stadium, I felt that I had skied the downhills really well and I expected a good result.”

In the men’s race, Cal Deline established himself as an early frontrunner for distance races this season as he skied to a commanding victory in 26:59.6, seventeen seconds ahead of second place teammate Fabian Stocek (DAR). Luke Brown’s third place finish capped of Dartmouth’s podium sweep. Brown was 37 seconds back of Deline.   In the team competition, Dartmouth proved victorious with 141 points. Second place went to UVM with 100 points and third to Colby College with 99 points.

“I wanted to really push the first lap then just try to hang on,” Deline explained of his pre-race strategy. He did just that as he posted the fastest time to the top of the first lap’s climb by nearly 30 seconds. Deline, who also recently qualified for the U23 World Championships, explained that his recent results leave him feeling positive for races ahead. “I’m hoping to have some fun at U23s then move on to NCAAs and place high there,” he stated of his goals for the season.

After narrowly missing the men’s final yesterday, Brown was pleased to be a part of Dartmouth’s dominance today. “I was a little slow out of the gate but I knew I would speed up,” he explained. Brown was excited not simply for his personal result but also for what this weekend’s races suggest for his team’s season long prospects. “I think we have a good shot at doing well this carnival season. We defiantly want to stack the EISA points list and get some good results at NCAAs.”

Another school posting top results in the men’s race was Colby College with two skiers, Zane Fields and Silas Eastman, who achieved 5th and 7th respectively. “We killed it today,” Fields said after the race. Head coach Tracey Cote explained that working into the race was critical to her team’s success. “The game plan was to go out relaxed and then to pick it up and have the second lap be better than the first.” Cote and Fields both agreed that they hope this early success bodes well for qualifying multiple skiers from Colby for the NCAA Championships in March.

In the overall team competition, Dartmouth prevailed with a combined score of 961 points. The University of Vermont was second with 830 points and the University of New Hampshire was third with 647 points.

EISA skiers will next compete January 27th and 28th in Jackson, New Hampshire at the UNH Carnival. Friday’s individual start races feature a women’s 5 kilometer and a men’s 10 kilometer. Saturday’s mass start races will be 15 kilometers for women and 20 kilometers for men.

Results St. Lawrence Carnival