Jumping News

The next generation of aspiring Olympic skiers from Ford Sayre was well represented at Whiteface Mountain in Lake Placid, N.Y., site of the US Ski Association Eastern Region U16 Alpine Ski Championships. Three Ford Sayre skiers were among the East Coast racers who competed on Olympic-size courses for two days of super-G, two days of giant slalom and one day of slalom competition, beginning March 5 and concluding on March 10. NH Alpine Racing Association (NHARA) sent the top 18 girls and top 19 boys.  More than 100 boys and girls in NH competed for those top spots through five qualifying races this winter. In the girls’ contingent, Courtney Couture competed for Ford Sayre.  In the boys’ competition, there were two Ford Sayre skiers: Nils Kingston and Brian Seltzer. The event at Whiteface was represented by the top athletes in all eastern states.  The 150 boys and 150 girls represented the top racers from all states from North Carolina north. The event at Whiteface was a qualifier for two more events.  The top few were selected to attend the Park City Development project hosted by USSA.  The next few made qualified to represent the USA at the Can-Am’s races at Mount Tremblant, Quebec.  Brian qualified for the Park City Project. Both Nils and Courtney qualified for the Can-Am event, though only Nils attended. Congratulations Courtney, Nils and Brian!Continue reading →

Continue reading →

Thanks to everyone who stepped up to make our U14 State Championships a success. The program director heard from every program in the state and each one had very positive things to say about the race and our program. Unlike most of the other programs in the state, we’re a SMALL community based organization that only holds a handful of races each year. In contrast, some programs hold up to a dozen races and require parents to “volunteer” to work 6 or more races! To help put this in perspective, our total U14 team only has 24 athletes. Some programs sent many more than this to the State Championships! Although we may have lacked race experience and people power, we clearly made up for it with enthusiasm and community support. Kudos to all!

Special kudos:

• Gerd for his tireless efforts each day. I worked side-by-side each day and after he ran me into the ground, he continued to make sure every detail was accounted for. If it wasn’t done, he got it done. He was often first on the hill and last to get off.
• Jim Healy, Race Coordinator, for helping plan and coordinate the weekend.
• Suzi Curtis for making sure EVERY athlete walked away with a smile and style. Did I mention she also coordinated sweatshirts, goodie bags, logos, etc., for the U12s too?
• Jay Rozzi, Chief of Race, for making sure the training day and race days ran smoothly. He spent many hours in preparation for this race and he executed perfectly.
• Liz Hackett and the registration crew. You handled the masses and kept things running smoothly.
• U14 coaching staff who made sure our kids had positive attitudes while skiing fast!
• Countless other volunteers who stepped up beyond their min worker requirements to help make sure this was a success. Corey, Erzo, Petra, Edie, Karen, and all the other parents who make being part of this organization a joy.

Below are links for champs photos. We hired gameface media as our official champs photographers and they have made all the photos available:

• Saturday
• Sunday

Enjoy!

Continue reading →

Thanks to the Byrne Foundation and many donors, the ski jumps at Oak Hill got much needed improvements this year. They are located just to the north and east of the parking lot at Oak Hill.

Continue reading →

2014 USSA Cross Country Junior (J2) National Championships
March 1-9th, 2014 at Trapp Family Lodge, Stowe, VT

Three local skiers qualified for the New England team competing in the National Junior Championships for cross country skiing: Ford Sayre and Dartmouth skier Sam Merrens (MU20, age 18-19); Ford Sayre skier Adam Glueck (MU16, age 14-15); and Norwich, Vt. resident, independent affiliation skier Kirsten Miller (FU16, junior women, age 14-15). This was quite a distinction as it designates the best junior skiers in the country. Adam Glueck achieved All-American status with his 6^th place finish in the 5km classic race on Monday, March 3^rd. The New England team took back the biggest prize in national junior cross country ski racing, winning the Alaska Cup as the best team at the 2014 USSA Junior National Championship. Last year the Alaskan team had bested New England when the championships were held in Fairbanks, Alaska.

Other local skiers of interest were Erin Perryman FU20 who is a Lebanon High School grad, currently skiing for St Lawrence University and Zane Fields MU18 who skis for the Woodstock ski team. Norwich resident, Elise Hardy FU18 raced for the Far West team as she currently attends the Sugar Bowl Academy in California.

Individual Results
Sam Merrens (MU20, junior men, age 18-19)
23^rd (out of 54 competitors) in Mon., 3/3/14, Individual Start, 10k Classic, 30:00
38^th (out of 52 competitors) in Friday, 3/7/14, Mass Start, 15k Freestyle, 42:43

Adam Glueck (MU16, junior men, age 14-15)
6^th (out of 63 competitors) in Mon., 3/3/14, Individual Start, 5k Classic, 14: 57* All American status
26^th (out of 61 competitors) in Friday, 3/7/14, Mass Start, 5km Freestyle, 14: 00 (Adam was taken out of contention early by a large crash on the downhill section after the start)

Kirsten Miller (FU16, junior women, age 14-15)
35^th (out of 63 competitors) in Mon., 3/3/14, Individual Start, 5k Classic, 18:10
13^th (out of 63 competitors) in Friday, 3/7/14, Mass Start, 5km Freestyle, 15:08

organizer’s website:  http://www.jn2014stowe.com/

full results: http://www.jn2014stowe.com/results

see more photos at: http://losborn.smugmug.com/share/FordSayre

——–

NENSA J2 Championships
March 7-9, 2014 at Rikert Nordic Center, Ripton, VT

Ford Sayre skier and Hanover High School student, Sara Spencer, racing for the New Hampshire team:
36^th (out of 92 competitors) on Fri. 5K Freestyle. 16:32
34^th (out of 94 competitors) on Sat. 5K Classic, 20:11
28^th (out of 94 competitors) on Sat. 1K Freestyle sprint , 4:58

Ford Sayre skier and Thetford Academy student, Erik Lindahl skiing for the Vermont team
18^th (out of 95 competitors) on Fri. 5K Freestyle 13:32
54^th (out of 96 competitors) on Sat. 5K Classic, 17:22
13^th (out of 96 competitors) on Sat. 1K Freestyle sprint, 4:09

Team Vermont came in first place of the five states (NY, NH, VT, MA, ME)

organizers website: http://www.frostmountainnordic.org/j2champs.html

full results at: http://www.barttiming.com/XCski/j2f2014.htm

 

Continue reading →