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Showing a lot of determination, Olya Wright powers her way up a long hill at the Section 7 Nordic ski meet. Olya took 18th place at sections. Photo courtesy of Becky Bartol
Varsity skiers in the ten teams of Section 7 Nordic skiing converged on Giants Ridge March 3 for their Section Ski meet to determine who would advance to the State Meet. The beautiful sunshine was great for parents cheering their athletes, but a challenge for coaches and skiers trying to get the best wax for the snow conditions. When arriving at Giants Ridge in the morning, the temperature was 25 degrees; throughout the day it rose to almost 40 degrees by the time racing was finally done.
At Giants Ridge, the course was 4K instead of 5K typical of past section meets. Skiers raced 4K classic, recovered for an hour and a half, then raced 4K skate, in the same race order. The combined times of both races determined the skiers overall time and place.
Although the classic race was in the morning, klister was required to be able to get enough grip. After selecting a wide ranging klister, testing of it began immediately in the stadium area and out on the course. As our skiers arrived, each pair of skis got a layer of the sticky wax. Testing continued up until race time and a few adjustments were made.
CeCe Chmelic went into a tuck to get the most speed she could gain on this downhill. CeCe finished 58th at sections.
By the afternoon, the skate course was holding up but did have some dirt mixed in. Good thing the skate skis had been waxed with an anti-static glide wax in the base layer to repel the dirtier snow.
Cyrus Meyers (10th grade) was the first skier out for Two Harbors/ Cook County team, skiing while the temperatures were lower. Describing the course as basically uphill, then downhill, Cyrus completed his classic race in 15:03.6, his skate race in 14:50.8 for a total of 29:54.6, earned him 45th place.
In her first sections meet, Olya Wright (9th grade), a powerhouse skier with several top finishes this season, lead the Two Harbors/Cook County girls. She had excellent form, doubling poling much of the classic race, accelerating her speed with a time of 14:49.4 for 18th place. Skating is her favorite technique because she can fly and that she did, finishing in 17th place with a time of 14:09.56. Her combined time of 28:59.10 earned her 18th overall. While only two places short of a trip to state, she is a young skier and we expect her to continue to pick up speed, endurance and skill.
Senior Cedar Gordon, with a classic time of 15:14.7, a skate time of 15:20.5, finished 37th with a total time of 30:35.3.
By the time junior Cecilia Chmelik started her classic race, conditions had warmed and the klister on her skis began to lose some kick. However, classic is her strong suit, and she was able to get into an aerodynamic tuck for the downhill to the finish, finishing in 18:13.8. She finished with a skate time of 18:39.9 as the snow and temperatures were softening the course. Her combined time of 36:53.8 earned her 58th place.
All the skiers on the sections team will be back next year and will likely be joined by more skiers from the Nordic team. It had been a crazy season with a late start and a very short preparation time; however, our skiers took up the challenge and improved throughout the season. Lots of young talent abounds for the combined Two Harbors – Cook County Nordic Ski team and these young skiers are already eagerly waiting for next season, after they get some down time and recharge themselves with other activities and sports.
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