In her first skate race, Martine Redshaw used excellent technique to skate up the long hills and finish in the top third of the Junior High Girls’ race. Photo courtesy of Dave Bartol
All Nordic ski team members from Cook County made the journey to Hidden Valley, Ely, Minnesota, for the Timberwolves Pursuit Invitational, on Saturday, February 1. The last race of the season before sections and championships, there were over 350 athletes from ten schools ready to compete. A culmination of season-long training and dedication brought the Two Harbors/Cook County team members to the meet well prepared.
Race conditions were slightly faster than the previous week’s race, with a well-groomed trail and warm temperatures. The Cook County skiers had spent part of the preceding week practicing speed work and skiing intervals in anticipation of the race; the training paid off.
First out of the gate for Cook County in the 5.2k Junior Varsity Girls’ race was sophomore Cecelia Chmelik. Chmelik finished in 11th place in 23.45.3, taking 26 seconds off her per kilometer pace (4:34/k) compared to her previous skate race pace. In Junior Varsity Boys, freshman Danny Berka, one of the team’s more experienced racers, skied a tactical race by conserving his energy in the beginning, before passing a competitor, and then pouring on the steam to the finish line. His time of 17:47.5, earned him 3rd place out of 31 racers.
The results were equally impressive for Junior High Cook County skiers. In the 3.7k Junior High girls’ race, Olya Wright finished in 13:43.5, earning her second place out of 67 racers. Coach Dave Bartol said, “Watching Olya on the course, I was very impressed with her technique. She had excellent technique and form going up the tough hills.”
Although new to skate skiing and in her first skate race, Martine Redshaw skied a strong race, finishing in 15:25.2, for 22nd place. Close behind Redshaw, was Naomi Tracy-Hegg in 15:52.9 for 30th place. Tracy-Hegg was able to take 72 seconds per kilometer off her pace, going from 5:29/k at the previous race to 4:17/k at Hidden Valley. In his strongest showing yet, Kaleb Berka crossed the finish line in 14:07.3, earning 10th out of 49 racers in Junior High Boys.
The last race this season for the Cook County Nordic skiers will be the Junior Varsity/Junior High Championships on February 8 at Spirit Mountain.
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