There was exciting USA action at Lutsen Mountains last weekend. U-12 racer Reilly Wahlers of Grand Marais blew away the competition at Lutsen finishing her first run faster than all of the U-14 girls. Her second run in blistering winds was even faster—she bested not only the U-14 girls, but the boys as well.
At 7:00 a.m. on January 19, nine Lutsen skiers made their way through the early morning darkness down the access trail, across the Poplar River to catch the chairlift, take a couple free runs and be on time for course inspection. With snow still falling and 8’’ of fresh powder already on the ground anticipation was high with everyone wondering what kind of condition Caribou Run would be in for the day’s upcoming Giant Slalom runs on Moose Mountain.
For the U-10 through U-14 racers each of the two runs would be a separate non-scored race, U-16 and above combine both runs for the final result. The United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) is the gateway to the U. S. Ski team and is very competitive. Top regional teams present at Lutsen included Buck Hill, Afton Alps, Team Gilboa, Mount Baldy, Team Duluth, Mount Lacrosse and TR2. After a lot of slipping by course workers and racers, the powder was removed from the course revealing an icy, fast track.
Girlfriends Reilly Wahlers, Team Duluth’s Jewel Stone, Sela Backstrom and Halle Lamb hanging out at the start.
Race No. 1 action started with U-10 Penny Robinson who skied exceptionally fast (25th) and Peter Robinson (58th). Next up in U-12 girls Halle Lamb propelled her way down the course in her USSA debut (37th) followed by USSA veterans Sela Backstrom (29th) and Sophie Robinson (14th) who rocked the course.
On this day USSA Giant Slalom racing at Lutsen went from same old, same old metro racers winning everything all the time to U-12 Alpine sensation Reilly Wahlers defending her home hill with a shocking first run. It was difficult to tell how fast she actually went in comparison to the field and it would take another hour to find out that she went faster than all the U-14 girls, earning a well-deserved first place!
Next up in U-14 girls, Madysen McKeever skied great (4th), followed by Logan Backstrom who skied solid and landed in 6th. Next up for U-16 boys Alex Robinson ripped a great run and went in for the break in (23rd), making the flip. As morning progressed the snow eventually stopped and the wind stalled to light and variable.
With the weather against him, Logan Backstrom skied three solid runs on his home hill.
With the course re-dressed Race No. 2 began as temperatures dropped and the wind began to howl loudly out of the Northwest, blowing fresh powder everywhere. Tension was high and all eyes were focused on the start shack when Reilly Wahlers approached the gate. A lot of coaches had taken notice of U-12 Wahlers and were skeptical she could duplicate her morning victory.
Coach Jim Kalb said, “The GS on Caribou tests the subtleties of Giant Slalom technique, the pitch is moderate and by Midwest standards the run is long. Finding the fastest line is not an exact science for any athlete, especially if you are only 12 years old.”
Coach Rick Backstrom checked over her equipment, offered her a last minute course report and confidence boost.
Reilly stormed out of the start shack and ferociously attacked the top half of the course testing the line as hard as she could and disappeared over the lower headwall through the windblown snow. Once again we had to wait over an hour to see where she stacked up against the field. In her second run, she skied faster than all the U-14 girls and boys defeating the fastest Buck Hill boy by 1/100th with a blistering time of 42.69 and another trip to the top of the podium!
Flash forward about an hour, with the course diminishing and the gondola and side lifts closed due to excessive wind speeds, U-14 Logan Backstrom stared down the course at the red and blue panels blowing violently back and forth. Not overly happy with his first run he laid it all on the line in a fantastic second run attack and finished 3rd taking out three more metro competitors in his wake with a time of 43.25! The rest of our U-10 through U-16 racers skied great second runs and finished very similar to their morning results.
Super Giant Slalom on January 20
The USSA chief of race had some tough decisions to make for the two SG runs scheduled for this day. Winds gusted to over 50 miles per hour all night long and the weather forecast for race day was a high of -5 below zero with 15 to 20 mph winds. Two runs of SG were diminished to one run with a late morning start and sadly, the race on January 21 was canceled altogether.
Sleeping in did not slow down any of the kids and the SG went off without a hitch. Only U-12 and above could participate and everyone skied fast. Having full length Caribou B-netted on the sides for safety from top to bottom and reserved for each skier to go as fast as possible is a privilege that was enjoyed by the whole field.
Speeds in excess of 50 mph were achieved by the older athletes and a few dramatic crashes thinned out some racers. Lutsen Mountains is the only ski area in Minnesota which can offer this exciting venue and a good time was had by all.
U-12 and U-14 girls finished as follows: Reilly Wahlers, 6th; Madysen McKeever, 9th; Sophie Robinson, 14th; Halle Lamb, 25th and Sela Backstrom, 31st. U-12 through U16 boys finished with Masen McKeever, 30th; Logan Backstrom, 4th; Alex Robinson, 24th.
The next USSA race for our Lutsen skiers will be held at Giants Ridge February 9-10.
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