The Craftsbury Marathon Classic 2025

Craftsbury Marathon

1/25/2025

Results

The Craftsbury Marathon was held today in perfect classic conditions.  Skiers from across North America have been preparing for New England’s signature event, and the Craftsbury Outdoor Center delivered.  Pulling together the event is never easy, and this year's lean snow base added to the challenge.  The staff, volunteers, and athletes spent many hours shoveling and hauling snow to piece together the 15km loop participants enjoyed today.  While there were signs of all the shoveling, many competitors may not have noticed the extent of the effort made to make the course exceptional!  Mother Nature helped by supplying some fresh coatings of snow to make everything look pristine for the race.

The long-range forecast called for temps to be slightly warmer than they were.  The short-range was closer, calling for temps to go below zero overnight and be in the low single digits for the start.  Temps would rise about ten degrees during the race.  Upon arrival, the temperature was even colder than predicted; some (Eli Enman) questioned their life choices with the -14 on the car dash on the commute to the event. But the sun was out, and there was a lot of excitement keeping people warm.  Wax testing amounted to finding what was the warmest you could get away with, without compromising speed.  NWVE had been testing on course all week and found that Rode Blue MultiGrade, Rode B310, and Guru Green were kicking on the snow well across the range of temps we would see during the race.  We also knew that some other waxes would start out okay, but become draggy as the snow got worked in by the skiers. 

Jessica Bolduc (NWVE) was an early tester and came in very happy with her Blue Rode MultiGrade covered with Guru Green.  The combination had a good range with just a little tar to keep the fine crystals out of the kick wax.  The rest of the team followed suit with a similar application, fine-tuning to their preferences.  The tracks were very firm with abrasive snow, making binder application key.  Also, those who skied the early tracks pulverized the firm snow in the bottom of the tracks for the rest of the field.  A phenomenon that would come into play later in the day.

The course was a 15km loop.  We have skied this course in the past, with racers finding it fun but challenging, providing a good sense of accomplishment when completed.  Racers started in the Lower Field and proceeded to Murphy’s and Outer Duck Pond.  They returned to the Upper Field on Inner  Duck Pond and went out Main Street to Six Corners, where they took Upper Bailey Hazen to Eleanor’s and then down onto Lower Bailey Hazen.  Skiers took the cutoff to Ruthie’s and got to enjoy that loop in its entirety with its long striding hills and fun descents.  At the end of Ruthie’s, skiers turned onto the North Race loop, skiing it in the reverse directions down Hoyt’s wall and John’s Jaunt and up Kirby’s.  At the top of Kirby’s, the course took Lemon’s Haunt back to the Lower Field, where the Lap/Finish area was.  Skiers completed two laps for 30km or three laps for 45km.   

People were happy with their skis as racing got underway.  In the Classic Race, the Women start first, with the Men following 15 minutes later.  This gives time for the field to spread out, minimizing traffic on the course.  It was great to see the women’s start with several former Olympians and other legends joined by the newest generation testing their abilities against those with established talent.  There were those that race every year, some we have not seen in a while, and others taking the plunge to see if they could complete the challenge.  NWVE was six strong in this field!

As the women got underway, the men put the final touches on their skis and headed to the start.  People were looking around for Kris Freeman (Caldwell Sport).  We had seen Justin Freeman (Unattached), and as I was introducing Brook Hodgeman (NWVE) to Jud Hartmann (NWVE) on our warmup, we ran into Donovan Freeman (Unattached).  It turns out Kris was not going to start today.  A bit of a disappointment as he always delivers at this race, and it is good to measure against someone who has kept it going while others have let it go, at least in my case, not that I ever had it.  No matter, I still skied hard not to get lapped anyway!

As the women’s race started, packs were established quickly.  Susan Dunklee (CSC) and  Audrey Mangan (CSC) were heavy hitters from the Outdoor Center who broke out with Jessie Donavan (GMVS) and Megan McTavish (XC Ottawa), Ingrid Thyr (Pathletics Factory Team) and Isabel Caldwell (Caldwell Sport) with a few others to establish the elite pack.  Katherine Johnson (Middlebury) hung on for a bit but was gapped in the first lap.  A second pack was formed with Alex Jospe (SMS), Sara Graves (NWVE), and a couple of CSC Juniors, Isabel and Emily Linton (CSC).  This smaller pack was chased closely by Sarah Pribram (NWVE) and Kasie Enman (NWVE). Meanwhile Liz Hollenbach (NWVE) was driving the main field with Jessica Bolduc (NWVE) and Lauren Wardwell (NWVE) skiing comfortably in the pack after a more moderate start.  There were many other notable women in the field today including Carol Van Dyke (Stowe Nordic), Gina Campoli (CSC), Lindy Sargent (CSC), Mary Heller Osgood (Putney), Trina Hosmer (Stowe Nordic), Anna Milkowski (Unattached), Elizabeth Ransom (Gunstock), Eliza Deery (Gunstock) and Susan Brown (Unattached) to name a few.

The men’s field was almost just as stacked, with notable skiers from throughout the years.  An elite group of five skiers quickly established themselves with James Kitch (Harvard), Justin Freeman (Unattached), and Edward Southward XC Ottawa, distinguishing themselves from the rest of the field.  The three would stay together well into the third lap, with Sam Holt (Team Birkie) and James Coulton (Fondeurs-Laurentides) fading off the group as the race went on. Eli Enman (NWVE), Gaelan Boyle-Wight (NWVE), and Thomas Clayton (NWVE) were a strong presence in the chase group.  Eli tried to keep pace with Gaelan as long as he could but knew to dial it back at the end of lap two in order to salvage the best possible third lap.

Thomas backed off a little earlier but skied consistently, holding position. 

Eric Tremble (NWVE) had great skis and worked his way up a few spots during the race, skiing a bit with Brook Hodgeman (NWVE) and Chris Burnham (NWVE).  Chris had some tough luck when his triceps muscle gave out early in the race.  It was too nice of a day to give up, so he skied over half the race with one pole.   Tyler Magnan (NWVE) did not ski too much with other club members but liked his skis and was having a great race with fairly even splits.  Eric Darling (NWVE) put on a bib and declined to warm up or test his skis.  He just confidently skied into the race, catching up to a large pack of (NWVE) racers.  Eric joined Stephen Wright (NWVE), Scott Magnan (NWVE), Bob Burnham (NWVE), Luke Shullenberger (NWVE), and Neal Graves (NWVE), who were skiing with Andy Milne (FTN/CSU), Bill Donahue (GNS) and Craig Peppin (MNC).  Scott was happy to have more teammates join the rest of the players who made up the elite masters pack at the White Mountain Classic.

My race went as usual, after a crowded start, I found myself on my own by 5km.  I was happy about this as I tend to be a little extra cautious on a few sections of the course where mishaps have compromised the rest of my season in the past.  I was soon catching skiers, moving by, and having a good day.  Will Gochberg (NWVE) connected with Dhyan Nirmegh (NWVE).  Dhyan was focused on Jim Fredericks (CSC), though Jim was pulling away in what seems to be a bit of a comeback season for him.  Jud Hartmann (NWVE) had some great skiing with Chris Osgood (Putney), Robert Faltus (Unattached), and Jim Adkisson (MNC).  Jud has had a perfect season as an M10 and was going to keep it that way against Donavan Freeman (Unattached). 

As the women’s race continued, Jessie Donavan broke away and ran away with the race. Sarah Pribram and Kasie Enman bridged to Sara Graves to form an NWVE pack that would stick together to the finish line.  These three suffered from depleted wax, which could be attributed to skiing in the tracks when the snow was the most aggressive.  However, they held position for excellent results.  Liz Hollenbach also had some wax issues and was unable to counter an attack by JoAnn Hanowski (CSC) at the top of Ruthie’s.  Jessica Bolduc’s wax was working great throughout, and she caught Liz and a couple of other racers, making closing to the line exciting.  She caught the eye of Rick Costanza (CSC), who thought she was one of the strongest finishers coming up the last hill in the race.   Lauren Wardell (NWVE) skied a lap with Laura McManamy (MNC) before gaining confidence with her energy for the distance and picking up the pace.  She advanced several spots over the next two laps, catching Margie Prevot (CSC) and Jennifer Freeman (Mt. Tom Nordic).

Sara Graves was happy to be joined by Kasie Enman and Sarah Pribram, as it motivated her to stay in the race while struggling. Kasie was perplexed that her race was the reverse of usual. Kasie tends to dominate the climbs, but today, she was rocking the downhills and double-poling! Sarah Pribram was pumped up with her result, sharing much of the race with her teammates.  Jessica was surprised to ski side-by-side with Chris Burnham early in the second lap as he adjusted to one-pole skiing.   

The racing action on the men’s side carried through to the finish as well.  James Kitch (Harvard) got edged in the final sprint by Edward Southward (XC Ottawa).  Gaelan Boyle-Wight (NWVE), Eli Enman (NWVE), and Will Meehan (St. Michael’s Alum) were psyched with their top ten finishes.  Equally happy was Thomas Clayton, whose smart race delivered to eleventh place for his Craftsbury best finish!  Eric Tremble (NWVE) crushed his second lap and held position on the third to take 16th place.  Brook Hodgeman (NWVE) did not have the year he had last year but still made the top twenty.  Tyler Magnan (NWVE) tracked down Dennis Page (Nansen) on the second lap before heading out for lap three.  For Tyler, it must have felt great overtaking the winner of the 30km race.  Eric Darling (NWVE) peeled off the big NWVE pack with Luke Shullenberger partway through lap two.  Luke took fourth in the 30km while Eric pressed on.  Luke attributed his fine finish to concentrating on core work.

Neal Graves (NWVE) was in and out of the group, having to re-wax twice during the race.  Neal ended up catching Chris Bean (Stowe Nordic) but could not latch back onto Bill Donahue (GNS). Scott Magnan (NWVE) wrapped up the 30km with Stephen Wright (NWVE).  Both were grateful for each other's company on the course and felt their results benefited from it.  Andy Milne (FTN/CSU) had it in for Bob Burnham (NWVE), and despite a crash that took Scott out at the bottom of Eleanor’s, he recovered to take an impressive 6th in the 30km race.  Bob picked up other skiers on the last lap, including Peter Miliken (Ford Sayre).  Bob was concerned with Chris’s condition and decision to continue the race. I worked on catching Nick Mahood (Woodstock Ski Runners) on lap two and finally got him on the long climb up Kirby’s with a little more kick than he had.  Dhyan Nirmegh (NWVE) did not stay with Jim Fredericks, but he did outpace the rest of his M9 competition by a considerable margin.  Jud Hartmann (NWVE) overtook a struggling Will Gochberg (NWVE).  Will was having wax issues and could not keep his kick in the conditions.  Jud was very pleased with his race and the team's turnout!  Will was not discouraged and is looking for a little redemption at an upcoming race. 

People were ecstatic about the race conditions and competition as they consumed their recovery meal from the Farmer and the Spud.  Even those who ran into issues could not help but smile and shrug it off, saying it was a perfect day to ski. Alex Jospe, Eli Enman, and I were reflecting on how nice it felt to finish without completely blowing up somewhere on the course.  It was proposed that perhaps we had acquired wisdom.  The consensus was that it must have been a fluke because we are not old enough to be wise yet!  The Outdoor Center did a great job hosting, and before we left for the day, was already putting things in place for tomorrow.  It was a great day for the team, with an incredible showing!