The Kendall Memorial Classic 2024
Kendall Memorial Classic
12/8/2024
Skiers awoke Sunday morning to a welcome sign. Four to five inches of fresh snow! Though it makes driving difficult, new snow is always welcomed by skiers. The snow was dense but not sticky, which made for promising race waxing. Conditions were overcast and would remain that way for the day. As skiers approached the Craftsbury Outdoor Center, the snow continued to fall, and temperatures hovered around 26 degrees. While it was slightly warmer than the predicted Extra Blue wax conditions, it looked like it would be close to an Extra Blue day.
Skiers went about the morning business of getting their tables set up for waxing, grabbing their bibs, and catching up on how the off-season went. NWVE tested some blues and violets and pretty much had their wax decisions made. Then, the falling snow turned to a fine mist with only twenty minutes until the race started.
That dry, dense snow crossed the moisture threshold to packy, sticky snow. This changed things, but our choice of Rode Zero remained working. The Burnhams had been testing Rode VXPS and Swix V50, which were a little warmer than my liking, but it was good to know that it was working and a little VXPS would not hurt under the toe.
In the last-minute scramble, some people switched to skate skis, others went to Zeros, some went too warm on the "oh shoot" layer, and some thought it was too late to change things now. Athletes on skate skis won the Men's and Women's races; those with Zeros did not complain, and those who did not change their wax seemed happy with their skis. Those going to warmer red waxes ended up clumping a bit, but they could kick it off with a reasonable amount of effort.
The course was the 1.5km Lemon's North Loop done in reverse, with Chip Hill serving as the final climb before looping around the Upper Field for the lap. The open race was five of these laps. Conditions remained fresh snow, but the added moisture from the mist accelerated the glazing. The course held up well, and the skiing was excellent. The course was lined with volunteers, coaches, and fans cheering the athletes on. The spectators seemed happy as they were not getting cold. Thankfully, the mist had stopped, and conditions stabilized.
Racing got underway quickly, and soon, all participants were on course. Most of the elite field from Saturday's Sprints carried over to the Classic on Sunday. A few more masters joined in the open race, while the juniors had their own shorter race later in the day. I kicked things off for the masters, starting in fiftieth place chasing David Northcott (Caldwell Sport). I never saw David until he lapped me, so it was more of him chasing me. Scott Magnan (NWVE) started right behind me and set out to get his first race under his belt. Scott made fairly easy work of me and was joined by Patrick Campbell (Mad River BKL Dad). They worked well together for a bit before Patrick pulled away. Scott aligned well with a few other skiers throughout the race, keeping pace with them and having some company much of the time.
Tom Thurston (NWVE) was the next out for the club. Tom is recovering from an illness and eased into the race. He gained momentum as the laps went by and chased down several of the masters on the course. Chris Burnham (NWVT) and Will Meehan (SMC Alumni) renewed their battle for the Zak Overall. Will had the benefit of chasing Chris for much of the race. Eventually, Will overtook Chris and put a little gap on him before the finish line. The result was close, and it will be interesting to see how things pan out over the season and if Justin Freeman (unattached) sticks his toe in more Zak Series races this year.
Ace Serianni (unattached) was back for more after Saturday's sprints and hoped the slower sloggy conditions would benefit him. The conditions were neither very slow nor sloggy on most of the course, so the race tested skill and fitness. Ace chased Dunbar Oehmig (MNC), who, like Tom, eased into the race, building confidence as the laps went by. Ace has been putting in a lot of laps with the college crowd over the last couple of weeks. His efforts brought him close to Tyler Magnan (NWVE) in the final results. Tyler showed up mostly to ski on the trails after the race. He arrived amid skiers panicking over their wax when the snowfall changed to rainfall. He went with the team's Rode Zero and called it good. Tyler skied well on the course and had no wax issues. He had consistent splits during the race, wrapped things up, and went out for the long ski on the trails he was looking forward to. He also ensured that he cheered on the women's field during their race.
Robert Burnham (EMXC) had one of the last starts of the day. While he gave us great intel on how waxes were working, he reached into his bag for his Zero skis moments before the start. A decision he was happy about. Bob skied into the field hard and settled into his pace. As skiers cleared the course and he sensed the finish line, he picked up the pace as he drove to the line.
The course was opened once the men completed their race and the women got ready to go. No masters women raced in the sprints on Saturday, but five competed on Sunday in the Kendall Classic. The women approached the wax conundrum similar to the men, with some using skate skis, some using zeros, some using violet wax, and some dipping into the reds.
Sarah Falconer (MNC) led out the masters women with an early start. She held her own among the collegiate crowd. Elizabeth Ransom (Gunstock) was out next for the masters further down the lineup. Elizabeth got some touch-up wax at the last second that iced in the start corral, making for a miserable first half lap before they freed up a little and became more manageable. Jessica Bolduc (NWVE) started a couple of spots back from Elizabeth and was surprised by the pace of the 15-second interval, barely having time to get her skis on. She was still strapping her poles on the way down Teaching Hill!
Sarah Katz (MNC) gave it a go, starting one spot behind Jessica. The big news was Gina Campoli (Craftsbury), inspired to register by Jessica and seeing Elizabeth's iced skis. Gina sensed that things were going to be competitive and decided to take advantage. Showing her community pride, adorned in Craftsbury threads and a Williams headband, Gina reset her goal from just finishing to catching some skiers as she left the starting line.
Sarah Falconer lapped in with Jessica in sight. Sarah Falconer slowly closed on Jessica, and the two skied together for some time. Sarah Falconer was a lap ahead, and when she started her final kick, Jessica tried to hang on but faded a little, knowing she still had a lap to go. Jessica still had company on the course and advanced a few places with a speedy final lap.
It only took Gina one lap to catch Sarah Katz. The two skied together for a bit, but Sarah Katz fatigued. The course was lined with the likes of Trina and David Hosmer, longtime friends, and competitors, and they knew the race between Gina and Elizabeth was close—feeding Gina encouragement, she pressed on. Soon, Gina could see the gains she had made on Elizabeth in the first lap. Gina kept the line on her and kept the gap even as the race wound down. Gina celebrated her achievement with broad smiles and relief that the effort was over. The home crowd was impressed with her skiing and shaking things up in the elite field.
Skiers enjoyed some NWVE brownies after the race and set out to take advantage of the midwinter conditions at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center. Most were happy to have competed in the early season race. Many were inspired by their performance, and all were grateful for the work it took to manage and pull off the weekend. Racing returns to Craftsbury in a couple of weeks with the Eastern Cup Opener.
Damian
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