Glacier Nordic team dominates Glide race
The Glacier Nordic Ski Team swept first place in every event at the Glacier Glide Nordic race on Jan. 24 at Whitefish Lake Golf Club. The strong performance boosted momentum for the team as they head to Soldier Hollow in Utah for a Junior Olympic qualifying race this weekend.
Coach Ben Morley said that while the level of competition and course conditions will be much different at the upcoming qualifier, he's happy with the team's overall results at the Glide.
"It's a good warm up to get into the race mentality and get the blood moving," Morley said. "(The Glide) isn't really about the competition. It's more about the course and technique. It's flat with lots of corners, and if you can carry your speed, you have a huge advantage."
Anne Miller and Jack Steele took the top spot in the 10-kilometer race. Both are vying to qualify for the Junior Olympic Nordic races in March.
Miller, 18, easily won the women's division with a time of 34:57.7. Steele, 16, edged Glacier Nordic teammate Carl Talsma, 16, by two minutes to win in 31:44.1.
Morley said Miller and Steele are looking strong heading into the races at Soldier Hollow, and that Talsma came through with a solid performance he hopes he will carry through to the weekend.
In the 5-kilometer race, Stella Holt and Connor Gray skated to the top of the podium. Against a deep field in the women's class, Holt, 16, crossed the finish line in 11:26.9, a little more than one minute ahead of second-place finisher and teammate Madison Grady.
"This was Stella's first real race of the season," Morley said. "She's jumping back in there and is in the mix again."
Holt missed most of the preseason with a leg injury and was out due to sickness at last week's qualifying race in Bozeman.
Morley said he was excited about Grady's performance, too.
"She's the only J2 girl on the team," he said. "I'm psyched for her. She's been sticking it out and keeping up with the older girls."
Gray, 14, turned in a solid time of 10:57.7 for first place among men, while Glacier Nordic racer Izaak Castren took second at 11:05.8.
"Connor is working on his technique, and this was a very good race to do that," Morley said. "He opened up his glide, and it was a huge advantage."
Castren is coming off a strong performance at the qualifier in Bozeman where he took sixth place in the sprint, the highest finish for the team at the event.
Glacier Nordic Team coaches Morley and Brenda Winkler dominated the 20-kilometer race. Morley, 27, cruised to a win on the long course with a time of 52:12.1. He was three minutes faster than Jason Schmidt, 34, and Ryan Dye, 37, who both finished in 55:17. Nearly 30 competitors took part in the men's race.
Winkler posted a time of 1:05.43 for the top spot among women. Dusty Hosek was a close second with a 1:07.57.
In the 1-kilometer race, 12-year-old Abygail Wambeke and 9-year-old Eric Holdhusen were the winners for girls and boys.