Fifteen Durango Nordic Ski Club skiers, their coaches and families braved blizzards on their way to Steamboat Springs last weekend for the second set of their Junior National qualifying races. Once there, Durango skiers posted some of their best finishes of the season.
DNSC’s Hannah Peterson, Haakon Sigurslid, Marit May, Katja Freeburn, Wiley Cora, Ethan Craig, Ruby May and Kiri May all finished on the podium (places 1-3) in their age groups. Little Kiri May won two gold while sister Ruby and Cora each grabbed one.
In a meet that included college racers from the University of Colorado, University of Denver, New Mexico, Montana State, Alaska Anchorage and Wyoming, Peterson placed 13th out of 33. Most of the top performers were European women who raced for these colleges.
Of the American women, Peterson was fourth. She is bound for NCAA Division I University of New Hampshire on a full-ride athletic grant-in-aid. DNSC alum Elena Breed, a senior at DU, was the second American finisher.
In breakout performances this season, Charlie Greenburg, Maggie Wigton and Anna Faike each skied to fifth-place finishes.
Greenburg, 16, who often must race against skiers three years older, flashed to fifth in Saturday’s freestyle race.
Wigton powered her way with strong double-pole technique that will serve her well in today’s classic sprint races at Soldier Hollow, Utah.
Faike has been the biggest surprise for the team as a brand-new cross-country skier coming from the alpine racing circuit. She also shined in the freestyle.
Faike and the others will challenge fields of a hundred or more racers Saturday in the mass-start distance events at Soldier Hollow. Faike, who also runs for Telluride cross country, is used to these big fields.
Abe Ott (ninth), Avra Saslow (seventh) and Cobe Freeburn (ninth) each posted season-best finishes in last week’s classic race. Ott also finished an excellent seventh in the freestyle race. So far this season, he ranks as the most improved racer on the team.
These races are scored for high school-aged skiers in terms of eligibility for Junior Nationals. Of the eight qualifying races, skiers score their best four against others within Rocky Mountain Nordic. So far, after four races Peterson, Sigurslid, Katja Freeburn, Faike, Wigton, Marit May and Saslow have all either clinched or are on the edge of qualifying.
In this busy finishing stretch of the season involving six races in three weeks, the Soldier Hollow races soon will be added in along with the last qualifiers of the season in Vail.
