CBNT January 2012 Update

The Crested Butte Nordic Team is full-on into the ‘meat and potatoes’ of the race season now. Many stellar results from the high-school and middle-school skiers are contributing to an amazing season. Prawit Durgan and Forrest Smith have been turing in solid 3rd and 4th place results in the J2 boys races all season. Durgan has a 2nd place, a 3rd place, and two 4th place results so far in the four Junior National Qualifying race series’ events. With four more opportunities to go, Prawit will be aiming to make his first Junior National Team and compete at Soldier Hollow, UT in March. Forrest Smith, who competed at Junior Nationals in Minneapolis last season, is also on target to qualify with two 4th place efforts, and a pair of 3rd place races to his name. Forrest is inching his way up the season series’ results board and is on fire. Both Durgan and Smith will be charging hard over the next 6 weeks as they improve their fitness and sharpen their mental game for peak performance at Junior Nationals. Game on.

Sofia Deer and Sara Sherman have been trading off results in the J1 girls races this season as well. Both girls are skiing solidly and gaining in fitness and results. Look for both Sara and Sofia and keep pushing each other for the duration of the season. Kai Sherman is undefeated so far in the J3 boys’ races. Sherman is putting together an impressive string of results by charging out early in every race so far. He will be a threat for years to come in the XC ski world. Many other fine performance have been turned in by other athletes, including Benjamin Swift and his solid racing in the J3 boys’ events this season.

On the home-front, Turner Petersen and Woody Martineau have been racing strong in the Crested Butte Nordic Town Series events. Martineau has won two in a row and will look to continue that streak this upcoming weekend on the trails of Magic Meadows. We have had awesome participation in practice by 20 – 30 skiers on a daily basis. Many skiers have stepped up their commitment to learning, growing, and having fun on the Nordic trails. Coaches Emma Lohr, Lindsay Records, and Duncan Callahan (me) are fired up to carry this momentum into the remainder of the season. Look for more updates to come and stay tuned for more top notch results by CBNT athletes. Here’s to an awesome mid-winter. Here’s to growing, goal-setting, and learning. Thanks for reading. DC.