Masters Moments: Action heats up in chilly January

By Published On: January 16th, 2008Comments Off on Masters Moments: Action heats up in chilly January

Temperatures finally dipped below freezing in Central New York which left challenging conditions for racers after nearly a week of rain and temps in the high 60s. The super G scheduled for Song Mtn. was postponed due to rain and thin cover. Racing resumed at Toggenburg Ski Area in Fabius, N.Y., for two slaloms, and two giant slaloms at Labrador.
New York Masters
Temperatures finally dipped below freezing in central New York which left challenging conditions for racers after nearly a week of rain and temps in the high 60s. The super G scheduled for Song Mtn. was postponed due to rain and thin cover. Racing resumed at Toggenburg Ski Area in Fabius, N.Y., for two slaloms, and two giant slaloms at Labrador.
    Megan Thayer continued her blitz on the New York Masters scene. Thayer hiked in the first run of the slalom and still took the run, winning the women’s race by more than seven and a half seconds over Angela Schneurch and Amy Slade. Racers ski the same course twice in New York, which allows plenty of time to get four race runs completed before 1 p.m. It also means the second run can be quite challenging with ruts and holes that more resemble a luge track than a slalom run. Trying to make up for a hike in the first run, Barb Brumbaugh couldn’t handle the bumps and troughs to make up the deficit behind fourth-place finisher Barb Settel.
    Showing almost no concern for the deterioration of the hill, Skier’s Edge racer Jim Thoman attacked from the back of the pack winning both runs over Pepi Neubauer. Chris Engle edged past Joel Solly by a slim seven hundredths for third and Lou Moore took fifth overall.
    Thayer took the second race as well, leaving Schneurch four and a half seconds behind. Brumbaugh lost a two-second lead over Slade, who in the second run, unknowingly benefited from a missing gate to take third, with Barb Settel rounding out the top five.
    In men’s second-run action, the sun softened the race hill just enough to keep the track from crumbling away. So with fewer holes and dropoffs, the men still had bumps and long narrow ruts to negotiate. Again, Thoman hammered from the back and took both runs by 2.89 seconds over Chris Engle. Bob Andree nudged past Neubauer in the first run and survived the Neubauer attack on the second run by only two hundredths of a second. Joel Solly hung onto fifth overall.
    What a difference a night of cold temperatures can make. GS racing resumed on Sunday at Labrador in Truxton, N.Y., on a firm, consistent surface. In the first GS, Thayer won convincingly over Schneurch in both runs. Slade followed in third. Carolyn Clauss narrowed the gap in the second run behind Settel but had to settle for fifth overall just four tenths back. The second GS claimed three women including Thayer leaving Schneurch with the win. Carolyn Clauss took second over Sue Billings with Nancy Fella hanging on for fourth overall.
    Mark Sertl and Chris Engle traded runs but Engle used a first-run advantage to hang on to the lead. Thoman moved past fellow Skier’s Edge teammate Solly to take third overall by 0.28 and Neubauer screamed across the flats at the top to finish a solid fifth overall. Mark Sertl blasted both runs of the second race to claim the win over Engle by under a half second. Even closer was third place Thoman surviving an attack by Joel Solly leaving Solly in fourth by only 0.04 sec. Bob Andree used a 0.86 lead over Neubauer in the first run to take fifth overall.
    The NYM have the weekend off this week, then head to western NY for races at Holimont and Holiday Valley on Jan. 26-27. ( www.nymasters.org )
    — Barb Brumbaugh

Pacific Northwest Ski Association
    Richard Zimmerman reports great racing on January 12-13 under typical blue skies mixed with a smattering of fog and snow at 49 Degrees North Resort in Chewelah, Wash. Two giant slaloms and two slaloms in two days is an ambitious schedule for both racers and race organizers. FAST (Forty-nine degrees North Alpine Ski Team), lived up to its name. The organization provided a team of fast J5 forerunners and ran eight competition runs without a hitch, completing two race runs just a few minutes after 11 a.m.
    Debbie Coleman (W6) and Peter Christian (M6) began an overall sweep with convincing wins on a foggy morning GS course. They demonstrated their versatility, winning with snow falling for the afternoon race. The closest contest was for Class nine men with Jim Phillips and Tom Robideaux trading wins, each time by less than half a second.
    Sunday's weather never quite settled, sometimes foggy and sometimes clear. Again it was Coleman and Christian victorious with BJ Moore (M3) giving a chase in the second slalom, tying Christian’s time in the final run. The steep, fast course set caught a few racers off guard, missing gates and climbing back up added a cardiovascular component to the race. We all had tired smiles afterwards, even those who didn't have to climb.
    The PNSA Masters head to Crystal Mountain for two GS races on Jan. 19-20.

New England Masters  
    January weather can be erratic and this year was no different with record warm temperatures throughout the week leading up to races at Cannon and Gunstock. Throw in significant rainfall and the weekend almost washed out before it began. Cannon and Gunstock produced awesome racing despite issues that Mother Nature provided.
    On Saturday, racers descended upon Cannon Mountain in Franconia for the annual Hochgebirge Challenge Cup. The Hochgebirge is one of the oldest and most prestigious Masters races on the New England/Sise Cup schedule. Racers came from far and wide in hopes of putting their names on the coveted Hochgebirge Trophy joining many National and Olympic champions who won before them.
    During inspection, racers felt the surface was firm and would surely hold up, but unfortunately for the later skiers, this would not be the case. The field was treated to a “rut-and-hole-skiing” clinic by Brandon Dyksterhouse, four-time All-American from UVM and current men’s head coach at GMVS. “Dykster” won the first run by 4 seconds which earned him the right to run 10th in the Super Seed for the afternoon. Those making the Super Seed jumped for joy when results showed “ageless” Bill McCollom (class 8) made the top 10 which meant the Super Seed would run before the class eight men. It didn’t really matter as holes were already there and claimed several favorites. Mark George and Dave Wolff, the last two Sise Cup overall winners, didn’t survive the holes. Terrence Fogarty was the best of the rest to finish second on the day. Steve Masur was third, Randy Detrick forth and rounding out the top five was Alex Gadbois.
    The women were a bit more fortunate than the men with course conditions, but at the end of the day they were all topped by Carolyn Beckedorff. Beckedorff won by just over 11 seconds with a time that would have placed her sixth in the men’s race. Kim Wolff was second, local Cannon skier Cythia Berlack was third, Margaret Vaughn and Anne Nordhoy rounded out the top five.
    As for the team challenge, the trophy will stay with the Hochgebirge Ski Club. The “Hoch Hopefuls” team of Tony DiGangi, Carolyn Beckedorff, Brian Irwin and Terrence Fogarty took the crown and had their names added to the team winner list. The fastest women’s team of Gay Folland, Kim Wolfe, Margaret Vaughn and Anne Nordhoy took home the honors for the Comets.
    On Sunday, the Masters headed south to Gunstock for a GS. The surface continued to set up with cold temperatures overnight. Despite su
n and temperatures in the 30s, the courses held up well. Times were tight as the racer’s tackled the shortened Cannonball course. The men’s Super Seed was separated by just over a second and anyone could be the victor with a great second run. It looked as if Mark George might be the guy with a blistering second run to re-claim family honor from his daughter Katie in her Master’s debut, but Randy Detrick stole the show by winning both runs. Jerome Guerard was second, George third, Alex Gadbois forth and Rick Cesati, with a monster recovery on his second run, claimed fifth.
    In the woman’s race, Katie George served notice at Gunstock, showing the assembled racers that she learned a thing or two from her sponsor/Dad. Katie beat her dad and all but a handful of men in the first run, but couldn’t put her Dad away in the second. She did, however, win both runs for the women. The Syracuse University alum and Mount Mansfield Ski Club racer was ecstatic with her first win. Local favorite Carolyn Beckedorff was second, Lisa Densmore third, Tracy Reimer, returning to racing after a two year absence, was forth while Nadine Price rounded out the top five.
Next week the Sise Cup tour is off to Middlebury and Suicide Six for a Vermont swing. Let’s hope for a return to more seasonable temperatures. (Results at www.nemasters.org )
    — Brian Irwin

Midwest Masters – Mt. Du Lac Race
    Mt. Du Lac, which means “mountain by the Lake,” is an excellent description for this Duluth, Minnesota, race venue. Lack of snow this season didn’t prevent the owners of the oldest ski resort in the state to make excellent snow and host the Midwest Masters SL and GS races on Jan. 12-13.
    Mt. Du Lac’s height as compared to the surrounding Lake Superior valley makes for awesome views from the start house, and excellent terrain to set challenging SL and GS courses. Temperatures in the low/mid-20s, combined with partly cloudy days and flat light had racers confused on both wax and goggle lens choices.
Day One – Slalom
    The slalom course runs down a consistently steep face that levels off for about three gates, and then drops again for a long, consistent run toward the finish line. Challenging gate placement with plenty of flushes, hairpins and delays made this one of the more fun slalom sets we’ve had this season. Toward the bottom of the run, you realize that this is about a third longer than a typical Twin Cities area hill. For Ken “Smackdown” McAdam, the final challenge was figuring out how he destroyed the tip of his Volkl SL ski (with another race left to go). Notable finishes came from Peter Maxwell, Steve Lindemer, Ryan Fuller, Matt Mattice and Doug Janzig. Just as we thought the race was pretty much done, Ben Hallen came screaming into the finish area with a blistering time that shocked the entire Midwest Masters. Congratulations Ben!
Day Two – GS
    A little colder temps and even flatter light. A tricky course set with plenty of fall-away gates left some racers struggling with speed, gravity and landing gear. Most made it through a fast course that held up nicely. My compliments to some fast times posted by “the usual suspects” (check the Bibo for the last 3 years) as well as husband/wife team Jim and Patty Hoben (aka Hobenski and Hobenshe).  
    — David Buyse

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About the Author: Pete Rugh