In the midst of news surrounding Town Meeting, the presidential primaries, the Dow cruising over 13,000, North Korea agreeing to cut back on its testing of nuclear weapons, and the continuing threat of war with Iran by the same neoconservatives that pushed us unnecessarily into a war with Iraq, let’s pause for a moment to applaud a local milestone: the MUHS Nordic girls’ ski team won the D-II state championship this week.
It was the first state championship of any MUHS Nordic ski team since 1989.
It’s a special achievement for several reasons:
• More than once in the past decade the MUHS school board has considered cutting the sport entirely out of the school budget because of a lack of involvement; the numbers are now strong, and the team performance, obviously, is superb;
• Faced with no snow on the ground at the Rikert Touring Center until just recently, the team has faced unusual challenges to practice and train, yet they overcame those difficulties and persevered;
• In an era in which all the glamour nationally is focused on snowboard events and alpine ski racing, those involved in Nordic skiing locally and throughout the state (boys and girls) are laying claim to a life-long sport that delivers immense satisfaction without a lot of hype — at least not in the U.S. That says a lot about the type of individual the sport attracts.
• Finally, the MUHS girls’ Nordic team finished with 51 points — 90 and 95 points ahead of the respective second and third place teams. The top four scoring for the MUHS team were Britta Clark, Dominique Powers and Lydia Allen, who racked up a 1,2,3, 6 finish in the classic 5K in D-II standings.
That is dominance.
Those same four skiers also placed in the top 11 overall in combined standings with the D-I skiers; as was independent Alia Johnson, a Mount Abraham senior, who trains with the Tigers. And that says a lot about the coaching, spirit of the team and support by the parents and friends of the team.
Congrats to all. That is most impressive.
Angelo S. Lynn