Ski racing continues
• Sun Cup — Another “anything but sunny” cup was completed last weekend. Super G and Downhill races were held on storm shortened venues with speeds controlled due to the soft snow conditions. That said, one can always count on the Mount Bachelor Ski Education Foundation to get the races off and send the athletes home with something to show for their efforts. It was open competition for all age groups. Scott Snow finished second overall in the Men’s cup competition. Jake Vandeventer ended a recent streak of incomplete races, skiing well in the final three events. Jake Diel also completed all of the races, earning his first USSA points in the two type events.
• Extreme Cross Country — A late report on cross country happenings in Hermit Hollow. Two weeks ago nearly 30 competitors raced in their favorite events on courses of varying lengths. In the 15K Skate competition, Margret Williams led the Open class women, followed by Coral France and Paula Lee. On the Men’s side Wyatt Martz was first with Nathan Cook in second. Richard Berber was the fastest over 60 competitor on the 15K, followed by Bob Phillips. In the grueling 30K Skate Deb Bauer beat Kirsten Dehart on the women’s side, while the men were led by Nick Bauer, Tom Dehart and Arnie Liati. Jim Bauer was the only over 60 competitor on the 30K. Don Hicks was the only Traditional competitor on the 30 K course and Richard Berber was the only one on the 15K.
• Starlight Races Week No. 4 — The Starlight Race racers are coming down to the wire. The “Rusty Springs” continued to hold the slimmest of leads over the “Baroque Ol’Bombers,” who this week posted the best result. These teams continue to distance themselves from the rest of the pack. Fastest men of the night were Matt Gillis, Peter Faletto, Scott Barksdale, Reider Wahl and Brian McCrum. The Fast Women were: Debra Rawuka, Olen Greig, Kate Toepel, Kerri Kuntz and Theresa Kemick. The fastest telemark skiers were Clint Parrish and Paula Lund. The fastest snowboarders were Jason Foy and Autumn Lukezech. And the team name of the week is… “We got the runs.” Next week will be the costume competition, however several teams are left with a dilemma… fully five teams are within a point of the team ahead of them. Hmm, streamlined costume or something frilly?
• Western Region J1/2 Championships — The Schweitzer Alpine Racing School hosts FIS competition on Zip Down this week, including Super G, Giant Slalom and Slalom. Racers from all over the Western Region will compete. This is a huge event and they always need volunteers. Call 263-1089 for further information.
• J2 Nationals — Aspen, Colorado will host this year’s National Championship for athletes aged 15-16. The top 60 boys and 60 girls in the nation will compete in Downhill, Super G, Giant Slalom and Slalom. This is the first time many of these athletes will meet their top competitors at a National Championship. First year J2, Scott Snow, attends as the top seed in Downhill, 9th in Super G, 14th in Slalom and 15th Giant Slalom.
• Potpourri — The popular “Own the Night” lift tickets program ended last weekend. See you next season. Any comments, recommendations or contributions to this column may be sent to Shep Snow by e-mail at “shep@thesnowschool.com.”
The Inside Edge appears every Thursday during ski season in the Daily Bee.