The Second to Last: Middlebury Carnival

The end is close..this weekend was the second to last carnival of our season. What a weekend it was. This weekend was our Mid-semester break, however the weekend was no different for us! Breaks are for the weak. We left campus around 10am on Thursday and arrived at Rikert around 2:30. It was snowing and the trails had about 2-3inches of fluffy snow that we had to plow through on our course preview. After, we headed back to our hotel, ate dinner at the Middlebury dining hall (Proctor), had a team meeting and hit the snooze.

Both days were sunny with blue skies. The weekend was beautiful and full of positive vibes. It was a different format with the distance race on the first day, being a 15k/20k skate and a 3 lap classic sprint relay race with a partner the second day. The distance race went really well for our team and yet there was a noticeable lingering tiredness among the field.  This also made the second day a bit challenging for everyone because it was the longer distance race first, people were more tired for Saturday. Women went first both days starting at 10am.

Here is a short word summary I had fun making about this weekend:

            Many spectators
          dInners at Midd dining hall
15/20k Distance race on Friday
            Determined racers
   sparkLe game strong, guys too!
      RikErt nordic center
            Brendan's Birthday
          sUnny and 50 degrees
            Relay races on Saturday
            Yummy food table

Lucy had a great 15k race finishing in 20th with a time of :42:37.5 and Calvin had a fantastic race finishing in 21st with a time of :49:12.8!  Jackie did well placing 35th with a stellar time of :44:45.6! Dustin wasn't too far behind Calvin in 27th with a time of :49:41.4! Brendan also had a great birthday 20k race while turning 20years old; he placed 43rd with a time of :51:37.5. It was an improvement from where he has been racing, which is fun to see. They all looked like they were in it and racing hard.

Calvin getting his arms tall for another lap PC: Dana

Dustin making moves PC: Dana

Brendan with high arms, looking strong PC: Dana

Brendan making gains on his 20th birthday PC: Dana

Matt skating through the lap PC: Dana

Blaine powering down PC: Dana

Blaine eyeing the finish on his way through another lap PC: Dana

Ryan hammering down PC: Dana

Calvin working with the pack PC: Dana

My favorite picture of the weekend PC: Dana

Waters, don't give me that face! PC: Dana

Woah Dustinnn! PC: Dana

Dustin flying to the finish PC: Dana 

Brendan finishing 20k on his 20th PC: Dana

Cupcakes were to follow the races, thanks to Emily's Aunt who bought the famous Georgetown Cupcakes from Boston! They were sooo good and it was especially nice to be able to celebrate Brendan's Birthday. Again, that night was the same..back to midd dining hall by popular demand and team meetings followed by some much needed sleep! The dining hall was nice because we could eat as much as we needed, fast, for cheap, and it was close by.  We were staying at the Middlebury Inn. It's a very nice, old house feeling place; I would recommend it. Funny/weird side note: I've been placed in the same room every single year: room 117.  Also, after the races on Friday, the girls team hit up Hannahfords and TJmaxx. We bought our Gnome "Lawrence" some SLU colored clothing, so keep an eye out for Lawrence's first real appearance soon..

Lawrence! PC: Lucy

Saturday, the weather heated up fast..it was a balmy 50 degrees. The snow was changing so quickly, especially during the women's race that everyone was struggling to kick up the hills.  It was a stand-up, use those arms kind of day. A lot of the guys opted for double poling..bold move, if I say so myself.  The course was nottt flat.  It started in the normal finish area and went directly down hill into the 3rd loop of the normal 5k race course. There was climb up for a short while, and then it took a sharp left, a cutoff right before the typical top of the hill and came winding back down, where we had to power up the last short steep hill where we tagged our partner. It was short, but that's what made it super hard and fun.  I had a really fun time; I pushed myself and I felt much better than the first day. It was exciting; waiting, looking for your partner to come up that final hill, all the while slowing down your heart rate and getting it back up, ready to go again!

The relay teams consisted of:
Lucy and Jackie (Lucy went first), Kate and Dana (Kate went first)
After this race, there was a 2nd race with all the 3rd relay teams, which was Erin and Emily (Erin scrambled)
Calvin and Blaine (Calvin went first), Dustin and Brendan (Dustin went first)
And same for the men, with Ryan and Matt (Ryan scrambled)

Results:
Women's 15k
Men's 20k

Women's Relay
Men's Relay

India's Videos:
Nordic Day 1  Day 2
Alpine Day 1  Day 2

Thanks again to the parents for their continual support and homemade goods! You all fuel us so well! We can't do it without you. Thanks to the coaches for fast skis all weekend and for putting up with our "we need more wax" or "I'm feelin' pretty tired" selves. Thanks to Rikert Nordic Ski center, Middlebury College, India Harvey, other photographers and those who I forgot who always deserve to be thanked.

Since this was the second to last, it was bittersweet. I can't imagine this season coming to an end, as we've worked so hard for so long and with our best friends. Although sometimes when we get back from the weekend, we do realize just how much we have pushed our bodies and perhaps a break would feel good. There's also another feeling of never wanting to stop, not wanting to break routine, or seeing the snow start to melt.  I sure have mixed feelings; change is hard and it's hard to face the truth that all good things must come to an end. However, not yet! One more weekend- the best for last; we're going back to my home state where the infamous Black Mountain waits for us. I'm looking forward to racing on one of my favorite courses, as I've had some of the greatest racing there.  We hope you come out and watch us take on the fiercest racing of the season where we will be giving every last bit of what we have in the tank.


See you out there,
Dana and SLUSKI