US Elite Racing: Lake Placid SuperTour Recap
Subzero temperatures greeted skiers this past weekend at Mt. Van Hoevenberg in Lake Placid, New York, making for a frigid classic sprint on Saturday and skate distance race on Sunday. Regardless of the uninviting weather, the races continued onward, albeit with short delays to allow the temperatures to rise slightly. Racers tested their skills on the new World Cup trails, filled with ample climbs, transitions, and high-speed descents.
The SuperTour weekend kicked off on Saturday with a classic sprint. The 1.5-kilometer course featured rolling terrain through the first half, with one final climb for skiers to make a move before dropping back into the stadium and rounding the bend into the slightly uphill homestretch. Alayna Sonnesyn of SMST2 reports on the new course, “The new sprint course is much more challenging than what the venue used to host. There were steep and technical hills along with twists and turns that required a lot of transition skiing.”
With many skiers donning multiple layers and face tape to brave the elements, the men began the day by racing a qualifier. Qualifying in the top position was Zak Ketterson of Team Birkie, clocking in at 3:04.79. Peter Holmes, racing for the Sun Valley Gold Team, was second in 3:05.51 and Etienne Hebert, a Canadian skier, qualified third in 3:06.20. Also moving through to the heats was Adam Martin (Craftsbury GRP), placing 15th in 3:14.89 and Reid Goble (BSF Pro) in 17th in 3:15.66.
After the quarterfinal heats, Ketterson continued his strong start to the day, placing first in his heat and moving through to the semifinals. Goble also moved on, placing second in a stacked quarterfinal heat that produced both lucky losers. Tripping up and suffering a fall and broken pole, Martin was unable to advance out of his quarterfinal heat. Following the semifinal heats, Ketterson advanced to the finals. Goble, finishing fourth in his semifinal, was just two seconds from earning a lucky loser position in the final.
The final ended up being a scramble for the top spot, as a pack of four fought for positioning up the final climb. Ketterson took a slight advantage over the top of the climb and down the descent into the stadium, holding off his challengers through the finish line and clocking in at 3:04.71. The race for second came down to the wire, as Holmes battled Bill Harmeyer (SMST2) and Hebert. Despite Harmeyer’s powerful finishing speed, Holmes just edged out Harmeyer for second place in 3:05.43, finishing just 0.72 seconds behind Ketterson. Harmeyer was a hair behind in third in 3:05.63, closely followed by Hebert in 3:05.69.
Ketterson, who is back in the US after racing the Tour de Ski, reflects on the weekend as a whole, “This past weekend in Lake Placid provided me some really encouraging feedback on how my body is doing. I have been struggling with feeling super tired since the Tour finished. To have the energy to put down some solid results in Lake Placid was a really nice feeling. I’m looking forward to hopefully feeling even better as time goes on.”
In the women’s sprint qualifier, Katharine Ogden of SMST2 had the fastest qualifying time of the day, finishing in 3:40.49. The second fastest skier in qualifying was Lauren Jortberg of BSF Pro. Ava Thurston, a junior U18 skier from Mansfield Nordic Club, threw down an impressive third place in 3:46.53. Rosie Frankowski of APU was close behind in fourth in 3:47.15. Alayna Sonnesyn placed sixth in 3:48.83. Also qualifying in the top 30 and moving through to heats were Margie Freed (CGRP) in ninth in 3:52.35, Hannah Rudd (BSF Pro) in 11th in 3:53.22, Julie Ensrud (Team Birkie) in 19th in 3:59.75, Sarah Goble (SVSEF Gold) in 25th in 4:02.45, Michaela Keller-Miller (CGRP) in 28th in 4:04.77, and Ingrid Thyr (Team Birkie) in 29th in 4:05.67.
The women’s quarterfinal heats saw many race favorites moving through easily to the semifinals. Rudd, Frankowski, and Sonnesyn all advanced by finishing in the top two of their heats, and Freed moved through in a lucky loser position. Skiing a blazing fast semifinal heat, Sonnesyn and Frankowski both clinched a spot in the final. Rudd was hot on their heels, but placed fifth in her semifinal, ending her day. Freed fought to fifth place in the second semifinal.
The final was a showdown between Ogden, Becca Rorabough (APU), Sonnesyn, Frankowski, Jortberg, and Erika Flowers (BSF Pro). The field remained neck in neck through the initial stages of the race, forcing the skiers to remain composed to avoid any trip-ups. Ogden used the final hill as a chance to pull away, surging ahead and forming a gap. Ogden’s quickening pace was no match for the rest of the heat, and she was able to maintain her lead across the finish, racing to a time of 3:40.13. Rorabough charged down the final downhill and homestretch, earning a second-place finish in 3:43.53. Sonnesyn was right behind in third in 3:44.42 and Frankowski, furiously double poling on the outside, powered to fourth in 3:44.87.
The classic sprint marked Sonnesyn’s first SuperTour back in the US after racing the Tour de Ski and training in Europe afterward. She reflects on her sprint day, “I’m feeling very pleased with how I performed today. The Tour de Ski was far from what I was hoping for and about a week later I got sick with Covid. It really took me out for another week or so - I was quite sick! I wasn't able to train or race much this past month, so I was hopeful but also skeptical going into this weekend. It was fun to wake up the body and get racing again in such a fun environment even despite the cold! Excited for more SuperTour racing!”
Racing continued Sunday morning with a 10-kilometer skate race for both the men and the women. The course consisted of three laps of a 3.3-kilometer course, utilizing the sprint course and additional terrain that featured considerable climbing. Morning temperatures of -15 degrees Fahrenheit were no deterrence for the racers, but a 30-minute race delay was required for temperatures to reach a safe level by race start.
The women’s mass start took off first, led from the gun by Frankowski. Frankowksi set a relentless pace from the start, almost immediately forming a gap that continued to grow through the first half of the race. After the first lap, Frankowski held a nearly 24 second lead over the next skier. Sonnesyn, who chose to take a “more conservative approach to the day,” started with the chase pack to save energy and benefit from the pack’s draft. However, after realizing she felt good, Sonnesyn broke away on the climb on the second lap.
Focusing on maintaining her lead over the chase pack behind her, Sonnesyn said, “I kept the pace pretty hot, but so did Rosie and I didn't really think I had a chance to gain on her until I reached the top of the big climb on the final lap and realized it just might be possible. I skied the downhills and transitions as well as I possibly could and tried to get every inch of glide my skis would give me. The cheering on the final climb is what helped me believe in myself. It really got me up that hill and into Rosie's draft on the final descent so I could make one final move in the last 200 meters. It was so fun to have such a big crowd back out there racing and cheering!”
After spending the latter half of the race trying to close Frankowski’s early lead, Sonnesyn surprised even herself by coming from behind for the win in 28:57.1. Frankowski nearly held off Sonnesyn, crossing the line in second in 29:00.8. Frankowski’s teammate, Rorabough, rounded out the podium in 29:33.7. Finishing in the top 10, Rudd skied to eighth place in 29:50.1. Freed finished 11th in 30:48.7, Goble was 14th in 30:58.4, Keller-Miller placed 15th in 30:58.7, and Ensrud was 19th in 32:47.4.
The men’s 10-kilometer mass start began with a far larger pack than in the women’s race. As skiers scrambled for positions in the first kilometer, there were several crashes and broken poles. Finn O’Connell, of BSF Pro, led much of the first two laps, with the remaining skiers in the lead pack trading positions throughout. Martin and Ketterson were in the mix from the start, skiing toward the front of the pack and taking turns leading at times.
The race did not begin to break apart until the uphill section on the final lap. Johnny Hagenbuch, of Sun Valley Gold, made a move, showing off his strong uphill skiing. At the 6.6-kilometer split, the top 12 skiers were still within two seconds. After 9-kilometers, Hagenbuch had gained a nearly 20-second lead over his competitors. Hagenbuch would ultimately cross the line unchallenged in 24:35.3, as the remaining skiers battled for second place.
Martin, who surged up the final climb, created a small gap that he was able to hold to the finish, finishing second in 24:46.9. Peter Wolter (SVSEF Gold) placed third in 24:49.1. O’Connell ended the day in fourth in 24:50.2. Ketterson held onto the sixth position in 24:55.4. Goble finished in 16th place in 26:02.7.
The SuperTour continues its stay on the East Coast, moving to the Craftsbury Outdoor Center in Craftsbury, Vermont this upcoming weekend. The three-day race weekend will involve a skate sprint on Friday and a pursuit-style race with a 10-kilometer classic race on Saturday and a 10-kilometer skate race on Sunday.
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About the author... Michaela Keller-Miller, a graduate of Wayzata High School and the University of Alaska Anchorage, skis for the Green Racing Project based out of Craftsbury, Vermont. Her ideal day would probably involve a long trail run followed by a stack of pancakes with maple syrup and a chai latte. |