click to enlarge Noah Brautigam. (Sue Halpern photos)

Midway through the final carnival of the year...

click to enlarge

Due to miserable weather and a bleak forecast impacting racing on both
the cross country and alpine side, we're forced to push back the carnival to
Saturday / Sunday.


We hoped and held out for the best, but the massive snow followed by warm and rain last night has put us in a situation in which we know we can’t provide a good track on both the Nordic an Alpine venues. The weather forecast listed below also suggests that we will have difficulty running the lift if indeed the winds blow from the east at 50 to 60 mph, regardless of the potential for more snow and rain. We have groomers working on both venues and will do everything we can to provide a quality event. Please adjust your travel and lodging plans accordingly



We apologize for the late notice. The FIS slalom (non-carnival event) previously scheduled for Sunday will be canceled.



The new schedule will be as follows.



Friday, February 26th

4:30 pm Team Captains meeting in Kirk Alumni Center

6 pm Banquet in Pepin Gymnasium



Saturday, February 27th

Alpine

9:30 AM Men’s 1st run slalom followed immediately by Women

12:30pm Men’s 2nd run slalom followed immediately by Women



Nordic

10:00 AM Men’s 10k Classic, Individual Start

11:30 AM Women’s 5k Classic, Individual Start





Sunday, February 27th – Previously Schedule FIS slalom -race is cancelled

Alpine

9:30 AM Women’s 1st run giant slalom followed immediately by men.

12:30 PM Women’s 2nd run giant slalom followed immediately by men.



Nordic

10:00 AM Women’s 15k Skate Mass Start

11:30 AM Men’s 20k Skate Mass Start



est. 3:00 PM Exhibition Sprint at Snow Bowl



Awards

To follow Saturday’s events at Middlebury College Snow Bowl





Weather forecast for Thursday and Friday.



THE HIGHER SUMMITS FORECAST FOR VERMONT AND NORTHERN NEW YORK...

.TODAY...SUMMITS OBSCURED IN CLOUDS. A CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS THIS MORNING...THEN
SNOW OR RAIN SHOWERS THIS AFTERNOON. HIGHS 31 TO 37. SOUTHEAST
WINDS 35 TO 45 MPH...INCREASING TO 45 TO 55 MPH IN THE AFTERNOON.
.TONIGHT...SUMMITS OBSCURED IN CLOUDS WITH SNOW OR RAIN SHOWERS IN
THE EVENING...THEN SNOW SHOWERS OVERNIGHT. LOWS 23 TO 28. EAST WINDS
70 TO 80 MPH.
.FRIDAY...SUMMITS OBSCURED IN CLOUDS WITH SNOW SHOWERS LIKELY.
HIGHS 25 TO 30. EAST WINDS 50 TO 60 MPH...DECREASING TO 35 TO 45 MPH
IN THE AFTERNOON.

click to enlarge

Patty gave me a Magic 8 Ball for Christmas. I should have been consulting all season but in getting ready for Carnival, it seemed like a logical place to look for answers about the coming storm.




Middlebury Skiing: Thanks for meeting with us today. There's a lot going on out there and we're psyched to chat. First question: Is carnival going to come off well?

Magic 8 Ball: Outlook good.

Middlebury Skiing: So this weather. We spent the last three weeks gathering snow..shoveling, making snow, and now, of course, we get a big dump. Did you see this coming?

Magic 8 Ball: Yes.

Middlebury Skiing: Where were you earlier??!! So what can we expect? Are we going to have some firm tracks on Friday?

Magic 8 Ball: Reply Hazy. Try again.

Middlebury Skiing: Yes- 'hazy' is one way to describe it. There's a ton of snow out there. OK How about this? Can we expect much more snow?

Magic 8 Ball: Outlook Good.

Middlebury Skiing: Well we're pretty fired up for the weekend. Thanks for checking in. Will you be coming out to watch the carnival?

Magic 8 Ball: Signs point to yes.

click to enlarge Sophie McClelland, Midd Carnival, 2008.

Friday marks the end of the regular college season for better or worse. Worse because this has been an amazing year and the brutal reality of the college schedules, NCAAs and life pressing forward means that the team won't be the same again. The way our lives have been organized since last September will abruptly come to an end. Better because without an end, the things we do wouldn't have significance. Finality makes every experience more important. There are a limited number of bibs.
It's easy to get sucked into the excitement of our only home game. To think of our friends seeing us, pushing us, to have the home advantage on our trails, but there's also a grounding reality to this weekend: We've got work to do. One of the best parts of skiing is how the last races of a racing year stretch into the summer's motivation and following season's early efforts. Right now, we're still skiing on the stoke from last year's Middlebury carnival. That's pretty cool.

It's snowing in Ripton as I write this. (No doubt those flakes would have held off had we failed to blow snow and shovel in preparation for the big event...so thanks to our crew.) We're going to have an epic carnival and while not everyone can race, everyone will be there.

Come out and support the Middlebury Ski Team this weekend.

The Midd Carnival team:

Men:

Noah Brautigam
Doug Debold
Chase Marston
Dylan Grald
Graham Egan
Patrick Johnson

Women:

Claire Luby
Dana Tower
Cate Brown
Keely Levins
Corinne Prevot
Lauren Fritz

click to enlarge From left: Spencer Paxson, Tim Reynolds, Simi Hamilton, Garrot Kuzzy, Chris Rodgers.

These photos prove it. If there were a medal for crowds, the Midd alums would take it. There isn't however. Instead they get their own dedicated marshall. Congrats all around.

That would be a marshal posted right in front of the rowdiest fans at the Olympics. Strong work, crew. Strong work.

Links and Resources

Head Nordic Coach

Andrew Gardner

Gardner enters his fourth season at the helm of the men's and women's nordic ski teams. He came to Middlebury from Colorado Rocky Mountain School (CRMS) in Carbondale, Colo where he was Nordic Program Director. Since coming to New England, he acted as the wax tech for the 2008 Junior National Team, a coach at regional development camps and serves on the U23 NENSA board. Gardner is the coordinator for sustainability in athletics, serving on the college's environmental council. In the summer he enjoys road racing for the MetLife cycling team.

agardner@middlebury.edu

o: 802.443.5963

Assistant Nordic Coach

Patty Ross

Now entering her 23rd year as a full-time coach of Middlebury nordic skiing, Patty came to the College after four years of world-class competition. She was one of five American women nordic skiers to compete in the Sarajevo Olympics in 1984; she also competed internationally with the U.S. national team from 1983 to 1986. Patty graduated from the University of New Hampshire, where she was an All-East collegiate skier and captain of the Wildcat team. While at UNH, Patty competed in the World University Games in Sofia, Bulgaria. As a coach for the International Special Olympic Games, Patty received a Distinguished Service Award in 1984. She acted as a coach for the U23/ World Junior Championships in Italy in 2008.

o: 802.443.5006

Team Archives