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PRESQUE ISLE – “There’s always next season.”
It’s safe to say almost every athlete in any sport has thought or uttered these words after a season of competition reveals there just might be room for improvement.
There’s always next season. Unless, of course, you are a cross-country skier and have made your way to Maine Winter Sports Center’s Nordic Heritage ski area. In this case, there’s still this season.
Recent warm temperatures, fog and even rain did little to dampen the venue’s ability to draw top-level athletes from throughout North America to the Nordic Heritage Spring Series races, which conclude today.
“I’m originally from Canmore, Alberta [Canada],” said Devon Kershaw after winning the men’s sprint competition, “but I’ve been training in Ontario, and I thought it was nice snow there, but this is the best snow I’ve seen all year. And it’s March!”
“It’s a beautiful thing,” added Kris Cheney-Seymour, MWSC’s biathlon development coach.
“Skiers have come here to get in one last race, and maybe take home some prize money before they put their skis away. And they’ve realized that barring a heat wave, we’ve got a substantial amount of skiing left to do here in the County,” Cheney-Seymour said.
The prize money Cheney-Seymour referred to is also substantial. The top five finishers in the men’s and women’s divisions in each of four races will take home a $16,800 by the end of the event.
Kershaw, a Canadian National Ski Team member, and fellow Canmore, Alberta, native Rhonda Sandau, racing for the first time in northern Maine, finished first in the men’s and women’s 1-kilometer sprints Thursday. They each earned $1,000.
“I’m very impressed with this facility,” said a jubilant Sandau after winning the Women’s final, “and I love this course!”
In each of her three qualifying heats, as she did in the final, Sandau jumped out to a sizable early lead and won easily.
“I always want to get out [in front] first,” she said, “because then I control the race.”
Fort Kent’s Kelsy Bouchard, putting the finishing touches on her breakthrough season, won $200 for her fourth-place performance.
In the men’s sprint final, Kershaw utilized some “great tactical decisions” to win narrowly over Andy Newell of the U.S. Ski Team’s development squad. Newell is the top-ranked junior skier in the world.
MWSC’s Dave Chamberlain finished third and teammate Tim Burke won the consolation heat for fifth overall.
On Saturday, Team Atomic’s Patrick Weaver received $1,000 for winning the men’s 10K classic in a time of 28 minutes, 51.4 seconds, while MWSC’s Dave Stewart was third (29:23.9). Chamberlain missed his second payday of the event by just 4.6 seconds, finishing in sixth (30:00.8).
Jacqui Benson of the Caledonia (Vt.) Nordic Ski Team won the women’s 5K classic in a time of 16:38.2. MWSC’s top finisher was Chelsae Jarvis of Presque Isle (16th, 20:06.43).
On Sunday, Weaver earned his second first place by taking the men’s 15K freestyle (38:39.2) and upping his prize money to $2,000. Stewart finished third again.
Former Olympian Dorcas Wonsavage of Rumford skied to a first-place finish in the women’s 10K freestyle (29:03.9), while Bouchard was the top MWSC finisher (16th, 34:12).
The Nordic Heritage Spring Series ends today with the men’s 30K and women’s 15K classic races.
Mark Shea can be reached via e-mail at shea@cariboumaine.org.
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