Unique UMFK program seeks aspiring biathletes

FORT KENT – Knowledgeable biathlon-watchers will tell you that becoming a world-class athlete in the ski-and-shoot sport takes time.

Even accomplished skiers can take as long as 10 years to peak after taking up biathlon.

And even if an athlete picks up biathlon early in life, there are “obstacles” to their development. Among those: Education. Those who choose college over their sport – a choice even diehard biathletes would be hard-pressed to criticize – often have to give up serious competition in biathlon, and opt for collegiate Nordic skiing instead.

Not any more.

According to Andy Shepard, the CEO of the Maine Winter Sports Center, as many as 10 people a year can take advantage of a program designed to allow topnotch biathletes to train in Fort Kent, as well as gain a college education.

Scholarships are common in other sports, but in biathlon, which is not contested on the collegiate level through the NCAA, inventive solutions have been a necessity.

“We approached the University of Maine at Fort Kent as a partner a couple years ago, trying to develop the partnership further, understanding that we have a world-class Nordic venue in Fort Kent, the university is trying to attract new students, and we could develop a unique program in the United States that would attract athletes and would attract people to the campus and the community,” Shepard said.

The result: A unique scholarship program that links UMFK and the Maine Winter Sports Center, and provides an educational option for aspiring biathletes.

“They gave us 10 scholarships that we could make available to our athletes,” Shepard said. “We would recommend those athletes to the university and the university would then make sure that they had the academic standards.”

Among those taking advantage of that opportunity are U.S. national team members Lanny and Tracy Barnes, twins who spend much of their off time in Fort Kent, training or going to class. Shepard said only a few athletes are taking advantage of the program right now.

During much of the summer and the fall, Lanny Barnes said she lives in the 10th Mountain Lodge – media headquarters during this week’s World Cup races.

Shepard said student-athletes face a substantial challenge, and most opt to attend college on a part-time basis.

“It’s almost impossible to be a full-time student and to go after aspirations of making an Olympic team in biathlon. The discipline in biathlon is so intense, it doesn’t allow for both full-time college curriculum and full-time biathlon,” Shepard said.

“But what this program does is that in periods of the year when athletes might have some additional time available, it gives them a chance to take some courses, to keep their education going,” he said. “And as a result, allows them to continue with biathlon.”

Slippery slope solved

Spectators who headed to the 10th Mountain Center at the Maine Winter Sports Complex for Tuesday’s U.S. Junior Biathlon Championships may have wondered how the much larger throng would fare when World Cup activity took center stage later in the week.

The problem: The snow-covered path into the venue – which all spectators would have to travel – was getting very slippery.

Though it had been sanded, the snowy path had turned to ice, and the slope of the path got tougher and tougher to navigate as the weather got warmer, and as drizzle began to fall. Slips and stumbles became common, and a potentially dangerous situation had arisen.

Organizers of the Ruhrgas IBU World Cup Biathlon scrambled to make sure spectators were on firm footing when they arrived Wednesday morning. Two tons of crushed stone and 20 bales of straw were spread on the path.

And when the majority of the thousands of eager biathlon fans arrived … they were able to make their way into the stadium.

U.S. athletes tailored training

The U.S. athletes competing on the biathlon World Cup tour this year trained with an eye on the end of the season.

That’s because the eighth and ninth Cup stops were scheduled in Lake Placid and Fort Kent, respectively.

“We did that for sure to have good results at the two U.S. Cups,” said Jill Krause-Beste, who trains in Underhill, Vt. and finished 51st in Wednesday’s 7.5-kilometer sprint race. “A lot of our training we didn’t start until later this year, the focusing and intensity part of it. So that kind of helps us later on in the season. So I felt I would do better at the end of the season this year rather than last year.”

The World Cup tour started in Kontiolakti, Finland, on Dec. 4 and stopped in Hochfilzen in Austria, Brezno-Osrblie in Slovakia, Bled-Pokljuka in Slovenia, Ruhpolding in Germany, Antholz in Italy, Oberhof in Germany and then on to the U.S.

Beste had been to Fort Kent for some training but had never competed at the course. Consensus is that the hills aren’t too bad, but the twists and turns make it tough.

“It’s not tough as far as the climbing but it’s all the corners and transitions,” she said after coming off the course after the sprint. “I mean, you can make up so much time if you know how to ski well. You can also lose a lot of time. So it’s difficult because you’re constantly pushing yourself and having to work.”