Whitefish telemark skiers place high at Selkirk Classic

Local telemark racers competed at the Selkirk Classic at Schweitzer Mountain on Jan. 21-22 and placed well in the two-day event.

The Sprint Classic race, which consists of a combination of the giant slalom, a Nordic jump and a Nordic skate section, was held on Saturday.

U.S. National Team member Heidi Fehlhaber placed first in the Women's Elite division. Jef Elliot placed second, Eric Lamb fourth, David Hobbs seventh, Tony Troiano eighth and Austin Troiano was 10th in the men's elite division.

Eric Lamb and David Hobbs are both US National Team members.

The giant slalom was held on Sunday, and Kelsey Schmid-Sommer, of Whitefish, was the winner of the women's elite division, with Heidi Fehlhaber placing second.

In the men's elite division, Eric Lamb lead the local racers with a fourth place finish, Peter McMahon was fifth, Jef Elliot seventh, David Hobbs eighth, Tony Troiano ninth and Austin Troiano was 11th.

In the junior division, Willie Hobbs was the winner.

Local racer Glenn Gustafson, member of the U.S. National Team, has attended World Cup races in Slovenia, Switzerland and France during January and has consistently placed within the top 10-19, competing against the best racers in the world. He will be returning home while team members Eric Lamb and David Hobbs travel to Norway to race in two World Cup series Jan. 29- Feb. 4.

Big Mountain will host the U.S. Nationals and Citizens Telemark Race on March 17-18. Locals are invited to race or to visit Big Mountain to watch the best U.S. racers, as well as some of the European racers, compete.

For more information, visit online at www.ustsa.org, www.big-mountain.com and www.telemarkski.org.