Local XC skiers place in nationals

Erik Anderson and Ian Mallams, two junior cross-country ski racers on the Glacier Nordic Ski Team, returned home with respectable results after attending the Senior Nationals Cross-country Championships in Houghton, Mich., this past week.

Anderson, 17, is a junior and Mallams, 17, is a senior at Whitefish High School. They both competed last year at the Junior Nationals Championship in Houghton.

The two raced against some of the best cross-country skiers in the nation, including members of the U.S. National Team, U.S. Olympic Team and the majority of the NCAA college racers.

Although they were up against the older league, they also skied against the top J-1 men and 16- and 17-year-olds in the nation, battling for a spot on the U.S. cross-country junior team, which will compete in Sweden this February at the Scandinavian Cup.

Only the top-six of the J-1 men who qualify can be invited to join this team. Anderson and Mallams qualified in the fourth and sixth positions to attend the race.

With a field of 260 junior and senior men, their results were: 10K classic — Anderson, sixth in J-1 and 80th overall; Mallams, ninth in J-1 and 90th overall; 15K freestyle/skate — Anderson, seventh in J-1 and 80th overall; Mallams, second in J-1 and 58th overall; 1.3K classic sprint — Anderson, fourth in J-1; Mallams, eighth in J-1. For more results, visit online at www.seniornationals.org.

A fund account has been set up at the Whitefish Credit Union for local junior cross-country skiers, ages 19-and-younger, who qualify for international races only, to aid them with travel fees and expenses. Make checks payable to The Nordic XC International Travel Fund for Juniors and send to Whitefish Credit Union, P.O. Box 37, Whitefish MT 59937.