Glacier Nordic skiers ranked in top 5

Jack Steele and Connor Gray each moved

up in the InterMountain Nordic division rankings with strong

results at the Junior National super qualifier last week at Soldier

Hollow in Utah. The two Glacier Nordic Club skiers are ranked No. 5

in their age groups.

Steele finished 10th overall in the 15K

classic among MJ1 and MJO skiers from all over the U.S. Since the

race was a super qualifier, five divisions were represented instead

of just the InterMountain.

“There were 650 kids racing,” Glacier

Nordic coach Robin Brooks said. “It was a very different field than

they’re accustomed to. It’s more like it will be at Nationals.”

Steele was in the lead pack of skiers

for the first 2 1/2 laps of the 15K but faded a touch in the final

push to finish 10th. The strong race helped position the senior

comfortably on InterMountain Nationals team, Brooks noted.

Gray started the sprint races on fire

by taking second overall in the opening round. He was strong in the

quarterfinals, too, before a pesky hill took its toll on his

results. In the semifinals, he fell on the big climb, and a

competitor’s ski hit him in the ribs and cut him. He was unable to

get up in time to catch the leaders of the A finals.

The fall put him in the B finals, which

started a few minutes later. The cut to his torso was giving him

problems breathing, Brooks said, and during the race he lost a ski

pole basket on the same hill he fell on.

“He started the day fantastic,” Brooks

said. “Considering his misfortunes, he did really well. Those

things are just part of sprint racing — it happens all the

time.”

Fischer Gangemi made a good run in the

15K classic to finish 28th overall. He started in the back of the

pack and managed to move up by passing a number of racers, Brooks

said.

“Fischer had a bad seed but was able to

work his way up, which is really hard to do,” Brooks said. “Fischer

is a distance skier for sure.”

The classic races were held on the same

course used in the 2002 Winter Olympics. To pass in a classic race,

skiers must jump out of their lane and into another or yell “track”

to have the skier in front get out of the way. Most of the Soldier

Hollow course has 2-4 lanes for passing.

The team will travel to Sun Valley,

Idaho, this week for the final junior qualifier race of the season.

The event features distance-skate races and a mass 5K classic, with

start positions determined by rankings.

“You’re standing next to racers above

and below you in the rankings,” Brooks said. “It gives you instant

feedback about where you are in the group.”

Stella Holt will likely join the team

in Sun Valley if she makes her flight back from the Scando Cup in

Sweden.