CRAFTSBURY — Conditions are constantly changing in Nordic skiing but race results can be painfully predictable.
There’s an established pecking order to most packs of athletes, and multi-year dynasties have become commonplace in Vermont.
This winter the Montpelier girls and Craftsbury boys are ready to shake things up and prove there’s a first time for everything.
The Solons and Chargers have never captured a skiing title, but they both celebrated the first day of winter with impressive victories during Tuesday’s season-opening race at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center.
The Montpelier girls produced five finishers in the top 16 while coasting to a 26-point victory over runner-up St. Johnsbury. On the boys’ side, four competitors cracked the top-10 for Craftsbury to clinch a 13-point win over second-place Montpelier.
Solons junior Sage Grossi won the 5-kilometer freestyle race in 10 minutes, 57.1 seconds, while Burlington’s Lillian Connolly (12:19.3) prevailed by nearly a minute in the girls event.
“My eighth-grade year I think the Montpelier team had only two skiers or something,” Grossi said. “And then my freshman year we came into it and there was a bunch of us in that class. And ever since then it’s been pretty good.”
The Solons aren’t exactly an overnight success story after steadily building numbers at the youth level for many years. But for decades they’ve been accustomed to finishing far behind neighboring U-32, which boasts four straight boys titles and captured three of the past four girls championships.
A changing of the guard may be inevitable this winter, as the Raiders graduated their five male skiers and several of their fastest girls.
“Montpelier is coming up in all the sports and they have a good posse,” U-32 coach Andrew Tripp said. “What we have done for years, they are now emulating. And they have a really vibrant middle school (program), both on the running and skiing side. So they’re now starting to see those kids make it into high school. Montpelier girls this year — and boys — I think are both going to be at the front end of races. …Sage will be one of the best — if not the best — guy in D-II. But some of those other guys are going to be strong as well.”
U-32’s fall, winter and spring reign in endurance sports has been dizzying. The Raiders recently captured their seventh consecutive boys cross country running title, while the boys track and field program claimed championships during eight of the past nine years.
The Craftsbury boys haven’t quite matched U-32’s accomplishments, but their three-sport dominance has been strikingly similar. The Chargers raised the banner from their third straight Division III cross country running title before Tuesday night’s boys basketball game. The Charger boys are also the defending champs in D-IV track and field and the two-time defending runners-up in Nordic.
Coach Eric Hanson’s team suffered an off-season blow with the departure of standouts Charlie Krebs and Leo Circosta. Krebs is now skiing for St. Johnsbury, while Circosta is an independent athlete representing Hazen. However, the return to Cormac Leahy, Charlie Kehler, Alan Moody and Silas Hunt could easily be enough to dethrone the Raiders.
The Chargers’ toughest competitor is likely to be Middlebury, which capped a three-peat in 2018. Woodstock rattled off six straight titles form 2010-15, while Peoples won three in a row from 2007-09.
Leahy led the way for the Chargers on Tuesday, placing fourth in 11:39.8. Kehler (fifth, 11:57), Moody (eighth, 12:27.5) and Hunt (10th, 12:41.2) were close behind.
“We’ve got Cormac Leahy, who’s focussing a lot on running because that’s really his first love,” Hanson said. “So we’re getting him into racing shape and today was his second speed workout. So that will be fun to get him going. And we’ve got Alan Moody, who really looked strong today. And then we’ve got a new skier Silas (Hunt). He’s only been skiing for a few years and he has just really taken off, for not being a longtime skier. So that will be really good. And then Charlie Kehler: He just really took off at the end of last season for skiing with a top-10 at states as a ninth-grader. And now I think he’s ready to be right in there with everybody.”
Sam Brondyke (11th, 12:51.4), Luke Murphy (12th, 12:54.7) and Steven Supan (16th, 13:05.9) scored points for Montpelier along with Grossi. They were followed by teammates Ezra Merrill-Triplett (20th, 13:38.3), Jay Borland (35th, 15:01), Dylan Bacon (41st, 15:34.6) and Tyler Bacon (53rd, 16:52.2).
The Solons cross country running team was two points away from upsetting U-32 at the state meet last fall, and many of those same athletes carried a strong fitness base over to skiing. With Grossi leading the way, Montpelier will attempt to compete at the top level alongside Craftsbury and Middlebury.
“I’ve been really excited to see how (Grossi) has kind of rededicated himself to the sport,” Solons coach Brian Carlson said. “He’s really put in a lot of hours training in the summer and fall and he’s really gung-ho this season. So I’m excited to see what he does, and of course it’s great to have him up front for the other boys to have as a role model and to chase. I’m excited for him for the season because he looks like he’s in good form.”
The Harwood boys placed third in a 10-team field. The Highlanders relied on speedy times from Indy Metcalf (sixth, 11:59.4), Atticus Ellis (21st, 13:38.9), Callum MacCurtain (22nd, 13:39.9) and Trent Jordan (30th, 14:40).
The Montpelier girls stole the show while beating six other teams, with Sara McGill placing third in 13:28.1. Meg Voisin (fifth, 13:29.2), Clare Pritchard (13th, 14:45.2) and Marie Voisin (14th, 14:48.8) rounded out the scoring for the Solons. Teammates Anja Rand (16th, 15:01.9), Miriam Serota-Winston (29th, 16:34.6) and Amani Suter (32nd, 17:04.4) also showcased solid early-season technique.
“It’s been great — we have a really big team this year,” Carlson said. “There’s a bunch of new kids, but then a lot coming back from last year. So it’s really exciting to see them. This is their first race for most of them. I’m really impressed with how they’re doing, even though they haven’t been on snow much. A handful of skiers go through the Craftsbury program, so they’re skiing really well already. But everyone else looked good today for their first real day of effort on snow. I’m looking forward to the season.”
The Solons’ Nordic team and the school’s cross cross country running squad boasted strong numbers several decades ago before teetering on the edge of extinction. It’s been a rags-to-riches tale during the past few years in the Capital City, with the two programs enjoying a return to glory.
“We’ve really seen a huge growth,” Carlson said. “It went from three years ago when we had only two or three kids on the team, and now we have around 35 signed up. So it’s a huge difference. And then with Dan Voisin and the middle school program, there’s another 35-plus kids there. So it bodes well for lots of good kids coming up and learning in middle school and already having the basics down when they get into high school. So that makes it fun to work with them when they’ve already got the basics down and then they really can take off.”
Last week’s snowstorm blanketed Montpelier in fluffy powder, allowing Carlson’s team to get out on some groomed trails in the area. After multiple weeks of dryland training, it was a long-awaited treat for the Solons to finally take advantage of Mother Nature’s offerings.
“That’s definitely the challenge: keeping the kids interested when we’re not able to do any skiing,” Carlson said. “But we mix it up as much as we can between running and strength. We get into the gym a couple days a week. We run with and without poles. We do a lot of leg work with bounding and agility work. So I think it’s kept kids engaged for those couple of weeks. And hopefully now — fingers crossed — we can be on snow for awhile and we don’t have to go back to that.”
With rain expected Friday, the Solons may face limited options to ski again during the holiday break. But unlike many other schools, the team is fortunate to have multiple local venues with tracks set when conditions improve in January and February.
“We’re hoping to use the golf course quite a bit — the old Montpelier Elks Club,” Carlson said. “That’s probably our go-to place when there’s good snow. But also getting over to U-32. They’re nice and let us join in on their trails whenever we need another place to ski. And some of the old Morse Farm trails. Once we get enough snow, we like to use those too to get out in the woods. And then we’ve got a little bit at the high school. There’s no terrain there, so it limits what we can do. But it’s good for a quick ski anyway.”
The U-32 girls wound up fourth while competing without standout Olivia Serrano. The Raiders’ top finishers were Claire Serrano (seventh, 13:54.9), Amy Felice (15th, 14:52.8), Jane Miller-Arsenault (20th, 15:42.3) and Avery Ryan (21st, 15:43.7).
Harwood finished sixth while racing without top gun Julia Thurston. Maisie Franke (10th, 14:22.3), Tessa Jernigan (25th, 16:01.3), Rowan Clough (26th, 16:14.5) and Hadley Andersen (36th, 17:13.3) provided solid depth for the Highlanders.
Hazen’s Leo Circosta (11:19.9) was second in the boys race. His younger sister Amelia (13:29.5) was sixth in the girls event, while Craftsbury’s Anika Leahy (13:28.7) was fourth.
Most local racers will return to action when the three-stage Tour de Chittenden kicks off Jan. 5 at Sleepy Hollow.
“My favorite racing is with the high school kids and the middle school kids because everyone is learning and they’re just having a great time and supportive of each other,” Hanson said. “It’s the first race of the season. And for some of these kids it’s their second time on snow — maybe even their first. And it’s good to do it before the holidays.”