[GRP Ski] US Nationals: Recap from Classic Races
Written by GRP Skier Michaela Keller-Miller
Celebrating a great day for the GRP women after the distance classic.
The 2022 US Cross Country Ski Championships at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center in Midway, Utah wrapped up Friday with a classic sprint. The day before the classic sprints, athletes toed the line for an interval start classic race. These final two races marked the culmination of a packed week of racing, and the skiers who were able to push through fatigue and rapidly changing weather saw success in the back half of the week.
On Thursday, light rain from the day before carried into race morning, making for klister conditions that deteriorated throughout the day. The women started first with a 10 kilometerinterval start race that used the same 3.3 kilometer course from the women’s mass start on Tuesday. By the first starter, the drizzle had mostly subsided, and skiers were left to battle the climbs and the clock. The race of the day went to Caitlin Patterson of the Craftsbury Green Racing Project (CGRP), who started strong and pushed through the finish to earn the win in 28:12.0 with an impressive victory margin of 53 seconds. Patterson’s win brings her total number of national championship titles to an astounding 11. The fight for the remaining places was closer, but Katharine Ogden of SMST2showed her prowess to finish in second place in 29:05.4. Mariah Bredal of BSF Pro rounded out the podium with a time of 29:13.2. Alex Lawson (CGRP), continuing her strong week of racing, skied to fifth place in 29:34.5. Margie Freed (CGRP) was 12th in 30:07.2, Annika Landis tied for 14th in 30:14.0, and Michaela Keller-Miller (CGRP) finished 17th in 30:34.9.
Patterson charging to the win in the classic 10 kilometer race. Credit: Jackie Schneider.
Patterson checks in after an outstanding week, “Thursday’s 10k classic was an excellent race for me and I’m very happy with it, both the results and the race feelings. I skied my own race, starting hard but able to keep pushing the pace throughout and reeling in bibs ahead of me. Skis were great- shoutout to the GRP wax crew for excellent kick and glide!”
Following the women’s classic distance race, the men took to the course for a 15 kilometer interval start. The race consisted of six laps of the 3.75 kilometer course. By the men’s start, temperatures had risen, and the tracks had begun to break down. The day’s conditions were no match for Adam Martin of the Craftsbury Green Racing Project, who followed his teammate C. Patterson’s lead with a dominant performance. Skiing smooth and powerful throughout, Martin claimed the victory in 39:18.0. The next fastest skier to cover the course was Tuesday’s winner Scott Patterson (APU) in 40:06.9. Following close behind was JC Schoonmaker of the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) in 40:10.9. Finishing in the top 15, Akeo Maifeld-Carucci(CGRP), finessed his way to 14th place in 41:56.6. Braden Becker (CGRP) skied to 22nd place in 42:34.3.
Martin powering up a climb on his way to a national title. Credit: Linda Kerker
Reporting on his win, Martin writes, “Going into Thursday, I wanted to win, but I knew it would take many pieces falling into place to have a shot at it. I started toward the front of the A seed, so I tried to push hard from the start with the continual reminder that the fastest skiers were skiing behind me. My body responded well to the effort and my skis were good. Eventually I started hearing some back splits that I was leading, but I didn’t really believe it until I finished and saw my time hold up as the rest of the A seed came through. Now, I feel really happy that everything came together for the race!”
Caitlin in second on the classic sprint podium.
Friday brought the last day of racing at this year’s January national championships with classic sprints in downright balmy weather. The 1.5 kilometer qualification took place in the morning, and conditions drastically slowed for the heats as temperatures continued to rise, reaching 50 degrees. The men began the day’s qualification, where Schoonmaker topped the field by six seconds in 3:08.43. Peter Holmes (Sun Valley SEF) qualified in second in 3:14.85 and Andreas Kirkeng(Unviversity of Denver) was third in 3:15.00. The GRP men all finished within one second, putting up a strong fight on a challenging day. Braden Becker led the charge in 49th place in 3:33.60, Adam Martin was 51st in 3:33.81, and Akeo Maifeld-Carucci finished 52nd in 3:34.53. Following heats, the day’s podium went to Magnus Boee (University of Colorado) in first, Karl Schultz (SVSEF) in second, and Schoonmaker in third.
The women qualified following the men’s qualifier in very similar conditions. Ogden had the fastest qualifier of the day, clocking in at 3:51.79. Julia Richter (University of Utah) was second in 3:52.56 and Lauren Jortberg (BSF Pro) was third in 3:53.27. All five of the GRP women qualified for heats with Patterson leading the charge in sixth with a time of 3:58.47. Lawson qualified in 18th in 4:05.69, Landis was 20th in 4:06.15, Keller-Miller placed 21st in 4:07.59, and Freed finished 26th in 4:10.02.
As in the men’s heats, the hot temperatures and slushy tracks led to slower heat times for the women. Automatically moving through to the semifinals by winning their quarterfinal heats were Ogden in 4:55.82, Jortberg in 4:58.86, Hannah Rudd (BSF Pro) in 5:01.08, Sunday’s skate sprint winner Patterson in 4:59.34, and Sydney Palmer-Leger (University of Utah) in 4:53.00. Landis, Freed, and Lawson, qualifying second in their heats, also advanced. Keller-Miller, earning a lucky loser position based her quarterfinal time of 4:59.61, moved through to the semifinals as well.
The semifinal heats were tight, as skiers vied for a spot in the final. In semifinal one, Ogden and Patterson reigned supreme, taking the first two slots in the final. Semifinal two saw faster times than semifinal one, resulting in the top four skiers moving on. Advancing from semifinal two were Rudd, Jortberg, Freed, and Lawson. Landis and Keller-Miller placed fourth and fifth in semifinal one, respectively.
In the women’s final, the race was close from start to finish. On the first turn, Jortberg was caught in the mix and suffered an early tumble, as the remaining five skiers continued onward. Heading into the final uphill, Rudd was in the lead position. Ogden and Patterson both made a move on the outside, overtaking Rudd with a strong herringbone. Rudd, still in the fight, matched Patterson’s downhill speed, passing her back before the final turn. On the homestretch, the trio of Ogden, Rudd, and Patterson fought to the line. Ultimately, Ogden held her lead for the win in 5:01.63. Patterson, making a late pass, overtook Rudd for second place in 5:02.61 and her fourth podium finish of the week. Rudd rounded out the podium in 5:03.16. Lawson, skiing hard through the line, placed fifth and Freed finished the day in sixth place. With the addition of Landis placing eighth overall and Keller-Miller in 10th, the GRP women filled five of the top 10 places.
Next up for the GRP skiers is a SuperTour in Sun Valley, Idaho on January 15th and 16th. Expect to see many of the same racers, as they compete in both a skate and classic distance race.