Presque Isle - Nearly 500 athletes and coaches, 350 volunteers, and thousands of spectators will descend upon the Nordic Heritage Center during the next week for the 2010 USSA Cross-Country Junior Olympics.  For up to date news, results and live video visit the official event website at www.juniorolympics2010.com. 

3/06/10

Caribou, ME

A beautiful sunny day with temperatures in the 40’s greeted 110 kids from around Aroostook County on Saturday at the annual Aroostook Youth Ski Festival.  Caribou’s Northern Skiers Club in conjunction with Cary Medical Center and Maine Winter Sports Center hosted this year’s event, which included games, activities, relays and a terrain park that kept participants busy for hours. 

AUGUSTA - A bill sponsored by Rep. Mike Carey, D-Lewiston, which seeks to increase safety for roller skiers, was signed by Governor Baldacci on Tuesday.The bill, LD 1640: An Act to Provide for the Safety of Maine Athletes, will provide protections for athletes and others who engage in the sport of roller skiing.  

Otepaa, Estonia - The 2nd Annual European U26 Championships kick off tomorrow in Otepaa, Estonia. 274 athletes from 29 nations all under the age of 26, have signed up to compete in this year's competition. The US Team includes 9 athletes in both Jr. and Sr. categories.

A new and COOL way to celebrate all the ways kids can MOVE on a pair of XC skis!!  All skiing youth ages 5-14 are welcome to attend this unique HALF-DAY festival!  The entry fee is only $5 and includes snacks, parting gift and entry to all events!! 

22^nd Annual C-ME Ski Event

Aroostook Wildlife Refuge – Limestone, ME

2/28/10

With temperatures hovering around the 40-degree mark, and the threat of rain showers, the 22^nd annual C-ME Ski Event took place this past Saturday, February 27^th, at the Aroostook Wildlife Refuge in Limestone.  Jointly sponsored by the Friends of The Aroostook Wildlife Refuge and the Limestone Ski Club, the C-ME Ski drew a strong gathering of citizen skiers from the surrounding area.

The 2nd Annual Winterfest is coming right up! February 26th - 28th!

Grab the Winterfest Poster here: Winterfest_Poster2010.pdf

At the Olympics you hope to have the best race of your season, or even your life. Unfortunately this was not the case for me on Saturday.

Despite gray skies and soft snow a field of 30 competitors from around northern Maine took the trails at the Caribou Country Club this past Sunday for the 35^th annual Henry Anderson Ski Dag.  The race, overseen by the Caribou Rec Department, was a 5.4 km classical event shortened due to challenging conditions from an 8 km race. 

 The 2010 US 30km/50km Championships and SuperTour Finals are just a month away, and organizers in Madawaska and Fort Kent, Maine are preparing for an outstanding event. With ample snow at both the 4 Seasons Lodge in Madawaska and the 10^th Mountain Lodge in Fort Kent (host of 2004 and 2011 Biathlon World Cup events), competitors can expect excellent racing conditions and challenging courses. The SuperTour Finals will follow a tour-de-ski format, which will yield daily champions in a 10/7.5km classic race, a classic sprint, and a freestyle hill-climb, as well as overall champions of the three-day event. The total purse to be awarded throughout the four days of racing is $16,000.

 Fort Kent US National Team coaches will be holding a talent ID and development camp for skiers aged 14-19 in Fort Kent, March 18-21. The event will follow JO National Championships being held in Presque Isle the following week. For more details read the attached document.

 Fort Kent, Maine The 10th Mountain Center has announced the second annual Maine Biathlon Club Championships will be held during U.S. National Biathlon Championships on March 20. This is a chance for everyone who has ever had an interest in biathlon to come out and give it a shot. 

 Whistler Olympic Park—Ben Koons, of Sidney, Maine and a New Zealand citizen, along with 11 other Nordic athletes, was issued a “start prohibition” for high hemoglobin levels today, shortly after arriving at the Olympic Nordic skiing venue.  According to a statement released by the International Ski Federation (FIS) this “start prohibition is not a sanction, but is in order to protect the health of the athlete.”   Skiers with high levels are routinely suspended for five days.

Koons pursued a very aggressive three-week high-altitude training camp at over 8,000 feet just prior to his arrival in Vancouver for the Olympic Games. Koons’ high hemoglobin levels are believed to be a result of his extended stay at this altitude. Following the suspension period, athletes are retested and allowed to start if hemoglobin levels have returned to within the limits set by the FIS.

“Ben clearly would have been better off staying with the more typical 10-day altitude plan,” said Andy Shepard, President of the Maine Winter Sports Center. “While we are all disappointed that Ben will miss today’s start, we look forward to his Olympic debut in the Mass Start Pursuit Race on the 20^th.”

 Whistler, Canada Maine Winter Sports Center veteran Jeremy Teela made Olympic history with his 9th place finish in today's 10k Sprint, in spite of two misses on the range. The previous Olympic best for the United States in biathlon was 14th place. The U.S. Team also made history with all 4 Americans qualifying for the Pursuit on Tuesday.

With weather conditions changing by the minute and ranging from sun to rain to heavy wet snow and back to sun again during the race, the athletes had more than the world's best competitors to deal with. Full results biathlon.teamusa.org/

Check out our Community page for all the details on upcoming people-powered, active lifestyle, outdoor related programs and activities!

2-14-2010

A fresh dusting of snow and mild temperatures brought out the crowds at the 8th annual Karen Sprague Memorial Ski Day.  A record breaking field of nearly 90 competitors, from age 4 to 78, took to the Snowy Mountain Trails in Stockholm, to make the day a success.

Last Sunday's edition of the New York Times featured a story about Aroostook County's ski heritage and the biathlon development pipeline.  Find the full story at: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/07/sports/olympics/07maine.html?pagewanted=1.

Presque Isle, ME

On Sunday, February 7th, over 150 motivated women of all fitness levels gathered at the Nordic Heritage Center to show their support for the Battered Women’s Project, the Nordic Heritage Sport Club, and the Limestone Ski Club in memory of Linda Page. The third annual Aroostook Women’s XC Ski Day offered a full day of activities that enhance women's lifestyles while giving back to the community. Ski clinics and tours, Snowshoeing tours, Yoga, Pilates and even a nutrition activity taught by Bonnie Wood of UMPI helped give motivation and encouragement to all who attended. Enthusiastic volunteers from NHSC, UMPI, and MWSC coaches and athletes lead the women throughout the day. Massage sessions were also a treat given by Stephanie Caverhill and Tracy Spooner of Northern Massage and Wellness Center, Diana Higgins-Sadler from Well Spring Health Center, and Leslie Smith of Wellspring Health Center.

 Caribou, Maine Read the story of MWSC's first cross country Olympian - Ben Koons, and his coach, Alexei Sotskov, from UMaine Presque Isle.

 Rumford, Maine Maine's Collegiate All-State Team was named yesterday at the Chummy Broomhall Cup.

 Black Mountain Colby College’s Lucy Garrec skied to a decisive win in the Women’s championship, and teammate, Wyatt Fereday, nipped fellow Colby skier Sam Mathes for the Men’s title in the fourth annual Chummy Broomhall Cup, Maine’s Collegiate Nordic Ski Championships.

Maine has more Division I college ski teams than any other state in the country, and those college teams are now competing successfully against the top schools in the US. The Chummy Broomhall Cup was started four years ago to celebrate Maine college skiing with a head-to-head state championship. Teams from Colby, Bates, Bowdoin, and UMaine Presque Isle’s division I programs competed against club programs from UMaine Orono, Farmington and Fort Kent, as well the Maine Winter Sports Center (MWSC) team.

 Torsby, Sweden The Sprint competition is on tap for today. Go to www.biathlonworld3.de/en/  to get the full results.

 Torsby, Sweden The day started with the Youth Women's 10K Individual Race and MWSC's Andrea Mayo, in her first international race, was the top American with a 57th place finish. Mayo had 6 penalties to finish 9 minutes 31.1 seconds off the pace of Russia's Olga Galich.

MWSC's Grace Boutot, last years Silver Medalist at World Youth Championships in Canmore, Canada, was 34th in the 12.5K Junior Race. A strong result for Boutot who is competing for the first year as a Junior. Boutot had 5 penalties and was 7 minutes 53.7 seconds off the winning time of Reka Ferenzc of Rumania, who shot clean.

The competitors take a day off and are back at it again on Saturday with the Sprint competitions.

 Torsby, Sweden The World Junior/Youth Biathlon Championships are underway in Torsby, Sweden, roughly six hours north of Stockholm. In the first day the Men's Individual Race saw Ethan Dreissegacker post the top finish for an American in the Youth 12.5K race with 6 penalties, 6 minutes, 37.6 seconds off the winning time of Martin Maier of Austria who shot clean.

As the Junior Men's 15K Individual race got underway heavy snow began to fall making it an advantage to have an earlier start number. American Leif Nordgren started 45th, but still posted the best finish for an American in the early stages of the championships with an 11th. Nordgren had 4 misses and finished 3 minutes 46.6 seconds off the winning time of Yann Guigonnet of France who had only one miss.

Caribou, Maine The MWSC launches a new newsletter to keep people up with the MWSC athletes on Olympic Teams. OLYMPIC NEWS will have stories on the athletes, post schedules for events and results as the games progress. We will post the newsletters through our website news section. The first edition is on the biathletes on the Olympic Team. The second edition will be on MWSC's Ben Koons from Sidney, Maine, who will represent New Zealand on their cross country team.

Madawaska, ME

1/24/10

Before Monday’s winter drizzle set in, residents of Aroostook County enjoyed perhaps the nicest weekend of the winter season thus far.  Nowhere was the sunshine and blue sky more appreciated than in the rolling hills of Madawaska.  As Saturday slowly warmed to a mild afternoon, members of the Four Seasons Trail Association could be found outside their bustling lodge preparing a newly constructed sprint course for Sunday’s third Aroostook Cup event, the Madawaska Valley Classical Ski Sprints. 

MWSC Athlete Sarah Dominick is holding an afternoon on skis just for girls this Wednesday, January 20^th, from 4 PM to 6 PM, in Caribou at the high school ski building.  This is aimed at middle school girls, and the goal is to have fun on snow!  Participants will cross-country ski, play games, and hopefully do a lot of laughing.

Do you enjoy skiing, yet crave a little more adventure than your normal winter routine provides?  Do you ever think about travelling into the winter backcountry, and wonder what it takes to make it happen?  This winter season Maine Winter Sports Center is proud to offer an exciting opportunity for novice and experienced skiers alike, designed to put the adventure in your skiing.

 Rumford, Maine MWSC's Russell Currier, buried his disappointment from U.S. Biathlon Trials by pushing America's top cross country skier to the limit in yesterday's 15k Freestyle race at Black Mountain. Kris Freeman qualified as the top American in distance events for the U.S. Olympic cross country team and took the title at the Black Mountain Eastern Cup on Sunday with a time of 35:24.7. Russell Currier, showing that biathletes can also ski fast, posted the second best time of the day, 1 minute, 7.7 seconds off the pace. The MWSC put five in the top 15 with Ben Koons taking 5th, Pavel Sotskov 7th, Fred Bailey 13th and Joey Bard 15th.

Caribou, ME

Nearly 70 participants came out to the Caribou Ski Trails this Sunday to participate in the season’s second Aroostook Cup Series event, the 2010 New Year’s Ski Race and Scavenger Hunt.  Volunteers from the Northern Skiers Club and Cary Medical Center were on hand to deliver a fast and fun 5k freestyle race and tour, followed by a ski and snowshoe scavenger hunt.

 Mars Hill, Maine Carrabassett Valley Academy (CVA) will be at Bigrock Ski Area on Saturday, January 23rd to talk about the school and the Alfond Scholarship Program, a scholarship fund for Aroostook County student-athletes to attend CVA. A formal presentation will be made at 1:00 p.m. in the Bigrock Base Lodge’s Last Run Lounge. CVA representatives will be available before and after the presentation for individual conversations.

Rumford - A bright sun and warm temperatures greeted over 300 competitors in the second weekend of racing in New England Nordic Ski Association’s TD Bank Eastern Cup series, held at Black Mountain in Rumford. On today’s docket was a 1.4km classic sprint for J2 boys and women and a 1.7km sprint for men. Early in the day, temperatures peaked above freezing and remained there throughout the day, creating glazed tracks and loose snow on corners and uphills and making the day’s contest more about finesse than pure speed.

Anchorage, AK--The sun finally broke the low clouds along Turnagain Arm and lit the Kincaid Park Nordic Ski Center for the final day of the 2010 U.S. National Cross-Country Ski Championships.  This last day of competition was a day for the sprinters, as athletes contested a 1.5km course in the classic technique.  And once again, Kikkan Randall proved that she is the class of the field.  

Temperatures in the single digits and beautiful sunny skies greeted skiers in the St. John Valley on Sunday for the opener of the 2010 Aroostook Cup tour series.  Volunteers from the 10^th Mtn Ski Club hosted the annual Frostbite XC Ski Race series including a 40k, 20k and 5k freestyle race.

   Pineland Farms, Maine The International Competition Committee of the U.S. Biathlon Association conducted a final review of results from the IBU Cup races in Altenberg, Germany this morning.  As a result, the U.S Biathlon Association will forward the following list of athletes to the United States Olympic Committee.

  Altenburg, Germany The final day of Olympic trials, for which all seven Americans had qualified from Saturdays Sprint Race, has been cancelled due to heavy fog. We are waiting for word from the U.S. Biathlon Association on how they will decide the final spots on the Women's Team. Stay tuned.

To see Composite results from the first two days results:

 Altenburg, Germany Lowell Bailey had already secured a nomination to the team, by being the top American in the first two races in the trials, but Kevin Patzoldt was hoping for something special in today's Pursuit race to get consideration for the fifth and final spot - that was not to be.

Altenburg, Germany The weather for the IBU Cup in Altenburg, Germany was as bad for the Women as it was for the Men earlier in the day. Blizzard conditions made skiing conditions slow and shooting a real challenge. With 85 athletes in the field, the Women needed to finish in the top 60 to have a chance to race in tomorrow’s pursuit and all six American did that.

 Altenburg, Germany In sharp contrast to the first day of Biathlon Olympic Trials on Thursday, today's Sprint race - the first race in the Altenburg IBU Cup - brought heavy snow and strong winds. The weather made it very difficult on the range and slow on the tracks, all of which made for a lot of penalty lops skied. The main goal for the Americans today was to finish in the top 60, from a field of 134 racers, and get a chance to compete in tomorrow's Pursuit competition. The Men's field was very strong, with a number of World Cup medal winners and World Champions starting today.

 Altenburg, Germany Heavy snow and strong winds are expected to greet day 2 of the IBU Cup in Altenburg, Germany. This Sprint race will also serve as the second of three races to decide the last two Men and three Women on the 2010 U.S. Olympic Biathlon Team. 

The IBU is promoting the fact that you will be able to watch live results by going to services.biathlonresults.com/DataCenter_IBU.aspx

Find the IBU Cup Biathlon 4, Altenburg (GER) on the left hand column, click on it and then click on the specific event on the right hand side.

The Men's race starts at 4AM EST and the Women's starts at 8AM EST.

 Altenburg, Germany It was a perfect day for biathlon, with no wind, clear blue skies and a picturesque mountain venue in Germany for the first day of U.S. Olympic Biathlon Team trials. On the Men's side, MWSC alumnus, Lowell Bailey (Lake Placid) was able to overcome two penalties to beat Zach Hall (Alaska) by 9 seconds. Hall had a perfect day on the range and took second place, 23 seconds ahead of Leif Nordgren (Minnesota), who had one penalty. Walt Shepard (Yarmouth) had two penalties to finish in 5th place.

On the Women's side Sara Studebaker missed one target and posted a blistering pace to win by 23 seconds over MWSC alumnus, Laura Spector, who had a perfect day on the range. MWSC alum Tracy Colliander, with one miss, was 1 minute 20 seconds off Studebaker's pace for third. Colliander's twin sister, and fellow MWSC alum, Lanny Barnes, also with one miss, was 1 minute 41 seconds back and MWSC skier, BethAnn Chamberlain, was 1 minute 57 seconds back for 6th.

OBERHOF, Germany - Biathlon World Cup racing resumes in Oberhof, Germany Jan. 6-10 following a two week holiday break. It’s been a historic start to the 2009-2010 World Cup season as Tim Burke (Paul Smiths, N.Y.) has collected two medals, silver and bronze, and is the current leader in Overall World Cup standings - the first time ever for a U.S. biathlete.

 Anchorage, Alaska The Men's 30k Classic got under way today with Olympic Team berths on the line. James Southam pulled away from Kris Freeman at the end to take the title by 1 minute 9.9 seconds, Bryan Cook took third, 1 minute 34.7 seconds off Southam's pace. Dave Chamberlain finished in 17th place, 6 minutes 43.1 seconds off the pace.

Anchorage, AK--The U.S. National Cross-Country Skiing Championships continued today with the freestyle individual start races. With the top distance skiers in the country toeing the line and with the last 3 guaranteed Olympic Winter Games starting spots on the line, all eyes were on the course and on the scoreboard. And true to form, the U.S. Ski Team's Kris Freeman and Kikkan Randall did not disappoint.

Current MWSC athletes, Walt Shepard and BethAnn Chamberlain join alumni Tracey Colliander, Lanny Barnes, Laura Spector and Lowell Bailey at trials.

Altenburg, Germany - Most of Europe has been experiencing unseasonably warm temperatures through the month of December, but a new front moved in on Sunday and has brought enough snow to bring winter sports back to life. It was just in time for Olympic Biathlon Team Trials, which start on Thursday, January 7^th at 4AM EST.

 Anchorage, Alaska The Men's 15k and Women 10K freestyle races are on tap for today. The temperatures are expected to be in the upper 20's, with a 50% chance of snow. These conditions will be a dramatic improvement over the beginning of Nationals on Saturday, when temps struggled to get out of the single digits. 

In addition to National titles being on the line, the races this week will decide the final spots on the US Olympic Cross Country ski team. Look for results here immediately after the race, or try to follow them live at www.summittiming.com/live_results/

 Anchorage, Alaska The Maine Winter Sports Center Cross Country Team, coming off a solid day of Sprints, is looking forward to the first distance races on Monday. The Men's 15k Freestyle Race starts at 1PM EST and the Women's 10K starts at 3:15PM EST.

We will have results here as soon as they are posted, or you can also go to www.summittiming.com to follow the results live. 

 Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage, AK--The U.S. National Cross-Country Skiing Championships opened today in 5 degree temperatures with the freestyle sprint.  Following the qualification round, Simi Hamilton, of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation, sat atop the men's result list.  On the women's side, U.S. Olympian and World Championship silver medalist Kikkan Randall easily topped the field.  For the Maine Winter Sports Center, David Chamberlain sat in 18th place, Joey Bard in 47th, Pavel Sotskov in 54th, Nick Michaud in 58th, Welly Ramsey in 85th and John Dixon in 100th.

 Anchorage, Alaska The Heats are under way for the US Nationals Sprints and MWSC athletes are in the thick of things. Dave Chamberlain, who qualified 18th, was third in his heat, nipped at the line by Brian Gregg of CXC Team Vertical and 1.1 seconds behind Erik Bjornson of Methow Olympic Development Program.

In the U23 division, Pavel Satskov made it into the B Final and we are awaiting the final results of that heat.

Nick Michaud and Joey Bard are both on the Semi Finals for the Junior Men's Division.  

Final results can be found at http://www.summittiming.com/live_results/

Anchorage, Alaska   The cold temps that all but put the brakes on last year's U.S. National Cross-Country Skiing Championships has come back for the opening race of this year, but just for a day.  With the forecast for Saturday's Freestyle Sprint race predicting highs in the single digits, many racers feel as though they're having a bit of deja vu. However, the Maine Winter Sports Center racers feel right at home.

Rhupolding, Germany  Maine Winter Sports Center (MWSC) biathletes BethAnn Chamberlain and Walt Shepard, along with MWSC alum, Laura Spector, headed to Germany today for the last stage of Olympic Trials. They will be joined by Zach Hall, Susan Dunklee and Sarah Studebaker for a training camp at Rhupolding, Germany. The contingent will then travel to Altenburg, Germany to meet up with the rest of the US Team, competing for the final two spots on the Men's Team and final three spots on the Women's teams.

(Mt Itasca, Coleraine, MN)  Perfect corduroy greeted athletes at Mt Itasca for Day 5 of competition of the World Team Trials.   BethAnn Chamberlain  (Grand Rapids, MN) came out swinging and posted the only clean shooting of the day.  So far, the Trial events had not gone well for Chamberlain and she needed a victory in order to qualify for the IBU Cup team.   Though she now calls Presque Isle, ME home, Chamberlain grew up in Grand Rapids and is right at home at Mt Itasca.   With a hometown crowd cheering for her, Chamberlain managed a 5 second victory over Laura Spector (Lenox, MA).  Susan Dunklee (Barton, VT) posted the fastest ski time of the day for 3rd place, 28 seconds out of first.  Dunklee finished in the top 3 in all five races at Mt Itasca.

 Coleraine, Minnesota  Grace Boutot from Fort Kent was named to the World Junior Team. Teammate Andrea Mayo from Soldiers Pond, was named to the World Youth Team following todays Sprint competition at Mt. Itasca, Minnesota. Grace qualified first in the Women's Junior category after the three race series and Mayo qualified second in the Women's Youth division.

 Coleraine, Minnesota  MWSC athletes Walt Shepard and BethAnn Chamberlain, along with MWSC alumnus Tracy Colliander were named to the team that will compete for the final spots on the US Olympic Team next month in Germany. Colliander won the overall points title for the Olympic Team Selection series and Chamberlain needed her win today to vault from 7th place to claim the final spot on the four woman team. Shepard qualified second and had the highest shooting percentage for the five race series.

Coleraine, Minnesota  With a trip to the winner-take-all Olympic Trials Finals in Altenburg, Germany on the line BethAnn Chamberlain proved that she has what it takes with her win today, and vaulted into fourth place in the overall standing. Her score of 293.51 for the top three races is just shy of the qualifying standard of 294 points, so her fate is in the hands of the US Biathlon’s International Competition Committee. In her favor is the fact that she has been skiing very well all week, and her clean shooting today shows what she is capable of when she puts it all together.

 Coleraine, Minnesota Andrea Mayo won the Youth Women's race in today's World Team Trials. She has been skiing fast all week, but struggled to find her rhythm on the range. Today she hit 8 of 10 for the win. Grace Boutot, last years Youth World Championship Silver medalist won the Junior Women's race. Both Boutot and Mayo have secured a spot on the US World Junior Championships Team. With BethAnn Chamberlain winning the Senior Women's race, MWSC won a clean sweep of all the womens competitions today.

 Coleraine, Minnesota BethAnn Chamberlain saved the best for last, winning the final race at the Olympic Trials Selection series. Chamberlain shot clean and skied fast to take the Sprint. Wynn Roberts won the Mens race, but Walt Shepard qualified second overall and is going to the winner-take-all Olympic Trials in Germany next month.

 Coleraine, Minnesota In the Junior Women's Race Grace Boutot hit 15 of 20 on her way to the win. Addie Byrne placed 2nd with 4 misses; Hilary McNamee placed 4th with 5 penalties. Andrea Mayo placed 3rd in the Youth Women's Race with 11 of 20 shooting.

In the Youth Men's Race Eliot Neal struggled in the range hitting just 50% of his targets to place 9th. Sam Humphries followed Neal placing 10th with 8 penalties.

 Coleraine, Minnesota  Walt Shepard and Tracy Colliander used strong shooting to take the Pursuit competition in day #4 of the Olympic Team Trials Section series. With the pressure heating up for the four slots going on to the final round of Olympic trials, both Shepard and Colliander showed the poise in the shooting range that has won them numerous National Championships.

Story by Chad Salmela: Sunday, American biathlete, Tim Burke, achieved something that even the most ardent American biathlon fans probably never thought they would see—an American awarded the yellow World Cup Overall leaders bib.  A few hundred fans who made their way twenty-some miles from civilization to the Pokljuka biathlon venue deep in the Slovenian mountains, stuck around to witness this momentous occasion, helped by the fact that countryman, Klemen Bauer, finished a career-high 7^th and would be included in the flower ceremony.  Regardless of the lean crowd on hand, the occasion served as a flipping of the biathlon world on its ear.

The opportunity arose partially out of consistently high-level early-season performances by Burke, but partially out of the decisions and fortunes of his strongest competitors as well.  Norway’s Emil Hegle Svendsen and the great Ole Einar Bjoerndalen—the leader and second place respectively in the overall standing coming into this weekend in Pokljuka—sat out the weekend in favor of training.  Svendsen is the only biathlete whom Burke has yet to beat this season.  Burke was not dismayed by his achievement in the absence of the two Norwegians.  “I have no control over (them being here or not).”

 Then Thursday’s 20km Individual winner, Christoph Sumann of Austria, took a commanding lead in the overall standings over the absent Svendsen second, and was 44 point ahead of Burke, sitting in 3^rd place after a 14^th place finish.  Then in the 10km sprint on Saturday, Sumann missed 8 of 10 targets to finish 103^rd, well outside the top 60 necessary to qualify for Sunday’s 12.5km pursuit.  Burke finished 8^th in the sprint to move into second overall and within 10 points of the defenseless Sumann, who would have to watch his yellow bib fall to someone Sunday.  The likely someones were France’s Simon Fourcade and Burke.  Fourcade had moved within 1 point of Burke by finishing 6^th in the sprint, to take over 3^rd spot behind Sumann and Burke.  With everyone but Fourcade and Burke mathematically out of contention for the overall leaders bib, Sunday’s 12.5km pursuit became a mano a mano battle between the American and the Frenchman for yellow.

 Burke started with perfect shooting in the two opening prone stages and challenged for the lead, trailing by 16 seconds in 4^th, entering the third shooting stage, while Fourcade was out of sight behind with a penalty in each of the first two stages.  He followed Ivan Tcherezov around the third lap despite feeling stronger.  “I felt it was pretty easy skiing behind him, thinking I’d take it easy coming into first standing,” said Burke.  But Burke missed twice.  “Obviously it didn’t work very well for me.  In hindsight, maybe I should have gone around him and just raced.”  Fourcade missed once in the third stage, putting Burke three seconds ahead going into the second to last loop, with the two running 10^th and 11^th respectively. 

 Burke pulled away from Fourcade on the fourth lap, but a penalty in the final stage while Fourcade shot flawlessly, put Burke in trouble, though he never lost track of Fourcade.  “I was looking towards the course (while in the penalty loop) to see where he was.  He shot on the point next to me and I saw him go out.  I knew exactly how far I was behind him and what to do.”  Burke left the loop in 10^th chasing Fourcade in 5^th, with a gap of 8.9 seconds separating the race for yellow in favor of the Frenchman.  Burke skied impressively in the final lap, catching Fourcade midway through and not giving the Frenchman even a glimpse of the maillot jaune in the final kilometer.  Burke moved to 6^th by the finish, Fourcade slipped to 9^th.  Evgeny Ustyugov of Russia won.  

 Burke ends 2009 in yellow with a 7 point lead over Fourcade, and can revel in yellow over the holidays.  He’ll take the yellow bib into the hallowed Oberhof venue in the Thuringen region of Germany, where biathlon is a religion.  An American in Germany.  Burke in yellow will be a horse of a different color for the manic fans of the sport and a signal of a new era in the sport.  “I can’t wait,” said Burke, of the opportunity of wearing yellow in front of the Oberhof crowd—likely to be nearly 50,000 strong—when he takes to the start of the 10km sprint, January 9^th.  “I wish it was tomorrow.”

 Today MWSC Alumnus, Tim Burke, took over the yellow bib as World Cup leader in Biathlon. For the first time ever a US athlete is the best biathlete of the world.

With an amazing performance in the pursuit of Pokljuka, Slovenia Tim Burke not only managed to finish in sixth place, he also stayed ahead of his strongest competitor for the yellow bib, French athlete Simon Fourcade.

 Presque Isle, Maine  Over 200 racers gathered under sunny skies for the first day of racing at the TD Bank/TAMC Eastern Cup Opener at the Nordic Heritage Center.  Racers competed in a freestyle sprint, with exciting 6 person heats in the afternoon.  J2s competed on a 1km course and all older athletes competed on a 1.2km course.  Heather Mooney and Jack Hegman each skied to victory in the girls and boys J2 race respectively.  In the women's race, Sophie Caldwell swept the heats and continues to hold reign over the Eastern Cup circuit.  In the men's division, Skyler Davis skied away from the competition for the win. 

 Coleraine, Minnesota Today’s Sprint format was the first of the World Junior Trials.  Addie Byrne, Grand Rapids, MN, took first with 90% shooting.   Grace Boutot, Presque Isle, ME matched her shooting, and finished 25 seconds behind.   In third was Corrine Malcolm, of Haward, WI racing in her first major biathlon event.

In the junior men’s race, Leif Nordgren took first, with Mike Gibson, Burlingon, VT and Wayne McClure of Anchorage, AK in third.   

In the  Youth Men’s Sprint, Conrad Roberts made it 2 for 2 for the Roberts family and shooting the same as his big brother, 0, 2.   Casey Smith of Methow Valley placed 2^nd with 3 penalties, and in third was Ethan Dreissigacker, Craftsbury, VT, with 4 penalties.

Kelly Kjorlien, Grand Rapids, MN, shot 80% and took first in the Youth Women’s Sprint.   Andrea Mayo, Soldier Pond, ME had a rough day on the range (3,2) but managed a second place with good skiing.   In third was Mackenzie Wonders of Anchorage, AK.  

The World Team Trials continue on Sunday with at the Men’s 12.5 and Women’s 10km Pursuit.  

 Coleraine, Minnesota  Wynn Roberts and MWSC Alum, Tracy Colliander, won the Men's and Women's Sprint Race on Day #3 of Olympic Trials Selection races at Mt. Itasca, Minnesota. MWSC's Walt Shepard put in another solid performance with a 3rd place finish today, 39.3 seconds off the lead and 14 seconds out of second. Bill Bowler and Russell Currier finished in 9th and 10th place respectively. 

Presque Isle, Maine - The TD Bank Eastern Cup season kicks off tomorrow (Saturday) at 10AM with the qualifying rounds for the Freestyle Sprint. The heats will start at 1PM and run to conclusion at 3:05PM. Temperatures are expected to be in the mid to upper teens with light winds, which will be a pleasant relief from the recent cold and high winds experienced by most of the northern tier of the US.

Temperatures for Sundays mass Start Classic race should be in the upper teens to mid 20's with very little wind. Sunday's race starts at 9:00AM. There will also be a Bill Koch Youth Race at the completion of the Mens Race (approximately noon).

 Viktoria Franke December 17, 2009

When the result board turned to the next page and showed her final result Haley Johnson could not help but cry. To see that historic 21^st place on the score board in Pokljuka after the women’s individual today was a relief in many ways. Not only was it the best result for the US women this season, but it also was the direct qualification for the US Olympic Team. “I made it”, Haley screamed, “I made it. Unbelievable!” 

The US Olympic Trials Selection Races are back on tap this weekend from Coleraine, Minnesota. Race #3 is scheduled for Saturday, race #4 on Sunday and the final race of the series on Tuesday. The races to date have been defined by brutally cold temperatures, with the mercury struggling to reach zero degrees. The cold temperatures made a very difficult course even tougher and also made shooting consistency difficult for some. Temperatures for this coming weekends races are expected to climb to the upper teens, which should make for much better racing conditions for all.

Presque Isle -Ten inches of new snow in the last week and more in the forecast puts the Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle, Maine in a prime position to host the opening Eastern Cup of the season. All hands have been on deck over the last week to make sure the venue, courses and volunteers are ready to start the NENSA TD Bank Eastern Cup series with a bang. 

 Day 2 of the Biathlon World Team Trials started off with a low of -12 F.    Fortunately, the sun pushed through clouds and the Men’s 15km Mass Start began after a 2hr delay.  The new range approach, an extremely steep 75m climb, played havoc with the shooting for both men and women.

Walt Shepard, Yarmouth, ME,  got the drop on the field after the first shooting with an extremely fast and accurate first prone shooting.   A classic biathlon duel evolved over the next three stages with Zach Hall, Anchorage, AK, matching Shepard’s shooting accuracy but falling slightly behind in shooting speed.  Hall was able to  close the gap down over each ski leg.  Shepard and Hall left the last shooting stages only a few seconds apart andpounded out the last 3km with only 2.6 seconds separting the two at the finish.    The battle for third went to Dan Campbell, Bozeman, MT, with Jesse Downs, Jericho, VT and Wynn Roberts, Battle Lake, MN filling out the top 5.    Roberts posted the top ski time of the day for the second day in a row, but 8 penalties were too many to overcome.

Coleraine, MN - Walt Shepard of Yarmouth hit 8 of 10 targets to finish 5th in today's 10km competition. Finishing in a time of 27:12, Shepard was 53 seconds back of winner Mark Johnson of Grand Rapids who hit 9 of 10. Russell Currier of Stockholm turned in one of the strongest ski times on the day, but struggled in the range finishing 9th. Bill Bowler of Wassau,WI finished 11 with 5 of 10 shooting. 

Grace Boutot of Ft. Kent led the MWSC women finishing 9th with 80%
shooting on the day. Teammates BethAnn Chamberlain of Caribou finished
just 14 seconds back with 7 penalties. Hilary McNamee in her first race
of the season finished 11 with 5 of 10 shooting.

The Olympic Trials Selection Process is about to begin. Two men, JayHakinen and Tim Burke have already pre-qualified, but for the otherathletes their journey is about to begin. For the athletes in North America, their trials process begins with five races over nine days.These races will take place in Coleraine, MN, just 15 minutes outside of Grand Rapids, where the athletes are currently preparing. The best 3 of 5 races will be scored and used to select up to 4 men and 4 women to head to Europe and compete in 3 competitions in Germany January 7-10. They will be joined by the athletes currently competing on the World Cup and not qualified already for the Olympics. These competitions in Germany will be the last opportunity to show their metal and make their bid for an Olympic berth.

Presque Isle, ME - 8" of new snow fell at the venue last night and race volunteers are busy preparing the trails for the TD Bank/TAMC Eastern Cup races next weekend. To sign up for the races, visit the NENSA website at www.nensa.net.

Ostersund, Sweden - He might only have slept one hour after his 2nd place on Wednesday but Tim Burke proved once again in today's sprint competition that he can focus on his game the second it counts. As one of the first starters he set the time to beat after two clean shooting stages. Only the strong Norwegian men could beat him. Record-Winner Ole Einar Bjoerndalen hit all targets and showed an extraterrestrial skiing performance, finishing ahead of the winner of the individual, team mate Emil Hegle Svendsen. Burke was back 37.2 seconds in the end.

This past Monday, U.S. Biathlete (Paul Smiths, N.Y.) posted on his athlete blog (http://timburke.us/ ) that he was looking forward to seeing how the adjustments to his training regime would pay off this season.  Well, given today's results in Ostersund, Sweden, he evidently didn't have to wait long to see the progress he's made since last season.  Burke made US Biathlon history today, winning silver in the 20km Individual competition, and tying the best World Cup finish ever for a U.S. biathlete and equaling Josh Thompson's 20 km silver medal at Canmore Canada World Cup in 1992.

Canmore, Alberta – Walt Shepard of Yarmouth skied another strong race in today’s Pursuit competition.  Hitting 13 of his 20 shots Shepard dropped back to 7^th place overall.  Entering the range in 3^rd place Shepard had two shots miss their mark in his first shooting.  Dropping back a few places Shepard would stay just out of reach from the lead pack with  5 more misses in his final stages.  “My skiing wasn’t quite there today”, Shepard stated after the race.  “I didn’t quite have the feeling today like I did yesterday.  Nevertheless it has been a decent start to the season.”  Shepard’s teammate Russell Currier of Stockholm also struggled with his shooting today hitting just 10 for 20 to place 9^th.  “Russell skied very well today, he looked like his usual self on the course today, just flying out there”, commented MWSC Biathlon Coach Gary Colliander.

Canmore, Alberta – The season kicked off with a bit of a bite this morning.  After nearly two weeks of unusually warm conditions the athletes were greeted with high winds and some of the coldest temperatures they’ve seen this season thus far.  With just over a 3km loop of manmade snow in place the course was hard packed and very fast.

Canmore, Alberta – Nestled in the rugged Canadian Rocky Mountains just over an hour north of Calgary, the Maine Winter Sports Center Biathlon Team has been training for the past ten days.  Skiing on a 2.5km loop of manmade snow the Team has spent their days getting used to being back on snow, testing new skis and ski grinds or structures, and fine tuning their shooting skills. 

The Nordic Heritage Sport Club seeks a part-time person to staff the Welcome Center through the winter.   The job will be 15-20hrs/week with potential for more during vacation times.  For more information or to apply, contact the NHSC President Tom Chassse at tomsharo@yahoo.com.

The biathlon team has arrived in Canmore, Alberta a few days ago. Site of the 1988 Olympic Biathlon and Cross Country events the venue has seen some remarkable upgrades for recent cross country World Cup races and last season's Youth and Jr. World Championships.

Follow the MWSC biathlon team as they make the push to the Olympics in Vancouver at www.mainewsc.org/teams_biathlon.html

This Saturday, November 21, Bill Green’s Maine will feature a segment about MWSC Olympic hopeful skiers and biathletes.  The show airs at 7pm on Saturday evening on WCSH 6/NBC and in Aroostook County on WLBZ channel 2 . 

Muonio, Finland--Far above the arctic circle in Lapland this past Saturday, Ben Koons, of Sidney, became the first Mainer to achieve an Olympic qualifying standard in Nordic Skiing for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.  Koons, who holds dual citizenship in the U.S. and New Zealand, raced to a 103rd place in the men's 15km classic at the Olos resort.  Initial calculations indicate that it was good enough for a 99.54 point FIS race, and good enough to drop his international point profile below 100 points--the qualifying standard set by the New Zealand Ski Federation.

Thursday brought snow to the County--enough to groom in places, and MWSC took advantage with skiing at the Nordic Heritage Center, 10th Mountain Center, 4Seasons Trails and on the groomed trails at Rossignol's Field of Dreams and at the Snowy Mountain Trails. Some of the MWSC crew got in double sessions on snow Friday.

MWSC athletes David Chamberlain and Fred Bailey are hosting a benefit reception at Black Mountain on November 1. Highlights include raffle and silent auction. Among the prizes will be a pair of skis. Proceeds from the event will help David and Fred offset training and traveling expenses this winter.

For more info please download the attached document [pdf].

The Nordic Heritage Center, 2010 XC Junior Olympic host venue, reports six inches of new snow over the last day. Athletes from the Maine Winter Sports Center were excited by the opportunity for some early season skiing and toured around the race trails this morning. Pictured here is MWSC athlete Ben Koons on the 5km classic race course and Koons with fellow MWSC teammate Nick Kline skiing by the lodge at the Nordic Heritage Center.

Stockholm, ME // 10.23.2009 - Sure, we all get plenty of reports of early snow each year. And this snow fall is only about 5". And it likely won't last more than 24 hours on the ground. But in Stockholm, that's no reason not to do it right. Thanks to the dedication and enthusiasm of the Snowy Mountain Trails' groomer/director Tom Campbell, the Maine Winter Sports Center XC squad is already 1 hour into training on groomed trails this year.

North Haven Island, ME--The third annual Lobster Roll saw nearly 75 competitors cruise around this scenic island last Saturday. The event, organized by the Maine Winter Sports Center, serves as Maine's collegiate rollerski championship. Teams from Colby, Bowdoin, UMO, UMPI, MWSC and individuals from Gould Academy and the Maine Coast Nordic Team took on this year's 16km freestyle race.

Caribou, ME - The Maine Winter Sports Center is excited to announce that Mapleton native Mike Smith will be joining their staff as a Community Development Coach. Smith comes to the MWSC staff with a range of outdoor and leadership experiences, and having grown up in the County, he already has a strong connection with the communities of Northern Maine.