Varsity Classic Suburban Championship Jan. 30th at Battle Creek and Junior Varsity Classic Suburban Championship Jan. 31st.at Lake Elmo

JV will not practice on Jan. 30th.

CLASSIC SUBURBAN CONFERENCE VARSITY CHAMPIONSHIP                               

            CONFERENCE MEET - January 30^th, 2014 at Battle Creek State Park   

            A.  Starting Times:

                        Coaches Meeting                   9:00 am

                        Girls Classical Race               10:00 am

                        Boys Classical Race               11:00 am

                        GirlsPursuit Skate                 1:00 pm                                 

                        BoysPursuit Skate                 2:00 pm

Awards                                   3:00 pm

    

ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS:

All Conference selections shall be awarded as follows:

1. Top 10 finishers in the boy’s pursuit race

2. Top 9 finishers in the girl’s pursuit race

3. Honorable Mention shall be granted to boys finishing in the 11th to 20th positions and to girls finishing in the 10th to 19th positions.

CLASSIC SUBURBAN CONFERENCE JR. VARSITY CHAMPIONSHIP

JV Race for all Middle School not on Varsity and JV high school is scheduled to start at 3:30 or as soon as everyone arrives.  We will ski the green loop at Lake Elmo.  This is 3.8k.

Cold Safety, Meet, Practice Tomorrow and Team Picture Info.

With cold temperatures frostbite and hypothermia are always a concern.  We instruct skiers to be prepared to cover their face and to take care of fingers by putting them against hips or under arms if they are feeling too cold. Skiers who are feeling too cold can also leave practices to go inside.   Here's what the Mayo Clinic has to say regarding frostbite symptoms and hypothermia.  I encourage all skiers and families to read through these articles.

The Classic Suburban Conference JV Championship schedule for tomorrow is postponed because of cold safety concerns.  Friday Jan 31st, Monday, Feb. 3rd and Friday, Feb. 7th are being mentioned as new meet dates.  I'll post something when I know for sure.

Varsity skiers will have an indoor practice tomorrow at 2:30pm.  Please come prepared to get a workout inside.

Finally our team pictures are scheduled for Friday, Jan. 31st.  We'll have to be flexible, as this is one of the proposed dates for our JV Championship.

When The Weather Gives Us Lemons, We Make Pancakes!

Looks like we made the right decision to change our meets to Friday the 24th with school being cancelled tomorrow.  We, however, are not done waxing skis.  In order to be prepared for our JV to go to Richfield and for our Varsity to go to Mahtomedi we will have a 6am waxing party Friday morning.  Let's try to get as many skiers there waxing as possible.  Coaches are making pancakes.  I would encourage families to carpool.

Schedule Changes!

 

Due to the cold weather forecast for Thursday The Conference Relays will be held on Friday at Mahtomedi.  The JV/Middle School  will be going to a meet for young and new skiers at Richfield to give them an opportunity to compete against experience and age peers.  Thanks for flexibility on these date changes. 
(Photo above is of some high school skiers having a good day; below shows some middle skiers having a silly day.)

Conference Relays Thursday or Friday.

  from 1994 Lillehammer Olympic Winter Games, Cross Country, 4x10 km Relay, Men
The Classic Suburban Conference is looking at moving the Conference Relay Race from  Thursday to Friday.  Thursday's temperatures look like they will be just in the Minnesota State High School League limits which means a cold day for the skiers.  We are talking about moving the race to Friday where temperatures will be 25 degrees warmer.  This will make for a better race and better experience for the teams and fans.  I will post something as soon as I know what the Conference is doing. 

Whether Thursday or Friday the format will be the following:

- Each school may have one "A" team for both girls and boys.  This will be a 4 person team with the first 2 legs classic and the last 2 legs skate.

- Each school may also have an ‘unlimited’** number of "B" teams with the first leg classic followed by 2 legs skate.

- We will also have a JV/slower skier (non-relay) mass start skate race.

**Note:  Each school should limit their number of 3-person “B” teams to those that can be expected to finish no later than when their 4-person “A” team finishes.  (Daylight is limited and we need to be able to complete 10k of skiing of girls and 10k skiing of boys plus the JV race before it gets dark, thus the limit on “B” teams.)  Slower skiers are welcome in the mass start JV event!

Each leg of the relay, as well as the mass start JV race, is one mostly flat lap of ~2.6 km.

Order of events:

- Girls “A” followed one minute later by Girls “B” (approx. 3:30pm start)
- Boys “A” followed one minute later by Boys “B” (to be started once the girls relay teams are well into their last leg – approx. 4:00-4:10pm)
- Mass start JV Boys followed two minutes later by mass start JV Girls (to be started once the boys relay teams are into their last leg – approx. 4:30-4:40pm).

We will begin as soon as everyone is there.  Again, please do your best to arrive asap so we can finish before it gets too dark.

Stay tuned for a decision on whether we’re doing this Thursday or Friday.

Thanks!

Next Meet on Wed Jan. 15th Classic Race at Lebanon Hills & Mesabi Invite Photos and Results Link.

Meet change again this week.  Due to a conflict with the Classic Suburban Conference All Conference Band and Choir concert our meet has been changed from Tues to Wed. 

We will be starting by the Jensen Lake Trail Head off Pilot Knob.  Please see the attached map.



We had a good outing at the Mesabi Invite.  Our skiers challenge themselves on a tough course and got a chance to see some of the best skiers in the country.  

Here's a link to the results.

Mesabi East Invite Saturday, Jan. 11th.

The Mesabi Invite held at Giant's Ridge in Biwabik, MN is a meet of the highest caliber.  In addition to providing skiers with the opportunity to see and ski with the best in the Upper-Mid-West, athletes can race the Minnesota State High School League Championship course.    

What to Bring

Please keep an eye on the forecast for Biwabik and dress plan to dress accordingly.  Also bring even warmer clothes as this is Minnesota, and the weather changes.    A pillow and a small blanket help make an early morning departure more comfy.  

Before leaving double check that you have properly waxed skis, the correct poles for the discipline you will be skiing and your boots.  All skiers need to have their team uniforms, hats and gloves. 

Bring food for the day.  A healthy breakfast, lunch and snacks for the day are important.  Food at Giant's Ridge is expensive and not the best for competing.  Please also make sure you have a water bottle to stay hydrated.  The bus will be stopping for a quick meal on the return trip.  In the past we have stopped in Cloquet where there are several options for skiers.  $10 should be more than enough for this meal.  Pocket money for event t-shirts or other purchases is optional. 

Departure

Please arrive at Middle School @ 4:15am sharp with everything you need.  We will load up and leave at 4:30 am.  Do not be late.  We will be sharing a coach bus with Sibley and Tartan.  Because of limited space this trip is only open to varsity and high school skiers.  The bus will not wait.  

Meet Schedule

APPROX. START TIME: 

10:00 5K Classic Varsity/JV Boys 

 12:00 5K Classic Varsity/JV Girls 

 1:30 5K Freestyle Varsity/JV Boys 

 3:00 5K Freestyle Varsity/JV Girls 

Simley Nordic  Ski Bib Numbers and Individual Start Times

515 12:09:00.0 Claire Anderson Simley Nordic Ski 8 Girls JV-Classic A

594 12:28:30.0 Caroline Pippert Simley Nordic Ski 11 Girls JV-Classic B

856 14:38:00.0 Cale Miller Simley Nordic Ski 10 Boys JV-Freestyle A

919 14:54:00.0 Tyler Thomas Simley Nordic Ski 9 Boys JV-Freestyle B

934 14:57:30.0 Lucas Ferguson Simley Nordic Ski 10 Boys JV-Freestyle C

987 15:11:00.0 Samantha Hall Simley Nordic Ski 11 Girls Varsity-Freestyle A

1007 15:16:00.0 Rachael Gilomen Simley Nordic Ski 8 Girls Varsity-Freestyle B

1074 15:32:30.0 Larisa Larson-Aguirre Simley Nordic Ski 10 Girls Varsity-Freestyle C

1075 15:33:00.0 Annika Iverson Simley Nordic Ski 9 Girls Varsity-Freestyle C

1103 15:40:00.0 Mikayla Schultz Simley Nordic Ski 10 Girls Varsity-Freestyle C

1117 15:43:30.0 Mady David Simley Nordic Ski 12 Girls Varsity-Freestyle C

1187 16:01:00.0 Juliana Malyshev Simley Nordic Ski 9 Girls JV-Freestyle B

1227 16:11:00.0 Amanda Mertens Simley Nordic Ski 9 Girls JV-Freestyle C

Trail Map Link

Return

We will leave Giant's Ridge following the awards ceremony.  With a stop for dinner, I estimate that we will be back at The Middle School around 9pm.  We will have athletes call or text when get close.

Trivia

The town of Biwabik is named for an iron rich layer of rock found in the Iron Range. Three billion-years-ago, during the lower Proterozoic, a sea deposited this layer of rock.   The word biwabik itself comes from an Ojibwa word meaning “fragment of iron.”

Directions to Giant’s Ridge

Giant’s Ridge’s web site says it takes 3 hours to get there from the Metro. I think it will take more like 4 hours.  Take I35 North- 120 miles; Merge onto MN-33 North via exit number 237 toward Cloquet/Iorn Range- 20 miles; Merge onto US-53 North until you reach Eveleth- 36 miles; Take MN-37 exit into Gilbert- 1 mile; Turn right onto MN-135 through Biwabik- 9 miles, Turn left onto County road 138-3 miles; The Lodge at Giant’s Ridge will be on your left.

Results and meet information can be found on skinnyski.com

                           

Tuesday, Jan. 7th meet @ The Ravine in Cottage Grove is Rescheduled for Wed. Jan. 8th at Lake Elmo.

Races will begin as soon as possible after 3:30pm. Varsity boys will race first followed by varsity girls.  Girls then boys J.V will conclude the races.

Varsity skiers will race the Brown loop and the finger of the Green Loop.  J.V skiers will race the green loop.  New skiers can cut the finger off the green loop to make it a more manageable course.  Link to trail map here.


Vehicle Permits are required for cars entering  the park.