GRP Closes Out Season at SuperTour Finals in Craftsbury
The GRP women following Saturday's 10k freestyle mass start (Photo Dave Priganc)
The 3rd place Craftsbury relay team of Adam Martin, Ida Sargent, Alex Howe, and Caitlin Patterson (Photo John Lazenby)
Adam Martin charging with the leaders in Wednesday's 50k (Photo John Lazenby)
Last Updated: 30.Mar.2018
The 2017-2018 ski season officially came to an end this past week at SuperTour Finals in Craftsbury on the GRP’s home course. With World Cup athletes returning to the US for the final races, the field was stacked, and the conditions were perfect for spring skiing. GRP athletes brought home several podiums over the four races, and also had great representation with five of our biathletes and six skiers hopping in at least one race.
Friday- Classic Sprint
The first day of competition brought sunny skies, perfect tracks, and hard wax conditions. In the women’s qualifier, Ida Sargent led the GRP in 2nd, followed by Kaitlyn Miller in 8th, Liz Guiney in 9th, Caitlin Patterson in 12th, Susan Dunklee in 19th, Emily Dreissigacker in 25th, and Hallie Grossman 44th. On the men’s side, Adam Martin qualified in 21st. Liz, Susan, and Emily were eliminated in the quarterfinals and finished 13th, 22nd, and 24th, respectively. Kaitlynn and Caitlin finished 5th and 6th in their semifinal, good for 10th and 11th overall. Ida fought all the way through to the A Final where she placed 3rd. Adam placed 4th in his quarterfinal and moved up to 19th overall.
Saturday- 10/15k Mass Start Freestyle
The following day the men went out first with a 15k mass start. Adam Martin had a solid result, placing 9th in the 113 man field, and Alex Howe took 34th. On the women’s side, Caitlin Patterson led the way in 5th place. Susan Dunklee took 8th, Liz Guiney was 14th, Ida Sargent 15th, Clare Egan 16th, Kaitlynn Miller 22nd, Hallie Grossman 28th, and Emily Dreissigacker 35th.
Sunday- Mixed Club Relay
The official GRP team of Adam Martin, Ida Sargent, Alex Howe, and Caitlin Patterson had high hopes for the mixed club relay, as prior to Sunday, the GRP had never podiumed in the event since its inception five years ago. On Sunday they all put in strong legs and finished 3rd, well clear of 4th place. Susan Dunklee and Clare Egan teamed up with two other male biathletes to finish 10th. Liz Guiney and Kaitlynn Miller skied with CNSC juniors Finn Sweet and Griffin Wright and took 13th.
Tuesday/Wednesday- 30/50k Mass Start Classic
On the final few days of competition, the GRP took on the long ones, the 30k and 50k mass starts. In Tuesday’s 30k, Ida Sargent led the charge with a 5th place finish. Caitlin Patterson took 8th, Kaitlynn Miler was close behind in 9th, and Liz Guiney finished 12th. The following day the men raced 50k. Adam Martin had an incredible race, sticking with the leaders through 10 grueling laps and finishing in 2nd place. Ben Lustgarten finished 32nd after an early battle for the prime, where he took 2nd.
The GRP skiers are now done with their season and are resting up and prepping for spring training! Results from the week are available on BullittTiming.com.