Green Racing Project at SuperTour Finals

The entire GRP contingent following the 30/50k freestyle races

Sargent 2nd in the freestyle sprint (Photo Reese Brown/SIA Nordic)

Lustgarten in sprint qualification (Photo Reese Brown/SIA Nordic)

Last Updated: 04.Apr.2019

The Green Racing Project skiers finished up their 2018-2019 season in Presque Isle, Maine, with a four race series at SuperTour Finals. Always the last races of the season, SuperTour Finals are one of the few times when American World Cup skiers return to the US to compete with the domestic field. This year, the races also were the final hurrah for GRP skier Ida Sargent, who announced her retirement from the sport a few weeks ago.

March 29- Freestyle Sprint

Races kicked off with a freestyle sprint. All six GRP athletes qualified: Ida Sargent led the women in 3rd, Caitlin Patterson took 9th, Kaitlynn Miller was 13th, and Liz Guiney took 18th. On the men's side, Ben Lustgarten qualified in 16th and Akeo Maifeld-Carucci took 22nd. Sargent skied well all the way through the heats, eventually taking 2nd in the A Final. Patterson also skied well, winning her quarterfinal heat and placing 5th in her semifinal for 10th overall. Guiney and Miller were eliminated in the quarterfinals, and placed 14th and 16th, respectively. Lustgarten and Maifeld-Carucci were also bumped out in quarterfinals and placed 14th and 23rd, respectively.

March 30- 10/15k Classic Mass Start

The following day brought fast icy tracks for a classic mass start. After several hours of delay to soften the course, the men were underway with their 15k. Lustgarten skied well, placing 8th, and Maifeld-Carucci took 19th place. In the women's 10k mass start, Sargent built on her momentum from the previous day and took 5th place, followed by Patterson in 6th. Miller took 9th, and Guiney was 20th.

March 31- Mixed Club 4x5k Relay

On the third consecutive day of racing, athletes had to put it all on the line for their teams in the mixed club relay. The format was as follows: 4x5k starting with a female classic leg, then a male classic leg, a female freestyle leg, then finishing with a male freestyle leg. The GRP I "Cedar Leaves" team of Ida Sargent, Ben Lustgarten, Caitlin Patterson, and Akeo Maifeld-Carucci took 4th place in the official category, close to the podium. Liz Guiney and Kaitlynn Miller teamed up with Alaska Winter Stars skier Gus Schumacher and Salomon rep/former GRP skier Bryan Cook. Their team took 2nd in the unofficial category and 7th overall.

April 2- 30/50k Freestyle Mass Start

After a rest day, athletes took on the final race of the season and arguably one of the most grueling: 30 and 50k freestyle mass starts. The women went first, skiing in fast conditions for their 30k. Patterson led the way for the GRP, finishing 7th. Miller took 9th, Sargent was 12th, Guiney was 17th, and biathlete Kelsey Dickinson took 28th. The men raced 50k a few hours later in ever softening snow. Biathlete Jake Brown stayed with the lead pack for the majority of the race and finished 5th. Lustgarten skied a blazing last two laps to finish 6th, followed by Maifeld-Carucci in 11th and Adam Martin was 14th. 

Results from SuperTour Finals are available on BullittTiming. With the season over, the skiers and biathletes will take a rest before resuming the training season in May!