Results

Many thanks for the 20 folks who came out to Elk River today. Trails were good, albeit soft (the clouds didn't roll in until much later than we'd expected) and everyone seemed to have a good time. As promised, here are results—with a twist—pictoral results. Enjoy, and if you want a hi-res copy of any of the pictures, comment here or email ari.ofsevit at gmail. (Click any picture to enlarge—and there are many more where these came from.)

10k	Fname	Lname	Bib	Age		10k Finish	10k Pace
	Julia	Harrison	64	17	F	0:38:05	0:03:49
	Jesse	Langley	66	44	M	0:38:15	0:03:50
	Darrin	Diedrich	65	44	M	0:41:30	0:04:09
	Sue	Harrison	63	53	F	0:44:45	0:04:29
	Mercedes	Leininger	61	17	F	0:44:50	0:04:29
	Maxwell	Winter	58	16	M	0:44:51	0:04:29
	Jack	Ver Steegh	68	61	M	0:58:18	0:05:50

20k	Fname	Lname	Bib	Age		Lap 1	Pace	20k Finish	20k Pace
	John	Swain	71	24	M	0:31:24	0:03:08	1:04:21	0:03:13
	David	Christopherson	57	60	M	0:31:26	0:03:09	1:04:47	0:03:14
	Jeff	Evanson	60	44	M	0:31:27	0:03:09	1:05:27	0:03:16
	David	Nelson	62	38	M	0:31:25	0:03:09	1:06:20	0:03:19
	Philip	Misner	54	29	M	0:33:12	0:03:19	1:09:09	0:03:27
	Drew	Holbrook	72	49	M	0:33:49	0:03:23	1:09:33	0:03:29
	Sam	Oftedahl	56	28	M	0:34:14	0:03:25	1:11:39	0:03:35
	Mark	Rathbun	67	50	M	0:34:20	0:03:26	1:11:52	0:03:36
	Pat	Jopp	69	49	M	0:34:39	0:03:28	1:12:56	0:03:39
	Pete	Thurmes	70	49	M	0:35:26	0:03:33	1:14:00	0:03:42
	Dave	Kallemeyn	55	52	M	0:35:50	0:03:35	1:15:43	0:03:47
	Bob	Mckenzie	53	38	M	0:37:52	0:03:47	1:22:00	0:04:06
	Sophie	Scholz	59	16	F	0:55:28	0:05:33	1:47:00	0:05:21

It's a beautiful day

Let's go ski—see you at noon.

Course recon and pictures

Saturday at noon: 10/20k.

Woodlands Trails should be in fine shape for the ski race on Saturday. There is good, continuous coverage around the 10k outer loop, and the snow is firm and solid. Conditions vary based on exposure, areas which have seen the sun are icy, those in the shade are still well-packed powder. The trails will be groomed Friday night or Saturday morning based on the weather (with cloudy weather, the course should stay rather firm). There are two icy spots—one on the Prairie Loop and one on Peeper Hollow, which will be shoveled or cut out of the course as necessary, but for now we plan to run a full 10k lap. Conditions should be good for the biathlon event on Sunday as well.

Here are a few pictures; more will be posted on Skinnyski shortly.

Weather and trails

Report from Dave up at Elk River is of great conditions. Fresh grooming, of course, for Saturday.

Saturday looks cooler and cloudier than the past few days, and the race should be right around freezing, so we'll leave the start at noon which should make for an outstanding course. I am planning a recon trip up tomorrow morning, with pictures.

Weather

We're watching the weather. It might not be super-sunny, but it sounds like Elk River's snow should stack up fine. We'll have a race report before race time on Saturday. But the race goes on, rain, snow or shine.

Race update

With Birkie preparations, I haven't personally been up to Elk River, but the trail reports paint a pretty rosy picture. And with the latest weather forecasts not showing any major warm-ups, the snow should be fine in a week and a half. March 6 at noon. Bring yourself, we'll bring the sunscreen!

The SPring Fling 10 & 20k races at Elk River

Mark your calendars: March 6 at Woodland Trails in Elk River the Macalester Nordic Ski Team will host the SPF10 and 20k races on the wonderful trails in Elk River. The races will be 10k and 20k freestyle events and start at high noon under the bright March sun (there's a reason it's called the SPF 20) using the outer trail (10k per lap) at Woodland Trails in Elk River with the Prairie Loop start. Conditions there are excellent, and the trails generally hold snow longer than anywhere else in the area.

Registration, on-site, will be $25, and $15 for high school-and-younger racers. Cash, or checks made payable to "Macalester College." All proceeds from the race will go to the Woodlands Trails grooming crew and to support the Macalester Nordic Ski Team.

We can make no guarantees, but we're ordering up deep snow, good grooming and, hopefully, sunny skies under a bright, March sun.

Questions? Leave a comment here or email ari.ofsevit [at] gmail.