Ripp & Team Win Individual National Championships, Men Finish Runner-Up Overall as Women Take Third
Mammoth Lakes, CA ~ The Paul Smith's College men's Nordic team arrived in California last week ready to defend their national championship team trophy from the previos year, but as it is in weather-dependent outdoor sports, Mother Nature had other plans. Every curveball possible was thrown at the team to disrupt them and the entire championship week, as Mammoth Mountain endured record setting snowfalls that paralyzed the venues.
The championships started with a last minute call to move races forward a day, and with less than 12 hours of preparation time the Bobcats readied their skis for the 7.5k Classic Race, which was held on Tuesday, March 7th. Tamarack Nordic Center, with its picturesque location high in the mountains at 9000 feet of elevation, hosted the event as the first of the competition. Day one went to the Bobcats, as last year's national champions from PSC had a repeat from the previous year, edging Western Colorado by three points. Aidan Ripp (Cloquet, MN) led the way, winning the Individual National Championship in the process, followed by Gustav Whitcomb (Holderness, NH) in fifth place and Philip Matthews (Half Moon, NY) in seventh place. The women's team also started the week off strong with Jessie Church (Bethlehem, NY) leading the way in fourth place as the Lady Bobcats took third place overall as a team.
Day two of the championships was the Individual Skate Sprint, but excessive snowfall and gusty winds created visibility of less than five feet at times throughout the day, resulting in chaos on the course. The women persevered throughout the event with Church once again leading the way in seventh place for her second top-10 performance of the championship and a fifth-place team finish. The men found themselves in another battle with Western Colorado, with four men in the advancement rounds and three making it all the way to the A and B finals. Ripp led the men with a third-place finish, followed by Gustav Whitcomb in seventh, and Philip Matthews in tenth. In the end, the effort was enough to tie their rivals at 18 points apiece, leaving the Bobcats with a slim three-point lead heading into what became the final day of racing.
Due to an incoming atmospheric river and a storm expected to drop 40-100 inches of new snow on Mammoth Lakes, the race organizers once again made a change to the race schedule, forgoing the traditional rest day and moving the 15k up a day while simultaneously canceling the final Team Sprint event. Both of those changes would affect the final standings.
The 15k Mass Start proved to be the final event of the 2023 USCSA National Championships, as both teams from Paul Smith's College were competing for podiums. Racing three days in a row at high altitude would prove to be a daunting challenge, but the Bobcats would fight valiantly to the bitter end. After the final race, Western Colorado edged the Bobcats and narrowly took the overall team win, landing Bobcats men in second on the day and second overall. On the women's side, a strong final day of racing enabled Paul Smith's College to retain their third place overall team finish.
Coach Dougherty noted the perseverence his team went through, and commended their effort in very difficult conditions. "I am so proud of both these teams," said Dougherty. "Their performance is absolutely astounding considering all the challenges of weather and altitude. To have us compete with teams that live and train at these elevations is a huge win and something we can be very proud of. I really am so impressed with how this team took the many challenges thrown at them and showed up every day to be the absolute best skiers they could be while leaving nothing on the course. Simply a tremendous effort," he added.
Four Bobcats will continue their season at the US Biathlon National Championships in Casper, Wyoming at the end of March.
*Final Race - Team Classic Sprint was canceled due to inclement weather.
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