It’s hard to believe that we are well into the second half of the racing season, but when you notice how long it stays light at the end of the day you realize that we’re indeed closer to the end of things than the beginning.
Our 4 J1/J2 athletes (down from 5 since Chase F. Vaughan defected to Vermont Academy after the Christmas camp) have had a busy time of it lately, with things only going to get busier. By my count, some of them have had as many as 16 race starts with 13 so far as an average. The competitions have ranged from USSA events like Vermont Cup and George Tormey Series to FIS level events (FIS Devo, NJR and Eastern Cup) which take the depth of field and intensity of competition to a much higher level. As we come into the Prez Week holiday camp we’re going to be combining training with races like J1 States, J2 States and hoping to place athletes into start lists in FIS races right after the holiday week ends.
What has been exciting and rewarding for Kerwynn and me has been watching these 4 athletes – Brooke Mackno, Brandon Ogilvie, Peter Schow and Mark Nebraska – train and race to a level that not only makes them competitive within the race fields they enter, but also makes them contenders for overall victories, and this against peers who are almost entirely academy athletes. They are finding their centers and achieving a consistency in execution that lets them get into a starting gate and know they’re as good as their competitors.
These athletes have had top 15 (front page) results in FIS events and come oh-so-close to wins in USSA races. They have put down runs that have won the second race run, after finding a spot of trouble first time down. There have been a few hikes in there as well, which, while not what an athlete or coach wants to have happen, demonstrates to both the “Never never never give up” mentality that will take you past rivals that won’t throw down that extra effort. They all come out to train, to try another day to put pieces together, to work extremely hard – and also to have a measure of fun.
The BOC is developing a reputation at the J1/2 level of bringing athletes to the hill that are as capable of being best on the day as anyone else. No, we don’t have a campus, or fancy uniforms for athletes and coaches, or a van with a rack and a logo. We do have athletes that believe in themselves and are willing and eager to push their limits and coaches that will do whatever they can to help these athletes find their potential. There’s always something more to try, and we’ll be keeping at it as best we can.
When I watch the younger age group athletes on the hill there is often a feeling of “Man, I sure hope these guys stick around when they’re 1s and 2s. Anything is possible.”
See you on the hill this holiday week.
Trey Spencer
Mike Kerwynn
