To all of those naysayers:
July 26, 2003 - First Ever Boise Twilight Criterium Rollerski Sprint a
Success:
The first ever Rollerski Sprint Race held in Conjunction with Boise, Idaho's
famous Twilight Criterium drew several thousand spectators to the streets of
Downtown Boise. Despite an intense thunderstorm that delayed the start by
nearly an hour, 38 racers rolled up to the starting line at 8:10 pm. Strong
contingents from Boise and Sun Valley, along with top racers from Park City,
Minneapolis, Bend / XC Oregon, the Maine Winter Sports Center and the US Ski
Team made for an outstanding field and some exciting racing.
The Men's field broke open early, with Torin Koos of the US Ski Team quickly
establishing a solid lead and easily taking the one lap prime, a pair of
Italian Ski-Skett rollerskis. A pack of three, including Levi Hensel of XC
Oregon, Steve Scott from the Maine Winter Sports Center and junior Casey
Simons out of the Park City Nordic Team and the University of Utah gave
chase. Koos, however, proved strong to the end and took the win with a
comfortable margin, claiming the $500 first prize. Hensel and Scott
continued to battle for second and third, with Hensel finally prevailing in
a hard-fought sprint. Outstanding sprinter Simons held on for fourth
overall, and grabbed the Junior title (as well as a pair of 2004 Rossi
X-iums) by 9 seconds over local favorite Steve Rudzinski of Boise's' Bogus
Basin Nordic Team. Sun Valley / Dartmouth's Mike Sinott rounded out the top
three for the Junior Men.
On the Women's side, the race came down to the wire, with Maine Winter
Sports Center's Haley Johnson leading after the first lap, closely followed
by junior skier Sara Studebaker of the Bogus Basin Nordic Team and
Dartmouth, and another junior, Sun Valley's Kaelin Kiesel, skiing for the
Colorado Rocky Mountain School. A second lap battle saw Studebaker move to
the front in the last 100 meters to take the win (as well as the skis) for
both the Junior and Open Women, followed closely by Johnson in second and
Kiesel third in Open Class and second Junior. Sun Valley Ski Education
Foundation's Margii Driscoll rounded out the top 3 for the Juniors and
finished fourth in the Open.
Next year's event is already in the works, with the possible addition of
hill climb, distance, and sprint relay events.
A Big Thanks to our sponsors: Wells Fargo, Rossignol, Tamarack Resort, Bogus
Basin Mountain Resort, the BBLSEF Nordic Group, World Cycle and Idaho
Mountain Touring.
Most of all, we'd like to thank everyone that made the trip to Boise - we
hope to see you next summer!
Travis Jones
Nordic Director
Bogus Basin Mountain Resort
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Nathan Schultz
http://nsavage.com
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