Nordic Skiing Team NCAA Eastern Regionals Preview
The St. Lawrence University Nordic Skiing team will cap off an exciting regular season of Nordic skiing this weekend in Lake Placid, as the school will be hosting the EISA Regionals.
Races will take place at Mount van Hoevenberg’s new facility, and they should be very exciting. Despite ongoing difficulty with snow and weather, with the North Country having a much milder winter than usual, the snowstorm and cold temperatures that will be coming this weekend should offer prime Nordic Skiing race conditions for the competitors.
The first day of competition, which is this Friday, will include a women’s 5k race and a Men’s 10k race, both of which are skating races. These races will have an individual start, which is essentially a time trial around the steep climbs and descents of the Van Hoevenberg course.
The second day on Saturday will include a women’s 15k and a men’s 20k race, which will be different from the Friday races, in that they will be in the traditional classic technique.
Currently, the race format will be a mass start, with around 50 competitors in each race that will all be starting simultaneously. The winding descents at van Hoevenberg will be crowded and dicey, as racers battle for places. This should make for some exciting starts to these races.
At the moment, the St. Lawrence Saints have two skiers who are competing for bids to the NCAA Championship.
Sophomore Emma Strack ’25 is ranked 11th. Strack has had a great season thus far and has been lighting up this season’s classic races, having a 2nd place finish at the St. Michael’s Carnival, which was a very impressive result and her best result so far.
Senior Brian Beyerbach ‘23 is also in contention to make the NCAA Championships, having a 26th-place ranking going into the regional races this weekend.
To explain qualification to the NCAA’s Championships a bit more, the way it works is that athletes must post consistent performances throughout the season to earn a starting bib at nationals, as the East Region typically sends 15 men and women each season to NCAA’s.
Moving past regionals, St. Lawrence will also be hosting the NCAA Championships from March 8 to 11, also in Lake Placid. It is expected to be a highly competitive national championship, with multiple Olympians and other high-level international level skiers competing for the championships.
Races this weekend will occur in the mornings, weather pending, and admissions to this weekend’s races will be free.
It is awesome that Nordic Skiing Regionals and Nationals, which are some of the most competitive Nordic races in the country, will be held less than two hours from the St. Lawrence University campus, so if you are free this weekend, or from March 8 to March 11, and looking to watch some high-level Nordic skiing competition, be sure to come to Lake Placid for the races.