Elm Creek Series Results

Conditions: Air temp. 23F with very little wind; newly arrived natural snow mixed with man-made snow base; great racing condition.

Race course: 5K skate and classic races (5K lit trails including Valley Trail, Thicket Trail, and Northern Light Trail). The skating lanes and tracks are hard pack with soft ½ to 1 inch of newly arrived snow on top (felt fresh and slow).

Commentary: Trevor Drake, Jared Sundstrom, Laszlo Alberti, and Adam Johnson charged right from the start line all the way up the “Wall” and down to the Thicket trails. It would be a guess game between the race director and the timer which one from the pack would pop out from the top of the Donut to the finish line. Sure, it was the race between Jared and Laszlo where Jared finally put the hammer down and went for the finish line. Trevor rounded the third in the 5K skate race. In the 5K classic race, Trevor edged everyone in a large margin after the “Wall”. The Pioneer Midwest proud Adam chased down Jared for the 2nd place and Jared rounded up for the 3rd. In the women’s field, Andrea Potyondy-Smith continued her domination in her skate/classic pursuit and claimed the skate title. Haley Bell decided to go for it at the last minute and won the women’s classic race. Despite the slower condition, everyone seems happy about the great effort. Best luck on the upcoming big marathon races. Guess what, the word afterwards is “we only have about a month of skiing left, and I cannot believe I am searching for a bike already on the Internet!!!” Yes, the Early Bird Registration for the winter triathlon race at Elm Creek (24th annual POLE PEDAL PANT winter triathlon, 10k xc ski, 7k mt bike, 7k run) is on March 9. The online registration is open: www.polepedalpant.com

Freestyle(F)/Classic(C) 
Jared Sundstrom                 13:23 (F)/16:28 (C) – male winner of skate race
Laszlo Alberti                  13:25 (F)
Trevor Drake                    14:03 (F)/15:50 (C) – male winner of classic race
Adam Johnson                    14:33 (F)/16:19 (C)
Dennis Curran                   15:16 (F)
Ethan Richards                  15:54 (F)
Wes Heal                        16:31 (F)
Tim Hieb                        17:20 (F)
Andrea Potyondy-Smith           18:55 (F)/25:19 (C) – female winner of skate race
Nicolle Fisher                  24:32 (F) 
Haley Bell                               /20:48 (C) – female winner of classic race

--Melinda Silbernick (Race Director), Amy Xu (Timer/Results)