The Dartmouth ski team has high hopes for the coming season, and with good reason.
A healthy team, the experience of successful veterans--including six returning All Americans--and a talented group of recruits make the outlook for this season even brighter than last year's successful campaign.
"It's going to be an exciting season," said men's nordic coach Ruff Patterson.
The Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association (EISA) carnival circuit opens with the Bates Winter Carnival Jan. 22-23 in Maine.
Last winter, the women's Nordic team dominated the carnival circuit. Senior co-captains Jessica Smith and Abi Holt along with classmate Barb Jones (Stillwater, Minn.) are returning All-Americans. Carnival veteran Chris Shaner (Norway, Maine) rounds out the senior class.
At the 1998 NCAAs, the Dartmouth women had the highest finishes of all eastern skiers in the women's classical race, and placed fourth, ninth, and eleventh in freestyle. Coach Cami Cardenali feels that this team has six skiers with a shot at the NCAA championships.
The strongest newcomers to the squad are freshmen Kate Pearson, Erin Quinn-Hurst and Mirte Mallory. Pearson and Quinn-Hurst are attempting to qualify for the World Junior National Team, and may miss the first few Carnival races if they are selected.
A light early season race schedule means that the women have to jump right into serious competition, which will include the always talented teams from the University of Vermont and Middlebury College this season.
The men's nordic squad remains intact, with last year's top scorers senior Stephen Donahue and sophomore Scott McArt. Donahue and McArt found the top ten in nearly every race last year.
Fifth-year senior Paul Stone '98 returns after missing last season with a back injury, while junior Nils Arvold is back from last year's World Biathlon Championships; both are ready to contribute. Patterson has also been impressed with the early-season showing of junior Hans-Peder Hansen.The Nordic skiers will be in Rumford, Maine, Jan. 16-24, competing against the nation's best in the U.S. National Cross Country Championships.
Heading into the Winter Carnival season, the Dartmouth alpine teams are hot. Women's senior captain Jen Collins, a former member of the U.S. Ski Team, and talented Gusty Swift '01 have already skied to top five finishes in Eastern Cup races this season. Collins finished second in giant slalom at the NCAA championships last year.
Coach Bruce Lingelbach sees top five finishes in store for first-year newcomers Alison Keller and Marie-Helene Thibeault. Keller has top notch racing experience and Thibeault comes off a year with the Canadian National Team.
On the competition, Coach Lingelbach said that UVM is "looking rusty" right now, but is sure to pick it up and make the season competitive.
Men's alpine coach Peter Dodge is looking forward to success from senior captain David Viele '98, the 1998 NCAA giant slalom champ, and from freshman Brad Wall. Early season racing has provided top finishes from both racers.
For the team to score well, All-American senior Andy Pennock, classmate Jamieson Reigle and junior Jeremy Joseph will have to find the top ten consistently. Viele has his eyes on the World Cup National Team, and several of the younger races are trying to qualify for the North American (NorAm) Junior Championships. Coach Dodge has a solid group of freshmen to complement the veterans on the team.
Coaches and racers alike see the NCAA championships--this year in the East, at Sugarloaf, Maine--as attainable for more skiers on the Dartmouth squad than ever before.
