The Big Green will be looking to pick up from where it left off at the end of last year, when it capped off an undefeated carnival season with a seventh-place finish at the NCAA Championships.
Ten college teams from around the region will compete at the St. Lawrence Carnival.
For the women, the two-day event comprises a five-kilometer classic and a 15-kilometer freestyle. The men will partake in a 10-kilometer classic and 20-kilometer freestyle. Both alpine teams will also compete in slalom and giant slalom events.
The last time Dartmouth raced in the St. Lawrence Carnival was two years ago, when it edged out Middlebury College and finished in first place with 587.5 points.
Since then, the Big Green has gone undefeated in all Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association carnivals. Still, it will have to be mindful of Middlebury, the University of New Hampshire and the University of Vermont all three schools consistently registered top-four finishes during last year's carnival season.
In addition, the UVM Catamounts topped Dartmouth at last year's NCAA Championships, placing fifth.
Despite tough intercollegiate competition, Big Green skiers will mostly compete against their own teammates, alpine skier Courtney Hammond '11 said.
"Obviously there are good girls on other teams, but [Dartmouth's] women's alpine is so strong and competitive," she said. "That's the big thing right now we know which team is going to race this weekend, but it could change every week. We have 12 girls, and six spots for each weekend."
Hammond will wear the leader bib for both the slalom and giant slalom races at the St. Lawrence Carnival an honor given to the top Dartmouth skier in each event. Hammond played a large role in garnering points for the Big Green last season, finishing first in nine of her 12 carnival races.
This year, she said, her goals for the season are a little different.
"I kind of had a rough start to the season so far, so I'm kind of looking at this season as more of a let's see what I can do,'" she said. "But we have such a strong team and so many strong individual athletes that it changes the whole game."
Women's Nordic also dominated the courses last season, winning 11 of 12 carnival races. Despite losing many seniors from last season, this year's team, led by captain Ida Sargent '11, will field many of the same athletes that fueled Dartmouth's 2009 success.
"Even though we graduated a number of skiers last year, the whole field this upcoming year is open because a lot of other schools graduated seniors who ended up placing high in overall rankings," men's Nordic captain Patrick O'Brien '10 said.
Nordic skier Rosie Brennan '11 will wear the leader bib in both the freestyle and classic races for the women, while Nils Koons '11 will don the leader bib in men's freestyle.
Despite having a familiarity with Mt. Van Hoevenberg, where the cross-country races will take place, the Big Green's Nordic team will face significant challenges on the trail.
"It is a fairly straightforward course, but Saturday's race is a mass start, so that can be a little chaotic," O'Brien said. "There will also be a number of non-college skiers who race at a very high level, which will increase the depth of the field."
Meanwhile, at Whiteface Mountain, the alpine skiers will also be racing on a familiar course.
"It's one of those hills that everyone has raced," Hammond said. "I think it's challenging in a sense that it is not too steep, but the terrain varies, so there is something for everybody on it."
Currently, all of Dartmouth's team is expected to compete, O'Brien said. This might change in future carnivals, however, as solid performances by Brennan, Sargent, Sophie Caldwell '12, Eric Packer '12 and Sam Tarling '13 in Anchorage earned them spots in the World Junior Championships and the Under-23 Championships in Hinterzarten, Germany, at the end of January.
After last year's stellar season, the Big Green will be looking to outdo last year's results and this year's expectations.
"I think that all the skiers are looking to win carnivals and hopefully go undefeated in the regular season like we have in the past," O'Brien said. "I think the team has big goals at the NCAA this year."
Friday's races include the women's five-kilometer classic, the men's 10-kilometer classic and the alpine giant slalom runs. Saturday, the alpine teams will compete in slalom runs, while the cross-country men and women tackle the 20-kilometer and 15-kilometer freestyles, respectively.
