Gilford, NEW HAMPSHIRE -- On another glorious winter morning the 2nd installment of the
Cobble Mountain Snowshoe Classic was held at
Gunstock Mountain Resort. Our hosts (and event non-profit) the
Gunstock Nordic Association couldn't have been more hospitable. Igor was there bright and early to eagerly open the building, start a fire, and drag out every piece of event management equipment they posses...all for us to use. This may have been the most difficult course to set that we've ever done. The four hours of work to create several sections of bushwhack singletrack we're unceremoniously covered up by Mother Nature as she dumped over 15 inches on the resort in the days leading up to the event. Less than 24 hours before the race my dad and I were back out on the mountain "re-building" two snowshoe singletrack sections we tabbed as
Hardwood Follies (connecting Maple & Birch) and
Disasters Edge (C
obble Mountain descent). The five hours of trekking were spent mainly on Cobble Mountain as we broke trail in knee deep powder. When I finally got home Friday night I had to pick my left leg up into bed as my hip flexor had been completely destroyed. For the 2nd race in the
Granite State Snowshoe Series it was another fantastic turnout with 67 snowshoers stepping to the line for what has been billed by some as the
toughest snowshoe course in New England. With over 300 meters of climbing in the slightly over 5 km, there's little doubt that this race is not for the feint of heart (or feint of training).
Jim Johnson of the CMS Polar Bears was once again the class of the field and ran away with the overall title in 32:11. Rounding out the top 3 were
Tim Cox (acidotic RACING/PR Racing) and
Matthew Westerlund of Lacona, NY. On the women's side, acidotic RACING dominated the podium with
Leslie Dillon (acidotic RACING) taking the top spot in 39:43,
Liz Hall (acidotic RACING) placing 2nd, and
Laurel Valley (Rochester Runners) coming in 3rd. Valley spent a little more time on the podium as she won the women's masters category followed by
Diane Gagnon (Team TNT) and
Trish Shibles. On the men's side,
Patrick Smith of Dungeon Rock Racing took the masters crown with
John Skewes and fellow
Rock teammate
Michael Doyle rounding out the top 3. Lastly, the team title was once again captured by
acidotic RACING (365.75) followed by
Dungeon Rock Racing (231.75) and
Team TNT (124.00). The next race in the series is the
Sidehiller 4-Mile Snowshoe Race in Center Sandwich, NH. Expect the best overall competition of the year because the event is both a WMAC
and GSSS points race.
Gilford, NEW HAMPSHIRE -- On another glorious winter morning the 2nd installment of the Cobble Mountain Snowshoe Classic was held at Gunstock Mountain Resort. Our hosts (and event non-profit) the Gunstock Nordic Association couldn't have been more hospitable. Igor was there bright and early to eagerly open the building, start a fire, and drag out every piece of event management equipment they posses...all for us to use. This may have been the most difficult course to set that we've ever done. The four hours of work to create several sections of bushwhack singletrack we're unceremoniously covered up by Mother Nature as she dumped over 15 inches on the resort in the days leading up to the event. Less than 24 hours before the race my dad and I were back out on the mountain "re-building" two snowshoe singletrack sections we tabbed as Hardwood Follies (connecting Maple & Birch) and Disasters Edge (C
obble Mountain descent). The five hours of trekking were spent mainly on Cobble Mountain as we broke trail in knee deep powder. When I finally got home Friday night I had to pick my left leg up into bed as my hip flexor had been completely destroyed. For the 2nd race in the Granite State Snowshoe Series it was another fantastic turnout with 67 snowshoers stepping to the line for what has been billed by some as the toughest snowshoe course in New England. With over 300 meters of climbing in the slightly over 5 km, there's little doubt that this race is not for the feint of heart (or feint of training). Jim Johnson of the CMS Polar Bears was once again the class of the field and ran away with the overall title in 32:11. Rounding out the top 3 were Tim Cox (acidotic RACING/PR Racing) and Matthew Westerlund of Lacona, NY. On the women's side, acidotic RACING dominated the podium with Leslie Dillon (acidotic RACING) taking the top spot in 39:43, 
Liz Hall (acidotic RACING) placing 2nd, and Laurel Valley (Rochester Runners) coming in 3rd. Valley spent a little more time on the podium as she won the women's masters category followed by Diane Gagnon (Team TNT) and Trish Shibles. On the men's side, Patrick Smith of Dungeon Rock Racing took the masters crown with John Skewes and fellow Rock teammate Michael Doyle rounding out the top 3. Lastly, the team title was once again captured by acidotic RACING (365.75) followed by Dungeon Rock Racing (231.75) and Team TNT (124.00). The next race in the series is the Sidehiller 4-Mile Snowshoe Race in Center Sandwich, NH. Expect the best overall competition of the year because the event is both a WMAC and GSSS points race.
Hey Chris
ReplyDeleteI want to thank you for putting on on a great race. This was my first snowshoe race,the DRR gang made me do it..Ha! The course was hard but great fun, especially coming down Cobble! Sorry I didn't introduce myself. I will at your next race. Thanks again, Dan