For the week of December 24 - 30, 2003

It’s a new year
for SV Nordic team

Skiers are headed for Maine

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By JEFF CORDES
Express Staff Writer

Small is better for the Sun Valley Junior Nordic ski team, entering its 32nd season under the umbrella of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation.

Alexa Turzian, Sun Valley’s J2 national hopeful, strides along during Saturday’s Christmas Classic diagonal race on the Lake Creek trail system. Express photos by Willy Cook

It’s not that the entire Sun Valley team is smaller. After all there are 112 kids ages 6-18 including the second-year group training in Quigley Canyon outside of Hailey.

But the top-level Competition Team is smaller, with 27 kids compared to 36 last year. Having fewer skiers enables the coaching staff to be more effective, according to 17th-year head coach Rick Kapala.

"Last year was the biggest Comp Team we ever had," said Kapala. "It will be a little less hectic this year, not so much crowd control. But the Prep Team (25) and Devo Teams (60) are big again, which means the base of the pyramid is bigger."

Skiers on the Comp Team will travel east twice this winter—the first trip to U.S. Nationals/World Junior Trials Dec. 31 at Rumford, Me., and the second to Junior Nationals in March at Lake Placid, N.Y.

"We don’t have any kids on the Comp Team who are huge, proven superstars, but it may be deeper than last year’s team," said Kapala, assisted by Ali Deines and Nordic team alumnus Pat Casey.

Sun Valley’s second-year J1 boys (ages 16-17) are good athletes with balanced skiing skills, Kapala said. They are seniors Jackson Harris, George Livingston, David Vanderpool and Chase Cleveland, and junior Luke Pletcher.

David Vanderpool is one of five strong Sun Valley second-year J1 boys who hope to qualify for Junior Nationals this winter season. Express photo by Willy Cook

Cleveland is the best sprinter of the group, while Livingston has the best classical skills, he added. "The spirit is really high. A lot of guys are starting to believe that the work and time they’ve put in will pay off," the coach said.

First-year J1 Delamon Rego, 18th classic at last year’s Junior Nationals, is another fine prospect. So is Alex Hamlin, who set the team’s male hill climb record this fall on the Harper’s Trail in Adams Gulch.

Sun Valley’s J1 girls look quite a bit stronger on paper than last year, chiefly because all-around star Fraiser Opel transferred from Missoula, Mt. for her senior year at Hailey’s Wood River High School.

"Fraiser has a good chance to medal at Junior Nationals," said Kapala. "Our challenge for her, and for Morgan (Arritola) this year is to get some results college coaches can look at."

Second-year J1 Morgan Arritola continues to shine, in only her second year of skiing. She’s a skating whiz (19th freestyle at J1 JNs in 2003) who is still evolving as a classic skier. Morgan shattered the team’s female hill climb record by 93 seconds this past summer.

Other second-year J1s Erin McQueen and Lexie Praggastis are back, and senior Erin Magee and sophomore Margii Driscoll will add to the team’s skills and competitiveness.

Kapala said, "Erin McQueen is a better skater and she’s pretty tough. We want to keep both Lexie and Erin Magee healthy. Erin Magee is technically our best skier. And first-year J1 Margii Driscoll is a good skate sprinter and a better classical distance skier. It has to do with double poling."

An outstanding crop of J2 (ages 14-15) boy prospects features Reid Pletcher, Max Danielson, Artie Livingston, Mikey Matteson and Conor Davis. J2 girl hopefuls include Courtney Perry, Mali Noyes, Tess Dahlgren and Chelsea Vanderpool.

Then there’s Alexa Turzian, 15, a hot ticket who earned the Junior National J2 silver medal in the 5-kilometer skate race last March in Alaska. She’s a little better in skating, and a little better in distance events.

Only time will tell how good Turzian can be. Kapala said, "We expect Alexa to keep rolling. Our job with her is to take it one step at a time."

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2003-04 Nordic
Ski Team Roster

SUN VALLEY JUNIOR NORDIC

 

Program director and head coach—Rick Kapala (17th year). Competition team coaches—Ali Deines (4th year) and Pat Casey (2nd year). Groomers—Greg Wilson and Nate Scales.

J3/J4 Prep team coaches—Head coach Abi Holt (1st year) and Jeremy Fryberger (2nd year). Development team coaches—Head coach Dave Bingham (10th year, but first with the team since 1994). Lake Creek assistant coaches—Dave Wheelock (20th year), Laurie Leman (13th year) and Mollie Holt (1st year). Quigley coaches—Rob Landis (5th year, last with the team in 2001) and Monica Montgomery (1st year).

Competition team racers—Morgan Arritola, Brad Bradford, Chase Cleveland, Tess Dahlgren, Max Danielson, Conor Davis, Margii Driscoll, Alex Hamlin, Robbie Hamlin, Jackson Harris, Christopher Holmquist, Artie Livingston, George Livingston, Erin Magee, Mikey Matteson, Erin McQueen, Mali Noyes, Fraiser Opel, Dawson Paschall, Courtney Perry, Luke Pletcher, Reid Pletcher, Lexie Praggastis, Delamon Rego, Alexa Turzian, Chelsea Vanderpool and David Vanderpool. (Tuition $2,425, ages 14-and-over, year-round training, on-snow 5-6 days a week, plus $70 wax charge).

J3/J4 Prep team racers—Lukas Anderson, Julia Bowman, Connor Brown, Nellie Brown, Amy Buchanan, Makayla Cappel, Harlan Collins, McKeanna Collins, Madison Deffe, Liam Donohoe, Sean Dumke, Maxwell Durtschi, Sam Farnham, Keller Gibson, Courtney Hamilton, Daniel Henry, Travis Job, Scotty Phelan, Bronwen Raff, Bill Rheinschild, Terrell Sampson, Chet Stephens, Samantha Taft, Jennifer Tormey and Nicol Wheeler. (Tuition $925, ages 10-13, on-snow 3 days a week, plus $35 wax charge).

 

Lake Creek and Quigley Development team members—Lake Creek: Jake Adicoff, Galen Barker, Angelica Black, Eli Conrad, Gus Conrad, Airik Donohoe, Julia Donovan, Katie Dumke, India Emerick, George Everitt, Katie Feldman, Karl Fostvedt, Charlie Grabow, Cooper Hanley, Mateja Heinrich, Ben Kanellitsas, Tim Kanellitsas, Zachary Lindahl, Fran Magee, Carter Miller, Madigan Miller, Christopher Nalen, Zoey Olbum, Ty Reinemann, Eric Runkel, Sara Runkel, Emily Seiller, Riley Sennes, Hailey Stam, Sloan Storey, Spencer Thomas, Averell Tian, Moyo Tian, Zoe Valvo, Emma Wilander, Karl Wilander, Maggie Williams, Kailey Wilt, Ketchum Wilt and Calder Zarkos. Quigley Canyon: Kenza Alaoui, Cameron Bingham, Tara Bingham, Gardner Cord, Bobby Corker, Chance Foster, Cassi Gorringe, Andrew Graves, Catherine Henry, Connor Hesselbacher, Jimmy Holcomb, Shyla Jones, Kaitlyn Landis, Brooke Lawrence, Ashton Lupton, Joel Rinckwald, Joey Stellers, Cheyanne Stopol, Maranda Stopol and Alison Town. (Tuition $400 for 3 days a week, on-snow from December through February, training Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays after school, plus $10 wax charge).

 

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