ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Several Craftsbury Outdoor Center Green Racing Project (GRP) skiers headed up to Alaska to compete in the first two weekends of SuperTour events.
The races were supposed to be held in Fairbanks, but cold weather (minus 20s and 30s) forced the race organizers to move the races to Anchorage. SuperTour results help determine who receives U.S. Ski Team starts on the World Cup.
In the first sprint race of the season, GRPer John Binhammer cranked it up in the qualifier for the win; he ended up 26th after the rounds of quarterfinals, semis, and finals.
His teammate Joe Lynch was not so fortunate as he and a few other racers were chased off course by a charging moose. Race rules say that interference by wildlife does not change the results or allow for a re-do of the race, only in cross country skiing would this rule be included. Joe might be truly disappointed but he’ll remember this race better than any other (unless he lands a spot on the World Cup or wins nationals).
New GRP members Jack Christner was 16, Keelan Durham 17, and Brian Bushey 18.
In the first weekend distance race, Brian Bushey placed third in 28:53 for a tremendous result in his first post collegiate career race. Bushey graduated high school from Green Mountain Academy in Waitsfield, grew up in Montpelier, skied for the University of Utah, and now is back home in Vermont.
