by Coach Carl Klossner
The Polar Bear Biathlon Club hosted its final race of the current season at McCauley Mountain on Sunday, February 1. The first race, scheduled for January 1, was cancelled due to Mother Nature’s wash out of the race course.
Twenty biathletes registered for the sprint race, with two dropping out the day of the race due to the sickness.
However, the 18 racers who participated represented the largest field of competitors at the local biathlon in 10 years.
Due to the continuing dropping temperatures and the pending Junior National Qualifier, the race distances were changed so that all racers skied a 7.5 km race course.
As it was, only three participants would have skied the longer 10 km course.
With the sun shining and the wind dying down, the race went off with interval starts.
Although it was a beautiful day, the snow was slow due to the continued cold snap.
Plus, a thin layer of fresh snow made the course softer than normal. But everyone skied the same course, so the impact was minimal.
Local competitors and their results are as follows: In the U17 class (under 17) Megan Greene placed first for the girls, missing one target and Tyler Rudolph placed first for the boys, shooting clean.
In the U19 class Connor Hrynuk, a new member to the Polar Bear Biathlon Team, placed first, missing six targets. Henry Uzdavinis did not finish due to illness.
In the Grand Masters Class, Lesley Leach placed first hitting 50 percent of her targets.
Also, former Polar Bear racer Robert Winter, who grew up in Big Moose and currently lives in Fayetteville, placed first in the Novice Mens Class, shooting clean.
Following the biathlon several of the racers complimented the grooming of the course, so a big thank you to the trail tiller/groomer and its operator who prepares our race course.
The volunteers were praised for their continued support and willingness to present an excellent race. One racer went as far as to say that our course is the best in eastern New York!
All comments were positive and supportive of our local ski area. We echo these sentiments and wish to thank Steve Uzdavinis and the McCauley Mountain staff for providing us with a great course.
We also want to thank Peter Pepper for his undying support of the nordic program.
Our next races will be held this spring and early summer. A complete listing of the race results can be found at: webscorer.com/race?raceid=36145.