A lot of ground to cover

There are no shortcuts when it comes to X-C marathons

January 21, 2010|Marty Basch, Globe Correspondent

Kris Freeman, the top male cross-country distance skier in the US, came off the World Cup circuit last year and won the 50-kilometer marathon in a blistering 2 1/2 hours.

Trina Hosmer, a 61-year-old dynamo who was a 1972 Olympian and Masters World Championship medalist, routinely finishes near the top of her races, blowing away skiers more than half her age.

“I’ve also been skiing twice as long as they have,’’ quipped Hosmer.

Then there are those in the back of the pack - and happily so - who take six hours to complete the Craftsbury Marathon course in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom and consider finishing a personal gold medal.

“We certainly get some top skiers, but we see skiers from all walks of life. The marathon is a race within a race,’’ said race director John Brodhead.

The Craftsbury Marathon is the most popular leg of the four-race TD Bank New England Nordic Ski Association Marathon Series and is expected to draw some 700 participants for its 29th running Jan. 30. The series begins Saturday with the White Mountain Classic, a 30-kilometer classical race along the wooded trails of the Jackson Ski Touring Foundation in Jackson, N.H. The Craftsbury race also serves as part of the American Ski Marathon Series and incorporates the National Masters’ Championships.

The series moves to western Maine for the Rangeley Lakes Loppet March 6, near the base of the Saddleback Ski Area. The 50-kilometer trek over rolling terrain features both classic and skate divisions, with classic racers starting an hour earlier than the speedy skaters.

The finale is the most challenging of the Marathon Series. The 50-kilometer freestyle Sugarloaf Ski Marathon March 20 spans the hilly trails of the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center in Carrabassett Valley in Maine.

“The marathon is the ultimate distance and ultimate challenge,’’ said Patrick Cote, executive director of New England Nordic Ski Association, an Olympic development organization. “Everyone wants to see if they can finish.’’

A few other marathons have sprouted up recently. The Maine Hut and Trails Ski Marathon Tour and Race near Sugarloaf (coming Feb. 14) and the Bretton Woods Nordic Marathon (March 13) held their inaugural events last year. The Great North Woods 30K Classic Race and Tour debuts Feb. 27 at The Balsams in northern New Hampshire.

The long-distance competitions attract US Ski Team members, high school to college racers, masters, families, and intermediate-level schussers eager for a warm bowl of soup at the next feed station after passing through a farmer’s pasture.

They contend with varying weather conditions, aches, and blisters. Agile, thin, and brightly adorned skiers draft off one another and breeze by those plodding along.