Sports

Westonka Nordic Ski Team Adapts to Lack of Snow

Unseasonably warm temperatures has ski team getting creative.

Westonka's Nordic ski team has been working hard this season, looking for snow wherever they can find it.

Their "home fields" of Baker Park and Burl Oaks Golf Course haven't had enough snow to groom, so activities have been limited to snow-making venues, including Hyland Park in Bloomington, Elm Creek Park Reserve in Maple Grove and Theodore Wirth Park in Minneapolis.  

Dismal weather has meant limited training in classic-style skiing, as tracks become glazed and icy.

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On Jan. 3, the White Hawks skate-skied in a Twin Cities Nordic Ski Conference meet at Wirth Park. Senior captains Jack Inglis and Bjorn Larson finished the varsity boys 4K in 10th and 12th place out of 91 skiers with times of 12:28 and 12:43.  

Sophomore Scott Harrison finished between the two in 11th place at 12:34. Junior Grant Piepkorn placed 26th, sophomore Kole Retterath was 29th and senior Victor Brenk was 40th.  

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The boys finished the meet in 3rd behind Irondale and St. Louis Park.

The varsity girls were led by sophomore Mackenzie Strehle, who finished 20th out of 88 skiers with a 5k time of 17:31. Sophomore Rose Inglis was 26th at 17:49; senior Heidi Dotzenroth was 26th at 17:50; sophomore Maddie Kalgren was 28th at 17:52; and senior captain Karly Boll was 36th at 18:07.  

The girls finished in 5th.

The varsity team traveled to Giant's Ridge in Biwabik, MN, on Jan. 7 to compete in the largest high school nordic ski meet in the country—the Mesabi East Invitational. The boys team of Inglis, Larson, Harrison, Piepkorn, Retterath and junior Tommy Tully finished the combined skate-classic meet in 14th place out of 60 teams.  

Skiing for the varsity girls were Boll, Dotzenroth, Strehle and Kalgren. 

The White Hawks were back at Wirth for a TCNSC skate meet on Jan. 10. With a temperature of 55 degrees in the sun, the course was a fast/slow mix of snow, ice and slush.  

The downhill runs were fast at the top and digressed to a ski-stopping saturation at the bottom—resulting in several spectacular crashes and pileups.

The varsity boys finished in 2nd place behind Irondale. Harrison led the team, finishing in 2nd place with a time of 13:20. Larson was 9th, followed by Inglis, 10th and Piepkorn and Retterath tied at 17th.

The varsity girls finished in 6th place, led by Strehle, 30th at 19:57; Boll, 31st; Kalgren, 35th; Dotzenroth, 38th; and senior Shawna Heilman, 41st.

The team found real snow at Maplelag Resort in Callaway, MN, during their annual training weekend Jan. 13-16.  Cooler conditions and deeper snow cover enabled the team to focus on classic-style training in preparation for the conference championship meet on Jan. 27. 


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