December 7, 2018 at 11:58 a.m.
Team preview: RHS Nordic skiing
Strong numbers, early winter have Hodag skiers excited for season
Team preview: RHS Nordic skiing
Not only does the team have 24 athletes out for the sport - the most in Reis' five seasons at the helm - the majority of them have raced for several seasons.
Aside from that, winter arrived on time this season, providing at least a thin blanket of the snow to let the team kick off its season as scheduled today in the Ice Age Opener at the ABR/Wolverine Trails in Ironwood, Mich.
All of this has Reis eager to get her team to the starting line and ready for what she hopes will be a breakout season.
"I'm thinking that this season will be, by far, our best season to date in terms of performances," she said of a program that was on the brink of extinction when she took over four years ago. "That said, I don't want to focus entirely on performances. The kids are out there for a lot more reasons than that. It's not that I don't want to help them get faster, because that's probably why I'm there everyday, but I don't want to lose sight of where we came from. When we restarted the program four years ago, we focused on providing kids in the Northwoods an opportunity to get outside during the winter and it's worked."
Most of Rhinelander's top skiers from last year are back. The girls' side is led by junior Jenna Younker, who placed 50th at the WNSL state championships last year. She's joined on the girls' side by returning skiers Abbie Henrichs, Valerie Dalka, Emma Roberts, Jaylen Janssen, Gwyneth Lowry and Emma Hjelle.
Sophomore Zach Goodrich returns after leading the Hodags with a 77th-place finish in the boys' competition at state. Also back are Nicholas St. Pierre, Levi Smith, Breckin Younker and Daniel Goldsworthy.
The returning skiers are by no means guaranteed to be Rhinelander's varsity scorers this year. That's because the team welcomes 11 freshmen into the fold, most of whom have been in the feeder pipeline the last four years.
On the girls' side, Anna Wood, Liana Teter and Megan Lester all placed inside the top 25 in the middle school girls' state race. Kyle Morien and Will Rutkowski join the squad after placing in the top 30 of the middle school boys' race last year.
"I sense in the upperclassmen, just like I did last year, a little bit of trepidation from those up-and-coming freshmen who, some of them, have been skiing since SnoDags (the team's elementary school introductory program). Some of them really love to race, which is new for us," Reis said.
How the team shakes out, performance-wise, will begin to reveal itself in today's 5.3-kilometer freestyle race in Ironwood.
"I look at my roster and I think, 'Who's going to be my first standout?' I think this whole roster, maybe with the exception of one or two people could definitely do the course up at ABR," Reis said. "The earlier we race, the earlier we find out where we need to put our effort, where we need to concentrate more on technique or speed or whatever held us back during this event. I'm hoping it's going to be enlightening for everyone."
Technique has been a major point of emphasis for the team thus far in practice, both on and off the snow.
"Yes, we've taught people how to ski, but now we need to make it more finessed," Reis said. "I can tell what we're lacking in the comparables between our team, other teams and how well they ski. A lot of it comes down to technique, not so much equipment, but technique and the culture of training."
Culture is something Reis said she hopes the upperclassmen on the team can establish this year. The team has heard over the past couple of years from Rhinelander native and Cross Country Sport Development Manager for the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Bryan Fish about the culture the U.S. Nordic program has established in its elite junior and top-level ranks as it climbs up the world rankings.
Reis said developing that culture, and a team mantra, will help each member of the team when they ultimately find themselves alone trying to push through a challenging stretch of trail.
"I'm looking for a term, a set of works or a few syllables that will get them through the pain cave when they enter it, and allow them to trust that it's going to be OK in the end and they're doing it for their team," she said. "It's going to have to be something that pushes them farther and faster than they've ever been."
Reis hopes all of it - the early start, the incoming freshmen and the focus on technique and culture - will ultimately lead to faster times and better placement on race day.
Last year, Reis said she wanted at least one skier to crack the top 50 at the WNSL state meet. That goal was achieved when Jenna Younker finished 49th in the freestyle portion of the race and 50th in the overall pursuit.
This year, Reis said Younker may not be the only Hodag knocking on the door of the top 50 at state.
"We very much could have a handful break the top 50 on either day or in the overall pursuit," she said. "Some of them ski stronger skate than classic, or vice versa. I think we could have half a dozen break the top 50. It's going to be exciting to see."
In keeping with those expectations, Reis said the team is returning to an old criterion of placing in the top 60 percent of the state meet field as one of the ways to earn a varsity letter.
"There's a whole bunch of them that could make top 60 (percent), and they should, because that shows they're improving," she said.
Following today's race, the Hodags are next on the trail Dec. 18 at Minocqua Winter Park for the Lakeland Invite. Rhinelander will host its two-day Hodag Nordic Challenge at the Cedric A. Vig Outdoor Classroom Jan. 5-6. The WNSL state meet will be held in Cable Feb. 9-10.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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