December 14, 2022 at 1:39 p.m.
Rhinelander Nordic skiers eager to get on the snow
Rhinelander Nordic skiers eager to get on the snow
Dave Slette takes over as the program lead after Charil Reis stepped down following eight years as the head high school coach.
On-and-off winter weather has kept the team indoors during much of its preseason training, though Slette said the team has focused on establishing a culture of working hard as well as improving skills at both the high school and middle school levels of a program run by the Northwoods Nordic Ski Club.
"If we can kind of sell out on working hard and working on those two things, I think results are going to speak for themselves," he said. "You'll get results as long as you've got a dedicated group that knows what to do and how to do it and is ready to come into it night in and night out."
The team is slated to get its first test of those skills this coming Saturday in the WinMan Opener in northwestern Vilas County. That kicks off what's slated to be a nine-race schedule for the team, culminating with two WNSL state championship races in February as the league goes to a new format to crown its state champions.
Snow has been hit or miss so far this season. The team is hopeful, especially with rounds of snow forecasted this week, that the WinMan Trails will be ready to host Saturday's opener.
"Provided they have snow, that's going to be a valuable asset for us," coach Slette said. "Having that extra race early in the season is going to pay dividends come January when we're racing more often."
Trails in the Rhinelander area have not been skiable thus far this season, so much of the team's training has been relegated to exercises inside the Hodag Dome. The team has also traveled to the ABR/Wolverine Trail system in Ironwood, Mich. for a couple of weekend expeditions. Especially with more and more trail systems elsewhere in the state acquiring artificial snow-making capabilities, coach Slette said every chance to get outside early in the season is critical.
"It's critical really and sometimes I'm not sure everyone knows how critical it is when you're talking about the competition we're going up against," he said. "There's now snow-making in several locations around the state ... In Rhinelander, if we have to drive 90 minutes to snow, that's not a tall ask and it's really critical because having a chance to adapt as quickly as you can toward competition and what you're going to be doing in competition is super important."
As for the high school teams themselves, Rhinelander brings back only a handful of skiers who competed at last February's state distance race -where Rhinelander placed 12th in the girls' division and 16th in the boys' division.
The girls squad lost three strong skiers, graduating Liana Teter, Anna Wood and Callie Threlkeld. Sophomore Brynn Teter, Liana's younger sister, leads the list of returning skiers on the girls' side. She finished 58th overall in the state pursuit last season. Also returning are senior Olivia Gillen, who was 82nd at state last year, and sophomore Luna Grage, who placed 97th.
"Olivia Gillen is our senior competitive girl. She's providing great leadership to the team and I expect her to help bring the rest of that group along," coach Slette said. "Brynn Teter is just another one of those skiers who just seems to get faster every single year. I know Brynn's coming in with a big head of steam coming off a cross country season where she had a successful season. I'm expecting big things out of Brynn.
"Luna Grage is another one who I think is going into the season wanting to see some improvement over what transpired for her last year. We're talking about a very hard-working, very dedicated athlete, and a good athlete. Luna knows she needs a few tools on board to get her some success this year and I no doubt she's going to be able to pick those up. I would not be surprised to see a big change for Luna this year."
Rhinelander brings back three of its boys' skiers from last year in senior Travis White, junior Charlie Loomis and sophomore Iain Rumney.
White had the best results of the trio, placing 82nd overall at the state, taking 82nd. Loomis finished 100th and Rumney did not compete at state last February.
"We've got some leadership in Travis White. He's a senior. I'm expecting a good year out of Travis this year," coach Slette said. "Charlie Loomis, who is a junior, he's been improving every single year he's been skiing. I expect to see good things out of Charlie this year as well. Iain Rumney is our sophomore boy and he's returning to the team again this year. He didn't compete in every race last year, but I'm hoping we can get him competing as much as possible this year and he's another kids who's skiing has improved every year."
Additionally, the team brings up three skiers from its middle school program. Olin Slette, Dave's son, was 29th in the middle school level of the state meet last year. On the girls' side, Kayla Skubal and Violet Biolo move up after placing 28th and 29th, respectively at state.
"I'm expecting big things out of Olin, stepping up from the middle school," coach Slette said. "He had a little bit of a rough end to his middle school career, but he's certainly looking forward to pushing those other three boys right from the get-go here in high school. Kayla Skubal and Violet Biolo are a couple of very athletic girls in just about anything they want to do. I expect to see them really chasing hard from the get-go this season."
After the WinMan Opener, Rhinelander's schedule resembles what it has in the past, highlighted by the two-day Hodag Challenge at the Cedric A. Vig Outdoor Classroom Jan. 21 and 22. The WNSL State Sprints take place Madison Feb. 4-5, followed by the WNSL State Distance Championships in Cable Feb. 12-13.
Up until this year, the WNSL has focused on its state distance meet to crown its state champion. That changes as the WNSL is now incorporating its state sprint event as part of a new system that will determine the best in the state.
Points earned from finishes at both the individual state sprint and distance races will go toward crowning an overall individual champion. Team results from the state distance races, individual sprints and the team sprints will determine the team state champions.
"They're definitely putting more emphasis on sprinting," coach Slette said. "That is going to add a new level of competition. I think it's exciting and it's probably going to be a good thing for the sport. Sprinting is much more common in all other levels of cross-country skiing than it has been at the Wisconsin state high school and middle school level. We're going to see that step up a bit."
Sprint races at the high school level are typically 1-2 kilometers, as opposed to the 5-7 1/2 kilometers of a typical distance race. Slette said the sprints also require a somewhat different skillset.
"You have to be able to act quickly when the conditions change in front of you, as will frequently happen in a sprint race," he said. "It can be chaotic at times. There's poles and skis all close to each other and you have to be able to quickly adapt and balance while you're just on one ski. It's going to be speed, but it's also a lot of tactics. You've got to feel the way the pack is moving and adjust."
There will be both individual and relay components to the state sprint championships. Last year the Teter sisters combined to take third in the JV category. Brynn Teter was 22nd individually in the JV division last February in Madison. White was 30th on the boys' side with Loomis finishing 35th and Rumney placing 39th.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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