January 23rd, 2008
The men’s and women’s classic sprint qualification gets under way in 30 minutes. Conditions are excellent - cold and clear, with rock hard tracks. The sprint course has only one significant climb, and while it has some length, it is not particularly steep. Read more for a full description of the course and who is racing for the North Americans (use the “more” button to the right).100 meters of flat through the stadium leads into a moderate climb with a sharp left turn into a gradual downhill. Coming out of the downhill is the major climb. ANother shapr turn - this time to the right, breaks the hill in the middle. The hill flattens and after crossing a short plateau, the course drops down a fast hill and rides back up to what may be the crux of the course in tight heats - a 180 degree turn around v-boards. Downhill and then flat to the finish.The larger climb is the one spot where a skier could try to break away during a heat. But it is early enough in the race, that the group could potentially ride back on the two downhills remaining. Yesterday we watched the Finnish team practicing the 180 turn at race speed. We were rewarded with a spectacular crash - it is likely that there will be some entanglements during the 6 person heats. The women start first. Kikkan Randall - in her first World CUp sprint start since winning a skate sprint in December leads the US squad. APUNSC teammate Laura Valaas also has a good chance of advancing. Lindsay Williams, Lindsey Dehlin, and Kate Arduser round out the American squad. Olympic Sprint Gold Medalist Chandra Crawford leads the Canadian team along with Sara Renner. SuperTour veteran Karin Camenisch will be racing for her native Switzerland.The men start immediately following the women. Andy Newell and Torin Koos lead the team and should advance if all goes well. Chris Cook, Lars Flora, Colin Rodgers, Anders Haugen, Reid PLetcher, Marshall Greene, and Brian Gregg toe also toe the line for the US. Devon Kershaw,, who qualified in 5th in the first Tour de Ski sprint represents the top hope for the Canadian team. Drew Goldsack and Sean Crooks will also battle for a qualifying spot.
