Seeley Lake Nordic Team wraps up season

SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Nordic Team wrapped up their 2021 cross-country ski season by competing in their second race, the Nordic Dance Invitational Saturday, Feb. 27. Normally the team would compete in five to seven races, including three at home. However, due to COVID-19, many were postponed to next year.

Head Coach Bridget Laird said this was the first iteration of the Nordic Dance Invitational. There were only two teams involved, one from Missoula and one from Seeley Lake. To avoid congregation, each individual team had to begin at different times and race against the clock in a time trial format.

Despite the adaptations and fewer competitors, she still believes it went well.

"We haven't done anything in that format before, so it was new to us," she said. "We didn't have as many kids because it was kind of added at the last minute. So some of our kids had dropped off and stopped coming to practices. But, I think that's a result of just this weird season of not having many races."

Laird said she hopes that this invitational will continue into the future because Seeley Lake skiers rarely compete against Missoula skiers. The other race the team competed in was the 39th annual OSCR cross country ski race which took place as a self-supported race during the last weekend of January.

The team is divided into three levels: the High School team, the Race Team for SLE and the Junior Prep Team. The Race Team is composed of advanced fourth to eighth graders while the Junior Prep Team is made up of second through sixth graders. The younger team practices twice a week while the older teams practice three times a week.

According to Laird the weather overall was less than desirable for the early part of the season. It was challenging for the team to begin their season when it felt like winter began later than usual. She said when they finally got a decent amount of snow it was almost time to end the season.

While there were few competitions available for students to show off their skills, Laird did want to acknowledge the following students for personal improvement, dedication and overall performance in the 2021 season: Sam Ayers, eighth grade; Noah Stone, seventh grade; Kieu Snow, fourth grade; Land Neudecker, fourth grade, Ovando; Kalli Braulik, third grade and Gunner Braulik, third grade.

She also wanted to congratulate all of the younger skiers on any improvements they made this ski season. Despite their limitations Laird said they tried to make practices as fun as they could.

"Training is hard without that carrot to go after, but we tried to make our practices really fun, and social, because we knew that we didn't have those races to prepare for," she said. "And I think it was great. I think the kids had a blast. In fact I'm sure that some of them are really bummed that it's over now, because we could still be skiing but this is traditionally when we end it."

Next year Laird said she hopes the students will be able to participate in their usual number of events. She also hopes that they will be able to incorporate more downhill skiing training to round out the team's collective skill set.

If Canadian border restrictions ease, she hopes to take the team on a trip to Kimberley Alpine Resort in British Columbia next season.

Laird said the team would not be able to function without the help of their coaches and parents who commit their time and energy as well as Seeley Lake Nordic Club whose volunteers groom the trails daily.