Sandra had her 1st race today, and in classic Sandra style, it was eventfull!
She started in 14th place, which put her on the front row, far left, but in good position for the first left hand corner. The gun went off and everone had to double pole up an incline, start skating around a short corner and then down a 150 M straight to tight right hander. Her friend Pat exploded out of the gate, Sandra saw the hole, and bolted into it behind Pat. Breathing hard on Sandra‘s back was Muffy, from team VAMP, USA. By the time they came off the bridge, Pat had a 30 M lead, and Sandra had tucked into Muffy‘s tailstream. I was awestruck at how wonderfully the start had turned out and wondered how long Sandra would be able to keep the blistering pace. I ran up the hill along the road to about the 3K mark, only to see that the crowd had thinned out and Sandra had settled into about 6th. I couldn‘t see the next part of the course, but Sandra tells me she ended up somewhat alone on the course (remember, it‘s 15 kilometers) when she caught an edge and did a complete somersault over the bank,where she struggled for several seconds to get her skis back under her, the snow out of her glasses, and back on the track. The rest of the team had discussed this very event previously, so Sandra knew not to worry too much, just get back up and resume racing, which she did. She actually seemed a little disapointed no one was there to wtness her spectacular tumble. Sandra finished in 16th, with a time of just over 49 min., beating her personal best. Pat finished in 6th place, and we‘re all proud of her! The woman's 55 ~ 60 is a very competetive field, and some of the most talented skiers in Europe are here.
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| The Starting Grid |
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| Sandra happy with her race |
