Alpine skiing going strong

Despite above normal temperatures and a lack of snow, local high school alpine skiing teams are still going strong.

"We have been able to get all our meets in," said Roger Maida, the head coach of the Denfeld alpine ski.

The reason alpine ski teams are having an easier time

skiing, compared with cross country skiers, is because their courses use fake snow.

"Everyone makes snow," said David Salo, the head coach of the Hermantown Hawks ski team.

According to Salo, none of their meets have been canceled. He did say that they don't have ideal ski conditions.

"The weather has only affected the team as far as when we were able to start

skiing on snow," said Nathan Springer, the head coach of the Duluth Marshall alpine ski team. "Our season was delayed approximately two weeks later this year than last."

Only one of Marshall's meets has been canceled this season due to a lack of snow.

With or without ideal weather, many local teams seem to forging ahead.

Find out more in team notes.

Team notes

Denfeld:

They have skiers from the west and central Duluth, along with foreign exchange students from Europe and Scandinavia.

"(This is) the most interesting year that I have ever had," said Maida.

There are currently four

foreign exchange students on the team. Mark Soderberg and Malin Kahre are both from Sweden. Skier Dorien Smits is from Belgium and skier Lucy Heldt is from Germany.

"They are nice kids and they fit in real well," said Roger Maida, the head coach of Denfeld's alpine ski team.

As far as meets are concerned, the team has finished in the middle or lower levels. Kahre has consistently finished in the top 10 of all of the races.

Leadership is not a problem on Denfeld. Laura Olson, Annie Busch, April Severson and Danielle Audette are all seniors who have been with the team since ninth grade.

Maida not only coaches the girls team, but also the boys. This team has three skiers from Central. The reason they have skiers from Central is because Central didn't have enough skiers.

Hermantown:

This team is still in its

infancy, but it's growing.

This is the second year Hermantown has an alpine

skiing team. Last year they

had seven skiers; this year they have 15.

"(We) take small steps every year," said David Salo, the head coach of Hermantown's alpine ski teams.

Leading the way on this year's girls' team is sophomore Claire Salo. Last year she just missed going to the state meet.

On the boys' side, sophomore Max Tusa may bring the most experience. Last year he competed at the state level,

finishing 27th.

With such a new team, Salo said he does not want to overstate their goal.

"One of our goals this year is to consistently place in the middle of the pack," said Salo.

The team currently has

finishes near this goal on both the boys and girls side.

The boys' team finished sixth at the Cook County invitational, eighth at the Hibbing Invitational and seventh at the Virginia Invitational.

The girls' team finished 11th at the Cook County Invitational, eighth at the Hibbing Invitational and ninth at the Virginia Invitational.

Marshall:

The Marshall alpine team has had a rough start, but they are looking to turn it around, said the Nathan Springer, the head coach of Marshall's alpine ski teams.

"We have come in lower than we would like to in a few meets, but the team is very young and I'm looking forward to a stronger finish for the

season," said Springer.

The surprise on this year's team is Elke Wood. She

finished first at the Hibbing Invitational in front of second place finisher Kate Maurer, who is also the team captain. Charlotte Skinner and Lauren Hendricks have also surprised Springer, producing strong results.

The team has a had one tough loss this season. At the Hibbing Invitational the girls' team finished first, second and 11th on an individual basis. Their total point score for the meet, however, was fourth.

Even with a tough loss like this, Springer's hopes are not dashed.

"My outlook is to have a stronger finish for the boy's team and to have a good shot at state with the girls' team," said Springer.

East:

As the Budgeteer went to press, the East coaching staff had not responded.