Thrilling Finish in County Nordic Race
DALTON, Mass. — Moments after the boys varsity race at Wahconah Regional High School on Saturday morning, Mount Greylock's Will Nolan and Northfield Mount Hermon's Henry Colt were shoulder-to-shoulder.
Just like they were at the finish line.
Nolan and Colt were still breathing heavily after a furious finish when the finish line officials started discussing just who crossed the line first. As the video posted on iBerkshires.com Sports' Facebook page shows, it was a very tough call.
In the end, Nolan was declared the winner. Colt was listed in second place. Each had a time of 12 minutes, 15 seconds.
In the immediate aftermath, both racers were smiling and accepting congratulations side-by-side. Clearly, it was a friendly rivalry — and even a cooperative one.
"I think Henry made his move right at the end, but until that point, we had all been together," Nolan said of the lead pack. "When he went, I tried to chase him.
"There were five of us, I think, working together, I think: my three teammates, Matt [Wiseman], Ian [Culnane] and Jake [Foehl], and then Henry and I. We took turns leading to draft, so it was more of an even playing field.
"Then you have to make a move at the end to decide if you want it that bad."
Mount Greylock's boys dominated the team competition with only Colt cracking the Mounties' strangle-hold on the top five places. Wiseman, Foehl and Culnane finished third through fifth, respectively.
Mount Greylock's Grace Smith won the girls race in 15:09, 12 seconds ahead of Mohawk Trail's Allison Lull.
Smith's teammates Sophie Gerry, Abby Wiseman, Zavi Sheldon and Ellie Williams each finished in the top 10 to give the Mounties a victory in the team race.
Fast times were the order of the day on the grounds of Wahconah Regional High School, which offered a flat course but one that featured multiple switchbacks in order to get the most distance out of the area available.
Nolan said the course offered a unique challenge for competitors in the freestyle race.
"You had to really make sure you maintained your speed on the corners ... if you cut in any way you slow yourself down, and that can lose energy that you put into getting up speed," he said. "There's no hills, so there's no 'V1,' which is for the uphills. It was all 'V2' and 'V2 alternate,' which is more flat and slight downhill strokes.
"Berkshire East [on Jan. 20] was the exact opposite. It's been nice to try different kinds of courses. This one was really fast, which was typically I don't like. I'm an endurance athlete. I do running."
BOYS TOP 10
1. Will Nolan, Mount Greylock, 12 minutes, 15 seconds; 2. Henry Colt, Northfield Mount Hermon, 12:15; 3. Matthew Wiseman, Mount Greylock, 12:24; 4. Jake Foehl, MG, 12:26; 5. Ian Culnan, MG, 12:27; 6. Tyler Andrews, Mohawk Trail, 13:26; 7. Curran Doyle, Wahconah, 13:27; 8. Owen Devlin Gauthier, Amherst, 13:29; 9. Sean Peters, Wahconah, 13:30; 10. Derek Wood, MG, 13:36.
Other notable finishers: 14. Nico Ciolfi, Lenox, 13:53; 19. Jared Haley, Hoosac Valley, 14:01; 53. Robert Herforth, Taconic, 21:50.
GIRLS TOP 10
1. Grace Smith, Mount Greylock, 15 minutes, 9 seconds; 2. Allison Lull, Mohawk Trail, 15:21; 3. Josie Marshall, Lenox, 15:26; 4. Sophie Gerry, MG, 15:33; 5. Ellen Ross, Wahconah, 16:06; 6. Abby Wiseman, MG, 16:11; 7. Roo Weed, Northfield Mount Hermon, 16:27; 8. Zavi Sheldon, MG, 16:33; 9. Ellie Williams, MG, 16:43; 10. Loulou Tanski, NMH, 16:43.
Other notable finishers: 42. Allison Racela, Hoosac Valley, 19:54; 45. Lauren Farry, Taconic, 20:37.