The Graduates

The girls stopped by my house the other day to say good-bye. I really appreciated their taking the time to do so because I know they were frantically rushing around, doing last minute errands and trying to get their affairs in order before boarding a flight out of Alaska at 5:30 the following morning. It was very thoughtful of them.

Fall 2016. Natalie and Michaela; Pietro and Zacke

The last time I saw them was in Montana, two months ago!  We went from spending most of the winter together, traveling around the USA, going to ski races and living in the same houses, to sudden Coronavirus isolation. Toom and I had spent the morning racing in the Yellowstone Rendezvous marathon while the rest were out training for NCAA's.  The athletes piled into the van to make the short drive back to Bozeman, and I said through open windows, "see you in a few days".  But it turned out to be two months.

Casey and Natalie in New Hampshire.  2017

We had a large incoming freshman class of women four years ago. Thus, half of our women's team graduated from college last week. Three of our graduating women are going to give it a go as full time pro ski racers. 

Sara and Michaela in Vail. 2017

Hannah and Michaela boarded a flight bound for Minneapolis, along with Tuva. But there their paths will soon diverge. Tuva's headed home to Oslo for the summer as soon as she can find a flight.

  

Before any of us met Michaela

After a couple weeks' visit at home, Michaela is headed East, to join Team Green in Craftsbury, Vermont.  I don't have to tell you that Michaela will have some fast skiers to train with in Craftsbury.  But I can also say from personal experience that there is plenty of good running, hiking and rollerskiing in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom.

Casey, Michaela and Anna in Vermont. 2019

Hannah, on the other hand, is headed west.  She's joining Andy Newell's new team in Bozeman, Montana.  She told me she's looking forward to joining the team and she thinks it'll be a really good fit.  It's also worth noting that her younger sister is on the Montana State University Ski Team. 

Hannah and Sara in Vail. 2017

As for Anna, she's going to stick around here. She's joining APU, which seems an obvious choice, given the program's success as well as the excellent training spots and the early-season snow nearby.  Why would Anna go anywhere else if she wants to take her skiing career further?

Natalie. Fall 2016

My understanding is Natalie made a run for the border during the first weeks of Coronavirus, and she's holed up at home in Whitehorse with her college degree, ready for the next thing, whatever that may be.

February 2017 in Vail, Colorado. Hannah, Sadie, Michaela, Mario, Marcus, Zacke, Toomas, Pietro