Grats to the Pioneers/Graduation Data

Many congratulations to the Pioneers of the University of Denver on taking their 19th NCAA Skiing Championship last week. Denver placed amongst the top five schools in all events, but the outcome was in doubt until its skiers finished an impressive first, second, and eighth in the Men's Slalom on the final day. This allowed them to outdistance second-place University of Colorado by a final margin of 649.5 to 619 points, with the University of Utah finishing a distant third at 550. No specific graduation data is listed for Skiing, but these schools post graduation rates of 83%, 64%, and 58% in sports 'Other' than Football, Basketball, Baseball, and Cross-Country/Track. Cheers to Denver. Jeers to Colorado and Utah.

Special kudos must go to the Panthers of Middlebury College, who, despite being a non-scholarship Division III school, placed fifth overall with 529 points.

The outstanding individual skiiers in the championship were Marie Moe Grevsgaard and Lucie Sikova of Colorado, who were victorious in both races in Women's Nordic and Alpine, and John Buchar of Denver, who won both Men's Alpine races. The following skiers finished on the podium:

Women's Freestyle (Nordic)
1. Marie Moe Grevsgaard, Colorado
2. Lenka Palanova, Colorado
3. Annelise Bailly, Denver

Men's Freestyle (Nordic)
1. Glenn Randall, Dartmouth
2. Marius Korthauer, Alaska-Fairbanks
3. Jesper Ostensen, Colorado

Women's Giant Slalom (Alpine)
1. Lucie Zikova, Colorado
2. Eva Huckova, Utah
3. Lyndee Janowiak, Vermont

Men's Giant Slalom (Alpine)
1. John Buchar, Denver
2. Greg Hardy, Vermont
3. Erik Gilbert, Vermont

Women's Classical (Nordic)
1. Marie Moe Grevsgaard, Colorado
2. Polina Ermoshina, New Mexico
3. Antje Maempel, Denver

Men's Classical (Nordic)
1. Marius Korthauer, Alaska-Fairbanks
2. Kit Richmond, Colorado
3. Juergen Uhl, Vermont

Women's Slalom (Alpine)
1. Lucie Zikova, Colorado
2. Eva Huckova, Utah
3. Jenni Lathrop, Denver

Men's Slalom (Alpine)
1. John Buchar, Denver
2. Seppi Stiegler, Denver
3. David Chodounsky, Dartmouth

Additionally, seven skiers from non-scholarship Division III schools posted top ten finishes and earned All-American Status: Alexa Turzian, Middlebury (2 events); Alec Tarberrry, Middlebury (2 events); Sylvan Ellefson, Bates; Charles Christianson, Williams; Andrew Wagner, Middlebury; Eric Mann, Williams; Megan Hughes, Middlebury. They represent the true ideal of what it means to be a STUDENT-athlete. Congratulations!

Grats to Fast Bobcat Sylvan Ellefson

SKI FAST is the mantra. I was privileged to be part of a team at Bates College which has produced All-Americans and Olympians despite being a non-scholarship DIII school competing against the big boys. It is thus with both pleasure and pride that I congratulate junior Sylvan Ellefson on his 4th-place finish yesterday in the 10k freestyle at the NCAA skiing championships in Bozeman, Montana, which yields him All-American status:

Ellefson (Vail, Colo.) covered the Bohart Ranch course in 31:20.0, fourth best out of 38 competitors. He was one of only three Americans in the top 10 and the only one from a Division III school. He wins his first All-America honors for his top-10 finish, after missing out on the honor by 0.3 seconds in the 10K Free a year ago.

"I felt great," wrote Ellefson via e-mail. "While my lungs were burning because of the altitude, my skis were fast and I felt the most fit I have in a long time. A big thanks to the coaching staff for some of the fastest skis on the course today and their support. Also to my teammates for getting me going through e-mail and phone calls throughout the week. I have the best team in the U.S."

Ellefson is Bates' first Nordic All-American since Justin Easter in 2003, and his finish is the highest for the Bobcats since 2006 U.S. Olympian Justin Freeman placed third in the 10K Classic in 1997.

"I am so thrilled for Sylvan -- what a great race for him and a great day for Bates," wrote Bates coach Becky Woods via e-mail. "I think we all knew he had it in him, especially given his recent results, but it was exciting to see it all come together here."

Ellefson won two races on the Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association carnival circuit this season, becoming the first Bates skier to win an EISA race. He was named First Team All-East by the EISA and was the top-ranked skier from an Eastern college at the end of the season.

WHOOT WHOOT!

Coaching and Personal Discipline

If you can’t be on time be early. If you can’t be early, don’t show up.

Even before I heard Tim LaVallee speak, the note on the chalkboard that greeted me when I entered the first team meeting as a walk-on to the Bates Ski Team in the fall of 1990 gave me an inkling of what I was getting myself into. Mercifully, I had arrived a couple minutes early, and was spared the point to the board, and acidic look which welcomed the handful of poor souls who did not show up on time. Here was a coach who was not merely interesting in Blood, Sweat and Tears. [In point of fact, it was skin left on the road during fall roller ski training rather than tears that was important, but that is another story]. He was also interested in instilling the importance of discipline in us, a point underscored by comments he made while we signed the forms indicating that we would refrain from alcohol during the four month season:

“If you screw up, two things are going to happen. First I am going to kick your ass. Second I am going to kick your ass off the team.”

Far too few coaches, especially in the revenue sports, take this page out of the Tim LaVallee school of coaching. Cheers must, however, go to Louisiana State football coach Les Miles, who decided that he did not want to improve his fifth place position in the Fulmer Cup, and booted three players, DB Troy Giddens, and offensive linemen Kyle Anderson and Zhamal Thomas off the team on Thursday. Giddens and Thomas were already suspended after their arrest and charge of burglary and identity theft on April 9. Anderson was arrested on April 16 and charged with second-degree battery. Miles commented:

"There is a standard that we insist upon with members of our football team when representing this university, our community and the state of Louisiana," Miles said in the LSU news release. "When that standard isn't met, some adjustments must be made. In this instance, it's the dismissal of these three players.

"It's unfortunate, but this action is necessary. I wish these young men well in their future endeavors."

He elaborated further in an interview:

"There's a responsibility to playing football here and representing a great state and a great school."

"There's a responsibility," Miles said, "and with that responsibility comes privilege, and the privilege is taking the field. Our guys have got to be respectful of that, and they will. They will be."

Urban Meyer and Steve Spurrier take notice.