Ever Been to Sundance?

Well, you have now.

Kudos to Nina Lussi for putting together this outstanding video documentary of Team (b)East's conquests and lighter moments at the 2011 Junior National Champs in Salisbury.

If we can all take something away from this insightful film, it's indeed that it's a crime not to enjoy footage of Spencer Knickerbocker jogging slowly, in a race suit, holding poles, with his Casco visor down.

Come and gettcha some!

--Dave & Evan

Good Press

Any exposure is good exposure! Two nice reads and great photos on our local NYSEF competitors who took part in the 2011 Junior National Champs' in Salisbury:

ADK Enterprise

Lake Placid News

Also.... this looks fun, huh?

Salisbury is Jumping

While cruising around during the 2011 Junior National Championships for Ski Jumping and Nordic Combined this past week in Salisbury, CT, Evan and I stumbled across a neat bumper sticker which read simply, "Salisbury IS Jumping." At first we both laughed. Sure, John Satre lost a bet in 1927 and kicked the first jumps off in that community by skiing off a barn roof, with a phenomenal yearly competition taking place most every year since.

But still, we found it tacky. Case in point? World Championships taking place this same week in Oslo, Norway. Shiny new Holmenkolen hill, countless Olympic Games held, and a tradition for jumping that scientists agree dates back to the early Cenozoic era. So Salisbury is a quaint hamlet in the Northwest Corner with a fine legacy of jumping, but Oslo IS jumping.

Right, fast forward five days. Fast forward past the finest Junior National or North American Championship event Evan or I have seen in our oodles of participations as spectators, athletes, coaches. Read: opening ceremony and parade with 2000 zealous spectators. Packed dinners at the Millerton Legion. A killer brand new hill, bolted together a mere 2 days before the Eastern Championships two weeks previous. An opening banquet in the Lakeville Hose Company Fire House. The raddest 1km XC loop we've ever shredded, held at the base of a small town ski area.

The town of Salisbury rallied. Fundraised. Organized. And turned some heads. Athletes loved it. Coaches praised it. Photographers loved the shiny suits and new tower. Proud old jumpers took pride in being part of it. And the amazing exhibit downtown proved it-- Salisbury is synonymous with jumping. No, it's not the Holmenkollen, and I'm sorry to say it, but they'll never host an Olympic Games. But know what? That bumper sticker doesn't lie. Salisbury IS jumping. Thanks for letting us be a part of it!

Congratulations to Team East for letting the rest of the national jumping community know where we stand. We had some awesome jumps and some killer races. We lost more than our fair share of sprint finishes, but hey, we were still sprinting for the win. Our J2 athletes stepped up the bar in a big way from where they stood last year. And our new New Hampshire High School talent proved that they could roll with the big boys. NYSEF Grasshopper Kaleb Cook even got some cowbells ringin' at the Ripton Touring Center at the Mid-Atlantic Bill Koch Festival, setting the hill record on the K10 demo hill. Huge!

If it's results from Salisbury you're looking for, find 'em all here. Over 2200 great photos? You've got Sue Kavanah to thank for some great shots here on the St. Paul Ski Club website here.

Mid-A Bill Koch Fest Results? Here.

What a week. Thanks for reading. We're thrilled to report that Ski Jumping & Nordic Combined are flourishing here on the Eastern Seaboard.

Dave & Evan

Salisbury Results

As usual, Don West has provided us with up-to-da-minute results. Where, you ask? SkiJumpEast, that's where.

Evan put together this video of the Junior Nordic Combined race, held Saturday evening at Trotta Field, downtown. Nice work, Evan. Rolling in the deep.

Nice Read in NYT on Salisbury

Excellent article in the New York Times about Salisbury, CT's effort to rebuild their jump and restore a rich tradition of high level ski jumping to the community.

"Seventy competitors, ages 12 to 17 from throughout the country, are expected in Salisbury for the Junior Olympics. So are about 2,000 spectators. As a warm-up, Salisbury will host the United States Eastern Junior Championships from Friday to Sunday. The event festivities will include a nighttime chili cook-off and the annual snow ball, a dance with a rock ’n’ roll band.

“It’s kind of astonishing that this all worked out,” Ken Barker said as he stood on the crest of the hill next to the jump on a chilly January day. “Still don’t know what I was thinking when I said we’d do it. Now we’ve got more people than we can count who want to come here and jump off it. Some things never change, I guess.”

Psyched for the weekend?

Us too.

It's Coming....

But in the meantime, we're stuck here for the Norwegian Open on Saturday. Hey, that ain't so bad.

--The NYSEF Crew

Countdown to the new Satre Hill...

Eastern Ski Jumping Championships: February 12th

2011 Junior National Championships: February 21-27th

Come and getcha some!

End of an Era

Well folks, what a weekend. The Salisbury Invitational is perpetually the highpoint of the Eastern Jump Calendar. In case you missed it, here's the highlight reel:

1. Kenny Barker, Larry Stone, Bullet, Cricket, all at the same venue.
2. Annie Frenette raiding the cook shack for all the free burgers she could muster.
3. Miles taking one downtown on Saturday, then opting to take the ambulance downtown Sunday.
4. Most competitive Ladies Class since... well... ever?
5. Spencer Knickerbocker paying off his first mortgage payment, Northwood tuition, coaching fees, and past parking tickets all in two days of jumping.
6. A no-holes-barred XC race, designed by DJ Spenny-K, which had the same fervor as a monster truck rally.
7. A killer junior class, shoutouts to Landon L, Gabby A, Rory R. We'll have you guys on the coaching payroll next week.

It was an awesome weekend, thanks again to the SWSA volunteers, hill crew, Jennie & Martina for the silent auction, and all those who helped out. We couldn't have been more thrilled to take the final jumps on the famous K64 that consistently soils the trousers of more adolescents than does the first day of high school.

If it's results you're after, Don had 'em posted before the events even started (so it seems!):

http://skijumpeast.com/results/rslt10l.htm#easterns

Sunday's Mötley Crüe

DJ Spenmeister K, psyched that his Chittenden Bank account is back into the black

The Nordic Combined race.

See you next year on the new Satre Hill K185.