Over 160 Racers Registered for the First-time Nordic Event-

Bretton Woods, NH, March 15, 2009 – The first-ever Bretton Woods Nordic Marathon at Mount Washington Resort, presented by CNL Lifestyle Company, LLC took place on Saturday, March 14th, 2009.  Over 160 racers registered for the event, which was a fundraiser for the New England Ski Museum, located in Franconia Notch, NH.  The event included 50-kilometer and 25-kilometer classes, as well as a Bill Koch League (BKL) race for youngsters (seven kilometers), and un-timed registration was welcome at all levels.       

The top three finishers for the 50-kilometer competition were Timothy Whiton, who skis for Bates College and hails from Portland, ME with a time of 2:29:47;  Sam Mathes (Colby College) of Rome, ME finished second with a time of 2:30:04; and Ryan Kerrigan (UVM) of South Duxbury, VT coming third at 2:32:40.  In the women’s division, the top three 50-kilometer finishers were: Ruth McGovern, who skis for  Dartmouth College, and comes from Stowe, VT clocking 2:58:12; second was Dorcas Wonsavage at 3:02:49, representing Alpina; and third was Linnea Rooke (Colby College) at 3:08:02. 

The top male and female finishers of the 25-kilometer race, respectively, were Oliver Burruss who skis for Harvard and hails from Sherborn, MA with a time of 1:16:51 and Erin Hatton from Bowdoin College with a time of 1:34:13. 

Eight year old Cloe Pingeon of Lincoln, MA was the winner of the Bill Koch League seven-kilometer race and won a package of skis, boots and poles courtesy of Alpina.

“We are very excited to have created such a successful event in the first year,” noted Chris Ellms, Mount Washington Resort’s Director of Ski Operations.  “Nordic Director Peter Smith did an excellent job in the layout of a course that was both fun and challenging for all the racers,” said Ellms.

Over 30 volunteers turned out to assist in innumerable ways to support the event.  According to Amy Patenaude, one of the race organizers and member of the Board of Directors for the New England Ski Museum, the volunteer effort was tremendous and included members from the New England Ski Museum, Bretton Woods community,

Appalachian Mountain Club, Jackson Ski Touring Foundation, Copper Cannon and others.  (Copper Cannon is a Franconia-based organization that enriches the lives of under-served youth ages 9-12 in New Hampshire by providing quality tuition-free camp experiences).

According to Patenaude, there was “a bounty of great food and drink” from the aid stations during the race right through to the spectacular spread of food and dining provided in the new Presidential Wing of The Mount Washington Hotel which is newly constructed and has just recently opened.  

Bretton Woods Nordic Marathon Race results are available on-line at the following links:

50 km results

25 km results

The Second Annual Bretton Woods Nordic Marathon is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, March 13^th, 2010