Lee's Cabin Race Gets Faster
February 10, 2001

Jim Herriges extended his dominance of the Lee's Cabin skijor race with his second convincing win in two months, covering the 14-mile course in 47 minutes, 22 seconds.  Jim knocked another minute and 32 seconds off the fast time he set in December despite skipping the optional one-hour rest break at the Lee's Cabin turnaround. He made it to the half-way point in an amazingly fast 22 minutes, 35 seconds.

The weather was clear and 14 degrees under clear blue skies, nearly ideal for the event except for the biting wind that swept through the Wickersham Dome Trailhead parking lot.  The trail was in better condition than race participants remembered ever seeing it.

The race format was for competitors to race seven miles to Lee's Cabin in the White Mountain Recreation Area off the Elliot Highway, take a one-hour rest break to refuel on chili and hot drinks, and race seven miles back to the trailhead.  However, six of the eleven competitors used the race as a tune-up for the upcoming Skijor and Pulka World Championships that will be held on Birch Hill February 27-March 1, and opted not to take the rest  break at the cabin.  The fourteen mile race distance and hills simulated the 23K course for the two-dog skijor event that will be contested on February 28 over Birch Hill's nordic ski trails. 

Because many competitors did not stop at Lee's Cabin, there were several exciting head-on passes at closing speeds of 30 mph on the out and back course.  It is exciting to watch one's dogs charge down a steep hill at another pair coming up the same hill and veer off to the side to pass at the last possible second.  Several polite snow machine riders were also encountered on the route.

The race results show that the competitors are successfully tuning up for the World Championships.  In December, Jim Herriges was the only competitor to complete the course in under one hour.  Today, nine competitors (including all six who did not take a rest break) finished under that time standard.  Mike Malvick successfully raced two teams over the course, finishing under an hour on both runs. 

Held in conjunction with the race was an overnight Show 'N' Go led by Lisa Stuby.  Lisa and four other people teamed up with their dogs to haul overnight gear to Lee's Cabin.  Covering the trail once was not enough for Gail Davidson and her chocolate Labrador Retriever, Tobi.  After completing the race, Gail and husband John Eichelberger loaded up their gear and headed back out to Lee's Cabin to spend the night.

ASPA thanks all participants for racing, Cheryle Barrett for timekeeping and Chris DuBois for warming up Lee's Cabin, providing the rest break refreshments, and coordinating the restart. 

The next ASPA events will be two days of Fun Runs on February 17 and 18 at Creamer's Field.  One- to three-dog classes will be contested over distances of one to eleven miles.  Registration begins at 11:30 a.m. in the Farm House and the race begins at 12:30 p.m.  For more information, click here.

Lee's Cabin Results
(14 miles, 14º F)

                        *Denotes no rest break taken at Lee's Cabin.

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