There was more on the line than just first place as Lindsey Masterson and Kate Northcott pushed their way to the finish line Saturday. With their high school Nordic ski teams out competing in force at Dublin School, the two coaches needed to show their youngsters how it’s done.
Neck-and-neck at the line, Masterson flung her ski out, poking it over the line just ahead of Northcott for a photo finish win.
“She did a sweet throw of the leg over the line,” said Northcott.
“We practice a lot of that at Dublin School,” Masterson said, “so I had to do it for the kids.”
Masterson is an assistant coach at Dublin School, and Northcott coaches at Fall Mountain. Both brought their teams to the Dublin School Nordic Center on Saturday for a fun-filled day of racing with Dublin XC.
“We all have high schoolers here and we are constantly pushing them to race, so it’s good for them to see us racing,” Masterson said.
That photo finish concluded the women’s open race, with Masterson just ahead of Northcott, though both officially registered an 18:20.8 on the 5K course.
There was plenty of snow up at the Nordic Center, despite light snow coverage in the surrounding town. Between the slightly higher elevation and the high-tech snowmaking system, racers had plenty to ride.
“Your trails out here are amazing,” Northcott said.
There were a slew of other races that day. In the men’s open race, it was August Posch who took first, in 16:15.6.
Earlier in the day, several kids’ races took place. Shay McFeely won the Lollipop division; Matthew Northcott won the 1st/2nd grade 1K; Jed Bentley took the 3rd/4th grade 2K, with Summer Bentley as the first female finisher; Zazo French won the 5th/6th grade 3K, with Anna Bentley as first female, and Clint Macy won the 7th/8th grade 4K.
Dublin XC will host a variety of races over the winter, starting with tonight’s 6 p.m. Headlamp Hustle. After that, the second annual Dublin Hill Climb will take place on March 26.
For more information or to register, visit dublinxc.com/events.
Sports Editor Ben Conant can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 226, or at bconant@ledgertranscript.com.