I wonder if they're still around, and
if they are, if they're still skiing.
It’s Noquemanon weekend, which means
I get to spend 6 hours announcing skiers’ name as they cross the
finish line at the Forestville Log Yard (the new finish line of the
race) tomorrow. I've been doing this race since the beginning of it
(back last century, in fact), and I still looking forward to it
because of things like this--
One of my favorite parts of doing the
announcing comes in final hour. That’s when only a handful of
skiers are left to come across the line, and these are the skiers
that aren’t taking the race seriously. They’re just happy
to be finishing, and we get to have a little fun with them as they’re
wrapping up their 25 or 51 K day. A decade or so ago, during
the final hour of the race, I saw something that amazed me.
Two of the skiers I announced coming over the line that day were a married couple of Marquette, Bill & Veryl Albrecht, who had skied the half-marathon together, and were ending their race together after a morning and afternoon on the trails. The amazing thing about it? At the time, Veryl was 79, Bill was 81, and together, they had just skied over 14 miles in just over 3 hours. 79 and 81, and they had just skied a half-marathon.
TOGETHER.
If THAT doesn’t qualify as amazing—and, more importantly, heartwarming—I don’t know what does. I've thought about them a lot in the years past, especially as older skiers make their way across the line. There have been older skiers finishing, but I can tell you with certainty that there's never been a couple quite like them at the finish line. Like I said at the beginning, I don't know if they're still around. And if they are still around, I don't know if they're still skiing. Part of me would like to think so. After all, you don't come across a situation like that very often, and when you do, it sticks with you for quite a long time.
Two of the skiers I announced coming over the line that day were a married couple of Marquette, Bill & Veryl Albrecht, who had skied the half-marathon together, and were ending their race together after a morning and afternoon on the trails. The amazing thing about it? At the time, Veryl was 79, Bill was 81, and together, they had just skied over 14 miles in just over 3 hours. 79 and 81, and they had just skied a half-marathon.
TOGETHER.
If THAT doesn’t qualify as amazing—and, more importantly, heartwarming—I don’t know what does. I've thought about them a lot in the years past, especially as older skiers make their way across the line. There have been older skiers finishing, but I can tell you with certainty that there's never been a couple quite like them at the finish line. Like I said at the beginning, I don't know if they're still around. And if they are still around, I don't know if they're still skiing. Part of me would like to think so. After all, you don't come across a situation like that very often, and when you do, it sticks with you for quite a long time.
So if you ever needed an incentive to
come out and see some of the skiers come across the finish line, you
have it now. The first 12 K recreational skiers should start coming
across the line around 10:30 tomorrow, while the half and full
marathon skiers--the really serious ones--start appearing around
11:30 or so.
Now you know. If you can make it out,
cool. If not, just make sure you have a weekend that causes someone
to think about it a decade later!
(jim@wmqt.com),
hoping to still have a functioning voice by the time I'm done announcing almost 2,000 names Saturday!
(ps—if you haven't heard yet, they've caught the guy who vandalized Phil's statue
Saturday. And the good part? His hat and scarf have been returned!)
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