2017 Vasa announces Collegiate Challenge

Wed, Nov  16, 2016 - By Pete LaPlaca

More news from the Vasa! During this year’s race we were surprised to see nineteen skiers from the University of Michigan wearing striking maize and blue outfits and whizzing through the Pere Marquette Forest. Most of them skied freestyle on Saturday and Classic on Sunday and appeared to be having a great time in spite of the extremely cold temperatures. When we got to talk with some of them we found them to be very engaging and really into Nordic skiing. They are part of a club program that attracted students from all over the state. They did quite well during Vasa race weekend and walked away with a number of age group medals.

In our 2017 Festival of Races we are offering a new Collegiate Challenge that is open to all current collegians. The male and female skiers will be judged on a cumulative time for both a 11km freestyle race and a 16km classic race. They will not only earn bragging rights but also unique trophies to take back to Ann Arbor. The University of Michigan will be our host team and we have opened up the competition to both individual skiers as well as teams. Abby Potts is the new captain of the Michigan team and commented; “We are excited to return to Traverse City for the 2017 Vasa. We had a great time last February!”

We are offering special entry fees for both day’s events and possible help with housing during race weekend. All details are on the Vasa website: www.Vasa.org. And download a copy of our new poster for the event (PDF).