OUA Qualifier #1 - Part 2

Sunday morning dawned gray and snowy, but significantly warmer than Saturday. Either that or -14 feels warm compared to -20. With the warmer temperatures, the race start was much earlier than on Saturday, this time with the women going out first. The lightly falling snow had begun to accumulate on the trails prior to the start, and as the OUA women hit the trails, it became evident that the day was going to be a bit of a slog. The 5km skate was not the preferred style nor distance for many on the team, but, led by Nellie Dow, they decided to storm it anyways. Despite the manufactured enthusaisam the Waterloo women had a difficult day, feeling the effects of the previous days great classic race, and the soft, slow conditions. The team persevered, however, and pushed on to finish in style, getting the weekends races over with.

With the women's race complete, and the snow piling up even faster, the men took to the start line. Led by unbreakable and energetic rookie Andrew Jeffrey, the men set out to see what the 10km skate course had to offer. 5km in, most had decided that it offered a lot of suffering, some deep snow and in general a difficult day. Pushing off thoughts of vomiting, dropping out and the desire to eat a good bagel lunch, the majority of the mens team responded to finish strong in the deep field. With the exception of two members, Mike Neilly and Derek Hartman, who are both out with lower body unjuries, the team grinded out the 10km and then got ready to head home.


Results
Men
1. Chris Hamilton, Lakehead 29:07.6
2. Scott Sullivan, Lakehead 29:45.6
3. Colin Abbott, Carleton University 29:52.2
UW Results
25. Andrew Jeffrey 33:40.4
29. Cam Moore 33:55.3
33. Kieran Jones 34:27.3
34. Yudai Nakagawa 34:35.6
40. Nolan Beanlands 35:29.6
Derek Hartman, Day-to-Day, quadricep strain
Mike Neilly, Day-to-Day, ankle tendonitis

Women
1. Alana Thomas, Carleton University 16:43.1
2. Adele Lay, Carleton University 17:10.5
3. Mary Thompson, Laurentian 17:21.9
UW Results
22. Nellie Dow 19:43.5
26. Kelly Skinner 20:39.7
34. Jessica Stevenson 22:32.4
36. Martha Sutton 22:46.2
37. Svenja Morgan 23:16.9

Next up on the OUA schedule - Sudbury, Feb. 7-8, hosted by Laurentian University.
Be there.