Posted: 2/6/04

Forest Lake nordic skiers end on a high note

Joe Drennan
Sports Editor

Ending a high school career is always hard, but there are ways of doing it in style. Forest Lake High School nordic ski captains Lorin Skoglund and Laura Edlund are doing just that.

Skoglund, a two-time All-State and All-Conference skier and Edlund, a four time All-State and All-Conference skier led both the boys and girls nordic ski teams to the state meet this Friday. The last and only time both teams competed in the state meet was in 2000 when both Skoglund and Edlund were freshman. Edlund's sister was a senior captain on the 2000 girls team.

The teams earned their way to the state meet by winning the Section 7 race Thursday. A perfect team score in nordic skiing is 788 points. The boys scored 781 points, while the girls earned 778 points in the section race.

The boys team almost made it to the state meet as a team last year, but Stillwater beat them out in an unheard of triple tiebreaker. In the second tie breaker, the times of the top four racers from both teams were combined and both Forest Lake and Stillwater were tied down to the second, forcing a triple tiebreaker. The triple tiebreaker took the times from the fifth skiers on the team and Stillwater won by two seconds.

"We got robbed," Skoglund said. "But we're going to state this year."

Even thought the boys didn't make it to the state meet as a team like they did this year, they did send four skiers to the meet and all four of them out performed the Stillwater skiers Forest Lake head coach Deno Johnson said.

ìThat left a bitter taste in the boys mouths,î Johnson said.

Training

To prepare for their final year of high school competition, Skoglund and Edlund took time out of their summer vacations to train for the season.

Edlund admits that she wasn't as disciplined as Skoglund, but she still trained four days a week with coaches, and two more on her own. During the fall sports season she also ran cross-country to build up her endurance.

"Cross country gave me a base to work off of," Edlund said.

Skoglund trained six days a week, and at least four hours a day. He spent two hours biking in the morning, and then roller skied two more hours in the afternoon.

Edlund pointed out too that some of the best competition she faced was from within the team. That inter-team competition helped push Edlund and her teammates to be better athletes in practice and in races.

ìI think the determination to do well comes from that long tradition of having a good team,î Skoglund said as another aspect that helps push him and his teammates during the season.

All the training paid off as both Skoglund and Edlund had remarkable seasons. If they didn't finish first in a race, they were second. Skoglund even finished two seconds behind Winona's phenom Garett Heath at the Suburban East Conference Relay Race.

The future

They may be moving on, but Skoglund and Edlund won't forget where they have been.

ìIíve been doing this since the eight grade,î Edlund said. ìI been with the team for a long time so from that point its sad to be leaving them. We practice for two hours then we have bus rides back, eventually you get the family bond."

Edlund says the girls nordic ski team would get together away from the sport and even made tie blankets for the team and puff painted shirt together.

ìI think the boys team isnít without closeness, we donít have knitting parties like the girls team,î Skoglund said, ìbut we still hang out. Itís a really close team, even past members are remembered and thought about.î

ìI think what brings both squads together is that from a very young age they learn what skiing in Forest Lake means and its tradition,î Johnson said. ìThey know of past teams and the three state champions we have had and they know of the sacrifice and the long hours. The grades are just outstanding too as our worst grade point average on the team is a 3.6.î

After graduation Edlund plans to attend Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter where she will major in social studies education while skiing on the nordic team there. Skoglund is not as sure what he plans to do. He knows he will ski, but he doesn't know where that will happen or what his major will be.

Before they shake hands with principal Dr. Steve Massey and hold their high school diploma in their hands, Skoglund and Edlund had to pass down the traditions the make Forest Lake nordic skiing what it is.

ìI think weíve kept the traditions alive,î Skoglund said. ìThere are things we do. Weíve started new traditions and kept old ones alive and I think that the young kids are aware of what is expected of them.î

Edlund added, "a lot of the kids know whatís expected of them they know weíll be cheering them on next year even though we wonít always be there."

The state race is Friday starting at 10:30 a.m. he boysí classical is at 10:30 a.m., the girls classical race at 11:30 a.m., the boys freestyle race at 1:30 p.m., and the girls freestyle race at 2:30 p.m.

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