Story and Photos from Michigan Nordic Skier Website

It was Milan Baic again, beating out David Mcclean by 17 seconds with a time of 30:37 to win the Chestnut Valley 12Km Freestyle. Mikael Kilpela finished third.

In a competitive women's field, Megan Madion finished first in 36:49, beating out Erica Baic and Julie Houle.

The three laps of exactly 4km each had plenty of snow. Conditions were soft in places but no one was complaining - most competitors thought the trail had the best snow in the lower peninsula! As Mike Tarnow said, "We've been skiing on the Vasa Trail in Traverse City, but this is REAL snow here. There must be a couple feet out there!"

In the Junior races, Emilay Westerman, Catarina Gulledge won the J2 and J1 two-lap 8km races. Aaron Jaffe finished first in the J2 male 8km race, while Jesse Smith and Morgan Weir won the 12km J1 and OJ divisions.

The race grew this year to 147 competitors. The race is growing in popularity, partly because of the reliable snow, the nice flow of the trail, and a good early race that's not too hilly or technical. Thanks to Nick Baic for putting on a great race.