Wednesday, March 18, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
15
Three Outlaws skiers race in the Western States Regionals
By Rongi Yost
Correspondent
Evan Palmer and George
and Bela Chladek got an
experience of a lifetime last
week: the opportunity to
race in the Western States
High School Regional
Championships held at
Mammoth Mountain,
California, on Friday and
Saturday, March 13-14.
All three Outlaws did
a great job racing in the
giant slalom in the inau-
gural Western Regional
Championships. Evan,
George, and Bela were part
of a team that included all
the Central Oregon schools,
and also Marist High from
Eugene. The best racers
from California, Nevada,
Wyoming, and Oregon were
at the high-level competitive
event (24 total).
The course was set on
Andy9s Double Gold at
Mammoth Mountain, which
made for the longest giant
slalom run the high school
kids had seen. The long steep
pitch in the second half of the
course made it a very chal-
lenging race. The day started
off with sunny weather for
the first run, but clouds and
fog moved in for the second
run and made the conditions
more difficult.
Evan came in 14th out
of 69, George was 31st, and
Bela finished in 42nd place.
Coach Gabe Chladek said,
<Bela got a headwind for his
run, which mattered on the
flats, especially because he
was one of the few freshmen
to attend the race, and his
smaller size was affected by
the wind.=
Overall, the boys team
finished fourth in the giant
slalom event.
The slalom race was
scheduled for Saturday, but
skiers woke up to heavy
winds that gusted up to 104
mph on the mountain. Due
to the extreme winds, the ski
area was unable to operate
chair lifts and the slalom race
was canceled.
<This was a big disap-
pointment as the slalom
event is typically the stronger
event for the Central Oregon
skiers, <said Chladek. <The
day ended up being enjoy-
able and beneficial as the
racers and coaches from the
different teams spent the day
seeing the area together and
building relationships.=
Chladek added, <The
biggest take-home from
the event was the bridge-
building between teams and
leagues, and I think it will
set the stage for a legacy of
close relationships in high
school ski racing in the west-
ern region.=
All three Outlaws com-
mented on their experience.
George said, <Skiing at
the Western States Regional
High School Championships
was a really rewarding expe-
rience. I really liked getting
to join with the best rac-
ers from the other teams
in our league and race as
a team against high level
competition.=
Evan commented, <It
was an amazing experi-
ence to see our rival teams
come together and com-
pete as one against the other
states. I never thought I9d be
so successful in ski racing
when I started my freshman
year and am so thankful for
everyone that helped me on
my journey.=
Bela, the only non-senior
on the boys OSSA team
from Central Oregon this
year, said, <I thought it was
a great experience, and I9m
already looking forward to
the chance to qualify for the
championships next year.=
Next year 9s Western
Regional Race is tentatively
scheduled for Jackson Hole,
Wyoming. Chladek told The
Nugget that the Outlaws
will work hard next year
to send a few racers to the
big event.
PHOTO PROVIDED
Outlaws skiers performed admirably at Mammoth Mountain last weekend.
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