Crowther leads boys to second at State

Charlie Kanzig | Last updated Feb 27, 2007 12:0pm0

Nordic skier Kelly Crowther showed his strength and versatility, finishing third in the combined standings at the Oregon Interscholastic Ski Racing Association State Championships at Mount Bachelor over the weekend.

Crowther's performance helped his Outlaws teammates to a second place finish in the event.

The Outlaws couldn't touch a powerful Mountain View team that captured the first place trophy with 21 points. Sisters scored 53 for second, while South Eugene finished third with 68, Cleveland was fourth with 131, and Ashland placed fifth with 144.

Crowther, a junior, finished second in Friday's freestyle competition, covering the five-kilometer course in 17:22 behind Mountain View's Kevin Brown who took first place in 17:01. Jeremy Evan, normally Sisters' number-two skier, suffered an asthma attack Friday and finished in 39th place.

"Jeremy was certainly a top five finisher going into the race," said coach Lee Fischer.

Crowther followed up on Saturday with a close third place finish in the classic section in 16:24 which secured third place in the combined results at 33:46, just five seconds behind Byron Riemhofer of Mountain View. Brown was the combined champion in 32:52.

Lucas Glick (19:09) and Kyle Rickards (19:34) finished eighth and ninth respectively in the freestyle portion to score for the Outlaws on Friday, while Nick Rice (19:36) and Jacob Evan (19:37) scored for the team in Saturday's classic race, finishing 10th and 12th respectively.

The Outlaws' 3 x 1 kilometer relay team finished second in 9:28 behind Mountain View, which blazed to victory in 8:11. The boys' competition was diluted this year when Summit, Bend, Crook County, Redmond, Corvallis and Crescent Valley High Schools pulled out of the OISRA organization over a controversy involving Summit skiers who were awarded scholarships to participate in a special training program.

The schools formed a new organization, Oregon High School Nordic (OHSNO), which held its championship last weekend at Mt. Bachelor.

Crowther actually placed third in the OHSNO competition behind two Summit skiers, making it clear he is one of the top high school skiers in Oregon.

"I am proud of Kelly and all the boys for their competitiveness this season," said Fischer.

"We'll miss our seniors Jeremy and Jacob Evan, along with Kyle Rickards and Stefan Redfield," he added.

Artwork raffle to support Nordic team

The Sisters High School Nordic ski team is offering an opportunity for people to support the team - and to have a chance to acquire beautiful artwork by Sisters artist Dan Rickards in the process.

Two framed prints by Rickards, "Fall Bear" and "The Smiths," will be raffled from a pool of tickets sold for five dollars each or three for $10.

"Fall Bear" is valued at $325, and "The Smiths," which is a painting of Smith Rock, is valued at $295.

Rickards and his wife Julia operate Clearwater Gallery at the corner of Pine and Cascade in Sisters and have three children who participate on the Nordic Ski team. Rickards is a nationally renowned wildlife and outdoor artist who has earned a number of awards for his work.

A maximum of 500 tickets will be sold before the drawing is held on March 16. Tickets are available at Sister's Athletic Club, Sister's Coffee Company, Sister's Movie House, Out West Designs, The Pony Express, as well as Rescue Response Gear, which is located in the industrial area, on the corner of Barclay and Curtis.

Ski team members will also be selling tickets. One of the prints will be on display at Sister Athletic Club and another at Sisters Movie House.

The Nordic team, a self-supported club sport at Sisters High School, concluded its 2007 season in strong fashion on February 24.