Karl Danielson, a 2018 graduate of Kenai Central now skiing for the Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center, led the Kenai Peninsula at Besh Cup 1 and 2 on Saturday and Sunday at Kincaid Park in Anchorage.
The six Besh Cup races allow skiers to get races against top skiers from around the state, and also are used to select Team Alaska for the U.S. Junior Nationals Cross Country Championships, to be held in early March in Minneapolis.
Danielson is in the senior category, so he is not eligible for Junior Nationals, but he finished fifth in the 1.4-kilometer classic sprint on Saturday for Under-18 and up. APU skier Zanden McMullen took the sprint.
Also in the sprint for Under-18 and up, Kenai Central’s Tyler Hippchen was 33rd, Soldotna High School’s Quinten Cox was 38th and SoHi’s Andrew Cox was 41st.
In the 1.4-kilometer women’s sprint for Under-18 and up, Kenai Central’s Jayna Boonstra was 25th. APU’s Becca Rorabaugh won the race.
Sunday, Danielson finished 11th in the 15-kilometer mass start freestyle race for Under-18 and above. Danielson stopped the clock at 39:12, while McMullen won at 35:57. Hippchen finished 36th at 44:24, Quinten Cox was 40th at 45:32 and Andrew Cox was 45th at 46:30.
In the 10-kilometer mass start freestyle race for Under-18 and above, Boonstra finished 30th at 34:06. The race was won by APU skier and 2018 Winter Olympian Rosie Frankowski in 26:41.
In the 5-kilometer mass start freestyle race for Under-16, SoHi’s Ariana Cannava was 19th in 18:21. Olivia Soderstrom took the win at 16:16.
The third and fourth Besh Cup races are scheduled for Tsalteshi Trails on Jan. 15 and 16.
