June 30, Park City, UT

The 2000 Edition of the International Rollerski Series kicked off in fine fashion today, proving that the two year old series would enjoy much more lasting success than Chumbawumba. Though the field was on the smaller side, what was lacking in sheer numbers was more than made up for in quality skiers. In fact, the field was so strong that our lone international racer, an Italian who skis for Utah, decided, upon seeing the strength of the field, to go golfing instead. You think I'm joking? Clearly he couldn't take the pressure. So, on this Fourth of July Weekend, it was to be an all-American field.

The inaugural race of the second season was a 5K classic race along a new stretch of pavement near Kimball Junction. The course was relatively flat and rolling, with a decent climb at 3K and a good climb up the last 300 meters to the finish. Though not extremely hard, the course did not have any significant downhills to offer recovery either. Torbjorn Karlsen, Chief of Race, and Gordon Lange, Technical Delegate, drew up the start order and handed out the Yoko lycra bibs to all racers. You know you have finaly made it as a race event, when you pull out the Yoko bibs. The race officials set the racers off one by one at 9:00 sharp and then jumped on their bikes to make it to the finish before the racers. Pat Cote, who came all the way from Maine to race, (well, OK maybe not, but he did come all the way from Reno, NV with his wallet a little lighter and his head a little foggier) was first out of the gate followed by Erik Stange, Ian Harvey, Zack Simons, Torin Koos, and Cory Smith, who was given the driver's seat by virtue of his overall title last year.

Stange, who has been training up a storm this spring, went out hard with something to prove. Whether he was trying to prove that he is in good shape or that he was afraid of the nearby sheep remains unclear. He caught Cote at about 2K but becuase of his scorching start, was unable to leave Cote behind for another K or so. Meanwhile, by the halfway point, the rest of the racers behind these two were being drawn together like metal shavings in an Etch a Sketch. Smith was catching Koos, who was catching Simons, who was catching Harvey. Going up the 3K hill, they completely reversed order. With those three behind him, Smith set his sights on Stange who had now ditched Cote and was still moving fast. It appeared that Smith and Stange were locked in a battle being waged over the minute gap between them on the course. A quick glance at his watch at 4K told Smith that he made up some time and had a 30 second lead. After a final effort by all the racers as they climbed the last hill one by one, the first race was in the books.

In the end, the second season started the same way the first ended, with Smith picking up a victory. No wonder he organizes these races. A race jury will be looking into whether his role as Race Organizer gives him a way of rigging th race in his favor. His rollerskis, IRS files, and windbriefs were all confiscated for analysis. Race officials, course workers, and his kindergarten teacher will all be brought in for questioning. Stange, thought by many to be the pre-race favorite because of his early season training and tight shorts, put up a good fight and served notice that he does indeed deserve 23 pairs of skis this year. The University skiers put in a good showing considering that their importantrace season is a month or two behind the rest of the field, meaning that they are in no hurry to peak. Ian Harvey is probably disappointed with his finish, but since he has vowed to compete in every IRS race this year, you can be sure that he will be fighting for the wins in the skate races yet to come. Maybe he needs to have a few more chicken pot pies in the RV for the drive over. Pat Cote, in the middle of a cross country road trip, put on rollerskis for the first time this year just for the race. You can expect better things when he road trips out from Maine for the next race. As for the no-shows, Scott Loomis apparently did not get the memo that the IRS was about to begin and skipped town to go to France or something. Like they have any good races over there this time of year. Others tried to find the race, but given that no location or time was posted on the website, were unsuccessful. Another ploy by Smith? It will be looked into.

There were no chipwiches to be had by the winners. Said Smith, "I knew I had to win when I showed up without chipwiches. If someone else had won, I'd have had a riot on my hands." The only prize for today's winner was the job of washing the bibs before the next race. Stange, always one step ahead of everyone else, stated that he "slowed down near the end" to avoid laundry duty.

Smith did give teasing mention that the prize for the next race would be "priceless" and "coveted by all participants." He was very tight-lipped about exactly what it would be, but he did say that it was provided by one of the Race Series Sponsors. That's all for now.