McNamee wins again

Coleraine, MN – Mother Nature let up today as the sun came out giving athletes and race organizers a rare look at double digit temperatures.     Starting in 5 second intervals in the order of finish from Thursday’s competition the true test today would come in the range as athletes battled their own nerves and psychological whisperings. 
    After a strong showing in the Sprint race hitting 10 of 10, Hilary McNamee was out to see if she could reach another goal of hers, cleaning a four-stage race.  Starting out first and being the one to be chased may have seemed to ruffle McNamee’s feathers a bit as she suffered 2 misses in her first stage, but subsequent penalties by her followers  gave her enough room to ski the next loop without much pressure.  Another miss in her second prone stage and eventually her two standing stages was enough to give McNamee her second win in as many races in the Jr. Women’s field.  Addie Byrne of Bovey, MN finished 2nd with 8 misses and Andrea Mayo of Soldier Pond, ME rounded out the top 3.
    BethAnn Chamberlain moved up one spot in today’s race hitting 12 of 20 targets.  Using her strong skiing Chamberlain was able to stay near the front pack, but 3 misses in her final stages kept her off the podium.
    Tomorrow concludes with the Mass Start.
    Val Martello, Italy – Competing in the Pursuit competition at the IBU Cup, Russell Currier of Stockholm, ME hit 13 of 20 targets to finish 41st.
    Cold temperatures, high winds and falling snow.  A familiar picture since nearly all of the Biathlon NorAm competitions this week were run under these conditions.  Nevertheless, the athletes suited up after a two-hour delay as they waited for the thermometer to rise to the legal racing limits.
    Chamberlain pulled her best competition together on the final day hitting 15 of 20 targets and skiing away from the field to win in a time of 52:19. 
    Struggling to find her rhythm all week in the shooting range, Chamberlain saved the best for last besting the field with the top shooting. 
    Chamberlain’s husband David won the 10km Skate competition at the Eastern Cup in Stowe, VT making it a Chamberlain sweep for the day. 
    Placing 2nd with 9 penalties was Susan Dunklee of Lake Placid, NY and in 3rd was Sara Studebaker of Boise, ID with 7 penalties. 
    Racing up in the Sr. Women’s field was Hilary McNamee of Ft. Fairfield, ME who struggled with her shooting after a strong week.  McNamee hit 10 of 20 to finish 7th.
    Follow the MWSC Biathlon Team at www.mainewsc.org or mwscbiathlon.blogspot.com