The Bridger Ski Foundation (BSF) hosted a weekend full of running and roller ski races with the Jim Bridger Trail Run & Roll drawing competitors from across Montana and throughout the U.S. The Jim Bridger Trail Run & Roll is a fundraiser for the BSF Nordic Pro Team, which is a community-supported Olympic development team coached by four-time Olympian Andy Newell. Athletes compete at the top levels of national and international cross country ski racing, and the team depends on fundraisers like this, as well as sponsors to support their efforts.
Nordic skier Mariah Bredal of Bozeman doubled up to sweep both the women's roller ski race on Saturday and the 10-mile Jim Bridger Trail Run (JBTR) on Sunday. Bredal covered the 6-lap paved roller ski course near MSU in 20:49, and cruised to a 1:32:57 win on the challenging trail loop through the foothills of the Bridgers.
During Saturday's roller ski races, members of the BSF Nordic Pro Team swept the top spots with Reid Goble besting teammate Graham Houtsma in a tight sprint to the finish. Logan Diekmann finished third. In the Women's open roller ski race, BSF's Sarah Goble was second with Emma Albrecht of the MSU Ski Team in third.
28-year-old Bozeman resident Zach Perrin set a blistering pace over the 10-mile JBTR course on Sunday to finish in 1:12:12, one of the top five fastest times in the 30-year history of the race. Willson Moore, took second in 1:16:54. Moore recently moved to Bozeman and joined the BSF Pro Team after graduating from Middlebury College. Seth Wyatt, a Bozeman local who skis for the University of New Hampshire and still trains with BSF during the summer, was third in 1:22:15.
In the women's 10-mile run, Bredal was followed by Erin Bianco in 1:36:41. Bianco, a Minnesota native, recently relocated to Bozeman to join the BSF Pro Team after racing for Colby College. Behind her in third was Erika Flowers, a semi-retired Nordic skier and a runner for The North Face.
BSF also hosted a 5K Run option. In the women's race, Claire Rucker of Bozeman was 1st, Ella Irey of Helena 2nd, and Sage Blickensderfer of Bismark, ND, 3rd. For the men, Jon Irey of Helena was 1st, Soren Fricke of Bozeman 2nd, and David Kozicki of Bozeman, 3rd.
A huge thanks to the following JBTR sponsors:
Toyota
Bozeman Running Co.
Billings Clinic, Bozeman
Intrepid Credit Union
Salomon
Swix
Les Schwab Tires
Excel Physical Therapy
Skin Care MT
Dr Shannon Jones Family Dentistry
Feast
JoJe
Polar Brewing
Tuscola Branding
