Battle Mountain nordic ski team prepares for 2026 Colorado High School Ski League season

It’s a bit tricky assessing a team’s on-snow readiness with the winter we’ve been dealt. But Battle Mountain nordic ski coach Lisa Isom knows a couple things about her squad heading into the 2026 season.

First, coming off a long cross-country running season, they’re obviously fit. And thus, if the flakes finally start to fly? Watch out.

“It feels like we are off to a late start in some ways, but the meat really starts in January,” Isom stated in an email last month. “So, if they show up over winter break and maintain their running fitness, then add their nordic technique, it could be a fun and exciting season.”

The 2026 Colorado High School Ski season opens at Gold Run Nordic Center with an individual start classic race on Jan. 9. The Huskies are fresh off fourth and eighth-place state finishes for the girls and boys nordic ski teams, respectively. Battle Mountain also continued its dominance of the skimeister competition, an award given to the best all-around skier based on individual regular season results in all four alpine and nordic disciplines. Kai Skellion took the baton from two-time champion Theo Krueger last year on the boys side while Ruthie DeMino and sister Eden went 1-2 in the wake of 2024 graduate Lindsey Whitton‘s three-peat. The DeMinos are back and Isom also suggested keeping an eye on freshman Savannah Thomas.

“She’s a hard worker and depending on how well she alpine skis, she could be in the mix in the next year or two,” the coach stated regarding the former club alpine skier, who is new to nordic.

Support Local Journalism

Donate

Slow start to winter forces schedule changes

Several of Battle Mountain’s top athletes competed in the Nike Southwest Regional championship in Arizona over Thanksgiving. Isom, a former elite XTERRA athlete herself, acknowledged the long fall grind by giving many an extra week off before getting on snow in early December. Unseasonably warm temperatures, however, threatened to extend the dryland period.

“Now that we are on snow, there is a good chance we might lose enough snow that we have to go back to running, which is never great for our season (and has never happened before),” Isom noted. “But it’s a long season leading up to winter break and then we hammer for six weeks of racing, which always helps the kids stay motivated.”

Isom credited Dan Timm and the crew at the Vail Nordic Center for maintaining the trails despite meager accumulation.

“Even with the wet, heavy snow today, they were out grooming with a smaller machine and making it fun for us to be out there with a huge portion of our team,” she said on Friday afternoon. “It was so nice to see so many of our kids back and ready to get rolling after the winter break. They are super resilient in terms of just skiing, no matter the conditions. We’re really proud of them for that.”

While recent melting forced the league to move the Jan. 10 meet at Maloit Park to Gold Run, the Huskies will have the advantage of returning to their home course for the state meet in February.

“The home turf and the hills will be good for us,” Isom said.

One team that could be up for the challenge is Lake County. Last year, the Panthers won their first girls state title since 1996. While many squads have had to keep the storage wax on so far this season, coach Karl Remsen’s group has been fortunate to lap a cold and shaded two-mile stretch of the Mineral Belt in Leadville throughout December. The Panthers return their top-4 skiers — all of whom finished in the top-10 on the classic day and were also amongst the top-15 in skate.

The Battle Mountain girls said goodbye to first-team all-state skier Bella Williams and Carla Hahn but bring back the DeMinos, Sabrina Nabonsal and Eliza Pyke, who was the team’s top finisher (13th overall) in the classic race as a sophomore. Isom said new mountain biker Heidi Treichel is fit and “wants it badly even though she’s new.” Plus, returners Larsen Middaugh, Sophia Erving and Lucy Holleman are well-positioned to take another step with added experience.

Isom is also optimistic about the boys group.

“We’ve got some hard-working freshman boys entering the program,” she said before adding that this class might be the first with a chance at league-wide competitiveness since Krueger, Miles McKenzie and John McAbee were the top dogs. Twins Micah and Cai Willard, Lucas Lamb and Riley Parish are all first-year skiers whom Isom said “are chomping at the bit.”

“Once they get a little technique training, they will go off!” Isom stated.

Gabe Dozois provides a veteran presence after guiding the cross-country running team in the fall and fellow senior Sam Grimmer is back after a one-year hiatus.

“We’ve got youth on our boys side that wants it badly and they are going to be fun to watch,” Isom summarized. “Our girls side could be in the top-3 again, and has the numbers and enough new kids to keep the ball rolling for the next few years.”

After next week’s classic individual start the high school circuit moves to Snow Mountain Ranch for a pursuit day on Jan. 16 before heading to Steamboat Springs the following week. Leadville hosts an individual and team relay event at the end of the month to help teams sharpen up for the CHSAA state meet at Maloit Park on Feb. 20-21. Unfortunately, the fourth Junior National Qualifier weekend overlaps that event, which means defending skate and classic state champion, Isla Elton — who competes for Vail Mountain School in the high school league and Ski and Snowboard Club Vail on the club circuit — could be prevented from trying to replicate her title sweep in 2026.

Behind Elton, the top returners are Lake County’s Finnley Stanek (third in skate, fourth in classic last year) and Chloe King (third in classic, eighth in skate). On the boys side, Summit lost skate state champion James Sowers but has Carter Niemkiewicz — the classic winner — waiting in the wings. Charlie Wiedel of Steamboat Springs High School, as well as Eagle Valley’s Jonah Barber and Tyler Blair and Vail Mountain’s Teddy Brunner, should figure into the podium conversation as well if they’re on the starting line in Minturn.

As motivating as it is to size up the competition, Isom and fellow coaches Innes Isom, Jeff Apps and Gerry Lopez are most excited about bringing kids into the sport and the team’s culture.

“We’ve got nearly 40 kids who know that we expect them to be good people, not just good skiers,” she said. “(It’s) always interesting, the ebbs and flows of each new class that comes up. … We are so happy that these kids want to be on the team.”