CARSON CITY, Nev., - The end of the National Guard biathlon season traditionally culminates with the Chief of the National Guard Bureau Championships in early March.
This year, however, the season ran well into spring as Guard athletes from Utah, Montana and Nevada barnstormed throughout the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California promoting and supporting the sport of biathlon at civilian events.
The sponsored participation of Guard athletes was a direct reflection of the Guard biathlon program’s commitment to increase participation levels in the sport and expand Guard visibility at civilian events, said Maj. Andrew Parsons, the NGB biathlon coordinator.
“Competition among National Guard biathletes is important, but it is just as important to have our athletes promote the sport and assist wherever they can,” he said. “As this was an Olympic year and biathlon was in the public’s eye throughout the winter, we hope to ride the sport’s popularity wave and continue to emphasize the strong relationship between biathlon and the National Guard.”
The hotbed for biathlon in the nation right now appears to be on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada near the border of California and Nevada.
This year, Tahoe resort Northstar-at-Tahoe located in Truckee, Calif., became the first mainstream downhill resort in the region to construct a biathlon range, while Tamarack Cross Country Center in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., expanded its range to 14 lanes.
Appropriately, the first stop on the biathlon tour was at the 10th Mountain Division Commemorative Biathlon and Clinic at Northstar, where six Guard athletes participated on March 20-21. The clinic and race paid tribute to the Army’s first biathletes – the Soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division, who specialized in fighting in mountain terrain and harsh weather during World War II.
During the clinic, the biathletes helped 1980 Olympian Glen Jobe instruct more than 100 children on proper marksmanship techniques and range safety.
The athletes then participated in the 9-kilometer race the following day, with Sgt. Brandon Adams of the Utah National Guard leading the military contingent with his seventh-place finish in 31 minutes. Pfc. Craig Kenison also cracked the top 20 with a 17th place finish in 35:29.
Jobe said the Guard athletes were similar to the cavalry coming to the rescue after one of his co-instructors broke his collarbone in a bicycle accident just days before the biathlon weekend.
“I’m very grateful for the National Guard assistance this weekend,” said Jobe, who in 1980 placed 37th in the 20-kilometer biathlon race at Lake Placid, N.Y. “With their help, we were able to give dozens of young athletes the chance to try biathlon and improve their marksmanship while maintaining a safe range.”
The following weekend, March 27-28, the California biathlon tour moved south to Mammoth Lakes, where the event attracted the largest biathlon field in the nation this year with more than 150 competitors, according to the U.S. Biathlon Association. The Saturday clinic at Mammoth was so popular that it met its participation cap of 84 athletes days in advance of the event.
Nevada Guard biathlete Sgt. 1st Class Erick Studenicka participated in the first mass start biathlon ever held in California March 28. Marc Sheppard of West Yellowstone, Mont., who served as the biathlon armorer during the Vancouver Olympics, won the race.
The other Guard athletes who participated in the western tour were Chief Warrant Officer Lynn Adams and Spc. Joel Shanight of Utah and Army Master Sgt. James Kelley from Montana.
“I never realized what good biathlon training venues existed in California,” Shanight said. “I thought the biathlon season was over when we left Minnesota (early in March after the Guard championships). It has been a great opportunity to extend the season, travel to new places and interact with young athletes who are excited about biathlon.”
Every Soldier and Airmen in the National Guard is eligible to participate in biathlon.
For more information on the National Guard biathlon program, contact Maj. Andrew Parsons at the NGB Biathlon Office at andrew.f.parsons@us.army.mil or (802) 899-7120.