Cloudcroft Women’s Team Wins Gold at Mt. Taylor Winter Quadrathalon
Village heroes deliver in epic race
Talk about an epic display of endurance.
Several of Cloudcroft’s top athletes teamed up to triumph in the intense 44-mile Mt. Taylor Quadrathlon last weekend, sprinting, pedaling, skiing, and snowshoeing their way through a grueling competition that started at the base of one of New Mexico’s highest peaks.
The “Quad” comprises four sports: biking, running, skiing, and snowshoeing. Now in its 41st year, many of Cloudcroft’s participants placed in the top 4.
Amy Coor (biking), Ali Manzo (running), Bri Jonnes (skiing), and Jessie Willett (snowshoeing) placed first overall in the Women’s Team category.
Matt Willett placed third in the Solo Men’s in his age category.
Bri’s daughter, Karsyn Jonnes, and Matt and Jessie’s son, Miles Willett, each placed 4th in their age category in the Quad Kids three-part race for ages 3-12, which consists of a bike race, obstacle course, and run.
Cloudcroft/Albuquerque seasonals and Quad Kids Rowan and Cece Engberg placed 1st and 2nd in their age group, respectively.
Other Cloudcroftian competitors included Eric Engberg and Wendell Lane in the Solo Men’s Quad. Wendell’s son Taylor and daughter-in-law Jill Lane competed as a pair.
How tough is the ‘The Quad’?
“The Quad is a…race up and back down the highest peak in NW New Mexico. Contestants are challenged to bike 13 miles up the steep paved road leading to Mt. Taylor then, run an additional 5 miles on a snowpacked gravel road before switching to a pair of cross country skis and ascending 2 miles on a groomed trail. Finally, racers strap on a pair of snowshoes and trek the final mile to the summit of Mt. Taylor; 5,400’ higher than where they started. Once stopping to catch their breath at the top, they turn around and brave the 22 mile stretch again to get back to the finish line.”
Thanks to our recent snowfall, much of the full-time Cloudcroft team’s cross-training was done right in the Sacramento Mountains, Bri Jonnes and Matt Willet were able to test their unique touring ski bindings and “skins” (that allow skis to have traction on the uphill climb, and let’r’rip on the way down) right here at Karr Canyon and Ski Cloudcroft. Karr Canyon was also a training field for Jessie and Matt Willett to work on their snowshoeing skills.
If you’ve athletic ambitions for the winter games, Cloudcroft is a bonafide training ground—as our stellar athletes know.
