Montalbo Gets Some Publicity--Bit of Cash

Picabo Street is very well known, but who is Scott Montalbo?

For the record, he’s a 20-year-old development skier from Girdwood, Alaska, who is $5,000 richer after grabbing a share of first place in a Dash for Cash Alpine race that wrapped up the U.S. Ski Team Olympic trials at Lake Placid, N.Y.

Berths for next month’s Games in Nagano, Japan, were at stake in earlier events, but Saturday’s competition was reduced to an exhibition run down a Whiteface Mountain trail that was too wet and soft for the downhill and super-G races.

Street, the two-time World Cup downhill champion and the 1994 Olympic downhill silver medalist, won the women’s race as expected. Her time of 40.96 seconds for the 1,200-meter track was 1.11 seconds better than Tatum Skogland of Bellevue, Wash. Julie Parisien of Auburn, Maine, trying to regain membership on the team after three years on the pro circuit, was third in 42.31.

Montalbo and Chris Puckett of Boulder, Colo., tied in the men’s race in 39.87 seconds.

Men’s and women’s downhills were scheduled Friday, with super-Gs on Saturday. But a thaw on Friday created fog and soft snow that doomed the downhills, forcing officials to add them to the schedule for Saturday, last day of the trials.

However, light rain and more warmth wiped out the downhills and, later in the morning, the super-Gs.

The cancellations will force officials to select all team members on the basis of World Cup points.

Also Saturday, the 10-member U.S. Olympic cross-country team was announced. The women’s five included Olympic trials race winners Suzanne King and Kerrin Petty as well as Laura Wilson, Nina Kemppel and Laura McCabe. The men’s team includes trials race winners Justin Wadsworth, Marcus Nash and Mark Gilbertson along with John Bauer and Pat Weaver.

*

Seven athletes--three of them from Vermont--earned berths on the U.S. Olympic biathlon team. The trials were held at the Vermont National Guard’s Ethan Allen Firing Range in Jericho after poor conditions forced a relocation from Minnesota.

Dan Westover of Colchester, Vt., was the top finisher among the four men who will compete in Nagano. He won the 10K sprint in 29 minutes 31.5 seconds, his second victory in the four-race qualifying series.

Joining Westover were Jay Hakkinen of Kasilof, Alaska; Robert Rosser of Applegate, Ore.; and Andy Erickson of Minnetonka, Minn.

Three women also earned places on the team, although one did not race Saturday. Kara Hermanson Salmela, of Elks River, Minn., was so dominant in her first three races that she secured her berth Friday.

Kristina Sabasteanski of Richmond, Vt., earned her spot by winning Saturday’s 7 1/2K race in 26:10.8 seconds. She joins Deborah Nordyke of Jericho as the final two team members.

*

Most of the U.S. long-track speedskating team was picked in the first round of trials last weekend, but two more skaters qualified Saturday in the Olympic trials at the Pettit National Ice Center in West Allis, Wis., on the outskirts of Milwaukee. Casey FitzRandolph and Moira D’Andrea made the 1,500-meter team.

*

Jim Herberich’s third victory in as many races at Park City, Utah, gave him an almost insurmountable lead in his bid to be named to the U.S. bobsled team. Herberich won Saturday’s four-man bobsled race with a combined time of 1:40.45 over two heats. Todd Hays is expected to join Herberich on the team after today’s final races.