Wholistic Fitness

In keeping with history, the season opener of the Southwest Nordic Race Series – sponsored by Rossignol – lived up to its harsh Race Day conditions. Due to low (as in, zero) snow at the original Colman Park venue in Pagosa Springs, the ski racers needed to toe a start line at 10,500′ to find a course readied for them by Jamie Pitcher, owner of Wolf Creek Ski Area in order to pull off this Season Opener. Wind was perhaps the most challenging aspect for the racers alongside with 29-degree temps. There were three races, but only the 16k Freestyle counted for valuable points in the season long Southwest Nordic Race Series (SWNRS). Durango was deeply represented by stalwart skiers in this most physical of all endurance sports, including Michelle Wilson with a 2nd Place Female, less than a minute behind Jennnifer Amstadter who won the Ladies 16k in 57:21. Michelle’s husband, DHS Teacher Brett Wilson also finished 2nd to Durango’s Caley Fretz who won the Male and OA in a time of 47:54. Durango native Steve Ilg, took a big step to defend his 55+ AG Title by finishing first in that category with a time of 1:04. Continuing the family lineages, Steve’s daughter Dewachen Ilg (17) who just signed with Luther College on a running scholarship won the 4k Race in a time of 15:01, finishing second overall to her Durango Nordic teammate, Jack Purcell who won the 4k Overall on classic skis in a time of 14:09. In the youngest race, the Kids K, Durango swept the podium with 10 year old Kyla Nicovich breaking the tape at 15:24. The racers were united in gratitude to Pagosa Nordic for again scrambling to find and create a beautiful course in challenging conditions. Next up on the SWNRS is the esteemed Chama Chili Ski Classic on top of Cumbres Pass, NM!

PNC – Cabin Fever Races 
Southwest Series 16K Results 2025 

Name Time Place 

Female 

Jennifer Amstadter 57:21 1  

Michelle Wilson 58:46 2  

Sanna Sevanto 1:04:06 3  

Megan Fretz 1:07:09 4 

Siobhan Niklasson 1:14:33 5  

Gina Basse 1:29:38 6  

Male 

Caley Fretz 47:54 1  

Brett Wilson 48:30 2  

Daniel Murray 51:49 3 

Ross Delaplane 52:52 4  

Nick Preston 56:45 5  

Scott Bailey 57:00 6  

Steve Smith 58:37 7 

Keith Nicovich 59:58 8 

Buck Farley 59:59 9 

Peter Wadsworth 1:02:16 10  

David Hilborn 1:05:28 11 

Rene Garcia Reyes 1:07:16 12 

Owen Tallmadge 1:08:29 13 

55+ Age Group 

Steve Ilg 1:04:24 1 

William O’Connell 1:14:22 2 

PNC – Cabin Fever Races 
Southwest Series 4K Results 2025 

Name Time Place 

Female 

Dewa Ilg 15:01 1 

Liv Niklasson 16:02 2 

Sage Wilson 17:02 3  

Ellie Bruckbauer 17:19 4  

Alaska Farley 17:29 5 

Janelle Dingler 17:30 6 

Merritt Graham 18:17 7 

Elise Graham 21:22 8 

Male 

Jack Purcell 14:09 1  

Jeff Dingler 15:38 2 

Archer Nicovich 16:53 3 

Paul Whitmore 20:07 4 

Noah Murray 21:13 5 

George Gardner 22:45 6 

Jay Willmon 33:36 7 

Brooks Willmon 34:57 8 

Kid K Results 2025 

Name Time Place 

Kyla Nicovich – 10yrs 15:24 1 

Juniper Wilson – 6yrs 18:45 2 

Yarrow Wilson – 3yrs Fast! 3