We will now interview junior Clara White of Orono in our state champion spotlight series. Clara was the 2025 Class C Classical,
Freestyle, and Pursuit state champion. She also won the 2025 MVC Nordic title. We asked her about her state meet preparations and what she likes the most about Nordic skiing:
1) What were your preparations leading up to the state meet?
Leading up to States, I focused on keeping myself healthy, happy and enjoying the great snow conditions.
2) How did you deal with the pressure and emotions that come along with competing in a state meet?
While state meets can be stressful, there is also a lot of positive energy when all of the Maine high school teams are racing together in one place and it is so much fun to race with everyone!
3) What was going through your mind at the start?
We will now interview junior Rowan Barry of Greely for our state champion spotlight. Rowan was the 2025 Class B Classical, Freestyle, and Pursuit
state champion. She also won the 2025 WMC Classical and Freestyle titles. We asked her about her successes and her plans for her senior year:
1) What were your preparations leading up to the state meet?
We had just started having consistent on-snow practices at Pineland, so I was training pretty hard up to the weekend before. But also focusing on hydrating, eating well, and sleeping enough to make sure I was at my best for the races.
2) How did you deal with the pressure and emotions that come along with competing in a state meet?
Breaking the race down and thinking strategically about how to ski each part makes it feel less daunting. I also tried to go into each race with a positive attitude, be confident in my training, and remember to have fun.
3) What was going through your mind at the start?
We will now spotlight Margo Hesson of Falmouth who was the 2025 Class A Giant Slalom state champion whose combined time
was more than two seconds faster than 2nd place. We asked her about what was on her mind at the start and her favorite moment from the season:
We will now spotlight senior Sophie Simard of Leavitt. Sophie was the 2025 Class A Slalom state champion, winning by almost two
seconds. She was also the KVAC slalom champion. We asked her about the state meet pressure and her plans for next year:
1) What were your preparations leading up to the state meet? I prepared by working on my mindset and getting in the right headspace.
2) How did you deal with the pressure and emotions that come along with competing in a state meet? I accept the nerves and pretend like it’s just another race. Keeping a positive attitude is so important when placed under pressure.
3) What was going through your mind at the start? I took a deep breath and didn't tune into other people’s times and results.
4) What do you contribute to your success?
We will now spotlight Logan MacLeod of Yarmouth. Logan was the 2025 Class B Slalom and Giant Slalom state champion. She also won
the WMC Slalom title. We asked her about her successes and what she likes the most about Alpine:
We will now spotlight Thatcher Riley of Maranacook. He was the 2025 Class B Giant Slalom state champion. He also won the MVC
Slalom and Giant Slalom. We asked him about his preparations and his plans for next year:
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