Soft snowpacks don't deter Nordic skiers in Wheaton

For a cross-country skier, any snow is not necessarily good snow.

Especially ot when it's freshly fallen and getting smacked in your face by blistering winds.

"These people who are here today really love the sport," said Joe Gollinger, co-director of Saturday's Northern Illinois Nordic cross-country ski race at Arrowhead Golf Club in Wheaton.

Nearly 100 people from throughout the Chicago area, as well as parts of Wisconsin and Indiana, spent the afternoon sloshing through the 13-kilometer course as the falling snow continued to add a challenging element to the race.

"It was really tough, blinding snow," said Don Isaacs of Aurora, who finished a shorter seven-kilometer race in just under an hour. "I play a lot of hockey, and skating is not much different from this sort of skiing."

Jim DiDomenico of Elgin has been racing in Wheaton's annual cross country race since it began nearly a decade ago.

"There aren't nearly enough races around here, at least not without having to travel pretty far north," said DiDomenico, who finished in second place in the 13-kilometer race.

Gloria Vazquez of West Chicago and her husband, Tony, first competed in the cross-country race last year. The couple and their four children, Joseph, 11, Andrew, 10, Jeremy, 8 and Jocelyn, 6, found it a welcome alternative to snowboarding, so the family tried it again this year.

"It's a great way to keep the family active," Gloria Vazquez said. "We'll probably be back again next year."

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