TheRealScotty wrote:
Nice job by several guys here. Nuguse, Wolfe, Hunter. The race is net downhill but still......Well done by these guys.
Kessler has been very poor this year. Totally fallen away. Was fine indoors and fell apart outdoors. 10th in this race. Was 10th, 14th and 7th in other races. Was solid at US Nats taking 4th place in his only strong outdoor effort.
His 3:31.12 this year is #28 in the World in 2025. He's much better than that.
I think he did a good job explaining why it went south after USAs. It seems like he is doing all the right things, and next year he can maybe get a little out of his head given the lack of a global outdoor champs. There won’t be the stacked do-or-die USAs controlling everything. Target World XC relays, world indoor gold. Take a hard reset into outdoors and capitalize of the lack of an important USAs to get more time in Europe and treat World Ultimate Champs like a final.
Unconnected, but after speaking with Parker Wolfe, I am very bullish on him. I think he’s a Nico Young level talent (tier above Blanks/Abdi Nur). If he can stay healthy he might be the surprise of World XC.