SKIING

It would have made a great script for "Medical Center."

Middlebury College, the bridesmaid for five years, came away with the 1971 Dartmouth Carnival Cup, and while the Panthers showed strength in every event, the fate of Dartmouth's skiers was determined before the first racer swirled down the Drop Out Trail at Dartmouth Skiway in the opening slalom.

Coach Al Merrill, who spent the week prior to Carnival as a guest adviser to the committee that is turning Sapporo, Japan, into an elegant site for the 1972 Winter Olympics, returned on the eve of Carnival to find that (1) Alpine captain Dan Gibson was still unable to race due to a lingering shoulder injury, (2) cross-country ace Steve Shirey had a twisted knee, (3) sophomore jumper Jason Densmore had suffered a shoulder dislocation in his final practice session, and (4) Nordic captain Teyck Weed was the victim of a head-spinning virus that left him far below par.

Adding to Merrill's misery—and everyone's else discomfort—the Saturday events, the " giant slalom and jumping, were contested in drizzle and fog and temperatures in the high 30's. Umbrellas and slickers replaced gaudy ski attire and the crowd dwindled rapidly.

St. Lawrence gained the early lead as Roby Politi won both the slalom and giant slalom. New Hampshire, led by Pete Dascoulias, won the cross country and gained the midway lead but Middlebury came on strong in every event except cross country and held a slim lead going into the jumping.

Then, led by Hugh Barber's victory and strong performances by two guys from Hanover, John Guest and Bruce McLaughry, the Panthers soared through fog and gloppy weather to clinch the cup with a total of 387.9 points. New Hampshire, which again had the skimeister in John Kendall, came up with second place (383.5), and Dartmouth had to settle for third place with a 382.8. Vermont, St. Lawrence, the Dartmouth frosh, Williams, Maine, and Harvard followed in that order.

For the Indians, sophomore Sumner Erbe and Dave Hazelett, a junior, were the strong performers in the Alpine events. Both were in the top ten each time but both were behind Dartmouth's frosh ace, Dick Cates, who was fourth and sixth.

In the 15-kilometer cross-country race, another freshman, Erik Jebsen, finished fifth and Eric Evans and Dick Trafton finished 11-12 for the Indian varsity. In the jump, George Perry and Weed tied for 9th, Don Cutter was 11th and Trafton 13th.

It was a disappointing but not unpredictable finish for Dartmouth which was operating without three stellar entries in racers Chuck Bent and Sheldon Perry plus jumper Scott Berry. Berry and Perry were defending champs, but the trio is away from campus for international racing this winter.

The situation left Dartmouth in a precarious spot for successful defense of its Eastern title and for the NCAA meet in South Dakota on March 4-6.