FARMINGTON — To say that Sarah Wade has been skiing forever, as defined by long as a high school senior can remember, is no exaggeration.

Telling the world that she has always loved it, well, that would be taking severe liberties with the truth.

“My parents had to convince me,” Wade said. “When I was really young and we were doing the lollipop races, I really didn’t want to come. But my parents convinced me because we got a lollipop if we finished.”

Five years old at the time, Wade had already been immersed in the sport for three years, first standing and moving on skis at the age most toddlers are getting the hang of how to walk.

So it’s probably no surprise that the sport grew on her.

Wade is now a Mt. Blue senior, co-captain of the Cougars’ Nordic team and defending individual state champion in the Class A freestyle.

She was 2013 silver medalist in the classical, a status she also earned in the freestyle as a sophomore in 2012.

Sweeping the state meet seems like a logical goal, and Wade would love for that to happen. Her primary goal, however, is to finish at the head of the class against a deeper talent pool: The Eastern High School Championships.

“I really want to get on the podium there, because I got fifth in the sprint last year. Plus a lot of them were seniors,” Wade said. “I’m really excited about this season, actually.”

Funny, when you consider that Wade’s childhood reservation about the sport wasn’t the fear of getting hurt, but the fear of failure.

“I didn’t want to be last,” she said.

Wade was far from bringing up the rear, and her skills sharpened further when she enrolled in the Bill Koch program.

From there, in fifth grade, it was on to Farmington Area Ski Team, or F.A.S.T., located at Titcomb Mountain and the cradle of Mt. Blue’s skiing dynasty.

And somewhere along the journey, uneasiness evolved into passion.

“I love everything about it,” Wade said of skiing. “Training, competing, everything. Skiing has just always been fun. That’s really what matters.”

Unlikely most of the skiers in the state, Wade already has been on snow this late autumn.

Titcomb’s snowmaking capacity had the Cougars hitting the trails all of the past week.

“We’re really fortunate and grateful to the people at Titcomb,” Wade said. “Not only do they make the snow, they groom it.”

Now a senior co-captain, Wade will assume the leadership role on a team that is one of the youngest in the Cougars’ recent history. She said it is the first time in her life that she has entered a season not knowing a majority of her teammates.

That’s good preparation for next season. Wade still hasn’t pinned down her college choice, although prestigious Dartmouth is in the running.

She hasn’t officially filed an application. The deadline is Jan. 1.

“I want to be an engineer. I think I want to go to Dartmouth,” Wade said. “I’ve talked to their coach. She seems nice.”

Whether she competes in the Ivy League, or at another school in the East, or simply as a recreational racer, Wade considers herself blessed that skiing is part of her identity.

“It’s not a physical sport in which I have to hit people, so I can still do it later in life,” Ward said. “It’s definitely one of the hardest things you could ever do. It’s a full body workout.”

With or without the sugary reward waiting at the finish line.

koakes@sunjournal.com

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