KOBAK RECRUITS RINGERS! Elite Field Includes Former Olympians
		Peru, May 1-- "The course record is going to fall," boasted four-time Patch Sprint Champion and current record holder Jim Kobak.  "But I may not be the one who sets the new mark!"       If it's not Kobak, then the new race winner may very well come from a select group of elite athletes that includes two members of the United States winter Olympic team.
						Curtis Schreiner, 39, and Deborah Nordyke, 44, both of Hadley, NY are among the nations top biathletes.  Nordyke competed at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, while Schreiner was a member of the 1988, 1992 and 1994 Olympic teams.      More recently, the husband-wife skiing dynamos have gone head to head with Kobak, as part of the New York State Ski Racing Association winter competition series.      "These guys are world class athletes," said Kobak, "The proof being that they both beat me at the 2006 NYSSRA season fiinale."      Schreiner will compete at the Patch Sprint in the open mens division, while Nordyke bypasses the masters, instead entering the open womens, where she'll be the oldest female in the race.      "We're looking forward to the Patch Sprint."
		Also entering this year's 20th Anniversary Patch Sprint is Thomas Moffett, of Peru.  Moffett is also a competitive biathlete who has recently turned to nordic ski racing.  "Kobak has been talking about this race for years," said Moffett, "and how no one has been able to beat him.  Maybe, I'll be the one to do it!"
				For his part, Kobak (right, following his victory in 2004) is not yet ready to concede the race.  "Sure these guys are good; they add prestige to the field," stated Kobak.  "But they are unfamilar with the dynamics of this event.  Can they actually spend a night drinking with Drew at the North End and still be race-ready four hours later?      "And as for the course, I know it, they don't.  Oh, I imagine they'll try and draft off me and hope for a free tour, but when it comes to the backside of Sugarloaf and Fiegalley, they better be paying attention!"       Aside from the latest entries, Kobak should see serious challenges from 3-time and defending champ, Jason Fiegl, as well as regular race stalwarts Ben Stanley, Mike Daley, the Metakis twins and the Disney twins.       "It's going to be an exciting race!," gushed race director Sandy Solomon.