Skaters sprint off the starting line in the Lake Placid Ice Marathon at the James Sheffield Olympic Speed Skating Oval in Lake Placid. Provided photo — Christie Sausa

LAKE PLACID – Some time around November every year, speed skaters throughout the United States and Canada start anxiously looking toward Lake Placid, waiting for the James Sheffield Olympic Speed Skating Oval to be ready for skating. The Lake Placid oval is one of several 400-meter ovals in the United States, and over the years has been a valuable training site for American and Canadian speed skaters who frequently train on natural ice that is less than reliable. Or as in the case of Quebec skaters this year, are waiting for the Quebec City oval to be built.

While the public typically thinks of the Lake Placid oval as a public skating site, it remains an active speed skating venue, hosting several regional and national meets annually. This year, it will host meets nearly every weekend, including the long track speed skating events for the Empire State Winter Games. All regional long track meets, except for ESWG, are hosted by the Lake Placid Speed Skating Club, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.

The Lake Placid Speed Skating racing series begins with the Lake Placid North American Challenge Dec. 14 and 15. In its second year, the Challenge takes place the same weekend that the Golden Skates Speed Skating Marathon used to be, and is expected to attract marathon skaters from the United States and Canada.

Marathon skating is a speed skating discipline where skaters participate by skating long distances, usually in pelotons, as in cycling. This event includes 5 kilometer, 21K, and 42K distances. While some skaters may only skate in one distance, others skate all three. The 5K and 21K races will take place at 9 a.m. Dec. 14, while the 42K race begins at 8 a.m. Dec. 15.

The metric meets for the season begin with the Charles Jewtraw All Around Championships, Jan. 4 and 5. Named after Lake Placid native and 1924 Olympic gold medalist Charles Jewtraw, the meet incorporates all distances, with medals awarded based on the participant’s overall performance across all distances.

Trevor Marsicano, a 2010 Olympic silver medalist, competes in a 2017 Lake Placid Speed Skating Club meet. Provided photo — Christie Sausa

Named for two-time 1932 Olympic gold medalist Irving Jaffee, the next event is the Irving Jaffee Single Distance Championships Jan. 11 and 12. Unlike the All Around, where skaters must participate in all distances to be eligible for a medal, the single distance event is not scored cumulatively, and winners are determined for each distance rather than overall.

The speed skating season continues with a Lake Placid tradition, the Empire State Winter Games Jan. 30 through Feb. 2, which includes both long track and short track speed skating competition along with other winter sports. The long track events, taking place on the 400-meter Olympic Oval, will be Jan. 30 and Feb. 1, while the short track events will be in the 1932 Arena in the Olympic Center on Feb. 1 and 2.

Continuing the Lake Placid Speed Skating series, the metric meets resume on Feb. 8 and 9 with the Jack Shea Sprint Championships, named after Lake Placid native Jack Shea, who won two Olympic gold medals in 1932. The event includes sprint distances 500 and 1,000 meters both days.

The last metric meet of the season is the second annual Heiden Challenge, Feb. 29 to March 1. Five-time 1980 Olympic gold medalist Eric Heiden is one of the greatest skaters of all time and a Lake Placid legend, and the event encourages skaters to push their limits by skating the five distances he skated over two days. To ensure greater competitiveness, the Heiden Challenge is the only event in the racing series to require time standards to participate. The results are logged cumulatively so the best all-around skater in all distances wins the title. Last year’s men’s and ladies titles were won by Tommy Fitzgerald, of Danbury, Connecticut, and Claire Mallard, of Ontario, Canada. With this year marking the 40th anniversary of the 1980 Olympics, it should be an especially popular event.

The final meet of the season is the Lake Placid Ice Marathon Finale, March 7 and 8. It will include 5K, 21K, and 42K distances.

Carole Moore, a veteran marathon skater from the Flushing Meadows Speed Skating Club, races in a Lake Placid Speed Skating Club meet last season. Provided photo — Christie Sausa

In addition to Empire State Winter Games, another exciting short track event will come to the Olympic Center. The US Short Track AmCup 3 takes place Feb. 14-16 and will host elite short track competitors. It is expected that Lake Placid will host the event annually.

For more information on the Lake Placid Speed Skating Racing series, including registration, visit “http://www.lakeplacidspeed.com”>www.lakeplacidspeed.com. For information on the AmCup 3 competition, visit US Figure Skating’s website at www.usspeedskating.org.