New video from crust skiing in AK!  This video was super fun to make!

(Change the quality to 720 or 1080p if you have fast internet.  Just click on the little gear icon in the lower right of the video).

I just got back from a really cool trip to the Alaskan arctic with NanaNordic.   I flew from Anchorage to Kotzebue, and then from Kotzebue took a single-engine bush plane to Buckland, Alaska.   Buckland is a tiny Inupiaq village with a population of about 400 people on Alaska’s Bering Sea.   Its pretty isolated; the nearest village – Deering – is over 50 miles away by snowmobile.   The community was really friendly and the kids were all super excited about skiing.

The goal behind NanaNordic is to introduce skiing as a lifelong sport in rural Alaska.  The program this year bought over 300 pairs of skis, boots, and poles, with the goal of giving every student in the Nana Region to opportunity to learn how to ski.  I was volunteering with a great group of coaches led by Dartmouth alum Zach Hall.  The other coaches in Buckland were Sara Studebaker, Ryan Donovan, Bre Donovan, and Taryn Hunt-Smith.

Coaches Taryn, Sara, and Bre

The kids were SUPER pumped to ski with us!  We ran ski lessons during PE and then held two additional sessions after school.  There were about 130 kids in grades K-12 at the school, and well over 100 showed up again every day for the after school sessions to get a second ski in!   We had 50 sets of gear, and for the after school sessions we ran out every time.

The ski room! We brought 50 sets of skis, boots, and poles. A bunch of the skis were left behind for the kids to use throughout the coming year.

Kids waiting in line to check out gear for one of the after-school afternoon sessions.

Kindergartner pumped to ski!

Our coaching schedule was super busy…  We did seven one hour-long PE classes during the school day and then two 1.5 hour sessions each day after school.   We were basically out skiing nonstop from 9 am until almost 7 pm every day.  It was pretty exhausting, but totally worth it and really rewarding to see how much fun everyone had!

Coach Sara teaching the Kindergartners about Biathlon

The language originally spoken in Buckland was Inupiaq, but now only a few elders speak Inupiaq fluently.  The school district is making an effort to save the language and the kids take Inupiaq lessons in school, but everyone spoke English as their first language.  The dialect in the village was fascinating and the local lingo took some getting used to.  One of the coolest things was the way facial expressions were used – a quick eyebrow raise meant a yes, and a scrunchy nose meant a no.

It was an awesome week!  Check out the NanaNordic website at http://nananordic.com/ for more info on the program.  I’m working on editing a video for the week, so stay posted!

Thanks for reading!

The 50k National Championship at spring series was the hardest race I’ve ever done.  Racing 50k at altitude is never easy, but with hot weather and slow slushy snow, it becomes a true test of mental and physical endurance.  My fitness this year hasn’t been what I had hoped, and I knew going in that the race would be really tough for me.   I decided to approach the 50k as a mental test: no matter how well or poorly it went, I’d push myself to the very end.

Despite my best efforts, I found myself toward the back of the 50-some person field at the 10k mark.  I fought through the slush for the next 40k and painstakingly clawed back places.  Even though I was completely blown-up and exhausted, I refused to give up.  It was battle, and I fought for every last spot.    At 47k, I had top-20 in my sights when debilitating cramps took hold in my lats and triceps.  I finished 21st.  Even though the result wasn’t great, I was happy with the effort and satisfied with the day.  Here are some pics from the race!

Andy had a killer race and finished second overall (SMS photo)

50k with sun and slush (SMS photo)

Gus and Sverre nailed the wax. For the 50k skiers were allowed up to two mid-race ski exchanges.   The ski exchanges kept the techs busy all day with waxing and testing. Gus and Sverre worked really hard and had a new pair klistered and ready every time we came through the lap just in case we wanted to exchange.  I exchanged skis at 20k and 40k.  My skis were fast the whole race and awesome on the last lap.  Thanks guys!

I’m now back home in Alaska for the first time since early November.  Spring in Alaska is crazy nice and it feels good to be home.

Only in AK…

I alpine skied a day at Alyeska with my parents. It was awesome out there!

This week I had the opportunity to help out teaching an awesome group of kids from the Southcentral foundation how to ski.  They were all super stoked to learn and it made it really fun working with them.  We ended each session with an awesome game of one-ski soccer.

On Saturday, I fly north to Buckland, Alaska to volunteer with NanaNordic, teaching kids how to ski.  Buckland way up north near the Arctic Circle, and the only way to get there is by Bush Plane or snowmobile.  This is my first time visiting rural Alaska, and I’m really excited about the opportunity to introduce skiing!  I’m also working on a secret project related to the trip, so look for that in a couple of weeks!

Thanks for reading!

It’s been a really long time since my last post… since the last post I’ve raced in Latvia, Estonia, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and Italy.  I’m not even going to try to cover it all, but make sure to check out the video I made from the OPA trip on the videos page.

I’m currently in California to wrap up the ski season at Supertour Finals.  We’re staying about a mile from Lake Tahoe in an awesome condo offered through one of Jordan’s family friends (link here).  The beach is walking distance from the condo.

The shore of Lake Tahoe is incredible!

Because of relatively low snow, all the races so far have been held up high at the Auburn Ski Club.  We raced a 3k skate prolog on Thursday, and 15k classic mass start on Friday, and a classic sprint Saturday.

Skate prolog. Photo: Mark Nadell, http://macbethgraphics.smugmug.com

Sophie skied a strong 10k classic mass start.

Andy crushing the classic qualifier, DP style. (Photo: Mark Nadall)

Classic Sprint qualifier (Mark Nadall Photo)

I felt really good in the classic sprint, especially in the qualifier.  I had a few slips and technical bobbles, but overall skied strong and ended up in 18^th (coincidently, the exact same place as last year at spring series in Craftsbury).  In my quarterfinal, I got out to a good start, tucking in behind Ryan Scott on the first downhill and skiing at the front of the group.  I felt comfortable and relaxed, but then right before the big climb my pole basket snapped off.  With my pole plunging into the snow, I lost composure and tensed up on the climb and started losing places.  I ended up finish in 5^th and failed to move on.

The quarterfinal heat (Mark Nadall photo)

My teammate Andy Newell took a commanding win for the sprint.

I skipped out on the hill climb today because of a lingering cough, but I am really looking forward to racing the 50k on Thursday.  Until then, the name of the game is rest and recovery!

Sunrise over Lake Tahoe

After spring series I’m headed to Alaska.  I’m looking forward to visiting home!

I’ve had a few people recently ask what my winter travel schedule is like this year.    Here is my travel schedule starting from October.  By the end of the year I will have done 35 races in 7 countries!

October 5-October 18: Park City Utah (Altitude training camp)

October 18- October 27: Canmore Canada (Fall on-snow training camp)

October 27- November 9: Anchorage, Alaska (Rest period at home and final preparation)

November 9 – November 13: Bozeman, MT

November 13 – November 25: West Yellowstone, MT (West Yellowstone Supertours)

November 26 – December 4: Bozeman, MT (Bozeman Supertours)

December 4 – December 9: Quebec, Canada (Training, spectate Quebec World Cup)

December 10 – December 16: Craftsbury, VT (Training camp, Eastern Cup Openers)

December 16 – December 19: Stratton, VT (Rest period)

December 19 – January 12: Park City, UT (Acclimatization and US Nationals)

January 13 – January 18: Ramsua, Austria (Training Camp)

January 19 – January 28: Liberec, Czech Republic (U23 World Championships)

January 28 – February 7: Madona, Latvia (Scandinavian Cup distance races)

February 8- February 11: Jõulumäe, Estonia (Scandinavian Cup Sprint races)

February 11-February 15: Meppel, the Netherlands (Rest period and visit family)

February 16-February 22: Grachen, Switzerland (Altitude Training Camp and visit family)

February 22- February 27: Gluringen, Switzerland (Gommerlauf Marathon and training camp)

February 27-March 3: Nove Mesto, Czech Republic (Slavic Cup competitions)

March 3 – March 10: Madonna di Campiglio, Italy (OPA cup competitions)

March 10 – March 16: Toblach, Italy (OPA cup finals)

March 18-March 31: Training Camp Stratton, VT

March 31 to April 14: Truckee, CA (Spring Series)

I just finished up racing at the U23 World Championships in the Czech Republic.  I’d never been to the Czech Republic, and it was awesome to have the opportunity to ski race in a new country.

From our pre-camp in Ramsau, Austria, we made the 8 hour drive to Liberec (pronounced Liberetz), the host city for the event.  When we first arrived we were a bit bummed to find only about 2 kilometers of available skiing.  Fortunately, the skiing improved throughout the week as they made additional snow and extended the loop to 5 kilometers.  Liberec was cloudy and gray for most of the time we were there, but the venue was awesome and they did a great job with hosting the championships.

The competition stadium in Liberec when we arrived.  The weather was cloudy and grey most of the week.  (Gus Kaeding photo)

The competition kicked off for me with a 1.6k classic sprint race.  The course was pretty long for a sprint with lots of terrain.  The hills were definitely bigger than anything we’ve raced in the US this year.   With the length of the course, I think it was important to stay relaxed and powerful early on and be able to power into the finish.  I unfortunately didn’t follow my own advice; I knew the pace I needed to ski in order to qualify, and was on track until the last 45 seconds when the wheels started to come off.  I ended up in 34^th place, about two seconds out of qualifying.  You need to be on form AND ski the course well to be in the mix at this level of competition.

The next race for me was the 15k skate individual start event.  I’ve struggled with distance racing this year, and while I saw some signs of improvement in the race, I still wasn’t happy with the end result.

Skate race: Catching a ride with Sam Tarling and a Swede. Still not a great race, but starting to feel better.

The day before the 30k pursuit race, both of my roommates here, Sam Tarling and David Norris, came down with a really nasty flu.  Sam ended up needing an IV drip to stabilize things.  On race morning I still felt healthy, but had no idea how I’d feel racing.  I really wanted to have a good race for those guys if I could.  They’re some of my best friends, and I know they would have loved the opportunity to race.

The race went out pretty easily up front, but the pack was churning as people fought for position.  I ended up towards the back, at times in 60^th place.  There were some bad bottlenecks on the climbs and we came to a complete stop in several places.  I should have been more aggressive early on and gotten up front, since stop-and-sprint yoyo effect was much more taxing than the consistent pace the leaders were setting.  I lost the pack on the fourth classic lap.  After the transition to skating, I started feeling much better and started picking people off.  The last lap, I put the hammer down and passed a group of racers, which is always a good way to end a race.  I skied the 32^nd fastest skate leg, and ended up in 40^th place overall.  I’m still looking for better results, but I feel like I’ve taken a definite step in the right direction.

U23 30-kilometer skiathlon.  The accordion effect was extreme. The course narrowed to two tracks at the top of the climb shown in this photo. As result, most of the pack came to a stop on this hill, every lap.

Racing the classic leg of the 30k Pursuit. (Logan Hanneman photo)

The Junior relays were held on the last day of the championships.  They unfortunately don’t host a relay event for the U23’s, but it was fun to get out and cheer on my younger teammates.  I was even able to snap some shots during the races!

Logan Hanneman hammering the start.

Ben Saxton

Mary O’Connell

Cheer Squad! #murica

The Russian boys were skiing big and skied away from the field in the relay.

It was a great Championship!

One of the paradoxes of ski racing is that when things are going well, racing feels easy.  It feels good to push, and when you finish, you feel like you could race again and again.  Last year, I finished almost every race feeling this way.  I remember finishing the 50k at spring series feeling ready to ski another 50k, no problem.

So far this year, racing hasn’t been easy.  In fact, at times it’s been incredibly hard, and generally I’ve felt a negative response when I try to push.  For instance, the 30k at US Nationals was incredibly painful and probably was one of the hardest races of my life.  I finished 28^th.  Last year, the race felt easy, and I finished 3^rd.  I made a lot of changes this year, increasing training volume, adding speed, and incorporating much more strength work.  It takes time to adapt to these changes, and knowing that has helped me get through the tough races.  I know I’ve trained better than ever before, and at some point, I’ll enjoy the benefit of that training.

The skate leg of the pursuit at U23’s was the first time since LAST YEAR that I actually felt a positive response to pushing. At times, it even felt easy to push.  I’m hopeful that this means my form might finally be coming around!  The best racers in the world don’t just make racing look easy.  They actually make it easy.  Technique and fitness combine to make them move more efficiently at race speed than anyone else in the world.  Hopefully this represents a step in that direction.

Europe!  After a fall of racing the Supertour circuit in the US, I’ve finally made the trip across the pond to compete in Europe.   I’m racing this week at the U23 World Championships in Liberec, and I’m staying two extra weeks after that to compete in the Scandanavian Cup races in the Baltics.

Here is a quick recap from what I’ve been up to for the past few weeks.

I’ll kick things off with US Nationals in Utah.  It was an exciting week with some incredible racing.  My teammate Sophie Caldwell crushed it with two podium appearances and earned herself a spot on the US World Championships team for Val de Fiemme in late February.  Congrats Sophie!

Sophie cruising in the Classic Sprint at US Nationals (Fasterskier.com photo)

I’ve had a pretty slow start to the season, and nationals were no exception.  I felt flat and lacked energy all week, but managed to race well enough in the two sprint races to narrowly make the U23 team.   I know I’ve trained better than ever before, so it was frustrating to race so poorly.

Striding it out in the classic sprint (Toko US photo)

At the start – skate sprint heats. (Toko US Photo)

Without Dartmouth classes to keep me busy, I’ve had more time than ever before to focus on skiing, and that time has really benefitted my training this summer and fall.  However, once the race season got underway, I never switched out of training mode to give myself the chance to reach race fitness.  Just because you have the time to fit in an extra training session here and there doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to do so.  Looking back, I think I pushed the training just a little too hard, and in doing so, have been missing the pop I need for racing.  In the words of Sverre Caldwell, “Maybe it’s time for you to stop focusing on training so much and start focusing on feeling good in races.”

The solution, a week super easy, with almost no specific ski training!  My good friend Tom Collier lives in Park City and took Erika and I alpine touring.

Easy aerobic activity!  (Tom Collier photo)

And the way back down! (Tom Collier photo)

After a few days of resting in Park City, I made the trip to Europe to start prepping for U23′s.  I flew to Munich a day early to give myself some extra time to recover and adjust.  The Movenpick hotel in Munich features probably my favorite breakfast in the whole world.

Breakfast at the Movenpick. Best in the world.

After my easy rest day in Munich, we drove down to Ramsau Austria for a five day pre-camp to get ready for U23’s.  Ramsau was one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited, with Swiss-style ski chalets, towering mountains, and a healthy blanket of snow.  The skiing was awesome, with seemingly endless groomed trails stretching in every direction.

Here are some pictures from Ramsau:

View from the hotel in Ramsau.

Sprint starts. Ready. Set. Go!

Head Coach Bryan Fish and Annie Hart, all smiles.

Classic Austria

Enjoying the sun!

After five days in Ramsau, we hit the road again to drive to Liberec.  Liberec is a pretty neat city, but definitely not Ramsau.  The hotel we’re staying at -the Babylon – is the biggest hotel I’ve ever seen.  It has over 1000 beds, 5 restaurants, an amusement park (complete with Merry-go rounds, bumper cars, and other kids’ rides), a water park, a shopping mall, a bowling alley, and more.   It’s one of the most bizarre places I’ve ever stayed.

View from the Babylon Hotel in Liberec.

Tomorrow is the U23 Classic Sprint.  I’m off to our pre-race team meeting.  Wish me luck!