...Kick It!


I've always been a fan of the Beastie Boys, and the above title to this post is from one of my favorites, "Fight For Your Right (To Party)". It's an apt title for this post, as we have just "kicked in" our 2009 dryland season. For the last few weeks and a few more to follow this means an abundance of low-intensity volume training, general strength work, and getting ourselves and our bodies to the level of fitness and aptitude which we'll need for later in the year when we begin our more specific regimen of training.


This past weekend I was able to take a few days and travel with the Methow Valley Junior Team up to the Callaghan Valley in B.C., home of the 2010 Olympic courses. I hadn't been to the Callaghan since last March when I raced there at Canadian National Championships, so it was a great chance for me to log some hours on trails which I hope to be competing on this coming season. The conditions were great, with hard granular snow in the morning making for ideal klister skiing, and a gradual warming to mid-morning for a switch to skating. It was also great to spend some time with the junior team and be able to ski with and do a bit of coaching for the juniors. Many of them have come a long way with their technique and it's great to see them taking advantage of such opportunities as training on Olympic courses in mid-May!


This week's an easy one, in preparation for a week-long volume camp (also on-snow) in Bend, Oregon next week. The full team is together now as Sadie has returned from school. Brian Gregg is also here training and will accompany our team to Bend as an honorary member of MOD; he has been training and racing for the CXC Elite Team in Wisconsin for the past three years, so it's great to get some of our native talent back in town for a bit. More soon!