Sorry for the lack of photos this time but I had my hands full.
Could Tom Petty have been any more prescient when he penned these words long before Cross Country skiing even had a sprint race? I think not. I have long waited to hear his catchy tune playing over the stadium loud speakers as the heats are run at a sprint race.
However, in this case I am not referring to the advancement of Torin as lucky loser during today's sprint in another Norway Cup. But more on that later. I am actually referring to my, only moderate, skill as a waxer. But today I pretty much nailed it and for a change Torin had as good a skis as anyone on the course. While I'd like to take some credit it may have been more luck than skill. The chemists at Toko had as much to do with our success today as I did.
Temps were very cold and the start was postponed 3 times before finally getting off at 11, after the TD held the thermometer in his armpit and was able to read -17.5C. I was psyched when they decided not cancel because I knew we finally had good skis.
Torin's qualifier was still not up to snuff again today and he finished 11th. The good news is that the speed and endurance are both there in good measure as demonstrated in all three sprints so far on this Scando tour. His ability to ski with, or out ski, the fastest qualifier of the day has been in evidence during each race. In Beito he managed to make a big move from 5th to come even with the fastest qualifier and eventual winner, Dahl, before getting pinched into 3rd in the last corners to the finish. Last weekend in Finland he out skied the fastest qualifier in two heats and only in the final with a change in strategy did he get boxed into 4th. Today, the fastest qualifier (a disappointing 7.7 seconds ahead of Torin) and race winner was in each of Torin's three heats. Torin won the 1/4 and was 2 meters back in second place in the semi and only 6" back in final. We're working on it, Honest!
Today's 1/4 and semi final heats contained all the lucky losers of the day and time wise they were faster than the qualifier. So, nobody as dogging it in these heats. The speed is there in head to head competition but we acknowledge we are still trying to find some more relaxed speed for the all important (points wise) qualifier.
To give some idea of the speed being skied in these races, today's very intelligent course was 1848 meters and the typical time per km of the qualifier and heats was 1 minute and 36 seconds per kilometer. That's right: 1:36/km!
Gotta get your speed on!
Feeling Like A Racer Again...
Alison and I pluggin' some clay pigeons after the pheasant hunt - her first blast with a shotgun!I am finally feeling back to normal. This past weekend I opted to take a few days off and travel with Alison and my folks to Montana to meet up with friends and my sister and family to do some pheasant hunting. It was a great opportunity to let the past few weeks of "re-training" soak in, and to relax a bit before really getting back to it. Despite the quite cold weather (which would hit West Yellowstone a few days later and postpone the opening SuperTours), we managed to shoot down some birds, and Alison got her first shotgunnin' lesson.
When we returned to the Valley Monday evening, we were greeted with COLD temps and snow! I was psyched to get out Tuesday morning for my first ski of the year, up at Klipchuck campground. Over the last three days I've gotten five hours of easy skiing, and today I started in on some more comprehensive training. Scott has been a telecommuting coach since he's been over in Scandinavia and sent a plan which included some L3 intervals and muscular endurance training. This morning I did a 1.5 hour skate ski with 15min of 15/15sec L3 intervals. It felt GREAT to open up a little bit and the best part of it was getting home and not being too tired! I'm confident that I'm really back on the side of light and good, and will be ready to get into a race sometime in December.
When we returned to the Valley Monday evening, we were greeted with COLD temps and snow! I was psyched to get out Tuesday morning for my first ski of the year, up at Klipchuck campground. Over the last three days I've gotten five hours of easy skiing, and today I started in on some more comprehensive training. Scott has been a telecommuting coach since he's been over in Scandinavia and sent a plan which included some L3 intervals and muscular endurance training. This morning I did a 1.5 hour skate ski with 15min of 15/15sec L3 intervals. It felt GREAT to open up a little bit and the best part of it was getting home and not being too tired! I'm confident that I'm really back on the side of light and good, and will be ready to get into a race sometime in December.
Starting to feel the racing legs again...
Rovaneimi Sprint
We have just returned to our secluded and beautiful mountain cabin at Hotel Rustad in Sjusjoen, Norway after a day of travel from Rovaneimi, Finland and the sprint race above the Arctic Circle. FYI: Roveneimi is loosing 1 hour of daylight a week right now. With sun up at 9 and sundown at 2 snow conditions and temps stay fairly constant.
We connected with the Americans on the Maine Winter Sports Center Tour de Finland trip put together and lead by the very able Will Sweetzer. Will, being an old hand at these Privateer ventures designed to expose American skiers to top level European competition was the inspiration for my MOD trip to the OPA Cup race last February. This year Will gained another convert as the Craftsbury Green Racing Project joined forces with Will's merry band. For more on these two clubs' trips please refer to their websites, a
s they each have their own stories to tell
After another good week of training it was time for Torin to slip on a bib and toe the line in a classic sprint with a solid field of Canadians including Stefan Kuhn (10th in 2010 Oly Sprint), former world sprint champ Vassili Rotchev and a host of Estonian and Finnish sprinters.
The qualifier was a shock to all of us observers as Torin, seeded second, finished 25th but looked to be skiing much faster. Some confusion over timing was quickly put behind us as we prepped for the heats.
Photo: Torin leaving the stadium in the qualifier and about to enter the cork screw tunnel/bridge affair.
A quick ski change and wax adjustment was done while Torin borrowed floor space in the Craftsbury GRP nearby house. It was clear to see that Torin was really eager and aggressive in the heats as he gave no quarter in the quarter final.
He was slow off the line but by the time the pack left the stadium he was in control of the race and left it clear that to beat him was going to take a lot.
One look at his face in this photo as he leads Rotchev over the bridge and back into the stadium and you c
an sense his frame of mind. The mind of a champion. Undaunted by the miserable qualifying (see his number?) time trial and determined to give his best effort in each heat.
A photo finish in the semi final meant Torin was advancing to the A final. Since Sam's illness and Erik's departure for school Torin has been training alone and so this was his first head to head final since the Super Tour A final in Maine last March where he and Andy Newell fought to the line and Torin barely, literally, inched in front.
A slip at the line left him in 6th place at the start of the final and last out of the stadium. This shot from above on bridge as the pack enters to corkscrew shows Torin trying to move around on the outside to get a better position before the big climb.
This turn was a full 360 degrees! The first I have ever seen.
The finishing sprint left him in 4th place. I was a bit disappointed because I was really hoping for the new wax iron that was being handed out for 3rd. It was, altogether, a great effort and should have the needed training effect to boost his racing fitness.
We will be off to Gala, Norway for another Norwegian Cup race next weekend.
We connected with the Americans on the Maine Winter Sports Center Tour de Finland trip put together and lead by the very able Will Sweetzer. Will, being an old hand at these Privateer ventures designed to expose American skiers to top level European competition was the inspiration for my MOD trip to the OPA Cup race last February. This year Will gained another convert as the Craftsbury Green Racing Project joined forces with Will's merry band. For more on these two clubs' trips please refer to their websites, a
s they each have their own stories to tellAfter another good week of training it was time for Torin to slip on a bib and toe the line in a classic sprint with a solid field of Canadians including Stefan Kuhn (10th in 2010 Oly Sprint), former world sprint champ Vassili Rotchev and a host of Estonian and Finnish sprinters.
The qualifier was a shock to all of us observers as Torin, seeded second, finished 25th but looked to be skiing much faster. Some confusion over timing was quickly put behind us as we prepped for the heats.
Photo: Torin leaving the stadium in the qualifier and about to enter the cork screw tunnel/bridge affair.
A quick ski change and wax adjustment was done while Torin borrowed floor space in the Craftsbury GRP nearby house. It was clear to see that Torin was really eager and aggressive in the heats as he gave no quarter in the quarter final.
He was slow off the line but by the time the pack left the stadium he was in control of the race and left it clear that to beat him was going to take a lot.
One look at his face in this photo as he leads Rotchev over the bridge and back into the stadium and you c
an sense his frame of mind. The mind of a champion. Undaunted by the miserable qualifying (see his number?) time trial and determined to give his best effort in each heat.A photo finish in the semi final meant Torin was advancing to the A final. Since Sam's illness and Erik's departure for school Torin has been training alone and so this was his first head to head final since the Super Tour A final in Maine last March where he and Andy Newell fought to the line and Torin barely, literally, inched in front.
A slip at the line left him in 6th place at the start of the final and last out of the stadium. This shot from above on bridge as the pack enters to corkscrew shows Torin trying to move around on the outside to get a better position before the big climb.
This turn was a full 360 degrees! The first I have ever seen.The finishing sprint left him in 4th place. I was a bit disappointed because I was really hoping for the new wax iron that was being handed out for 3rd. It was, altogether, a great effort and should have the needed training effect to boost his racing fitness.
We will be off to Gala, Norway for another Norwegian Cup race next weekend.
Rebuilding at home
While 66% of the MOD Squad is duking it out over the pond in Norway, I've been focusing these last few weeks on rebuilding strength and fitness following having mono, which I estimate lost me about a month and a half of training.
So far things have gone well. I was able to get in a few good strength sessions, rollerskis and some long-ish runs this week for a total of 14 hours, which is twice as much as I had for all of October. It's amazing how fast the fitness does come back and heart rates come down, but I also notice that my body isn't there quite yet. I'm not getting much above level 1 for any of these workouts, and am taking today completely off to allow the work to soak in. This coming week I'm hoping to get in some speedwork to start tuning the legs a bit, and with luck I'll be on snow in a week or two!
Here are a few pictures from a late fall run over Spokane Gulch:
Looking upwards to Washington Pass - not a lot of snow yet!
MOD Team Massage Therapist and ultrarunner Alison Hanks and intrepid pace-setter Nikki
So far things have gone well. I was able to get in a few good strength sessions, rollerskis and some long-ish runs this week for a total of 14 hours, which is twice as much as I had for all of October. It's amazing how fast the fitness does come back and heart rates come down, but I also notice that my body isn't there quite yet. I'm not getting much above level 1 for any of these workouts, and am taking today completely off to allow the work to soak in. This coming week I'm hoping to get in some speedwork to start tuning the legs a bit, and with luck I'll be on snow in a week or two!
Here are a few pictures from a late fall run over Spokane Gulch:
Looking upwards to Washington Pass - not a lot of snow yet!
MOD Team Massage Therapist and ultrarunner Alison Hanks and intrepid pace-setter Nikki
First Tracks in Sjusjoen, Norway
For the past week I've been calling Sjusjoen, Norway home. The mountain town sits twenty kilometers outside Lillehammer. The place is pretty sweet, with incredible facilities, both from the long tradition of sport here, and the influx that came here for the 1994 Winter Olympics. The ex-pat Mike Meyers set me up with a nice little cabin by the lake beside the Rustad Hotell. If you're ever in this neighborhood, you should check this place out: http://www.rustadhotel.no
While in Norway I'll be racing with Team Sjusjoen. The team is a professional outfit, and is actually the oldest team of its kind in Norway. Former World Cup podium boy John Anders Gaustad took over the coaching duties this year for this team of ten. Here JA and I get in a couple hot laps around the tracks here. I also picked up a couple good pointers from the man himself. Good times, good stuff.
Here Team Sjusjoen gathers around the training table. This evening, though, was a bit more spoecial. As the last night of the last training camp before the racing season kicks off in Beitostolen, Norway we had a julbordet, or Christmas Table. You know, eating all those delicious Scandinavian specialties like rotten fish, salted pork and lefsa. I know your jealous...
And a lil quick viv for you interested ski fans out there:
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