The Midwest, again

There is one racing weekend per year that should perhaps pique my interest above all others: the Madison City Sprints. I say "should", because despite this weekend being so catered to my abilities, I have had some serious bad luck/great excuses at these races. My first time in Madison in 2009, my back went into major spasm during the team sprint and I couldn't stand up straight for five days. In 2011 the races were cancelled at the last minute (I had already arrived in Madison) because some yahoos down at the state capitol building (also our race venue) decided to protest the cost of buttermilk or some such thing. No races that year. And finally, last year Dakota BVJ, Lars Ellefson and I all waxed our own skis for the races and really screwed the puppy; I didn't even qualify in either race. 
And yet contrasted with all these bad memories, Madison remains one of my favorite venues. The course is predominantly flat and only a kilometer long, which favors my speed and power. And every year I'm lucky enough to be hosted by Mimi and CW Acher, the parents of some friends from college; both of them are overwhelmingly generous and the weekends are a great reunion with good food and company. I figured then, with all the good juju surrounding this event, it was high time for me to post some decent results as well.

Looking down the finish stretch for the classic sprint

As I wrote in my last post, the three weeks between the Tour de Twin Cities and Madison I spent doing some very specific sprint workouts, basically simulating sprint heats with reduced rest. When I left for Madison last Wednesday I felt as primed as ever; morever, I'd covered my bases with ski support, as Igor and Andy from the CXC Elite team had graciously agreed to take care of me in that department.

The first race was a classic sprint, though because of the pancake nature of the course it was really a double pole on skate skis. I felt great in the qualifier and finished 2nd, behind one of the imported Russians brought in to race the American Birkebeiner this coming weekend. I figured that was a good indication of what I could do in the heats. I moved through in the quarters with a lunge at the line but then got caught in traffic in the semis and ended in the B final. At that point my arms were starting to feel the burn, and I finished in the back of the B final, in 8th overall. I was hoping for more and set my sights on the skate sprint.

Waxing is set up haphazardly on the sidewalks

In the skate qualifier I again felt strong and snappy, and finished 5th. First through fifth in the qualifier were only separated by two-tenths of a second, and the whole course only took a little over 1:40min! A true sprint. In contrast to the previous day, I skied powerfully through the rounds, winning both my quarterfinal and semi. In the semi we saw some serious carnage, as APU skier Reese Hanneman and CXC skier Karl Nygren traded paint on the second 90-degree corner of the course, which resulted in Reese going down and exploding like a grenade. He limped in well after the rest of us finished, with two broken poles and a shattered binding.

Bemused Reese with two broken poles and a shattered binding after the men's semifinal

The A final was set to be a real horserace: Russia vs. America. Karl and I lined up against the two strong Russian sprinters. I knew they would try and control the race from the start, so I pushed hard out of the gate and got between them, right behind the lead Russian. I let him lead us around 2/3 of the course before we reached the gradual downhill coming into the final corner, where we all four started a mad scramble for the lead. I was on the tail of the group coming into the corner; I figured the Russians would go for the wide turn to carry as much speed as possible, so I moved directly inside to cut the corner tight. It worked as I figured, and I had an open lane to the finish, and was only half a ski length behind the leaders. But then Karl, in attempting to gain open ground from behind the Russians, moved across and into my skis, knocking me off balance and spinning me sideways. With 50m to go there was no recovery, and I finished in 4th, a hairsbreadth behind the group. Still, I felt strong through the whole day which proved the training leading had served its purpose, and that was enough to move forward.
And now, in a whirlwind of decision-making and changed itineraries, I'm in Hayward, WI preparing for the Birkie Elite sprints and the famed American Birkebeiner 50km skate! I've only competed in the Birkie once before, and the course was reduced to half its original length due to conditions. Moreover, I wasn't nearly as fit as I am now. I'll post an update next week on how things play out!

Men's classic sprint quarterfinal - I'm on the left (photo stolen from Reese's blog; taken by Renee Callaway)

Aerial view of the sprint course (image plundered from Reese's blog)