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Can Nats
By Kate Whitcomb
Another year completed for this girl! I rounded the 2007-2008 season off with a few starts at Canadian Nationals up in Whistler at the 2010 Olympic venue (stadium shown above).
It was not the best year for me but I am fired up about where I am right now and excited to continue my training towards next winter and beyond.
Stay tuned for updates from the rest of the team up in Fairbanks, AK finishing out their season at US LDNs.
A New Perspective
By Nicole De Yong
The 2008 World Masters in McCall, Idaho are off to a start! This past weekend, Colin and I had the opportunity to help with the Fischer demo tent. This presented a new perspective for me…instead of worrying about what kind of wax to use, warming-up and racing, I was able to take a step back and watch other people worry about those things. The first race was a 30k classic on Saturday and racers were presented with probably the most difficult waxing conditions. The morning started with 4 inches of fresh fallen, wet snow and it continued to flurry at 34 degrees at race time. Harries, waxless skis, hard wax, and even klister were in the mix. Different waves started at different times throughout the day. The first wave of 30-34 year olds, which included Fischer/Craft’s Adam Swank, started at 9:00am. Adam plowed through 4 inches of fresh snow on the first lap, trying to survive severe icing and trying not to fall on his face. On the second lap, the tracks had glazed over and he was able to use his skis to his advantage. Adam managed to pull away from the pack to win the first wave. As the day progressed, the conditions became even more difficult. Snow flurries, then sun, snow flurries and then some more sun. Racers and wax technicians were running around trying to find SOMETHING that worked! When the day was all said and done, I was sure glad that I didn’t have to race.
Sunday was much more pleasant with clear, sunny skies for the 30k skate race. Waxing was a lot simpler and people seemed a little bit calmer. Several racers and non-racers stopped by our tent to check out the new Fischer boots and carbon light skis. Many people were impressed with the new products.
When the weekend was over, I came to the conclusion that I would much rather be a ski racer than a wax tech. At least when you are a racer, you get to move around and stay warm!
Engadin take 2
By Kate Whitcomb
Happy March XC fans! After finishing a satisfying 2008 Birkie, I headed home to Ketchum, Idaho to unravel for a few days. I then hopped on a plane headed to Zurich, caught a train to the Engadin Valley and checked into a hotel in St. Moritz, bad (and by bad, they mean very good!).
Here I reside, taking advantage of every perfect day in my SUPER AWESOME life: Swiss style
Catching up with good friends, eating great food and preparing for the Engadin Ski-marathon on Sunday, a 42k freestyle race with over 10,000 participants!
Stay tuned, I am shooting for top 10 this year.
Marching On
By Brayton Osgood
We brought in March here in Bend with a 16 inch dump of cold powder yesterday. I cruised through intervals under cloudless skies on VR 40 this morning. The only issue out there was punchy tracks because the snow hasn't settled enough - a nice problem to have in March! Don't worry about the cold temps though, it's sunny and warming up nicely, especially down in town.
I have a couple more weeks at home before the last trip of the year. Canadian Nationals and Distance Nationals up in Fairbanks are all that's left for me this year. 5 more races, and hopefully I can put together solid efforts in most of them. I've been taking things very low-key since Aspen, so I'm hoping the resting will pay off with some excess energy to burn up there.
This winter has been a lot rougher for me than the last few (especially in terms of consistency), so it would be really good to finish on an upswing. At the very least it will be good to check out the new Olympic Venue at the Callaghan Valley and check out Zach's operation up there.
