My Travels Continue...

As I write this, I am sitting in the Salt Lake City Airport…in transit from Alaska to Sun Valley. Since my last post, my travels brought me to Whistler, B.C., the site for the 2010 Olympics, for an on-snow ski camp and then up to Alaska for a friends wedding.

The training in Whistler was great! As we expected, there was still about 3 feet of snow at the race venue in Callaghan Valley. We were blessed with great weather and enjoyed many hours of skiing, even in the sun! The first day I skied, I got goose-bumps all over my body just thinking how the trails I was skiing on at that moment are the trails I will hopefully be racing on in the 2010 Olympics. I arrived at the race venue with a different perspective. I was not there to race, I had no need to get the race jitters, I was solely there to get in quality ski training and familiarize myself with the trails. After a week of training, I was already becoming more comfortable with the lay-out of the trails and I was able to visualize the courses and know where each uphill, down-hill, cut-off and turn was.

Mali (left) and Kate (right, In the Arena athlete) ski on the perfectly groomed trail

Not only was the skiing great, but we had some great team bonding time. Without the added stress of worrying about racing, everyone on the team was able to relax and enjoy each others company. We were also able to get to know our new coach for the Sun Valley Olympic Development Team, Travis Jones. We had a lot of fun and enjoyed playing silly games such as elefun!

Unfortunately my fun with the team ended early and I flew up to Alaska a few days before the Whistler camp was over. I was bummed to miss the opportunity to see a Mariners game in Seattle with the team, but I was fortunate enough to be able to fly up to Alaska for my friend, Kikkan Randall’s wedding! When I arrived, the mountains were still covered with ample snow. I decided that skiing didn’t have to be over for the season yet! The next morning I drove up the mountains with my sister and a friend and we enjoyed the best crust skiing ever! It was a beautiful sunny day and the snow was hard enough to ski anywhere! It is days like that, that I am reminded how amazing and beautiful Alaska is!

The bridesmaids and groomsmen at Kikkan and Jeff's wedding. Yep those are hot pink dresses!

Despite great snow in the mountains, I was not able to make it back up there to ski later in the week. Temperatures were not getting below freezing; therefore a crust was not forming to ski on. Instead, I got the roller skis out and began my summer season of roller ski training. I have been doing quite a bit of roller skiing instead of running, due to a foot injury. Hopefully it will heal fast and I will be back to my full capabilities.

Out on a crust ski in Alaska with my friend Laura (left)

The week was filled with lots of wedding festivities and ended with a beautiful ceremony in Talkeetna, Alaska. Once again, we were blessed with beautiful weather and enjoyed a crystal clear view of Mt. McKinley, (not a common thing).

An amazing view of Mt. McKinley!!!!

I am currently headed to Sun Valley and excited to continue my training. At the same time, I will be helping with the after-school program at the YMCA and before long, school will be out! I am even more excited to help with the Summer Day Camps at the YMCA, which will start the beginning of June.

The next destination is Bend, Oregon for an on-snow ski camp in June. They still have a ton of snow so the skiing should be great!