Counting Down!

I was very lucky to arrive in Anchorage earlier this week without any flight cancellations or delays. The Seattle airport was complete mayhem as I frantically ran through it to catch my flight to Anchorage. I was greeted with a fresh dusting of snow and nice, cold Alaska temperatures.

Racers at Kincaid Park

The next morning I was up bright and early, ready to go for a ski at 9am…except, it was still dark! I waited another hour and half for the sun to rise and finally strapped my skis on at 11am. I was off! I enjoyed a wonderful ski at Kincaid Park, the venue for the U.S. Cross-Country Ski Championships starting next week! Due to some trail maintenance and remodeling in the past year, I felt like I was in a new place and had never skied there before! With the help of a map, I figured out the race course for the sprints and the distance races. Within the first ten minutes of my ski, I ran into a moose chomping on a tree. That was when I really knew I was skiing in Alaska!

One of many moose I've run into on the ski trails

It snowed 8 inches on Christmas. The ski trails are in pristine shape and Kincaid Park is bustling with people as they prepare to host U.S. Nationals next week. The countdown is on…seven days till the first race! I will keep you posted on how things go. In the meantime, I’ll be trying to keep warm with temperatures getting as cold as 10 below zero!

Check out www.anchoragenordicski.com for a link to U.S. National info and results

Canadian NorAm Recap

It’s hard to believe we are half way through December and Christmas is fast approaching! After spending two solid weeks in Silver Star, I now have 7 races under my belt and the season is officially on.

View of Silver Star Ski Resort

The first weekend in Silver Star started with a skate sprint. I had a slow start but managed to squeak into the quarterfinals. My body felt flat and slow but I tried to push as hard as I could. The next day was a 10k skate. I didn’t feel great but kept a steady pace throughout the race. After getting passed by Milaine Theriault and Caitlin Compton within the first 2k, I felt a little discouraged but kept pushing. I finished the race disappointed with my effort but soon found out that I placed 14th. That was a lot better than I expected! Knowing that I didn’t feel my best but managed to get in the top 15 lifted my spirits.

After four days of rest, I found myself warming up again, this time for a 15k skate mass-start. This was the race I was most excited for! I went into the race mentally ready to push my body as hard as I could. The lead pack of girls stuck together well into 5k and then started to break up. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to hang with the lead group but I managed to stay with the second pack. Going into the second 7.5k loop, I was leading the pack. I had fast skis and had no problems keeping up and passing on the down hills. I worked the uphill and put a gap on the group of girls I was skiing with in the last 1k. It was a steady climb to the finish and I skied to the point of having blurry vision and wheezing in my lungs. It came down to a sprint at the finish and I gave it everything I had…just enough to nip my competitor at the finish line. I finished 11th and was pleased with my effort.

The coaches hard at work!

Only seventeen hours later, I was back at the venue warming-up for the classic sprint.Whew! I felt tired. My legs felt heavy and slow from the race the day before. Trying not to think about the way my body felt, I started the prelims and skied as hard as I could. I finished 23rd…good enough to qualify for the quarterfinals. But once again, I did not have the quickness and pop to advance to the semi-finals. Disappointed with my race, I finished a good cool-down to get the lactic acid out of my legs and tried to begin my recovery to prepare for the race the next day.

View of stadium during the classic sprint race...kinda nasty!

Rumors of a cold front moving through the area and temperatures getting down to -20 C raised the question as to whether or not the race was going to happen. One hour before the race started, (we raced at 5pm, in the dark) it was decided that the race was officially on. Alright, one more time! I began my warm-up in -16 C degrees and in the pitch dark. There were areas of the course where there were NO lights and of course it had to be on the sweeping down hill. After some slight confusion as to how to get to the start line, I got there with only a few seconds to spare. I was off! On the first lap of the 3 lap course, I felt like I was hammering. I didn’t now if I really was skiing fast or if it was just the sensation of racing at night, in the dark. I received splits that I was 7th overall. I kept a steady pace the next 2 laps and finished 9th , 4th American. Whew, I could feel the lungs burn and I could taste the lactic acid after the race. Despite the frigid temperatures, I skied a good cool-down and cheered the guys on. After getting numb fingers and a super cold nose, I tired to pack up as quickly as possible and head back to the house to warm-up.

Sunset coming down from the race venue

The next morning we began our 17 hour drive back to Sun Valley. It took us two days, but we made it. I am currently in Ketchum, getting ready to head to Alaska early next week. U.S. Nationals are just around the corner and I am feeling more and more ready as the time approaches. Stay tuned for updates on the races. Have a Merry Christmas!

A very tired Mikey Sinnott on the van ride home.

Finding the Sweet Spot

In athletics, whatever the sport may be, there is a certain point or position in which your body finds its “sweet spot”…the ability to perform a certain element of sport particularly well. In baseball or tennis, it might be hitting the ball with the bat or racquet in that optimal location that will send the ball flying the farthest. I have transferred this idea to skiing and have tried to come up with certain elements that put you in that “sweet spot.” In skiing however, there are combinations of several factors that contribute to finding that suitable condition…technique, feel of skis, mind, body, etc.

This is on my mind because I have yet to find that sweet spot in my racing this year. After two weekends of racing, it’s been a rough start and I am left asking myself why? Is it fatigue, is it the need to get back into racing mode, is it the fact that I’ve been skiing on snow for only two weeks, is it the inability to push my body, is it my technique, is it in my mind? All of these questions contribute to possible reasons for my disappointing performances, yet they leave me with guidance as to what I need to work on and how I might be able to find that sweet spot. I have felt that sweet spot before and I know that it exists. Knowing that I have found it in the past, encourages me to find it again.

It is difficult not to be too hard on yourself when you don’t get the results you want. I have to remember that it is a long season and these races are just the beginning. A lot can change in four months or even one month for that matter! U.S. Nationals are four weeks away and I am aiming for good results there…in my hometown of Anchorage, Alaska!

Our racing schedule until U.S. Nationals is up in the air. We are supposed to race in Whistler next weekend, but due to lack of snow, the races may be cancelled or moved. I will keep you updated as to where my travels take me!