How Are Elite Athlete's Made?

I've been thinking about this question for the past couple days and to tell you the truth, I've had to give it quite a bit of thought. I don't feel much different than anybody else. Growing up, I had a talent for cross-country skiing and running but I was never the "superstar." What event or at what moment did I know I wanted to become an elite cross-country ski racer? That, I do know the answer too...

In 2002, I had the opportunity to be a fore-runner for the cross-country events at the 2002 Salt Lake Olympic Winter Games. I, along with 15 other top ranked junior skiers in the nation, were given the privilege to ski the course before the racers. We made sure the course was set-up correctly and made sure that the ski tracks were skied in. I was submersed in an experience that gave me a taste of what it would be like to be a top notch, elite athlete competing in the Olympics without actually having to race! I came face to face with all the top skiers in the world and was able to watch them from front view. Observing each athlete warm-up, compete and simply being in their midst, was very inspiring to to me.

A view of the stadium area

When I arrived at the venue the fist day, I was awe-struck by the lay out of the courses and the site of the stadium. After watching the 15/30k skate race the first day, I was completely inspired by watching Italian skier, Stefania Belmondo. She broke a pole during the race and came back to win the race! Watching her petite body power up the last hill on the course, known as Hermod's hill, was truly amazing! She went from being in 20th place to 1st place within 1 kilometer, going up hill! I knew the only way she made that happen was by pure determination!!! Wow!

Stefania realizes she has just won the first gold medal of the 2002 Olympic Games

This was only the first race of the games, and there were several more to come! Another truly inspiring moment was when North American's, Beckie Scott from Canada, won the bronze medal in the sprint races! It was exciting to see a North American women place so well in an Olympic event. Several months later, this bronze medal turned into a gold due to doping suspension of the women who won the gold and the silver. Unfortunately, doping is a problem in cross-country skiing. Beckie Scott, proud to be on the podium!

In addition to watching athletes from around the world, I was excited to be able to cheer for skiers from the US and even more excited to cheer for my teammate and friend, Kikkan Randall. She qualified for the 2002 Olympics for the first time at the age of 20. Knowing that I had trained and skied with her, made me realize that I could be there some day as well!

Kikkan Randall

Watching this world-class event definitely inspired me and made me realize that I wanted to continue pursuing cross-country skiing and be in the Olympics some day. Six years later, I am still training hard to be in their shoes at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games. I must always remember the determination I witnessed watching those games. Now I really know what it takes to get there!

2008 Birkie...Said and Done

It’s hard to believe that the end of the season is nearing! The Birkie is over and the last races of the season are approaching fast.

The Birkie was a huge success this year with nearly a record breaking 7,000 racers. Unlike last year, there was great snow and even some sun to awaken us the morning of the race. Despite the frigid temperatures at the start of the race, the conditions were nearly perfect and warmed up to a comfy 28 degrees by the end of the race.

The night before the race, I was quite nervous and yes a little scared to experience my first 50k starting in less than 12 hours. My goal was to stick with the lead pack of girls and hang on as long as I could. The race started at a comfortable pace as we climbed our way up the power line. I was in a good 8th position. This lasted for 17k until I found myself leading! “What, I’m leading?” I thought to myself. Although it was not my plan to lead at any point in the race, I decided it was okay because I would shortly receive a feed at 18.5k from Hallsey and I would most likely get passed. Well, as I approached Hallsey to take my feed, the rest of the pack slowed down as well and I ended up back in the lead. While I was a little frantic about leading more of the race I figured that if I was in the front, setting the pace for a while, I wouldn’t have to worry about getting dropped. My energy was good and I continued to ski at a comfortable pace. Around 30k I decided to finally let someone else pull the group. Despite a few sporadic surges to break up the pack, the women stayed close together. By 40k the pack finally broke up a bit. I did everything I could to bring up the rear and hang with the lead group of three women. The course became familiar to me as I had fortunately skied it the day before. I knew that the 3k stretch across the lake meant that the finish was quickly approaching. Evelyn, at this point had gapped Kristina Stranberg, Sarah Conrad and I. My skis were still running fast and I decided to lead across the lake, hoping to gap the girls behind me. Unfortunately, that did not happen and as soon as we turned the corner, with 100 meters to go along main street, the two girls made their sling-shot move and started sprinting. My reaction was just a little delayed and wasn’t enough to catch them at the end. I ended up fourth, 9/10th of a second out of 3rd. So close, yet so far!

I was quite pleased with my result. While it would have been exciting to stand on the podium with my teammate, Adam Swank who placed 3rd, I have to look at the positive and realize how far I’ve come. I guess this first 50k sets a pretty high standard for the next one.

I am back in Sun Valley for the next few weeks, getting ready for Canadian Nationals which will take place in Callaghan Valley, B.C. I am excited for these races! I will keep you posted on how things go! Cheers!

The Places You Go....

It's exciting being a skier racer and traveling to new places. Right now I am in Aspen, Colorado for the Super Tour Owl Creek Race. Coming from Sun Valley, one of Aspens rival ski towns, it is fun to compare the differences and similarties of both places. Yes, i would have to say they are both BEAUTIFUL!!! Aspen is definitely a little bigger than Sun Valley, but both ski towns have that up-scale feel. Its always fun to tell people that I live next door to Steve Miller and Tom Hanks and that I arrange flowers for Demi Moore. Then come to find out, Goldie Hawn has a house down the road from where I am staying in Aspen. It all seems unreal! Coming from Alaska, it is an entire new scene in this neck of the woods.

The view from our Aspen Host's House!

As for the skiing in Aspen, cross-country that is, the Aspen Valley Ski Club has done a fantastic job organizing the races. On Thursday, we competed on fun trails at Aspen High School. The women raced a 5k individual start classic while the men raced a 10k individual classic. We arrived at the venue in the morning with temperatures in the single digits, supposedly uncommon for this area. As I warmed up for the race, I reviwed in my mind how I wanted to ski the course...where I would push hard, where I would back off a little and where I needed to mentally stay tough! Racing at 8,000 feet is a little different than skiing at 6,000 feet and a whole lot different than skiing at sea level! Even in a short 5k race, you need to be careful not to start too hard. This is a common mistake and I have learned my lesson several times. I skied into the race with a quick pace but a pace that I knew I could hold onto. I started 30 seconds behind the girl in front of me and my goal was to keep her in sight the whole way. After 2k, I had already gained some time and distance on her and I focused on skiiing relaxed and smooth, with good technique to keep my gain. As I came into the final 500 meters of the finish, I was told that I was one second out of the lead. I knew I had to give it everything! Once I finished, I could hardly see or stand up straight. The lack of oxygen in air definitely made me feel light-headed. After catching my breath, I waited to hear the results as a few girls behind me were racing to the finish. I finished 2nd! I was pleased with my result but I was more pleased that I was able to control my pace and focus on skiing well. Ultimately, I think that is the key to good ski racing.

A podium finish

With one race down, I had another race to focus and prepare for. This time it was a 25k mass-start skate race. I had only heard rumors of how hard the race course was and how it was the toughest race many of my competors have ever raced. People told me that the course started on a golf course and then worked into a 3k climb up an alpine area. Whoa! That right there was enough to terrify me, not to mention that it gains 1,000 feet, as if 8,000 feet isn't bad enough. Without time to preview the entire course, I kept telling myself that it is probably best to race without knowing the profile of the course...that way I wouldn't know where to expect up-hills, where the tops of the climbs were and how far I had to go. As the saying goes, "ignorance is bliss." Well I can't say that the racing experience was blissful but I think I had prepared myself for something even harder than what the course ended up being. People like to exaggerate and the 3k up-hill that I was told about, was probably more like half a kilometer. Don't get me wrong, that was a tough race, but the horror stories I heard, mentally prepared me for a hardest race of my life.

The pack of leading girls broke up after 5k when the climbing began. I focused on staying with the girl in front of me. We stuck together all the way to the top of the climb. I took advantage of the long down-hill to replenish my body with energy in the form of a gue, but in the mean-time I lost a few seconds to the girl I was following. With 5k left in the race, I tried to catch back up to her but was unable to gain the time I lost on the down-hill. I finished 6th overall, satisfied, but already anticipating the race for next year. Now I know what to expect and I think that I can improve upon the performance I had today.

I am headed back to Sun Valley tomorrow. I will spend a week and half training there and then head to the American Birkebeiner in Hayward, Wisconsin. This race is the largest race in North America, with over 7,000 racers. I will keep you posted on how things go!

Hello! Quite a bit has happened since my last blog entry! After a full week of intense racing at U.S. Nationals at the beginning of the month, I have returned to Sun Valley, Idaho for a bit to train. This past week was full of excitement and new experiences. I began my community service project at the Wood River YMCA helping with the after-school program. I've had a lot of fun being immersed in the lives of elementary age kids. The after-school program allows kids of all ages to come to the YMCA and participate in many activities. While kids over the age of 10 are allowed to roam the facility as they please, the younger kids, under the age of 10, are required to stay in the "kids gym," this is where i hang out and play too:) The "kids gym" contains many games including X-box, dance dance revolution, foosball, air hockey and several board games and not to mention a climbing wall. All of these games are popular among the kids, especially dance dance revolution! Many times the parents have to peel their kids away from these fun games, sometimes resulting in a few tears.

Lucy and Jade are in the middle of a dance-off.

Along with helping at the YMCA last week, I also had the privilege of playing games with the Sun Valley Prep Team. The prep team is a part of the Sun Valley Nordic Ski Team and is geared towards teaching kids how to ski, grades 4 through 8. Let me tell you, game days are fun... there are some quick little skiers out there! We played several familiar games that I had once played when I was younger, such as sharks and minnows, tunnel tag and tails. I did my best to keep up with them, but many times I was outnumbered, making it endlessly impossible to survive. Along with the fun games, I was able to ski with some of the kids and help them with their ski technique. Watch out, there are some good, fast skiers coming up!

A wild game of "Tail Tag"

READY, SET, GO!

The first U.S. National race is only a day away! The excitement is building and the nerves are beginning to flutter. We are currently in Houghton, Michigan for the 2008 Cross-Country Ski Championships. The best skiers in the nation have gathered here to compete this week. We have two distance races and two sprint races in a matter of six days. Today, the race venue was bustling with athletes who were inspecting the course and testing skis for tomorrow's 5/10k skate race. It will be an exciting week. I will keep you posted on how things go!