August 21, 2010 (Barrie, ON) – Cross Country Ontario’s 2010 High Performance Camp wrapped up last Sunday, with the over 70 participating athletes and coaches from across Ontario and elsewhere dispersing back to their home training bases. Tired but motivated and inspired to train hard this fall, they returned home better equipped with new knowledge about various aspects of training for cross country skiing.

Hosted by Team Hardwood at Hardwood Ski & Bike and the surrounding area, the objective of the “Hitting Your Stride” camp was to raise the level of competitive skiing in Ontario by showing and teaching promising young athletes what it takes to compete and succeed at the international level. The camp program was organized and conducted by Ontario Team Coach, Kateri Mills, and former NTDC athlete and current Team Hardwood Devo Squad Coach, Mark Doble. Mills and Doble were assisted by a dozen other club coaches from across Ontario.

Featured guest athletes and speakers included Vancouver 2010 winter Olympian and National Ski Team member, Perianne Jones, and 3-time Olympian and World Cup and World Championship medalist, Kikkan Randall, a member of the U.S. Ski Team. Other National Team athletes and coaches in attendance included Len Valjas (2010 National Sprint Champion), Graeme Killick (2010 National 10km & 15km Champion), and Eric de Nys (NST Coach). Jeff Ellis, one of Ontario’s most decorated runners and cross-country skiers, was also on hand to coach and offer advice. Also participating in the camp were  members of Cross Country Canada’s new “Female Talent Squad,” a select group of promising athletes from across Canada, who participated in a series of sessions specific to the needs of female athletes that was organized by Lisa Patterson (CCC Eastern High Performance System Coordinator).

The over 50 participating athletes spent four days engaged in a variety of dryland training activities, including roller-skiing, ski-striding, and strength training, as well as technique and performance monitoring sessions, including video analysis and fitness testing. The first day featured a Zone 1 classic roller-ski session with double-poling technique work, and a ski-striding intensity workout. The roller-ski session also featured video analysis using DartFish technology, which enables athletes to be viewed on a split screen skiing side-by-side with national team athletes.  The DartFish session was generously supported by the Canadian Sport Centre (CSC), which provided equipment and a technician (Carolyn Taylor). The day concluded with an evening talk by elite runner/skier and former Brookes sponsorship rep, Jeff Ellis, who offered advice on athlete self-promotion and sponsorship.

Day 2 began with a Zone 1 skate roller-ski session with a block of sprints. The junior athletes got a real kick out of going head-to-head with the National Team athletes. The sprint session was followed by a distance ski, with athletes taking advantage of the kilometers of quiet, undulating and freshly paved rural roads that surround Hardwood Ski & Bike. Perianne Jones gave a lunch-time presentation about her athletic background and ski career, and reminisced about her experience at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. After a few hours of rest and recovery the athletes then performed the grueling NST Strength Test, with athletes urging one another on to score new PBs.

To the delight of the junior athletes, Kikkan Randall performed the strength test as well, despite being on a rest week and still recovering from jet-lag and a cold picked up at the recent U.S. training camp in New Zealand. Everyone crowded around to watch her perform the test and check out her score. Following the strength test the athletes completed a fun strength circuit workout devised by Team Hardwood coach Mark Doble. Day 2 concluded with one of the highlights of the camp – an evening banquet dinner MC’d by Hardwood Ski & Bike President and GM, Jack Sasseville, and featuring a slide presentation by Kikkan Randall, who spoke about what it takes to compete and succeed in international competition.

Day 3 featured a double dose of easy roller-skiing with a lot of emphasis on technique. The afternoon skating session saw athletes working on the off-set technique. The camp concluded on Sunday, August 15th with most athletes participating in the Salomon Trail Running race hosted by Hardwood Ski & Bike, which featured individual and relay races over 7km and 21km courses. Not surprisingly, the camp athletes crowded the podium in most race categories!

The “Hitting Your Stride” camp also featured a variety of coaching seminars held during the athletes’ rest and recovery periods. NST Coach Eric DeNys talked about how to prepare junior athletes for the jump to senior competition and to crack the ranks of the National Team. CSC biomechanics expert, Carolyn Taylor, provided an overview of DartFish video technology and its various capabilities and applications. CSC sport scientist, Troy Taylor, talked about his experience using various performance monitoring and testing modalities in sports such as alpine skiing, rowing, and cross-country skiing. CSC experts also made presentations on double poling power (Tim Taha) and prehabilitation for injury prevention (Alicia Crelinston).

Feedback on the camp venue and program from athletes and coaches was extremely positive. The quality of the athletes and coaching at the camp augurs well for the future of competitive skiing in Ontario, as well as the country as a whole. The “Hitting Your Stride” camp was made possible through the support of Cross Country Canada, Cross Country Ontario, and the Canadian Sport Centre (Ontario). Critical administrative and logistical support were also provided by the staff at Hardwood Ski & Bike and Team Hardwood’s committed parent volunteers.

Thanks to everyone for making the camp a huge success!!

Camp Athletes

Female
– Candace Ball (Highland Trailblazers)
– Kirstin Besemann (Nakkertok)
– Norah Bonsteel (Team Hardwood)
– Erica Cazzola (Team Hardwood)
– Emily deFreitas* (Foothills Nordic)
– Molly Dyon (Highlands Trailblazers)
– Lesley Foley (Nakkertok)
– Valerie Gagne (Nakkertok)
– Shelby Dickey (Highlands Trailblazers)
– Daphne Haggarty (Big Thunder)
– Moira Haggarty* (Big Thunder)
– Natalia Hawthorn (Team Hardwood)
– Alannah MacLean* (Walden Nordic)
– Isabelle MacLean (Walden Nordic)
– Emma Spelt* (Team Hardwood – FTS)
– Alison Stephenson (Nakkertok)
– Suzanne Stevenson* (Foothills Nordic)
– Alana Thomas (Nakkertok)
– Mary Thompson (Nakkertok)

* denotes Female Talent Squad

Male
– Josh Robinson (Team Hardwood)
– Lucas Shewen (Kawartha Nordic)
– Gavin Shields (Waterloo Region)
– James Taylor (Nakkertok)
– Sebastien Townsend (Nakkertok)
– Ezekiel Williams (Nakkertok)
– Josh Robinson (Team Hardwood)
– Lucas Shewen (Kawartha Nordic)
– Gavin Shields (Waterloo Region)
– James Taylor (Nakkertok)
– Sebastien Townsend (Nakkertok)
– Ezekiel Williams (Nakkertok)
– Riel Allain (Nakkertok)
– Bill Bailey (Georgian Nordic)
– Aaron Birosh (North Bay)
– Adam Birosh (North Bay)
– Connor Bolton (Kawartha Nordic)
– Jack Carlyle (Soo Finnish)
– Oliver Conway-White (Waterloo Region)
– Devan Fair (Nakkertok)
– Eli Heyden Thomas (Georgian Bay)
– Scott Hill (Team Hardwood)
– Scott Hill (North Bay)
– Ian Holstead (Nakkertok)
– Victor Hopper (Walden)
– Ryan Hunter (Walden)
– Ben Jones (Nakkertok)
– Nick Monette (Team Hardwood)
– Pat Monette (Team Hardwood)
– Evan Odell (Team Hardwood)
– Liam Patterson (North Bay)
– Robert Ragotte (Mono)
– Josh Robinson (Team Hardwood)
– Lucas Shewen (Kawartha Nordic)
– Gavin Shields (Waterloo Region)
– James Taylor (Nakkertok)
– Sebastien Townsend (Nakkertok)
– Ezekiel Williams (Nakkertok)

Club Coaches:
– Rick Dickey (Highlands Nordic)
– Mark Doble (Team Hardwood)
– Hans Fischer (University of Toronto)
– Bob Hanson (Laurentian Nordic)
– Patti Kittler (Walden Nordic)
– Helen Lindfors (Soo Finnish)
– Graham Longford (Team Hardwood)
– Maria Moreau (Mono Nordic)
– Gord Salt (unaffiliated)
– Jack Sasseville (Team Hardwood)
– Jen Scholte (Highlands Trailblazers)
– Kevin Shields (Waterloo region Nordic)
– Sera Tempio (North Bay Nordic)