December 30, 2011 (Obertsdorf, Germany) – Tough conditions greeted the worlds best xc skiers on Day Two at the Tour de Ski. Here’s a selection of quotes and photos as the USA’s Kikkan Randall nailed her best-ever classic result in the women’s 10km Classic Pursuit placing 6th as Poland’s Justyna Kowalcyzk strengthened her grip on the overall lead with her second consecutive win. In the men’s 15km CL it was local star Axel Teichmann from Germany who took over the series lead with his strategic victory on Stage 2 of the Tour while Devon Kershaw (CAN) lead the North American men in 15th.

10km CL Pursuit Women’s PHOTOS

Kikkan Randall (USA) – 6th in the 10km CL Pursuit
I knew I would be starting with a strong group of skiers that usually finish in the top ten so I wanted to try and hang with them as long as possible. At this point I’m more focused on testing my limits than skiing too conservatively early in the race.

The pace was pretty frantic from the start as usual and with big differences in skis, it felt like there were a lot of skiers going back and forth. It finally started to settle down going into the 2nd lap and I could still see the lead pack not too far in front. My skis were working well in some places and not in others so I just tried to stay in the group.

Ski selection was really tricky today. I was testing both zeros and hardwax and with 10 min until start I still couldn’t decide what to do. It seemed like the conditions were changing every few mins. The snow picked up again so Peter [Vordenberg – coach] and I decided on the zeros with 8 min to go. I didn’t have perfect skis out there but they were decent enough and relatively consistent through the race to allow me to use my fitness.

I still felt pretty strong on the last lap and tried to move up in my group. We weren’t really working together but we weren’t fighting each other either. I made a move with 400m to go and just focused on staying ahead of the others to the finish. I had no idea we were fighting for 6th.

Holly Brooks (USA) – 6th in the 10km CL Pursuit
Today was really, really tough for me. Skis were tricky for everyone but I seemed to be slipping more than most. I was on zeros, like most of the field and they were kicking much better during warm up. Other girls commented that the conditions were different each lap we skied and I agree.

I had hoped that my wrist was on the mend after it was feeling better yesterday but as it turns out, double poling and slipping on my skis (catching with arms) is pretty much the worst thing for it. The only thing I could do today was try to not loose too much ground – and hope for a better day tomorrow and the next.

Liz Stephen (USA) – 29th in the 10km CL Pursuit
I had a solid race today, got a good, clean start and then just began picking people off where I could. I love the pursuit style race starts, as it so often gives you a great mix of people to ski with. Some are better at the technique or race distance of the day and come back to you, others come past you and provide a good ride. It’s a really engaging kind of race.

My goal today was never to go so hard up a hill that I was totally smoked and couldn’t ski well over the top. Up the last hill under the bridge I went past Astrid Jacobsen and a German girl and knew from a split Chris Grover [head coach] had given me going into the last lap that I had been in 31st, so was now in 29th. I really wanted to be in the points, so I hammered under the bridge and then was pretty worked over all the way to the finish, but was able to hold the two girls off, so I was really psyched.

The skis were challenging today, especially in certain sections of the course, as the conditions were fairly variable throughout the course. Days like this are such good practice for me as an athlete, because I can get really stressed out when the skis during testing don’t come together right away. I have figured out how to stay calm and trust that the skis will be good.

Our wax techs are really good at their jobs and even when it is a tough day and it is down to the wire to get good skis, it is rare when they don’t figure it out for us. I went into the start pen knowing there would be some slippery places, and I would just fight fight fight the whole race. So, that’s what I did and the result turned out really solid for me. Now for the classic sprint tomorrow!! Eeek!!

15km CL Pursuit Men’s PHOTOS

Devon Kershaw (Can) – 15th in the Men’s 15km CL Pursuit
The body felt so good again today, it was really tricky with the conditions and I had to rely solely on my upper body for the last six kilometres. It was a bit frustrating, but that is the game of cross-country skiing. Our guys tried their best, but the temperatures warmed up and there’s nothing you can do. We have the best wax techs in the business, and this will motivate them for sure. It is frustrating, but tomorrow will be similar conditions and I know we’ll get it right. There are lots of races to go.

Alex Harvey (Can) – 27th in the Men’s 15km CL Pursuit
I couldn’t kick the skis today. When you don’t have kick you just work your arms so hard and blow up. I had nothing for the final two laps. 

Justin Wadsworth (Can)  – Head Coach of the Canadian Cross-Country Ski Team
When you face conditions like this, it’s kind of like playing the lottery. Sometimes you get it right and sometimes you don’t. Today we didn’t get it right, but that doesn’t happen to our team very often because we have some of the best wax techs in the world. But you can see the country’s that nailed it today.

With files from Cross Country Canada