April 2, 2009 (Fairbanks, AK) – Here’s an inside look at the 2009 US Distance Championships recently held in Fairbanks, AK as told by US National team member Kikkan Randall. The event took place at on Birch Hill Ski club trails in Fairbanks from March 24-29. This was the second year that the Birch Hill club hosted the event.

The Cliff Notes:
The season finale, US Distance Championships! Upon returning from Europe, I had a quick 24hr layover at home in Anchorage and then it was on to Fairbanks. First up, I joined my APU teammate Katie Ronsse in the team sprint where we finished fourth. Energy was high after reuniting with family and friends!

Next up was the 15km duathlon. Conditions were great. I led most of the classic portion of the race and headed on to the skate leg in the lead pack. I struggled with some cramping muscles and fatigue over the last lap however, and ended up third behind Liz Stephen and Kristina Strandberg.

On Saturday’s day off from racing, the other female elite racers and I enjoyed a great ski with some of the local girls.

Sunday’s 30km mass start classic would be the final race of the season. Morgan Arritola led most of the race and I did my best to follow. Muscle cramps got me again over the final lap, and I finished 3rd behind Liz and Morgan. It was a great way to officially end the season. Now it’s time to play a little bit, recharge and get fired up for next year. Thanks for coming along for the ride!

The Full Story:
Finally time to come home! After wrapping up the final world cups last weekend in Sweden, it almost felt like the season was over. Yet, there was one more series of races, the US Distance Championships, to finish off in Fairbanks, AK. At least the races were close to home, and because I missed out on racing the US finals last year, I was excited to get another chance.

My trip home was pretty uneventful until I reached Chicago. As I checked in for my flight to Anchorage, I was informed that an Alaskan volcano had erupted and flights were being affected to and from Anchorage. My flight boarded as planned, but less than two hours out from Anchorage, another eruption diverted my plane to Juneau. I had to spend the night in Juneau, adding another 12 hours to my already long travel. Finally, 36 hours later, I arrived home in Anchorage. I had a quick layover, just 24 hours, before heading up to Fairbanks.

Team Sprint
I arrived in Fairbanks just a few hours before the team sprint. Unfortunately, my skis did not make the flight. A couple of my gracious teammates loaned me their skis to make it through the semi-final round. I teamed up with my APU teammate Katie Ronsse. We skied conservative through the first round, making sure to stay in qualifying position while saving a little energy for the finals.

My ski bag arrived on a later flight and I was back on my own boards for the final round. Katie skied the lead off leg and kept us in the hunt over the 1st lap. Our tags were solid and midway through we were still in the pack. Katie lost a little ground on the leaders at the end of her 2nd lap, so I had some work to do. I charged hard and made up the eight second deficit to the leader. The US Ski Team duo of Morgan Smyth and Liz Stephen were setting a tough pace however, and Katie couldn’t quite hang on. I got the final tag about 15 seconds back from the lead and although I tried my best to catch up to the podium positions, I was unable to close the gap. We finished 4th.

It was great to be back in the US scene, reuniting with teammates and friends. The energy was high!

15km Duathlon
Thursday was an easy rest day and by Friday we were back in action. The races were held in the evening, to allow more volunteers and spectators a chance to participate in the races. We went for an easy ski Friday morning to check out the course and test skis, and then hung out at the hotel for the afternoon.

Duathlon days are busy, getting both classic and skate equipment dialed in for the race. The coaches had already been out on our skate skis earlier in the day and had picked the fastest pair. So I got to start off my warm-up just getting the skating muscles loose and ready. About 45 minutes before start, it was time to figure out the classic skis. I took a few loops on the first layers of wax and decided I needed a little more kick. Erik added a little more and then a little more. I didn’t have a chance to test out the final layer, so I just hoped it would work.

We lined up for the start and soon we were off on course. I started on the front line so it felt natural to take the lead. As we made our way up the Tower Hill on the first loop, my skis were kicking well and I was able to stay in the track. There was a lot of commotion behind me as the girls jockeyed for positions and I was glad to be out front and able to relax into my own pace. I was feeling pretty good, so I tried to keep the tempo high.

Going into the 2nd classic lap, I was still in the lead and feeling good. My skis were running well and I was able to get small leads over the tops of the hills. The girls behind me were able to draft and close up the gaps each time, but it was still fun to be in front. Kristina Strandberg took over the lead as we came through the stadium for the exchange.

My exchange went well and I headed down onto the skate loop with Kristina and Holly Brooks. Kristina had somehow managed to get part of the carpet from the exchange zone wrapped around her pole and had to fight to get it to release. Known more for her classic skiing, I was impressed with Kristina’s pace in the skate. I was hanging on but just barely! Halfway through the first skate lap, Liz Stephen caught us and floated to the front with a very smooth and quick rhythm. Kristina followed Liz’s surge but I couldn’t follow her tempo. They got a small gap over Holly and I.

I was able to keep touch with the two leaders for the first part of the final lap, by working the flat and downhill terrain. But as we hit the steep climbs once again, those girls pulled ahead as I fought off cramps in my quads and triceps. My muscles were seizing, forcing me to shorten my motion to keep them from locking completely. My legs were burning and it took all my focus to keep my movements from slowing down. I was locked in an epic battle with Holly and it took everything I had to try and pull away near the end. Kristina had dropped off Liz’s pace and was within sight, but she made it to the finish line before I could catch her. I finished 3rd.

My eyes were a little blurry after the finish and immediately my stomach began to ache. This had been my longest race so far this season, and my body was upset over the hard effort. I couldn’t get myself to eat much that night, even though I knew I needed to fuel up as much as possible for Sunday’s 30km. Some days you feel energetic and on top of the world after a race, and other times you just want to crawl up in a corner and sleep. Sleep is what I did.

On Saturday’s day off from racing, the other elite female racers and I invited the girls of Fairbanks to come out and ski with us. We had a great ski in the woods getting to know each other and then played a couple wild games of tag on skis. It was good to sprint around a little bit to shake out the muscles.

30km Mass-start Classic
After Friday’s race, it was hard to imagine racing Sunday’s event which would be twice as long. Thankfully, our memories are good at forgetting about some of the pain from each race and I was actually excited to line up for my first 30km in two years.

Ski testing was a little bit more critical this time, because it would be important to have plenty of kick for the entire 30km. The coaches did a great job of preparing the skis and Erik helped me dial in the final kick. With 10 minutes until start, I decided my skis were ready and headed to the start. Audun Endestad, a former US Olympian and Fairbanks legend, started us off with a blast from his rifle. We would first ski one 5km loop, and then three 8.3km loops.

I tucked myself in behind a few skiers and relaxed in to a good rhythm. Morgan Arritola took to the front immediately and set a quick pace. After a few kilometers, I was sitting in third, having to stand up on the downhills because my skis were gliding fast. Morgan was keeping the tempo high and as we went, the pack started thinning out. I would take the lead sometimes after a fast downhill, but Morgan would shoot back up to the front on the next climb. We began taking feeds of sports drink to keep our energy levels up.

Midway through the race, we were down to a pack of five- Morgan, myself, Kristina Strandberg, Rebecca Dussault and Liz Stephen. The course was challenging and there were two steeper sections in particular that seemed to be quite decisive. On the second to last lap, the grind was setting in. Morgan was still in the lead, I was hanging in behind her and I could start to feel the other three fall off the pace just slightly.

Heading up the white bear loop, Morgan was able to ski away from me a little bit on a gradual section. Then my arms began to cramp, just as Liz Stephen came surging up. My triceps and my lats were really seizing up and for a moment I began to panic that I wouldn’t make it with 10km still to go. I abandoned my technique and started moving my arms in any motions that would keep my muscles from locking. Liz bridged the gap up to Morgan and I battled with myself about 10 seconds behind.

With the other girls still in sight, I went back and forth between trying to catch them and just trying to keep my body moving. It seemed every muscle in my upper body was cramping and my legs were getting twinges too. Since my legs were feeling better than my upper body, I tried to focus on using them as much as possible. I began to focus only on the 100m immediately in front of me, moving on one section at a time. One lap to go.

The steep section up from the “black hole” was really tough. Once I made it through that, I was happy to hit some more gradual terrain. Someone yelled, “7.5km left in the season.” It was a good reminder, that there was nothing to hold back for, nothing to give up on, just one mission, tick off those kilometers and get to the finish line as fast as possible!

I was surprised to be able to keep a pretty fast tempo on the gradual sections. The steeps were all about survival. The down hills were good rest, but also a curse because my muscles seemed to seize up more. My mind got pretty clear over the last few kilometers, only focused on keeping myself going and using every last bit of energy. Those last couple hills were long and painful, but I managed to keep up the pace. When I crossed the finish line, a wave of unexpected emotion came over me. The season was all of the sudden done, and what a way to finish. I had used everything. Liz had won, Morgan was 2nd and I was third. I felt in darn good company.

Even after having already skied for two hours, it felt good to ski a little more, super easy. My muscles were still cramping and I was dead tired, but it felt good to feel exhausted and not have to wonder how it would affect tomorrow. After changing into dry clothes and hugging the Kikkanimal Fan Club, I headed out on course to cheer on the boys. They skied a great, tough race, to finish off their seasons as well. It was great to see junior skier Noah Hoffman hang it out there, and also to see my APU teammate James Southam win the National Championship.

That night we all celebrated the end of the season by learning to curl at the Fairbanks Curling Club.

Conclusion
The 2009 season is officially finished for me. A much better ending than dealing with the blood clot I got last year! Now I get to really enjoy a few weeks off from training, taking advantage of the playground Alaska has to offer, as well as a little side trip to the beaches of Hawaii in a couple weeks.

Thank you for coming along with me this season, through the highs and the lows, and for all the support and encouragement you’ve shared with me. Let’s all have fun this spring, recharge, and come back ready in a few weeks to take on the world next season at the 2010 Olympics.

Go for it!

Cheers,
Kikkan 🙂