Canada's Shayla Swanson ©CCC
Shayla Swanson ©Andy Canniff
Shayla Swanson ©John Evely
Shayla Swanson ©John Evely
During the 2008/2009 season Swanson finally made the performance jump that she had been waiting for, and is more motivated than ever to make her Olympic dream a reality. She keeps herself busy outside the sport of skiing as well working in Bozeman Montana as a Health Fitness Specialist, certified through the American College of Sports Medicine. She is also founder and co-owner of Sauce Headwear (formerly SOS Headwear), a company that specializes in headwear for the winter aerobic athlete. We caught up with Swanson before she headed off to New Zealand’s Snow Farm for some late season skiing with the Canadian National Ski Team.
Congrats on making the Canadian National XC Ski team! Bozeman, MT has been your home for a number of years but we hear you’ve relocated to Canmore, AB.
Shayla Swanson: Thanks Jeff! I would say that I have partially relocated to Canmore. The team does have a residency policy, but we’ve worked out a happy compromise. I’ve just returned to Canmore, spent some time back at home in Bozeman, and will go back again after our camp in New Zealand.
You have dual US/Canadian citizenship but have continued to race under a Canadian racing license while residing in the US. What brought you to Bozeman, MT and what led to your the decision to stay?
SS: I’m the kind of person who is happiest when under a certain level of stress. I’ve got a lot of interests outside of skiing and in my early 20’s I couldn’t find that balance while living in Canmore. I was under-stimulated, unhappy, and skiing very poorly as a result! To regain my love for skiing I needed a change of scenery, and was looking for a place with opportunities to explore my other interests. Bozeman seemed perfect. I finished my degree at Montana State University and loved it so much that I stayed. I’ve been able to balance my training and racing with many non-skiing pursuits and maintained that slightly stressful life that I enjoy, and need.
You had a very successful season last year while not being a part of the NST (National Ski Team). How have you adapted your training to accommodate your new team while not sacrificing what worked well last season?
SS: The Alberta World Cup Academy is a fantastic program, with support that rivals the National team. I feel that I really benefited from the year-round support from Coach Mike (Cavaliere) and the team, and it was a tough decision to leave the AWCA – if it’s not broken don’t fix it, right? But, on the other hand, my goal is to represent my country and after turning down a national team nomination in 2004 to finish school, I didn’t want to do it again. I’ve had to make some changes this year, but it’s been great so far. I’ve really enjoyed working with my new coaches and teammates, and with Sauce Headwear I’ve got enough non-skiing activity on the go to keep me at that optimal stress level.
On your Cross Country Canada athlete bio it mentions that candy was an early motivator for your Nordic skiing pursuits. What’s the ultimate motivator since those younger years?
SS: Candy still works for me, but for some reason my coaches don’t seem to want to stand at the top of a hill offering me skittles to climb it. Joking aside, I would say that I’m always motivated by a desire to be the best I can be. It may sound cliché, but that is what drives me to keep training and racing through hard times. I would say that it’s the commitment I’ve made to myself – that motivates me more than any particular performance goal.
You are a strong skier in all of the race disciplines and particularly in the classic technique. Heading into the Olympic trials in December are their any events you’re focusing on more on than others?
SS: I’m always reluctant to really focus on one particular event because I often find that the moment I commit to a specialty, I have a great race in something that is completely opposite. Take the World Cup last year in Whistler for example. I thought the classic sprint was definitely my best chance for a top-30 finish. I had a 22nd place finish in the classic sprint, but then I placed 17th in the pursuit. I agree that classic is generally my strong suit, and based on results from the last few years, I’ve consistently been among the top classic sprinters in North America. So I guess that would be my focus at the trials, but I’ll definitely race every event there. I never like to plan not to start a race – you never know when you might have the race of your life!
What was it like competing at the 2009 Nordic Worlds in Liberec, Czech Republic as a senior athlete after not being to a major championships since the 2002 Juniors Worlds? Did that earlier race experience help prepare you to compete at the highest level?
SS: Wow, that was a long time ago! Yes, my Junior Worlds experience helped, but the XC World Cups in Canada over the past few years have been more instrumental in preparing me for the Nordic Worlds in Liberec. Having a chance to race against the best in the world on your own home turf really demystifies the scene. Seeing everyone up close and personal made me realize that there is no need to feel intimidated. They’re just regular people who, at the moment, happen to ski a little faster than I do.
A couple of years ago you took a break and it seemed you might be moving on from elite Nordic racing. What motivated you to keep racing?
SS: Yes it’s true I did take a year off from serious training and racing. I still trained but it was more like your average outdoors enthusiast than an elite level racer. I think I roller-skied three times during the summer. In the winter I still raced, but it was an abbreviated season with scaled down goals. I did this for two reasons. First, to see how I reacted and whether or not I missed not being on the circuit. I had been pretty frustrated with how I had been skiing over the past few years and thought I might be ready to move on – I needed to find out for sure. Second, I needed time to work on fixing a bunch of muscular imbalances and injuries that weren’t going to get better unless I took it easy for a while. When spring rolled around, I felt like a new person, mentally and physically, and knew that I owed it to myself to try it again. I think that it was probably one of the best decisions that I have made, and it’s the reason I was able to make such an improvement last year.
Thanks for taking some with us and all the best this year.
SS: Thank you.