August 31, 2008 – Welcome to my SkiTrax diary! I’m excited to be able to share my training, racing, and life experiences with the readers of skitrax.com. This will be my first online journal, and I am looking forward to keeping in touch with family and friends in the ski community through this site.

Through this diary you will likely learn lots of bits and pieces about me, as I’ll probably reminisce about past skiing and life experiences. To start it off, here is a little about where I come from. I grew up in the rural Alaskan town of Talkeetna and lived off the road system in a cabin for the first sixteen years of my life. I began skiing to get to and from the bus stop where we also parked our cars. My parents taught me how to ski, groomed our local trails, started the local Denali Nordic Ski Club, and coached me until late high school. For my senior year I moved to Anchorage to attend my last year of high school/freshman year of college at Alaska Pacific University. For the first time I had a team and training partners, ski coaches (other than my parents), and a large network of trails on which to train. Since then I have continued to ski for the thriving Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center (APUNSC).

Two years ago I was also named to the US Ski Team (USST), which was a great honor. I call Anchorage home and work with Erik Flora (APUNSC) as my main coach. As a member of the USST I attend camps throughout the summer and travel with the team internationally during the winter. The APUNSC/USST combination is ideal for me, as both programs have different strengths, offer me varying opportunities, enable me to work with several coaches, and provide a diverse and talented group of teammates to train with.

As you read my posts it will probably become evident that the lifestyle of a cross-country ski racer is a unique one. Mine is pretty focused, which means I don’t have a lot of extra time for other activities. Because of this, training and racing will likely be the focus of my entries. That said I value balance in my life. In addition to skiing, I am a part-time student at Alaska Pacific University where I’m majoring in psychology with a sports psychology emphasis. I also relish the small amounts of time I am able to spend going on adventures, especially in the Alaskan wilderness.

Besides this, my other passion is cooking and baking. When I’m in the kitchen I am able to relax, and I’ve found that my creative side emerges during the culinary process. So you’ll probably hear mostly about skiing, but you might also be surprised to see me post a recipe for some bread I found particularly good, or photos of a packrafting adventure. Either way I hope that I might provide a little inspiration, perhaps some insight, or even some random knowledge. I look forward to being in touchÅ