October 22, 2011 (Mont-Ste-Anne, QC) – Skibec Nordique and Club Nordique Mont-Ste-Anne (CNMSA) spent Thanksgiving week-end in La Malbaie. Three days of intense training were on the menu for the athletes on the beautiful and challenging roads of Charlevoix. We have one more dryland camp at Mont-Tremblant.

Thirty athletes ranging in age from 14 to 21 and four coaches enjoyed Indian summer weather conditions to continue their specific preparation in roller skiing. La Malbaie is a good training site, with plenty of hilly and low traffic roads which makes it perfect for long hours of training sessions. A bonus is that the scenery is spectacular and with the fall colours, the time went by very quickly just by taking in the surroundings.

On the first morning (Sat.), the camp began on a hard note with double poling challenge up a 3km hill, good for an hour of hard upper body work. For some athletes, it was a rude awakening! The rest of the training was conducted on fairly flat roads and the athletes completed the session according to their respective programs. At the end of the training session Skibec head coach François Pépin conceded that a warm-up would have been great, but athletes must also be prepared to react to whatever situation that comes up.

In the afternoon, everyone got on their skate skis for a no-pole workout  to ensure good push with their legs. They did a lot of mileage as the main objective of the camp was to accumulate volume. The evening was spent with one on one coach-athlete meetings for video analysis and discussion in preparation for the upcoming season. Older athletes took advantage of the proximity of the Casino de Charlevoix to play a little.

Sunday morning featured royal treatment in the Parc National des Hautes-Gorges. Running up the three summits of the Acropole des Draveurs was the objective. It takes a daunting 2.5 hours to complete this very challenging and exhausting course. Bernard Lepage, a totally dedicated cross-country ski fan, who lives in La Malbaie cooked some tasty pumpkin and maple syrup muffins and even a blueberry pie for everyone, that was awesome.

After and outdoor lunch and a nap for some, it was already time to get back on our skis for the second workout of the day. The energy of the group was not very high. Nevertheless, the athletes were able to draw their reserves to again make it a good training session, which was shortened slightly to insure it was good quality.

To end-up the camp in style, skiers had to race an 8km duathlon. This prestigious race features a unique and special transition zone where the athletes must also change boots before leaving making for some funny moments !!. Jeremie Bonneau (Skibec) won the top honors of the competition.

Skibec Nordique  and CNMSA are two clubs with a long history and they organize great events every year. This year, they are co-hosting  the National Championships in Mont-Ste-Anne, not to mention a World Cup racing weekend in December 2012

Next camp for both clubs will be on snow as soon as the conditions are good enough for real skiing.