October 25, 2011 (Barrie, ON) – A little over a year ago a group of like-minded coaches, parents and club officials in southern Ontario saw a need to provide greater high performance coaching and training support to young athletes who were committed to excellence in cross country ski racing. After months of discussion, planning, and fundraising the Southern Ontario Training Centre (SOTC) was born.
An initiative of the Hardwood Hills Nordic Development Centre (aka Team Hardwood) and other Founding Clubs (Kawartha Nordic Ski Club, Arrowhead Nordic, and the Waterloo Region Nordic Sports Club), SOTCʼs mission is to further the development of cross country skiing in Ontario by providing a high performance training centre for athletes who have graduated from high school and are committed to exploring their potential in the sport.
The vision is of a year-round training facility where, under the guidance of a full-time coach, athletes train with a group of competitive peers while engaging in post-secondary studies if they chose. A key feature of SOTC is that athletes compete as members of the SOTC team while also representing and accumulating points for their home clubs in Ontario Cup Series races and at the Canadian Championships.
One year later, the dream has become a very exciting reality. SOTC was formally launched in June, 2011, with the hiring of our Head Coach, Petr Jakl. Petr is a highly qualified nordic ski coach who has held coaching positions in western Canada, Quebec, and his native Czech Republic. Petr hit the ground running in June and began immediately to work with SOTC’s athletes and to set up the office and training facilities. All athletes are following a custom-designed annual training program and Petr oversees the execution of training sessions with the athletes on a daily basis.
There are currently 4 athletes enrolled in the SOTC program, representing 3 different Ontario ski clubs. Cam Raynor hails from Huntsville, ON, where he has raced for the Arrowhead Nordic Ski Club and Huntsville High School. Cam had a break-out season last year, finishing 4th in the Sr Boy’s individual race and anchoring the Huntsville team to a gold medal in the relay event. Scott Hill and Adam Birosh are from North Bay, where they compete for the North Bay Nordic Ski Club. Scott has been a member of the Ontario Junior Development Team and posted some solid race results last year as a first year Jr Male, despite struggling with injuries.
Adam is a member of the Ontario Ski Team and is the reigning Jr Boys overall champion in the Ontario Cup Series. Evan Odell is from Mississauga and races for Team Hardwood. Evan has made regular podium appearances on the university racing circuit the last two years (racing for Laurentian U) and was the overall Ontario Cup champion in the Jr Male category in 2011-12. All 4 athletes are exceptionally talented athletes who are completely committed to the program and to achieving their potential in the sport. Most are also enrolled in university-level studies on at least a part-time basis, at either Lakehead University (Orillia campus) or Laurentian University (through Georgian College in Barrie), both of which are within a 15 minute drive of SOTC.
SOTC is hosted by Team Hardwood, utilizing the world class trails and other training amenities at Hardwood Ski and Bike and the surrounding area. Hardwood offers 30kms of meticulously groomed trails in winter and 80kms of double and single-track trails for mountain-biking in summer, along with an on-site rental and pro shop, as well as a cafe. SOTC maintains an office, strength and conditioning room, and equipment storage space on site. Surrounding Hardwood are miles of quiet, undulating, newly-paved country roads that are perfect for rollerskiing and cycling. The greater Barrie and Orillia area, meanwhile, is a mecca for outdoor sports and boasts over a dozen cross country and downhill ski areas within a short drive.
Since arriving last June, Petr and the SOTC athletes have become fixtures on the trails and roads around Hardwood Ski and Bike, where they have been logging the miles running, mountain-biking and rollerskiing. In addition, the team has already participated in several training camps. Petr has planned and executed two team training camps so far, one at Horseshoe Valley in July, and a fall camp at the Craftsbury Outdoor Centre in Vermont in early October, held in conjunction with a Team Hardwood junior camp.
After 5 days of hard training, the camp at Horseshoe climaxed with some thrills on the high ropes course at Horseshoe Valley Resort. While the Craftsbury camp was plagued by cold wet weather, the team still managed to get in some quality training that included ski-striding to the gondola station at the top of Mt Mansfield in Stowe, and strength sessions in the sweet fitness room used by the Craftsbury Green Racing Project team. The SOTC squad also participated in the SOD high performance camp hosted by Team Hardwood in August, where, along with over 100 other aspiring elite athletes, they had the opportunity to train with emerging World Cup star Lenny Valjas and other top Canadian skiers such as Mike Somppi, Erin Tribe and Andy Shields.
While the fruits of all their training won’t be evident until the snow flies, their success in a number of recent races testifies both to their fitness and to the effectiveness of Petr’s coaching and training program. All four athletes, for example, have won medals in the popular and very competitive 5 Peaks Trail Running series. Finally, Petr and the athletes have also participated in a number of outreach activities, including a visit to Arrowhead Nordic and the joint training camp with Team Hardwood in Vermont. Additional outreach activities are planned for the winter.
Looking ahead, the SOTC coach and athletes will be traveling to training and racing venues across North America over the next few months. After an early season snow camp in late November at Foret Montmorency in Quebec, they will compete at the 2012 World Jr/U23 Trials in Callaghan Valley, BC, in early January, and then move on to a NorAm competition in Canmore the following weekend. Following this western swing they will return home, where they will prepare for the Eastern Canadian Championships at Nakkertok and the Mt Orford NorAm in February. In March the focus will be on the Haywood Ski Nationals in Mont Ste Anne. Watch for them this winter in their blue and orange custom-designed racing suits courtesy of Mt Borah!
Follow the team’s travels and race results this winter on the newly launched SOTC web site! The site already contains lots of information about the Centre, including program information, coach and athlete profiles, photo galleries, training updates and camp reports. Please visit the SOTC web site HERE, and check for updates regularly.
Finally, SOTC is still accepting athletes for the 2011-12 season. Athlete inquiries should be directed to Petr Jakl at 1-800-387-3775 or sotc@hardwoodskiandbike.ca. Athletes interested in applying to SOTC should send a letter of interest outlining their background in the sport, performance highlights, and future goals in the sport to: Petr Jakl, Coach, Southern Ontario Training Centre, c/o Hardwood Ski and Bike, 402 Old Barrie Rd, Oro, ON, L0L 2E0.
SOTC acknowledges the generous support of its sponsors, including: KRG Children’s Charities; Monette May & Associates; Dalton Pharma Services; and Gulfcom.
October 24, 2011 (Canmore, AB) – It’s been a busy fall season – as they all seem to be. The days are getting noticeably shorter, and the leaves are evacuating the trees faster than a herd of Elk leaving a meadow when surprised by a pack of dogs. Not that I’m complaining, after a great altitude training camp down under the Utah sun it was back home to Canada where I’ll get almost a month in the “true North strong and free” to finish off my “off season” preparations.
Whister Intensity Camp
A scant six days after returning from the thin Utah air it was time to pack the bags again and head to the lower elevations of the Whistler Valley for a quick and dirty intensity camp. Since it rained almost everyday – we did get pretty dirty – and most of the training we banged out was of the “quick” variety – as we accomplished 4 tough intensity sessions during the 6 day camp.
Whistler is one of the great places to train in Canada and I’m always so impressed with how many great trails there are coupled with the varied terrain of quiet paths and roads to rollerski make it a winner in my book. It was a wet week – but that’s what you get for training so close to the Pacific Ocean in early October and one can’t complain too much after we had 14 days in a row down in Utah with a two week “cold day high” of about 22 Celsius.
The idea for the camp was two-pronged. It was a great opportunity to have everyone together training – the World Cup team and the Senior Development Team – and also to make use of the lower elevation to really rev’ the engines high. While the workouts were tough – it was a great environment and the staff (Mike, Stef, Eric, Adam, Justin, Scott, and Hutchy) deserves a ton of credit for running a smooth and effective camp – not an easy task when there are roughly 20 athletes to look after.
Canmore, AB
I know people hear this too much – but damn Canmore’s sweet. After such a “camp heavy” autumn I’ve really appreciated being home in the Rockies the last couple weeks. I count myself pretty lucky to call this little mountain gem home.
It probably helps that this autumn has been a spectacular one. The weather really has outdone itself – most days are sunny or at least precipitation-free which makes the heavy load of training I’m doing so easy to accomplish.
I had a great Thanksgiving too – since I miss Christmas every year – I was pretty excited that my mom made the journey out West from Ontario to enjoy Thanksgiving with Chandra and I. She spoiled us – whipping up no less than 8 pies during her 6 day trip, an amazing Thanksgiving dinner – and no less than two dozen of the world’s best cinnamon buns. Thank god the training load is high – or else it could have been messy… It was great to catch up with her though – and I feel very thankful that I am able to see my family throughout the “off season” even though my schedule is so busy and they live 3000km away.
“Spray Drag” and Frozen Thunder
Kuhner (my good friend and AWCA coach) organized an uphill grind-fest running race this year to raise money for the AWCA – and he put my ugly mug on the poster (of me rocking a stash’). I just wanted to take an opportunity to say that they did a great job with the race – and it was a leg and lung buster. Hopefully they make it a tradition! Thanks guys – glad I could deliver too – Babs gave me a bit of a scare at the end!
The day of the 7.5km uphill running race coincided with a Canmore nouveau tradition of it’s own – Frozen Thunder. Yes, the name makes no real sense – but we can all agree that it sounds cool.
Two years ago we were fired up when the Canmore Nordic Centre announced it would provide a whopping 400m of snow for the plethora of Nordic enthusiasts to enjoy in mid-October. The excitement to ski in October for a Nordic racer is like the excitement of a “gizmoto” reader getting their paws on Apple’s latest creation – pure unabashed jubilation.
Thanks to the Canmore Nordic Centre who have kept the project growing – last fall it was a 1km loop and this year they doubled down to provide us with a great loop of 1.95km.
Check out the video link from the Globe and Mail HERE.
To be able to ski on good terrain, on good quality snow, starting mid-October is such a huge asset. I’m so thankful for the crew up there at the Canmore Nordic Centre – they are leaders in North America – and how cool is it that Canmore is the only place in North America that does this?! Awesome! Thanks guys!
Yes – Canmore has been sweet. I think I’m a bit nostalgic right now because in only 12 days I will embark on a 5.5 month odyssey overseas as another World Cup race season is upon us. I’m sure I’ll miss home – but I’m really enjoying the days here in Canada before we get things rolling.
I’m so excited to get over there and make it happen. We have a great team and most are feeling great heading into the season. I can’t wait to see what “Team Canada” can do this winter in all categories.
I mean hell, I wouldn’t mind playing a few more ditties’ on the ol’ air guitar – or seeing my teammates melt imaginary faces on their imaginary axes this winter – if you know what I mean.
October 21, 2011 (Salt Lake City, UT) – The Visa Women’s Ski Jumping Team was honoured Wednesday night in New York City at the 32nd Annual Salute to Women in Sports Awards Gala. Team members and their supporting foundation, Women’s Ski Jumping USA (WSJ-USA), were recognized for their perseverance and courage in fighting to gain Olympic status for their sport.
In April 2011, the International Olympic Committee added a women’s ski jumping event to the Olympic Winter Games program beginning in 2014 in Sochi, Russia. Ski jumping (and Nordic Combined) have been the only disciplines in the Winter Games to exclude women.
Ski jumpers Lindsey Van, Jessica Jerome and Alissa Johnson, and WSJ-USA President Deedee Corradini were in New York to receive the award.
“To be honored by such a reputable organization with core values in which I truly believe is amazing,” said Jessica Jerome. “This award isn’t just for me and my team, it represents a much larger group of people and all their efforts and beliefs that helped us get to where we are today.”
The Women’s Sports Foundation (WSF) was founded in 1974 by tennis legend Billie Jean King. Deedee Corradini said it is incredible for the team and WSJ-USA to be recognized by one of the most influential organizations in the world that advocates for girls and women in sports.
“This is a wonderful day for the team, the sport and all of our supporters and sponsors,” Corradini said.
Alissa Johnson, who also received a WSF 2010 Travel and Training grant, hopes others find inspiration in their struggle. “I want our story to show young girls that if they believe in something, they can fight for it no matter what’s thrown in their way.”
2009 World Ski Jumping Champion Lindsey Van said courage helped her and her teammates get through the toughest days. “We stood up as athletes and made it happen,” she added.
2011 Ski Affair – Salt Lake City – October 27
Women’s Ski Jumping USA is also being honoured in Salt Lake City, Utah on October 27 at the 2011 Ski Affair, sponsored by the Utah Ski Archives, which will highlight and honor Women’s Ski Jumping USA (WSJ-USA) for its persistence in pushing for women ski jumpers to be included in the Olympic Winter Games.
The annual event begins at 6 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 27 at Little America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City and is a fundraiser for the Ski Archives.
After a 10-year battle led by the nonprofit WSJ-USA and women jumpers from around the world, the International Olympic Committee finally announced on April 6, 2011, that women’s ski jumping would be a sanctioned event at the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.
“We are thrilled to be a part of this year’s Ski Affair,” said Jenny Holden, WSJ-USA executive director. “We hope our athletes’ achievements are an inspiration for others, especially young athletes who have Olympic dreams too.”
More than 500 people are expected to attend the Ski Affair, which also pays tribute to Salt Lake City’s hosting of the 2002 Games. Deedee Corradini, president of WSJ-USA and former mayor of Salt Lake, is the first and only female mayor ever to accept the Olympic Winter Games flag.
Members of the Visa Women’s Ski Jumping Team, supported by WSJ-USA, expected at the event include 2009 World Champion Lindsey Van, Jessica Jerome and Sarah Hendrickson.
“It means so much to us as athletes to be recognized by the Ski Archives and our community,” said Hendrickson, 17, of Park City, a 2010 Junior World Championship bronze medalist. “To be part of the first group of women ever to compete in ski jumping in the Olympics would be outstanding. That feeling drives me to work hard every day to reach that goal.”
The Utah Ski Archives were established in 1989 at the University of Utah J. Willard Marriott Library. The official repository of the records of the Salt Lake Olympic bid and organizing committees preserves information about the history of skiing in Utah and the Intermountain West.
Details What: Fundraiser for the Utah Ski Archives When: 6 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 27 Where: Little America Hotel in downtown Salt Lake City, 500 S. Main St. Cost: $60 per person Includes: Dinner, silent and live auctions, photo displays of Utah’s ski history and a drawing for Ski Utah’s new “Yeti pass,” good for one day of skiing at each of the state’s 14 resorts for about $35 per day. Reservations: May be made through Friday, Oct. 21 at www.lib.utah.edu or by calling 801-581-3421.
Contact: Whitney Childers, 801-503-6099, wchildersmedia@gmail.com
October 20, 2011 (Park City, UT) – I’ve only got five more days to enjoy the sunshine, mountains and great training that Park City has to offer. And I plan to make the most of it! Official camp ended last weekend, but before everyone left, we had a pretty epic sprint time trial day at Soldier’s Hollow. Although everyone’s skis were different speeds, we broke up into heats that were pretty evenly matched and got some really good intervals out of it.
There were also a LOT of crashes. And I was one of them. I wobbled and lost my balance after crossing the finish line, and was fully airborne before I hit the pavement. The best part of all this was that Gus got it on tape. Even though he was standing a ways away, you can clearly hear the scream and “oh” before the camera turns off.
Personally, I think a few scrapes is an okay price to pay for a super good interval workout. Why so grateful all of a sudden? Because it took me about two and a half weeks to get adjusted to the altitude, and I had to adjust my training plan while my body was catching up. For me, there is no worse feeling than having to cut an interval session, so last weekend’s sprints were really fun. Luckily, I have really fun teammates and buddies here so I’ve been keeping busy!
Also, I normally really dislike wearing spandex…until I found these pink zebra-type-striped tights. I’m pretty stoked on them. Because they’re bizarre!
October 20, 2011 (Dachstein, Austria) – The complete Czech Cross-Country team with fourteen skiers and four coaches have been finishing their last glacier altitude training block on Dachstein, at about 2,800 m above sea level. It takes five minutes to climb up from the colorful fall to freezing winter. And when sunbeams glitter on the white snow plain, mountain tips touch blue skies… the workout on the 10km packed course flies by faster.
“I’m satisfied but not really cool,” the Czech Cross-Country team leader Lukas Bauer says to www.czech-ski.com. “Every year it’s the same. You cannot breathe up here properly, you get tired faster and on top of that my knee has hurt now and then. On the other hand, I can see that despite some setbacks I did not lose too much from what I had trained before.,” Bauer adds while stretching his legs on a bench in front of the guest house.
Czech skiers as well as Czech biathletes have been staying only a few meters lower, beneath the low gondola station. Czech Nordic combined team and ladies’ Cross-Country squad have been staying down in Ramsau. Service staff has been driving for meetings with SRS companies to finalize the selection of material for upcoming winter. There is much more on the training schedule than Cross-Country skiing; running with ski poles, or jogging to relief the body from high training load.
“I’m happy guys could swallow what we had prepared for them. However, we will not find out if we are sucessful until first races,” the Czech Cross-Country team head coach Miroslav Petrasek says. He’s been focused more on five distance specialists. Vaclav Korunka has been responsible for four Czech sprinters.
At first, skiers patiently do some photo shooting change their training and competition gears and line up for a team photo. “The old down!” sprint specialist Dusan Kozisek commands.
Main highlight of the season is definitely the FIS Tour de Ski. “There’s no other option. It would be absolutely beautiful to win it for the third time,” Lukas Bauer dreams and is happy about having the Tour longer by one stage. “Then I want to focus on World Cups. Only if Tour doesn’t go well and there is no chance for the Overall World Cup I would try Vasaloppet,” Bauer reflects on forthcoming season.
“It won’t be a relaxing season whatsoever. All skiers are professionals and they want to win. They can only adjust their program,” Miroslav Petrasek adds. Czech skiers would like to perform well on their home turf in Nove Mesto. The head coach is hoping for a good result of youngster Jiri Horcicka at the Junior World Championships in Erzurum, Turkey.
How does the new cooperation model between Petrasek and Bauer look like? “Lukas has fulfilled what has been required at joint training camps. I can see what his shape is. If he needs me, he can come,” the coach explains. Bauer though does not consult with him the overall training plan. “It’s on me. I need to adapt my training schedule so that it fits with German training blocks and I do not go tired from one training period to another. I know what I need. The main thing is not to make any mistakes in winter when I feel some overload,” Bauer explains.
Also ladies have been training in an unlikely big group. Experienced A team duo Nyvltova and Janeckova were joined by trio Chrástková, Schützová and sprint specialist Grohová. “We are happy to come to the first World Cup with a relay team,” the ladies’ coach Jiri Simunek quotes. “We will see how it goes and decide about future program,” his assistant Tomas Kaspar adds.
Preparation of the two best Czech ladies was slowed down by health problems. Ivana Janeckova was two weeks on antibiotics, Eva Nyvltova has been coping with torn tendon in her sole. She got injured during a running competition. “It happened somewhere around 6th kilometer,” she describes. She was in the lead and in pain finished sixth. Since then she has had taped foot and has gone to laser treatment. Skiing has been limited only to skating. “It should be OK now,” she says.
The Czech Cross-Country team is returning from Dachstein on Sunday. On Monday, October 31 they are leaving again for the final training block in Norway. FIS Cross-Country World Cup kicks off only one week after Norwegian opening in Beitostoelen.
October 20, 2011 (Canmore, AB) – Frozen Thunder, or Christmas as I like to call it, officially opened this past Monday and I couldn’t be more excited. I spent the previous week trying to shake a head cold, but was more than happy to welcome sub zero cold if it meant that Frozen Thunder could stick around. The trucks, cats and backhoe’s were working hard to wake the sawdust covered snow pile from it’s summer slumber in order to make a 1.5km ski trail for early season training.
October 19, 2011 (Livigno, Italy) – Top Swedish sprinter Emil Joenssen was forced to leave team camp in Livigno, Italy early when he sustained a thigh injury during training. “I was on the camp in the Italian Livigno and had a great time with the rest of the team and the training was perfect! Then, on Friday afternoon we were doing a special training in order to get in more “into it”. That is, you start with an easy pace and then you increase the speed up to maximum speed. And during my second round the back of my thigh cramps and I fall to the ground and simply felt something was not right,” Emil Joensson explained on his website.
Emil Joensson returned quickly to Sweden and underwent in Oestersund several medical check ups including a MRI that revealed the cause of an injury. “As it turned out, the injury was smaller than what we had thought and it is a small simple burst within the back of the thigh up towards the bum. An incredible small little bugger which isn’t at all as serious but you don’t want to go on and burden it too fast due to the risk to turn it into a more severe injury,” Joensson reveals.
Expected recovery time remains unknown. “It will take weeks before I am fully back in action,” Joensson confirms. With the season kick off round the corner the Small Crystal Globe winner is not laying down his arms. “I have to adjust my training not to put on myself inappropriate load. So it is looking like a fun break in training having the chance to try out some new training variations,” Joensson claims.
September 21, 2011 – Are you coaching a local BKL Club this winter? Interested in learning more about how to manage your group more effectively? Looking to pick up some new games to jazz up your practice? Please join us for one of two BKL Coaching Clinics being offered this Fall. There will be presentations from some of the leading coaches and youth skiing gurus in New England.
Join Mary Anne Levins, Sverre Caldwell, John Ogden, Lauren Jacobs, Rob Bradlee, Jim Stock, Kate Koch, Cam MacKugler, and Eileen Carey in learning more about Youth Skiing in New England. Topics will include: game play, organizing practices with multi-level and age skiers, transitioning from BKL to Junior Racing, involving parents in a community program, how to welcome Adaptive skiers into your club, and how to put on BKL specific events.
These clinics are a great place to connect with other coaches and leaders in New England. Chat with some of your neighbors and help to strengthen our BKL community!
Both clinics have similar agendas, but since the presenters are different, the material is likely to vary. Come to both if you’ve got the time. Full schedule of events (including presenters) can be found HERE.
Saturday October 15th in Hanover, NH. Hosted by Ford Sayre.
Saturday November 19th at Rikert Touring Center in Ripton, VT. Hosted by Frost Mountain Nordic.
These clinics cost $10 and registration is online through the calendar listings. Hope to see you there!
September 21, 2011 – The Climb to the Castle was the culmination of the Lake Placid NENSA camp for many of the participants…. But Friday’s workout was also challenging, in a different way.
After an easy distance day on Thursday, Friday morning dawned cold and clear reminding athletes and coaches alike that winter will be here before you know it! As the coaches headed to the jumps via vans, the skiers rolled to the venue as part of their warmup. That was just the beginning though, because the workout that lay ahead required a very thorough full range warm up to ensure the muscles not only fired quickly, but also to stave off potential for injury in the unaccustomed cold weather.
This was a classic speed session and with the opportunity to go head to head with some of the fastest skiers in the country, it was bound to push everyone beyond their comfort level. Three stations were set up each for men and women: standing starts, overspeed and starts from a rolling start. about 8 starts at each station with 2- 3 minutes rest in between each one, made for a full morning. This is not only a fun one to watch, but it tends to be a rewarding workout for the athletes because improvements are quick to come especially when going head to head with others.
After a good cool down and an easy afternoon run, everyone was ready for Saturday’s Climb to the Castle! This year’s NENSA group was slightly older than in the past (selected was based on Elite team, lowest USSA ranking points). Bringing together our best athletes proved day after day that it is beneficial for improvement, as well as fun training in a different environment with different people.
A big thanks to the USST staff for enabling us all to train alongside them, to Amy Caldwell for helping coach the NENSA group and to Craftsbury’s Pepa Milocheva who brought the Green Team over, and collaborated with transport and coaching.
September 20, 2011 – Norwegian Cross-Country athletes have had smooth summer and good training season so far, but there are still two months to go till the FIS Cross-Country World Cup kicks off in Beitostolen… and there are over three months to go till the winter highlight, this year’s FIS Tour de Ski.
“We’ve had only few injuries and illness in the national teams this training season. In general, everything runs very well. We are certainly on good track,” says head coach Vidar Løfshus.
Løfshus has been relatively new in the top position being responsible for various national teams in the World Cup season. He knows the season is approaching, but does not deny that he is looking forward to it.
“It is very fun to get started with the season, and I think we have many that will show their teeth,” Løfshus thinks.
Løfshus has praised both of the new national team coaches for having done very good progress. Junior team coach Sjur Ole Svarstad and men’s distance team coach Trond Nystad’s were hired before the training season.
“Both of them have made very good impression so far. They also have established good dialogue with athletes, service and generally with the whole team,” says Løfshus.
Twenty-two days in the height
In August, before the FIS Rollerski World Championships and Toppidrettsveka in Aure/Kristiansund, Trond Nystad took the men’s distance team to the training camp in Oberhof for the first time. Ladies’ team spent the August training camp in the idyllic surroundings of Hummelfjell in Os. Norwegian Junior teams were also there at the training camps.
In late August the teams left for the traditional high altitude training stay at Seiser Alm and Livigno, while the men’s sprint team went to Ramsau. Tord Asle Gjerdalen, Sjur Røthe, Martin Johnsrud Sundby and Petter Northug stayed longer in Livigno and could enjoy perfect training conditions during the last training week there. The quartet extended the high altitude stay by a week and experienced almost ideal conditions. Northug and Co. carried out twenty-two days in a row at the training camp.
Training Camps in Norway
After the high altitude stay in middle Europe, three Norwegian national teams will meet in three different places next week. Men’s distance team will kick off their gathering in Drammen on Tuesday, ladies’ squad left for Kvitfjell and sprinters will meet in Gjøvik. October will feature, traditional training camps in Livigno (sprint team) and at Val Senales (distance teams). Last week the sprint specialists started on Mallorca their final dry land training phase before the winter World Cup season.
Before the Norwegian national Cross-Country season opening in Beitostølen Norwegian national teams plan to meet at Gala.
September 20, 2011 (Davos, Switzerland) – Already last winter discussed Swedish and Swiss national teams they could do something together. “We talked with Guri Hetland, sports manager of the Swiss Cross-Country team, and all the pieces fell into right place. I think both teams will have the pleasure of training with each other in Davos and its fantastic environment,” says Swedish coach Joakim Abrahamsson.
The Swiss team is well known and is led by reigning World Cup champion Dario Cologna. He, Remo Fischer, Curdin Perl and Toni Livers romped to first ever Swiss World Cup victory in the relay in La Clusaz last winter.
Swedish team left Livigno, Italy on Sunday after a wonderful week with various dry-land workouts in perfect weather. “The sun was shining all the time, we had optimal conditions there and we could carry out the whole training plan we had prepared,” Joakim Abrahamsson says.
Davos has been Swedish favorite resort for a long time. The town lies in a valley with Flüelaschwarzhorn as the highest point, 3146 meters above the sea level. The town itself lies in 1260 meters above sea level.
“We are confident that in Davos we will perform great workouts. Anna Haag and Emil Jönsson have been here, and Guri Hetland lives in Davos and the surrounding area is great,” Joakim Abrahamsson says. Anna Haag and Emil Joensson bought an apartment in Davos.
Unfortunately, neither Johan Olsson nor Marcus Hellner will team up with the Swedish squad in Davos. The two Olympic relay heroes have not fully recovered from their injuries.
“Johan needs more time to heal his shoulder bu he can do alternative training. The same applies for Marcus. At first he was slightly cold, and then he stretched his knee,” Joakim Abrahamsson revealed.
September 13, 2011 (Ramsau, Germany) – Check out this artistic compilation of photos from the Norwegian Men’s XC Sprint Team’s 2011 training camp in Ramsau, Germany.
September 12, 2011 (Sugarloaf, ME) – Attention Maine EHSC, J2 Fest, or JO Team members – MWSC coaches Sarah Kamilewicz and David Chamberlain will be hosting a training weekend on Oct. 1 and 2 at Sugarloaf Resort for Maine Team members.
We have one condo available for Saturday night to be filled first come-first served. Any others interested will have to find lodging OYO. Meals will be provided including lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. Meeting place will be the Sugarloaf Inn at 8:30AM on Saturday.
Maine Team Fall Training Weekend: When: Oct. 1 – 2 Where: Sugarloaf Resort Bring: skate rollerskis, classic bounding poles, running shoes, sleeping bag, towel, and pillow. Cost: $40. For those who are interested please reserve a spot with Sarah Kamilewicz at sarah@mainewsc.org
September 12, 2011 (Barrie, ON) – Here are some video highlights from the 2011 Southern Ontario High Performance Training Camp, hosted by Team Hardwood and at Hardwood Ski and Bike, Aug 27-31. This five-day camp featured over 100 athletes and 30 coaches from Ontario, Quebec and Newfoundland, including the National Team Development Centre in Thunder Bay. Guest athletes from the National Ski Team included Len Valjas and Mike Somppi.
September 09, 2011 (Boulder, CO) – What does it mean, to train? Does it mean that every day you go out and pound your muscles until you cannot stand? That you go and charge up the biggest, steepest, hottest hill there is? Or do you go and seek something else? Do you choose an easier path so that you can push harder tomorrow? The hardest sacrifice we can make is to fight a little less hard so we can die another day.
Training your body is much easier, I think, than training your mind to accept that it cannot always fight. Sometimes you have to turn around and walk away, and embrace the fact that you cannot always push your limits. College is not for making yourself the best you can be at every minute- college is for showing you what doesn’t work, so you can figure it out in the middle of the night when you have a research paper due the next day.
So here we are, in college now. Some important lessons have been learned, like coffee really is the most important food in college. All nighters? Let’s have ‘em EVERY DAY!! Workouts at midnight and 2am? Let’s do it. That’s really the stuff that keeps the collegiate athlete going. You didn’t finish your paper until 10pm? That’s okay, just cram in a few interval sessions in the dark, run around your living room for a while and crash on your couch with your head shoved in-between the cushions. If you forget to set an alarm you can be woken by the hysterical screams of your roommate informing you that you are late for the workout this morning, only four hours after you finished your last one in the dark and rain and storms of the ever changing and indecisive weather of Boulder.
That European roommate is flapping her arms and jumping around the living room trying to wake you up, the same one that two nights ago made tin foil hats for you both and raced around on a flat field in a thunderstorm in the pouring rain. But someone told us we were dumb jocks, we were really just living up to their expectations.
A fireball of energy from the Czech Republic, she is as ferocious on the ski trails as any hulking male Russian sprinter, but at home she is bouncy, laughing, opinionated, and ginger-loving. Perhaps a side effect of the bright red hair that adorns her head- gingers love ginger? You need not go to the Czech Republic to know everything about it, you need simply to live in the same apartment for a while and you will learn all there is to know about everything from the washing machines to the food to the training.
She is too flustered now to speak English, she is chattering away in a flood of language you don’t understand but you imagine means something like “move your butt, workout in ten minutes!!!” You whirl around, grabbing your roller skis, boots, helmet, gloves, dropping things everywhere and running out the door, sparing a last glance at your other teammate and roommate.
Your engineering roommate hasn’t gone to bed in the last three weeks, her fingers are fusing with the keyboard of the laptop computer that is her major and her life and her love. Yelling her name in her ear only spurs her to even more impressive words per minute, stopping only to tap on the TI-89 Titanium Plus Edition graphing calculator beside her. She mutters something about torsion, gesticulating furiously at a screen full of Mathematica code. “See? See?” You don’t see. Her external monitor is bigger than you are, but so full of files of Java, C++, and random math equations that nothing can be deciphered. She doesn’t go to the team workouts, she doesn’t ever stop her eternal march of death grinding away at the pile of homework that is always in attendance next to her, interwoven with a stack of math and computer science textbooks as high as your ceiling.
You know she trains, her roller ski boots are always sweaty, her shoes always spattered in mud from workouts in the rain. But when she goes, you have no idea, because evidently it’s true- engineers do not sleep and the engineering jocks must clone themselves in order to get their training in – something they must teach in the intro level engineering courses.
She is a walking encyclopedia, any math or science question you ask will be answered if not by her, by one of the nerd friends eternally glued to the other end of her phone. But rarely will the answer be understand any more than the t-shirt she is wearing that reads “304 Not Modified.”
It is no wonder the US Ski Team discourages their athletes from attending full time school. The lessons you learn while living at college are the lessons that last a lifetime, that teach you about the other world, the world of academia. If our skiers stepped into this world, their view would be tainted, and they would realize there is more to life than just sports. And sports are really about doing as your job something that is, in the grand scope of the world, completely irrelevant.
It is much better to struggle through years of books, and spend a lifetime developing your mind so that you are not satisfied with living in simplicity. To fight a bitter battle in school and come out on the other side facing a lifetime of work that has no joy, is simply work. Or perhaps, as my roommate likes to put it, work where the distance is perpendicular to the force.
Be careful if you choose to live the dream, because if you fall too far, burn too many bridges, walk the wrong path, your life will shift more suddenly than a Czech sprinter can down a beer, and the dream will disappear into the vast collection of the BFG.
Every side of the world lives in this apartment, the ex world cup skier from the Czech Republic, who declined the Olympic team to come here to America. The Californian surfer, whose bloodlines are so full of athleticism she might as well have been bred to compete, who instead chose the most difficult major at the most difficult school she could. And then there is me, I am the broken skier. No one wants a broken model, they return it to the store and get a new one. If the warranty is past, they simply buy another. But sometimes, you find someone who loves you because you are different, and keeps you and embraces all that is you. Sometimes, people take the time to fix that which is broken, and it comes back stronger than before.
Who isn’t broken, really? That is, if you take the time and effort to look. But in all our shattered glory, in a time of need, we found each other. And it is this school, this team, that brought us together to rebuild ourselves again, which is really what college is all about.
September 07, 2011 (Lake Placid, NY) – Join us for a NENSA L1 and USSA L100 Techique clinic to gain some new ideas for improving ski skills! This week starts the annual fall USST training camp in Lake Placid, NY. As is tradition now, NENSA will have a group of Elite team athletes participating alongside the U.S. ski team members and coaches. There will also be a technique clinic held in conjunction with the camp for coaches and athletes interested in improving their skiing and coaching skills.
Clinic will take place Sunday September 11th from 2- 4 PM. Meet at the Olympic Training Center on Old Military Road at 1:45 PM to sign in. Bring equipment for both classic and skate rollerskiing (helmet is mandatory) and running shoes. Bryan Fish (USST) and Janice Sibilia (NENSA) will instruct. This clinic will satisfy the technique requirement for USSA’s L100 coaches certification and NENSA’s L1 module for NENSA certification. (Anyone interested in working towards NENSA’s full L1 certification can plan on an additional 30 minutes following the technique clinic, for a basic physiology/training discussion.) To sign up please contact Janice Sibilia at janice@nensa.net. There is no charge for this clinic however, sign up is recommended so that we can have an idea how many people will participate!
August 10, 2011 – Check out this educational video from the USSA emphasizing the importance of agility training for XC skiers. The video explains why the best skiers in the world are also some of the most agile, as well as how factors such as balance, speed, aggressiveness, and coordination are integral to overall agility. The video also breaks down how the USSA designs its rollerski test courses in order to determine athletes’ overall agility. Click HERE to view the video.
June 27, 2011 (Park City, UT) – For the past five days I have been moving along in overdrive down in Park City for a series of tests and Rookie Camp. The first two days in town we spent the entire day in the US Ski Teams new central gym called the Center of Excellence. That place is amazing; it gets you fired up just walking in to the place! With pictures and banners posted everywhere of all the successful athletes, you can’t help but get instantly excited. Not to mention there are famous people everywhere doing the same thing you are doing, just getting some work done.
Starting day one, we kicked off with a series of treadmill tests, blood tests, concussion tests, and then the following day hit two more treadmill tests, strength tests, functional movement tests, physicals, dexo scans, body composition tests, and probably a few more that I can’t remember anymore. The schedule was tight with only two days and six athletes to get through, so I felt like a lab rat for a bit, just jumping from one thing to the next. In the mean time I was trying to fit in school work and some outside training, since the sun was seriously shining.
I have watched so many people do the max tests on the treadmill with rollerskis on, so I was anxious to complete my first VO2 max test, and rollerski on the massive treadmill for the first time.I was surprised. It was pretty easy to get used to the motions of skiing on a treadmill. At first it was hard to remember to keep your skis straight, but within a few minutes it felt natural like skiing on snow. We would warm up on a separate treadmill, sometimes with another person- and then for the testing period we would transfer over to the treadmill with all the tubes, computers and harness hook up. In order to ensure that we didn’t go shooting off the back when we skid to maximum effort, they would attach a harness to your back, which would catch you when you went to a point of no return. I only got to try this out once, as the other two times I just grabbed onto the bar in front of me when I felt I could go no further. It is a funny point to go to maximum effort, because most times in races you know you have to keep going and finish the hill, so you hold yourself back from going to that place where you can no longer hold yourself up.
You had a team of about 15 doctors and coaches standing around the treadmill with each test either pricking your finger for blood, waiting to catch you when you fall, holding your breathing tube, reading your heart rates, running the machine, or simply just cheering you on. I swear the rest of the athletes in the gym that were not nordic skiers were all watching, thinking us nordic skiers are absolutely crazy! With a tube stuffed in your mouth, you are not able to talk, so Matt Whitcomb would just stand in front of us watching our face expressions for pain, and cheering us on. It was really a neat thing.
The other tests were hard in a different way. Strength tests measured our jumping power, or various mobility muscles, our stability muscles, and a few other. It turns out, all of us nordic skiers need a lot of work in that field. The concussion test was hilarious, as I felt like I failed it before I even need to be tested for a concussion. The rest of the tests were good, and it was fun to get a baseline measurement to see where I will progress from here. I have never had the opportunity to make many of these measurements, so its great to have all of this as a resource to us now.
The following three days we attended a US Ski Team class session, otherwise known as Rookie Camp. In three days, I learned more important information than I could have imagined. There were 42 athletes attending, who have just this year been named to the US Team, so it was fun to get to know these other alpiners, snowboarders, mogulists and aerialists. I don’t know much about any winters sports besides alpine, so I had tons of fun learning about these sports and what they do for training and competition. Besides that part of the three days, we also got to meet all the managers and various people that work in different areas of the US Team. A lot of times we communicate with these people over the phone or email, but we never know them by face, so I enjoyed getting to put a face to the voice or name. We also had media practice, met some trustee’s, learned about USADA, learned about Nutrition, got to speak with some of the top athletes on the team, and hear their experiences, learn about US Ski Team marketing and fundraising, did some team building exercises, played some outdoors games, and simply learned about all the various resources offered to us when you are part of the team. Starting at 6:30 in the morning when we woke up, to about 9:30 PM when we would return to the hotel- we were on a role, one thing after another!
With most of us in training at this time of year, they wanted to take the smallest amount of our time, but educate us as much as they could, so it was a successful process- plus I got to know a lot of talented athletes just introduced into the team that will probably be super famous one day!
Park City was so nice when we were there, like 85 degree days, but because we were inside testing all day, or inside doing meetings for the majority of the day, I had limited time in the sun. Somehow I still managed to completely fry my shoulders during day one of rookie camp at our ropes course. When you become used to living in Alaska, you forget about sun screen sometimes…..
For now, I have a week of dryland training in town before taking my second trip up to the glacier for a week. One thing after another- there is really no way I could get bored doing what I do. It is great!!!
Hopefully I will have more pictures from Rookie Camp coming soon! In the meantime, check out these:
June 24, 2011 (Maui Hawaii) – It’s hard to believe that we are over 1/2 done our Hawaii camp – actually, it’s hard to believe that we are even here on Maui training – but seriously – the training has been stellar here on the island so far! I’ll keep this “picture heavy” for now but what we’ve been up to is training both down here at sea level (really getting after it).
It’s amazing how hard you can push (in intervals and in the weight room with thick air around!) as well as doing some amazing altitude work up high on Mt. Haleakala. I don’t think there’s a better road in the world to work on uphill technique and training. Imagine – 0m above the sea to all the way up to 3055m. All of which has great pavement to bang out some sweet rollerskiing.
Aside from putting in solid days of training, we’ve been able to “play” a little too. The past three days we’ve spent “down” at our base in Paia (on Maui’s North Shore) and have been lucky enough to enjoy a south swell that rolled in over on the South/SouthWest part of the island for a few surfing sessions – which have been a blast. Nothing big or anything, but fun enough to catch a few vagues.
Paia is my favorite place to stay on Maui – so I was really glad that Justin/Eric/Louis picked it as our base. The road up the volcano can start right from town – no commute to training! – and the vibe, (albeit decently hippie) is cool. Great restaurants, amazing grocery store, interesting vibe, proximity to great training, beaches, ocean, etc… make it completely great.
Now it’s back up on Mt. Haleakala to finish off the last three days of our camp. Some big hours and more time logged at the campsite high on the volcano. It’s been a sweet camp, and I’d recommend Maui as a training camp location – we’ve been enjoying it.
I’ll try and get the coaches to snap a few more pics and I’ll take some more too – and post another update in a bit.
Peace-peace,
D.
June 24, 2011 (Morrisville, VT) – Just in case you’re curious, or have a competitive streak, here are the fastest SkiErg times recorded for a variety of distances since the Concept2 SkiErg was introduced in June of 2009. Some of these times come from competitive Nordic skiers; others come from the fitness/cross-training community. To see all the ranked SkiErg performances, with athletes’ names and home country, click HERE and select the SkiErg button.
Records are set to be broken! It’s free and easy to submit a time online. Visit www.concept2.com/ski and click on Logbook.
Need a bit of inspiration, or at least entertainment? Pete Dreissigacker and Greg Hammond of Concept2 challenged each other to a 500m challenge on the SkiErg. You can see the lactic acid accumulation in their facial expressions HERE. Enjoy!
June 23, 2011 (Ostersund, Sweden) – U.S. XC Ski Teamers Kikkan Randall and Liz Stephen are back from their whirlwind 2.5-week training trip to Sweden where they hung out with the Swedish National Team for some fabulous dryland and on-snow training, including some cultural exchange while making new friends.
“Last year I trained for a couple of weeks in Norway during the off season and at the last FIS Athlete Council meeting I chatted with Anna Haag and Emil Joensson and they invited me to Sweden to train with their team,” Randall told SkiTrax on her return. “Liz was interested as well so things took off from there.”
Randall and Stephen logged some great dryland and on-snow sessions in Mora, Ostersund and Torsby where they checked out the ski tunnel. Ostersund, located in the middle of Sweden on Lake Storsjön, is known as Winter City (Vinterstaden) and has hosted several National and World Championships including the Nordic Games, a precursor to the Winter Olympic Games – read more HERE.
According to Randall Ostersund is an awesome skiing hub. “It’s like a mini-athlete’s village. Many of the country’s top athletes including lots of xc skiers live there so there’s plenty of ongoing activities and opportunities.”
“The ski tunnel facility in Torsby is uber-cool. You can be roller skiing in the morning and be on snow in the afternoon. The temperature inside the tunnel is a brisk -3 degrees Celsius. Gliding on snow during the summer there reminded me why I love this sport,” quipped Randall.
The duo were introduced to Swedish cooking along with attending Haag’s cousin’s graduation ceremony and are even more hooked on Scandinavia. “We’re stoked in Sweden,” added Randall. So how’s her Swedish? “You know as much as I’ve travelled around the world because of skiing I’ve only been able to pick up some casual phrases here and there because everyone speaks such good English.”
Look for a full report from Randall and Stephen on their Swedish escapades… meanwhile, the above pics should whet your appetite. Skol.
June 23, 2011 (Park City, UT) – I’m in Park City, Utah for some quality testing and Rookie Camp; where all the newbies to the USST get introduced to how the team works, how we can still take classes from Westminster College while traveling, and all that good “life balance” stuff that’s super important but usually gets overlooked.
In the last two days, I’ve done a battery of tests including three treadmill rollerskiing tests, which were cool but super hard and painful at the same time. The Center of Excellence, where we’re training, has a lot of cool stuff including a weight room, gym, skate park, trampolines, foam pit, recovery room with ice baths, a PT and medical center, and a lot of spin bikes and treadmills. Which is sweet, especially since two of those treadmills are giants that could fit about 6 runners at once… or a rollerskier. So we did two “near-max” tests, one classic and one skate, but I accidentally maxed out on my classic one because I started the next speed level and since the levels go for 4 minutes, I wasn’t able to say “stop” so I fell off the treadmill instead. Yep, I’m smooth! Below is the video provided by Dave Knoop (posted to youtube by Yuriy Gusev):
Some of the other tests we’ve done include a max VO2 test classic-style, a strength test, a flexibility test, a movement screening and physical, a body composition test, a baseline impact test in case we ever get a concussion, and tomorrow morning we’re getting our bones scanned to make sure they’re strong enough. Everyone working at the COE is super nice, motivated and helpful, and stayed positive through a long day of testing!
Although all the testing kinda wears you down, I think it’s a really good idea because a lot of it has to do with injury prevention and finding out what you need to work on and where you need to get more flexible, so you can adjust your training to train smarter instead of simply harder.
So tomorrow, Rookie camp begins and I’m pumped to meet all the rookies from the other sports!
June 23, 2011 – Check out this great video of Andy Newell, Garrott Kuzzy, Sam Tarling, Skyler Davis, Bryan Cook, and the rest of the SMS crew as they rollerski on some of the best roads in Vermont this summer.
June 17, 2011 – The Canadian XC Ski Team is in Hawaii for its second off-season training camp. “We are going to be on Maui ten days doing altitude training on Haleakala volcano,” said Canada’s head coach Justin Wadsworth.
Devon Kershaw, Alex Harvey, Ivan Babikov, Lenny Valjas, Chandra Crawford and Perianne Jones will carry out volume and intensity training. “We will particularly focus on long uphill climbing rollerskiing and good technique,” revealed Wadsworth.
The Canadian team gathered this month for its second off-season training camp. Kershaw, Harvey and Co. carried out the first one together with the U.S ski team at Mount Bachelor, Oregon. Both national teams praised good snow conditions and excellent joint training sessions.
Canada’s head coach Justin Wadsworth decided to go Hawaii because of June weather conditions in Canmore. “It’s a perfect time to get out of Canmore as June is the rainy season there. The locals call it “monsoon June,” he explained.
Cross-Country Canada team gathers every month for a team training camp that usually lasts two weeks. “The next one is going to be on-snow at the Beckie Scott Training center on the Haig Glacier just outside of Canmore. There we will have both our World Cup Team, as well as our Senior Development team focusing on distance training on skis,” revealed Wadsworth plans for upcoming weeks.
June 16, 2011 (Canmore, AB) – The team laced up their running shoes this past Sunday for the Bowness Centennial Road Race in Calgary, celebrating their 100 year mark in the community. Sunny weather made for a great day to run the 10km course, mapped throughout historic Bowness.
Devon Kershaw joined the team in the run, helping sweep the mens podium. Kershaw posted the days fastest time of 32:45, after surging away at the 2km mark from second place finisher Kevin Sandau, crossing the line at 34:00. Graeme Killick rounded out the top 3 after out sprinting teammate Drew Goldsack by a second.
Heidi Widmer, now competing as a first year under-23, finished third in a time of 43:22. Annika Hicks finished just 13 seconds behind her, taking the 4th place spot.
As a bonus to the top 3 finishers, Mayor Naheed Nenshi presented the awards to the recipients.
June 15, 2011 (Middlebury, VT) – Check out details about an upcoming rollerski clinic in Middlebury, VT led by Garrott Kuzzy, Cam Mackugler, Andrew Gardner, and Abby Weissman on July 6.
Join Garrott Kuzzy (CXC), Andrew Gardner (Middlebury), Cam Mackugler (Frost Mountain), and Abby Weissman (NENSA) for this intro level clinic. There will be a Juniors clinic from 4-5 and a Masters clinic from 5:30-7:30. Learn some new techniques or brush up on your form with some of the area’s best coaches.
The clinic will be split into groups based on experience. Lessons will be focused on technique, safety, and fun. NENSA has a limited number of rollerskis so email Abby Weissman (abby@nensa.net) if you need a pair. Please don’t forget to bring a helmet, poles (with road ferrules), boots, and a reflective vest or shirt.
Clinic size will be limited to 20 skiers, so sign up early!
Full event info (including registration link) HERE!
June 15, 2011 (Lake Placid, NY) – Check out details about the Summer Programs going on in Lake Placid! Lots of fun opportunities! It’s that time of the year again! The small hills are buffed and ready to rock for some summer ski jumping. If you got hooked on jumping last winter, or just want to test your ski skills on the artificial surface, then Lake Placid is where you’ll want to be!
NYSEF (The New York Ski Educational Foundation) is offering some great summer training. We’re holding weekly training from 3-5pm on Saturdays on our K18 meter hill, in addition to three fun focused 3-day Grasshopper Camps, which totally rock. You’ll get ski jumping instruction from great coaches, play Frisbee and soccer, take part in scavenger hunts, try out rollerskiing, and hang out with the USA Ski Jumping National Team!
Link to PDF with full information about camps and training HERE!
June 14, 2011 – The Swiss Cross-Country Ski Team carried out its second training camp last week. After the first get-together in Magglingen, Switzerland, the team went to Passo Stelvio, Italy for some training on the snow.
“The camp in Magglingen was a good one. It is a nice place to train and the conditions for rollerskiing are excellent. The month of May represents the start of a new season and it was nice to have the team together again and really start the training for 2011/12 season. We also made our test program in Magglingen and had meetings with coach team, service team and medical team,” explained head coach of the Swiss team Guri Hetland to fiscrosscounry.com.
After the dry land training and testing the Swiss team went to Italy to carry out trainings on snow. The Swiss team spent the whole week in Passo Stelvio and returned home on Sunday, June 12. “Snow conditions were good and we could ski outside the hotel door. We used the 4,5 km long course, where we had perfect possibilities for endurance and technical training. In the afternoons we mostly went down in the valley for rollerski or running workouts and some intensive trainings,” revealed Hetland who starts her second season with the Swiss team.
“This season the distance athletes and the sprinters will train more together. We now have one World Cup team with 10 athletes; Sprint and Distance, men and women. That means the distance athletes will train more with the sprinters to improve their top-speed and the sprinters will train more with the distance athletes to improve endurance,” claimed Hetland.
Service staff of the Swiss Cross-Country team got a strong reinforcement with the former service man of Petra Majdic. “Gianluca Marcolini will be a good supplement in our team. He is really experienced and he has much knowledge. He will be working close to Dario, but contribute to all the athletes as well,” explained Hetland.
There are more than five months before the FIS Cross-Country World Cup 2011/12 kicks off but all the thoughts and preparations aim at next season. “We are happy about the World Cup calendar for the next season. There are free technique races in the beginning of the season and that is good for our “skate-experts”. We also like 30 km individual start in Davos. It will be great to welcome the Cross-Country family at the traditional race in Davos! Tour de Ski looks good as well. One more competition makes it even tougher, but we like the concept,” said Hetland. Tour de Ski 2012 will be the season highlight and a chance for Dario Cologna to defend the title from last year.
June 14, 2011 – The U.S. Ski Team women are inviting women’s cross country ski teams and summer training groups throughout North America to participate in a video challenge. Rally your team, training group, or summer training camp and send in a video of your summer training experience by July 15, 2011!
Goals:
– Bring together all women ski training in North America for one project
– Emphasize the importance of group training sessions
– Celebrate and generate awareness of the number of women training in North America
– Take a step back to remember what is fun about skiing for you and your team
Video Requirements:
– 3 minutes in length
– Include a brief introduction to the team or training group
– Video should show your group training together
– Humor and hardcore training are encouraged!
– The color pink is recommended
U.S. Ski Team’s Entry:
To submit your video: Upload it to www.youtube.com and title your video “U.S. Ski Team Women’s Video challenge – (team/group name)”, and send the link and a brief description of your training group to xcwomenrock@gmail.com. Keep your link “unlisted” until July 15th. All videos must be submitted by July 15th. The online video festival will begin on July 20th. All videos will be featured on the USSA Nordic Facebook channel.
June 10, 2011 – The Central Cross Country Ski Association is offering a variety of Junior and Master/Citizen Open Camps this summer, along with lots of other great events. There’s a CXC camp suitable for every skier. Read on for more details.
June 09, 2011 (Hardwood Ski and Bike, ON) – Here are some details about this weekend’s Southern Ontario Training Centre Open Training Camp for athletes of ages 17+. This is the Southern Ontario Training Centre’s inaugural training camp at Hardwood Ski and Bike under the leadership of newly appointed Head Coach, Petr Jakl. In addition to meeting the SOTC coach and learning more about the Centre, participants will engage in a variety of dryland training activities.
Schedule: June 11
– 9:30 a.m. – Meeting athletes in front of First Aid Station
– 9:45 – 11:45 a.m. – Roller skiing: Warm-up, ski technique drills, specific ski strength, distance skiing, cool-down
– 12:00 – 2:15 p.m. – Lunch, Athletes & parents meeting
– 2:30 – 4:30 p.m. – Running & strength: Warm-up, core strength, plyometric drills, circuit strength training, cool-down
– 6:00 p.m. – BBQ
June 12
– 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. – Running w/ poles, ski bounding: Warm-up, poles running & bounding drills, interval hills, cool-down
– 12:00 p.m. – Wrap up
Necessary equipment:
All-weather running clothes and shoes, running poles (up to mid-chest), skating roller ski equipment, helmet, gloves, reflective vest, HR monitor, and exercise mat.
Note: No fee. Also we are not providing accommodation. Participants are expected to bring their own food and beverages. Transportation to the camp and between the camp stages will be by accompanying adults.
May 14, 2011 – Vacation is over for the Swedish Cross-Country squad. The team travelled to Spain to gather at the first joint training camp in the off-season. However, Charlotte Kalla, Marcus Hellner and Co. are not enjoying spring on the south coast of Spain. Monte Gordo is indeed a tourist paradise, but the place is also ideal training base for skiers during the summer months.
Sweden’s Cross-Country team plans to kick off work to get back into an appropriate pace after a month when most of the athletes took a vacation. “We have here nice and hilly roads suitable for roller skiing and biking and the countryside offers us great trails for running. Our sprint team was here last fall and was very pleased,” commented Swedish head coach Joakim Abrahamsson.
Between training sessions, the head coach is working on putting together all the pieces of the Cross-Country team to gain success both in short and long term. “We have no World Championships next winter and Tour de Ski is going to be our biggest goal. The following years will be filled with hard battles at the 2013 World Championships in Val di Fiemme, in 2014 at the Olympics in Sochi, and finally in 2015 at the home World Championships in Falun. It is important that we prepare goof strategy how we should develop both as individuals and as groups,” explained Abrahamsson and Rikard Grip.
Both Swedish coaches are convinced that the training camp in Monte Gordo will do the team good. “It’s something new and we believe it will inspire the team and rejuvenate the skiers with new energy,” the coaches said.
Cross-Country team at Monte Gordo, Portugal 12-18/5
Men
– Anders Södergren, Östersunds SK
– Johan Olsson, Åsarna IK
– Jens Eriksson, Dala Floda IF
– Emil Jönsson, Årsunda IF
– Teodor Peterson, Åsarna IK
– Robin Bryntesson, Sollefteå SK
– Marcus Hellner, Gellivare Skidallians
– Daniel Richardsson, Hudiksvalls IF
Women
– Ida Ingemarsdotter, Åsarna IK
– Maria Rydqvist, Östersunds SK
– Hanna Falk, Ulricehamns IF
– Hanna Brodin, Åsarna IK
– Sara Lindborg, Östersunds SK
– Magdalena Pajala, Piteå Elit
– Charlotte Kalla, IFK Tärendö
– Anna Haag, IFK Mora SK
May 13, 2011 – Applications are now being accepted for four coaching intern positions for the 2nd annual USSA National J2 Talent ID Camp. All travel and on site expenses will be covered for these positions. Coaching interns will help head coaches supervise daily scheduling for the skiers, help manage workouts and gain valuable experience towards a post-college coaching career. Applicants should have strong skiing backgrounds, good communication skills, blend enthusiasm with maturity and be willing to work as a part of team of a staff.
Coaching interns will need to be USSA licensed coaches. Camp runs from Aug 1-8th and staff should plan on arriving on the 31st.
May 09, 2011 – With May and the traditional start of ski training season upon us, strength training conversations are picking up in pace. Discussions like these are clockwork. They abound every year. Instead of pulling out some new studies on strength, skiing and power, I thought I’d pull out the old training logs and see the multi-year trends I’ve followed through the years.
In April, strength makes up a solid chunk of my training volume. First off, the April training load is lower than the rest of the year. And two, I’m not worried about heavy legs or tired arms affecting my now non-existent specific ski training period. I get into the gym three to four times a week for all-around general strength work.
For one month a year I don’t follow a specific strength plan in the gym. Instead, it’s a little more freeform. My guide is remembering the little conversations I had with myself during the past season. Like, “Oh man, I have the horsepower for a top-end double-pole finish, but the chain from my upper core to my lower body is a little weak. Best to address this early on in next season’s preparation.” And now that the training season for 2012 is upon us, it’s time to act on these thoughts and impressions.
Skiers go into the weight room to turn strength into power, and as the big races approach, to turn this into ski-specific power. As the big races of the season loom ahead, work in the weight room gets more ski specific, and strength drills on skis take on a greater preference.
May, though, is not the time to place the emphasis on such priorities. In May it’s about addressing any lingering physical ailments you might have built up from so much repetitive movements, done over and over, day after day. Spring’s the time to recover. It’s also the time to make sure that the aggravating tendonitis in the elbow or Achilles is a thing of the past.
Once a week, I focus for two hours only on basic physical therapy inspired drills so I don’t spend at least this much time nursing along ailments through the meat-and-potatoes of the race season.
May is also the time to build the foundation of strength. To do this, I focus on four core lifts. Twice a week I head to the gym and do these four lifts as the bulk of my weight room session. More specifically, I do these three-to-four sets of each of these lifts, with twelve-to-fifteen reps a time.
It’s a time for me to get back in touch with proper lifting techniques. To help me with this, I will enlist at least once the helpful eyes of an outsider. I may think I’m lifting from the hips, and keeping my weight back on the heels in my full squats, but sometimes perception has a way in getting in the way of reality. This is where the second pair of eyes from a video camera or your lifting partner comes in handy.
But what to focus on, you ask? Well, I asked the same questions to Zach Wetterford, US Olympic Training Center Lifting Coach (and former US Ski Team Lifting Coach) to get the skinny from someone who thinks about cleans, squats, plyometrics and strength-based plyometrics every day of the week. Here’s the technique pointers Zach has for the “Wetterford Four.”
Dead Lift into Clean
Key Points:
– Remember this is very explosive movement utilizing the hips, legs, back and shoulders.
– Keep the back tight and flat throughout the lift.
– The bar’s trajectory should move only in a vertical plane. Don’t swing it out and around; rather jump it straight up.
Squat
Key Points:
– Look straight ahead, keeping one’s head and chest up – this aligns the spine, protecting it from injury.
– Keep weight equally distributed between both feet.
– Push through one’s feet. Don’t get up on your toes!
Pull Down
Key Points:
– Maintain upper body in upright position, with a slight backward lean from the hips.
– Avoid jerky movements
– Keep shoulders down to stabilize scapula and isolate the lats.
Press
Four Lifts – all Coach Weatherford approved. Just remember to Keep it Simple. Get a coach to get the technique down. Emphasize multi-joint movements. Don’t substitute strength for sport training.
May 09, 2011 – VTXC masters training begins this week and will continue through August. The group will meet every Monday at 4 tentatively in the Stowe area. Training focus on steady-state intervals, speed, agility, strength and flexibility. Additional weekly options include group mountain bike rides, paddling, yoga, barefoot running and more. There will be a suggested donation to the VTXC racing team depending on participation. For more info please email vtxc.skiteam@gmail.com.
May 04, 2011 – Chandra Crawford has updated her blog documenting the flurry of spring activity during her off-season. She has been busy with Fast and Female events, fun cross-training activities, and a well-deserved luxury vacation in St. Lucia with Devon Kershaw. Also included in her May update are some great photos and a schedule of Crawford’s upcoming training camps and engagements. Read more at www.chandracrawford.ca. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/chandracrawford
April 26, 2011 – April 25th highlighted the beginning of Training Season IV in CXC Academy. As always, we strongly suggest you start your training year by working through the Yearly Overview Steps 1, 2 and 3 to determine your annual training volume. It is a good idea to come back to these simple steps periodically throughout the year to make sure that you are progressing through the periods in a way that will help you ski FAST!
Period 1 is about reintroducing the body to training. Before this, you have likely been taking some time off. Rest is very important, but at some point, you need to make a stand and regain activity. Spring time is an excellent chance to do exercises you enjoy. Don’t be afraid to stray from the training plan slightly if a good opportunity presents itself. Maybe it’s a group bike or an ultimate Frisbee game. Whatever you choose, make sure it’s fun. It’s a long training year and a spring smile can go a long way come wintertime!
IN VIDEO EXTRAS:
New this season, is a “WAX ROOM” section on the website. As you all know, waxing and caring for your skis are basic skiing fundamentals. Every month we will be featuring videos on waxing and maintenance techniques for your skis.
– “Wax Room”: Summer Ski Storage
– “Wax Room”: Cleaning Off Klister
– “Ski Technique”: Improving Glide on One Ski – skate rollerski progression on balance and coordination
– “Ski Technique”: Improving Glide on One Ski – classic rollerski progression on balance and coordination
IMPORTANT NOTE:
We’re currently finishing our 13th final training period of the Season III. Please take note of some of the changes that will be taking place shortly. Just like in any training we will be starting over with Training Period 1 due to be published on April 25. Because there is no practical reason for our members to have access to all of the training plans of Season III, we will be disabling links to Training Periods 1 through 12 shortly meaning you will no longer have access to the training plans from last Season. Like always, each new period will be published one day prior to the actual date the period begins and offer three training plan samples based on 250, 400 and 550 training hours a year. Starting in October the American Birkebeiner Training Program and High School Racing Training Plan Samples will be added to the list of training plans.
All of the Video Extras will remain in the CXC Academy Video Library available to be viewed on demand 24/7. With each period we will be adding something new, depending on the time of year the training period falls into there will be new interviews with professionals, videos on waxing, technique and more.
Our CXC Academy Team is excited to get started on a new Season. We’d like to extend our thank you to all of you who have subscribed and trained with us in the past. We’re also happy to welcome the many of you subscribing right now to get an early start. We’ll work hard to live up to your expectations and demands.
March 07, 2011 (Rossland, BC) – Dave Wood was Canada’s most successful National Team cross-country ski coach, with career highlights including Beckie Scott’s legendary Olympic pursuit gold in 2002, Sara Renner’s sprint bronze at the Nordic World Championships in 2005, Chandra Crawford’s sprint gold in 2006 in Torino, and nine top-10’s at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Wood spent 18 years with Cross Country Canada (CCC) and lead the program for 12 of those years. He resigned in May 2010 and is still very much involved with skiing, currently coaching the Black Jack Ski Club in Rossland, B.C. He talked with SkiTrax’s Marty Hall about his new New Nordic Academy program.
It’s been 9 months since your departure from the Canadian National Team, what’s been happening with you and your career – bring us up to speed?
Dave Wood: In the spring I began working with the Black Jack Ski Club in Rossland, BC. The program here has younger skiers ages 13 to 17, all in high school. We have an ideal natural environment for Cross country skiers in Rossland.
Most of the training can be completed “out the door”. We have to travel for Roller skiing to find different terrain, but we have everything from flatter gentle terrain to long continuous uphills (10 to 25 km). The trails are superb and with the Red Mountain alpine area only 15 minutes running from town we can do as much ski simulation on foot as one can stand!
The program had a couple of training camps in the summer, the Haig Glacier, and a dryland camp in the Bow Valley. This is an opportunity to begin to introduce these skiers to training at altitude. We began skiing in Early November up at the Paulson trails (local). There are 3 areas for Cross Country here, and the Paulson trails (maintained by the Castlegar club) have snow a little earlier than Black Jack.
I went to Boston in September for a NENSA seminar. I made a presentation and sat in on the rest of seminar. Always good to get into other areas. As well I went to a COC function (Olympic Excellence series) for summer sports in November.
The club hosted a very successful NorAm in December. I did not have involvement with the event, except I worked with the club to build a better sprint course. The tracks and the event were well received.
The club and the Red Mountain Academy are joining forces to create an educational component to our Nordic Program. Al Fisher (Racing Program Director) and I initiated this in the spring and over the summer when we hammered out the details. At the end it has been Wannes Luppens (Club President), Al Fisher and I that are spearheading this initiative.
Now we are into the racing season and going full blast. Life in Rossland right now is being very good to Coach Dave Wood!
I hear you’re announcing a new high school aged skiing program at one of the best training and skiing locales in North America – tell us more about the Red Mountain Academy and its new educational component for your Nordic Program.
DW: The Red Mountain Academy (RMA) has been in operation for many years. It began as an academy program with the Red Mountain Racers (Alpine racing) and over time has expanded. The cooperation with the Black Jack Cross Country ski club was initiated this spring and we finalized the association this past fall with a three pronged program. Read more about the Academy here: www.redskiacademy.com
With the Home Stay Plan athletes that are not local in Rossland are placed with families in Rossland. We also have service providers such as physiotherapy, mental training, etc.
The home stay is organized and delivered through the administration end of the academy program. The athletes stay with families in the area. There is an education for the home stay families with respect to the nutritional needs of the athlete. The cost for this is $750/month, which includes some of the travelling needs. With their application to academy the process for home stay is initiated.
Another component of this program is transportation to and from the training venue to the school. In Rossland you can walk from “home” to school
The Educational Component of the Academy is delivered at Rossland Senior Secondary school. This will provide the athletes with a flexible academic schedule that allows time for proper training and competition programs. Read more about RMA here: www.rss.sd20.bc.ca
The third component of the program is the Training and Competition Program that is managed and delivered by myself. I have several coaches and experts who are assisting me in the Black Jack Racing team. We provide an intensive, individualized training and preparation programs.
Athletes in the academy program will train alongside the athletes training with the Club Program. Currently we have athletes from Rossland, Nelson, and Trail that work with the Black Jack Racing Team.
General program for 2011/12
– May 1 is the training year start
– Will plan for a spring snow camp where it can happen, likely Vernon, however we can do it here in some years
– June is dryland, going into the local mountain trails as the snow melts
– July will have a week at the Haig glacier
– August will have two weeks in the Bow Valley with two trips to the Haig glacier
– Fall camp with altitude. Most likely the Bow Valley if the stored snow works out
– December NorAms
– World Junior trials
– National Champs
– Other racing as is available
In Rossland we enjoy the perfect natural environment for developing Cross Country Ski Racers. We have an extensive network of trails and paths that are ideal for running and ski simulation on foot. As well we have mountain trails that are up to 2200 meters in elevation.
This means we can train between 400 meters and 2200 meters, an ideal situation for altitude training and lower elevation for speed work. We have long continuous roller ski climbs, up to 25 km, or we can have gentle rolling terrain to roller ski on. A lot of this roller ski terrain has very limited traffic.
We have access to a rubber surface running track in Warfield (6km away), an aquatic center in Trail (10 km), gyms in Rossland, and the alpine area (Red Resort) is about 5km from town, a perfect distance for warm up for a hill session. This is as good as it gets for dry land training!
We have three areas where we can ski. The Black Jack Club (www.skiblackjack.ca) is about a 10 min drive from anywhere in Rossland. The club has about 30 km of trails that are groomed daily by one of the two Pisten Bulleys the club owns. The normal season at Black Jack would be December to April. There is a biathlon facility up the highway from Black Jack. There is a 5km loop with the shorter tracks inside the 5 km track. The biathlon facility is about 300 meters higher than Black Jack, and gets earlier snow (2 to 3 weeks) and the snow lasts much longer in the spring. Finally the Castlegar ski club operates a trail system at the Paulson Summit. This is about a 30 min drive from Rossland, and it is also higher (about 1500 meters) so it is another option for early skiing
We can offer a training environment that is very high quality and lets the athletes maximize their training time do to the proximity of all training venues.
Dave, I think that wraps it up for any young teenage skier it doesn’t get any better. Sort of a home away from home feeling with the Home Stay Program and one of the best facilities and training centered programs you could want to be involved with – how do I sign up? DW: Contact Kristi Calder at kristi@redskiacademy.com for information on the overall program. I can be contacted at davidwood53@gmail.com or 250-521-0223 for specifics on all aspects of the programs
March 01, 2011 (Bend, OR) – The XC Oregon elite development program based in Bend, Oregon has officially opened new funded level athlete applications for the 2011/2012 ski season. Complete information on the very simple XC Oregon application process is now available by visiting www.xcoregon.org.
Based on current budget projections and likely retirements by several top athletes, XC Oregon anticipates having the financial resources to support 2-4 new “funded” level athletes interested in racing full 2011/12 regional/national/international schedules. XC Oregon also continues to welcome an unlimited number of “associate” athletes to apply at any time with less stringent racing qualifications and expectations than the funded level. Per the program’s tradition, XC Oregon does not charge fees to any roster athlete for team membership.
Specific financial support for interested athletes is highly individual and often has incentives built-in for new athletes with high level credentials. We are very happy to discuss specifics with athletes as they work through the application process.
The first round of 2011/12 new athlete applications will be accepted until April 15, 2011. Athletes meeting that initial deadline will have preferred status for early funding allocations. After April 15 XC Oregon will continue accepting new athletes throughout the year on a case-by-case basis.
Founded in 1998, XC Oregon is North America’s longest-running elite development club with the same leadership and organizational design since inception. A 501c3 non-profit organization, XC Oregon is supported by several Oregon-based corporations and by generous Friends of XC Oregon patrons from around the ski world. Past and present XC Oregon athletes over the past 13 years include U.S. Olympians, World Championship Team members, World Cup skiers, National Champions, SuperTour Champions, World Loppet Champions, ASM Series Winners — and more. Our program has also proudly produced over two dozen alumni ski coaches.
Current program athletes live throughout the state of Oregon, with residency for a significant portion of the year in the state being one of the few requirements of the program. Coaching and program management is provided by program founder J.D. Downing on a year-round basis. Training and racing annually involves a mixture of individual and group training/travel — with the program adapting each year to fit the needs of our current roster. Year after year, XC Oregon continues to provide a proven support structure for independent and motivated young adult athletes that enjoy living in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
Although based in one general geographic location, the XC Oregon roster proudly features permanent and visiting athletes from around the globe. U.S. citizenship is not a requirement for either roster membership or funding support.
XC Oregon also prides itself on having one of the widest age and ability ranges of any elite club. Whether a recent college graduate, a cross-over athlete from other endurance sports, a veteran athlete looking for a fresh start — over the years XC Oregon has welcomed athletes with incredibly diverse backgrounds.
After viewing the materials on www.xcoregon.org we encourage interested athletes to contact J.D. Downing with any questions you may have and to visit us in Bend sometime this spring as we once again enjoy the longest easy-access ski season in North America well into June.
February 25, 2011 (Rossland, BC) – Dave Wood was Canada’s most successful National Team cross-country ski coach, with career highlights including Beckie Scott’s legendary Olympic pursuit gold in 2002, Sara Renner’s sprint bronze at the Nordic World Championships in 2005, Chandra Crawford’s sprint gold in 2006 in Torino, and nine top-10’s at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. Wood spent 18 years with Cross Country Canada (CCC) and lead the program for 12 of those years. He resigned in May 2010 and is still very much involved with skiing, currently coaching the Black Jack Ski Club in Rossland, B.C. He talked with SkiTrax’s Marty Hall about his new New Nordic Academy program.
It’s been 9 months since your departure from the Canadian National Team, what’s been happening with you and your career – bring us up to speed?
Dave Wood: In the spring I began working with the Black Jack Ski Club in Rossland, BC. The program here has younger skiers ages 13 to 17, all in high school. We have an ideal natural environment for Cross country skiers in Rossland.
Most of the training can be completed “out the door”. We have to travel for Roller skiing to find different terrain, but we have everything from flatter gentle terrain to long continuous uphills (10 to 25 km). The trails are superb and with the Red Mountain alpine area only 15 minutes running from town we can do as much ski simulation on foot as one can stand!
The program had a couple of training camps in the summer, the Haig Glacier, and a dryland camp in the Bow Valley. This is an opportunity to begin to introduce these skiers to training at altitude. We began skiing in Early November up at the Paulson trails (local). There are 3 areas for Cross Country here, and the Paulson trails (maintained by the Castlegar club) have snow a little earlier than Black Jack.
I went to Boston in September for a NENSA seminar. I made a presentation and sat in on the rest of seminar. Always good to get into other areas. As well I went to a COC function (Olympic Excellence series) for summer sports in November.
The club hosted a very successful NorAm in December. I did not have involvement with the event, except I worked with the club to build a better sprint course. The tracks and the event were well received.
The club and the Red Mountain Academy are joining forces to create an educational component to our Nordic Program. Al Fisher (Racing Program Director) and I initiated this in the spring and over the summer when we hammered out the details. At the end it has been Wannes Luppens (Club President), Al Fisher and I that are spearheading this initiative.
Now we are into the racing season and going full blast. Life in Rossland right now is being very good to Coach Dave Wood!
I hear you’re announcing a new high school aged skiing program at one of the best training and skiing locales in North America – tell us more about the Red Mountain Academy and its new educational component for your Nordic Program.
DW: The Red Mountain Academy (RMA) has been in operation for many years. It began as an academy program with the Red Mountain Racers (Alpine racing) and over time has expanded. The cooperation with the Black Jack Cross Country ski club was initiated this spring and we finalized the association this past fall with a three pronged program. Read more about the Academy here: www.redskiacademy.com
With the Home Stay Plan athletes that are not local in Rossland are placed with families in Rossland. We also have service providers such as physiotherapy, mental training, etc.
The home stay is organized and delivered through the administration end of the academy program. The athletes stay with families in the area. There is an education for the home stay families with respect to the nutritional needs of the athlete. The cost for this is $750/month, which includes some of the travelling needs. With their application to academy the process for home stay is initiated.
Another component of this program is transportation to and from the training venue to the school. In Rossland you can walk from “home” to school
The Educational Component of the Academy is delivered at Rossland Senior Secondary school. This will provide the athletes with a flexible academic schedule that allows time for proper training and competition programs. Read more about RMA here: www.rss.sd20.bc.ca
The third component of the program is the Training and Competition Program that is managed and delivered by myself. I have several coaches and experts who are assisting me in the Black Jack Racing team. We provide an intensive, individualized training and preparation programs.
Athletes in the academy program will train alongside the athletes training with the Club Program. Currently we have athletes from Rossland, Nelson, and Trail that work with the Black Jack Racing Team.
General program for 2011/12
– May 1 is the training year start
– Will plan for a spring snow camp where it can happen, likely Vernon, however we can do it here in some years
– June is dryland, going into the local mountain trails as the snow melts
– July will have a week at the Haig glacier
– August will have two weeks in the Bow Valley with two trips to the Haig glacier
– Fall camp with altitude. Most likely the Bow Valley if the stored snow works out
– December NorAms
– World Junior trials
– National Champs
– Other racing as is available
In Rossland we enjoy the perfect natural environment for developing Cross Country Ski Racers. We have an extensive network of trails and paths that are ideal for running and ski simulation on foot. As well we have mountain trails that are up to 2200 meters in elevation.
This means we can train between 400 meters and 2200 meters, an ideal situation for altitude training and lower elevation for speed work. We have long continuous roller ski climbs, up to 25 km, or we can have gentle rolling terrain to roller ski on. A lot of this roller ski terrain has very limited traffic.
We have access to a rubber surface running track in Warfield (6km away), an aquatic center in Trail (10 km), gyms in Rossland, and the alpine area (Red Resort) is about 5km from town, a perfect distance for warm up for a hill session. This is as good as it gets for dry land training!
We have three areas where we can ski. The Black Jack Club (www.skiblackjack.ca) is about a 10 min drive from anywhere in Rossland. The club has about 30 km of trails that are groomed daily by one of the two Pisten Bulleys the club owns. The normal season at Black Jack would be December to April. There is a biathlon facility up the highway from Black Jack. There is a 5km loop with the shorter tracks inside the 5 km track. The biathlon facility is about 300 meters higher than Black Jack, and gets earlier snow (2 to 3 weeks) and the snow lasts much longer in the spring. Finally the Castlegar ski club operates a trail system at the Paulson Summit. This is about a 30 min drive from Rossland, and it is also higher (about 1500 meters) so it is another option for early skiing
We can offer a training environment that is very high quality and lets the athletes maximize their training time do to the proximity of all training venues.
Dave, I think that wraps it up for any young teenage skier it doesn’t get any better. Sort of a home away from home feeling with the Home Stay Program and one of the best facilities and training centered programs you could want to be involved with – how do I sign up?
DW:
July 13, 2010 – What does it take to be an internationally successful skier? Usually you will get an answer that includes things like hard work, dedication, many years of training and lots of talent. Those are all likely part of the puzzle but they aren’t very tangible, they don’t really tell you as a coach or as an athlete what is truly necessary. When the LTAD model was first developed one of the key goals was to describe how an athlete goes from ‘Playground to Podium’ ie. what is the path that they should take on that journey? Both the generic and skiing specific LTAD documents do a good job of laying out the fundamentals of that path and between all the materials available, most of the answers are presented. What we are hoping to do over the next series of articles is to consolidate some of the most relevant information for coaches working with developing skiers at the Learning to Train (L2T)through the Learning to Compete (L2C) stages.
In this first article, we are going to tackle one of the key elements for technical endurance sport like skiing: how much training is appropriate for junior skiers. Recently the various health authorities in Canada and other countries have updated recommendations for the general public in terms of daily activity levels. They are now recommending that all adults get a minimum of 90min a day of exercise to remain healthy. Over a year that means a normal adult should be doing around 450+ hours of ‘exercise’. The recent increase in those recommendations is mostly a response to the decrease in our activity levels related to daily living. Most adults and children drive to work/school and sit all day only to drive home and sit at the computer or TV all evening.
The reason we mention these broader social health issues is to gain some perspective on what every person should be doing as part of active daily living so when you start to design a plan for your athletes you keep that in mind. If you have a 13yr old skier and set them up with a 300hr per year plan and that is all they do for exercise (which would be quite unlikely), they are actually getting less than what is recommended for the non-athletic population. Now, if that same athlete is doing 300hrs of ‘training’ plus they are biking to school every day and playing soccer during/after school as well as the occasional hiking or canoeing trip, that athlete will start to really develop a good base of endurance capacity. Thus, you can see the importance of appreciating the overall level of physical activity of your athletes when designing a training plan and determining training volume.
Success as a senior athlete at the Olympic and World Cup level requires many years of training; some suggest 10yrs or 10,000hrs of focused training as a guideline. The primary reason for this is the cumulative effect that training has on our physiology. With consistent, progressive training, the body will constantly adapt to become more efficient as well as having a greater capacity for work. There really are no shortcuts to being a successful endurance athlete and while some athletes reach their peak younger than others do, it is often related to how early they started ‘training’. I put ‘training’ in quotes because as I described in the previous paragraph, training at a young age (ex. L2T) doesn’t all need to be centered around focused workouts directly related to skiing. Some athletes obviously progress to the top of the international podium at a relatively young age, but look over some of the information about their training and you will find that as a junior they were training 600-700+ hrs a year.
One misinterpretation that the LTAD material can lead to is the idea that athletes’ peak in endurance sports like skiing in their mid to late 20’s and as a result, you have plenty of time to develop as a skier. While it is true that an athlete might not reach their full potential until their mid or late 20’s, that doesn’t mean you can wait until you are in your 20’s to start training properly and show a serious commitment. Long term athlete development” in fact refers to a step by step process of “building” an athlete over many stages (and many years), starting by solid foundations and using each development stage as a building block for the next one. As such, the development and performance benchmarks for the older juniors at the end of the L2C stage are already quite high if an athlete is to reach international HP goals by his/her mid 20’s. Check out the article about Canada’s World Junior Championships Performance Analysis to see more info related to the importance of junior performance benchmarks.
Starting to discuss overall ‘training’ load with 12-13yr old skiers is a good starting point assuming they have been active throughout their lives; ideally, kids would grow up in an environment that prioritized active daily living from a very young age in order to develop the numerous fundamental abilities. If a child reaches 12yrs old with a very sedentary history, they are likely to be behind the more active kids and will need to quickly transition to an active lifestyle. For this discussion, we will start at the beginning of the T2T stage since that is an age that we as coaches can have a substantial impact on, and when more formal training begins with your programs. Because athletes need progressive, consistent training over many years it is important that they start on a path that will allow the training increases to be progressive and not random or excessive. It is important to remember one of the key elements of LTAD, age and stage of development are not always the same. A 15 yr old skier that is just starting out in sport may be similar in many aspects to a 12 yr old skier that progressed through CCC’s skills development programs. Always keep in mind what stage an athlete is at, not just the chronological age.
What counts as an hour of training? In order to have a common understanding of training volume it is important to consider what is counted as training. Every coach and athlete will have a slightly different way of counting hours, but as long as the key fundamental concepts are the same, the overall training volume should be relatable between different programs. What makes up an hour of training comes down to the question of training quality and a huge number of factors are involved in that discussion (subject of a future article.) As a general rule high quality training is any training that is specifically planned into an athlete’s program with a purpose and desired outcome. An hour of biking may be considered low quality if you are in the pre-competitive period but it might be a very beneficial recovery workout during the general preparation phase.
Some general guidelines for workouts and recording training volume are listed below:
• Workouts should be a minimum of 30mins of continuous activity (i.e. 20min ride to school or a 30min gym class with limited activity doesn’t count)
• Workouts should be at a minimum of zone I intensity (above 60% of max HR, i.e. a slow walk with parents or a dog doesn’t count as training)
• In general, non-weight bearing activities (biking, swimming) don’t require as much effort for a given length of time. Training time is still counted as full time (i.e. 1hr biking is recorded as 1hr of training), however coaches should keep in mind the physiological cost and fatigue caused by these activities is often lower compared to running or skiing. This is not always the case, mountain biking on hilly technical terrain can be very similar to running in terms of physiological cost.
• During workouts athletes should count the time they are actively training, long drink breaks or equipment changes should not be included in training volume (going downhill is part of training and racing and should be counted as part of the overall workout)
The following suggestions are a general range for the different components of an annual training program in terms of overall volume.
– Zone 1 training makes up 75-80% of the total yearly training volume
– Zone 3-4/racing make up 5-10% and strength training is 10-15%(recovery between intervals or sets are included in training time)
– Specific training (skiing, roller skiing, specific strength) will be roughly 50% for a T2T athlete and closer to 60% or 70% as the athletes progress to the L2G and T2G stages (see GGG’s LTAD guide for sample Yearly Training Plans)
It is important to remember that hours are only one part of the equation; you always need to consider intensity or the quality of training and all the other factors that go into being a successful athlete (nutrition, recovery, etc). We will use hours as a starting point since it is the most fundamental way of measuring training.
How many hours should a junior skier train? The following chart showing training progression is based on the volume, or total number of hours spent training in a season (typically May to April). The chart shows the ideal progression of training volume assuming the athlete has developed all of the skills and abilities of the previous stages of development leading up to the T2T stage. As pointed out earlier, keep in mind that this ideal training volume progression represents the average recommendations but individual training volumes may vary by ± 5%depending on what makes up those hours.
The chart doesn’t specifically distinguish between the range for male and female athletes. The reason for this is that there is no good evidence to support the idea that men and women cannot handle similar training loads. On the World Cup there are examples of successful women who train more than any of the men and also those who train significantly less than the men. The more important consideration is how individuals respond to training volume and their specific training background and stage of development. As pointed out in the World Juniors Performance Analysis article, junior women are typically 1-2 years ahead of the junior men from a physical maturity perspective. The international results show that junior women are closer to the senior level than their male counterparts since they typically mature earlier and can begin more intense training at an earlier age. All of this information points to the fact that male and female skiers should be considered individually based on all the available information to determine the appropriate training volume and overall training plan.
Next steps? Over the next months, we will continue to expand this discussion to other aspects of high performance training for junior skiers. As previously mentioned, training volume is only one aspect of a successful training program needed to reach the highest levels of performance. The next discussion will focus on the question of ‘What makes up those training hours?’
![Frozen Thunder is here! [P] Heidi Widmer](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/heidi_sign.jpg)
![Truckload by truckload. [P] Heidi Widmer](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/heidi_truck.jpg)
![Gettin’ er done – loading the trucks. [P] Heidi Widmer](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/heidi_loadingtruck.jpg)
![Dumping the snow in place. [P] Heidi Widmer](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/heidi_Dumping.jpg)
![Winter amidst fall foliage. [P] Heidi Widmer](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/heidi_fall-winter.jpg)
![Something’s not quite right here… [P] Heidi Widmer](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/heidi_gear.jpg)
![The ABWCA girls waiting for snow… [P] Heidi Widmer](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/heidi_girls.jpg)
![A view of one side of the Center of Excellence [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/1-Centre-of-Excel-DSC01355.jpg)
![Warming up with Ida – getting a little inspiration from Ted in front of us :) [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/2-Warm-Up-P1040100.jpg)
![Jessie and I had a little fun in the foam pits where the freestyle skiers practice. Here I practice my swimming dive into the pit… [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/3-Foam-Pit-DSC01387.jpg)
![stuck…!! [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/4-Stuck-Foam-DSC01377.jpg)
![Treadmill Max VO2 Testing [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/5-Tredmill-P1040114.jpg)
![Matt encouraging me as I get in the zone during the test [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/6-Matt-Treadmill-P1040115_2.jpg)
![Treadmill test 2 [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/7-Treadmill-2-DSC01353.jpg)
![Squat test- we push against this bar that is impossible to move to measure the force we put on the scale below our feet [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/8-Squat-P1040120.jpg)
![Vertical Jump test [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/9-Vertical-P1040124.jpg)
![The Rookies [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/10-Rookies-DSC01368.jpg)
![Media Practice – explaining our story with Benji Farrow, KC Oakley, and Robby Kelley [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/11-media-practice.jpg)
![The bird-man towering over me on the bikes! [P] courtesy of Sadie Bjornsen](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/12-Bird-Man-DSC01394.jpg)
![Banging out a loooooooooooong uphill classic ski with the boys. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/classic-ski.2.jpg)
![Here’s one of us skate rollerskiing now… Great, great roads, for sure we’re getting some funny looks, but it’s all good. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/skate-roller.2.jpg)
![“Waterman and FMOM (fastest man on the mountain) big Lenny chilling at the rainy campsite at 2300m after a long day of training. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/lenny.2.jpg)
![Out for a run out in the crater of Mt. Haleakala. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/run.2.jpg)
![Babs leading us high on Mt. Haleakala. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Haleakala.2.jpg)
![Some more rollerski action – thanks ONEWAY for the hook ups with swag before we came down here! [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/classic-ski-2.2.jpg)
![Almost up there… [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/bike22.2.jpg)
![Nearing the summit – actually, we got there and biked down to this sign to snap the pic. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/10000.2.jpg)
![De Nys and I banged out a sweet 3.25hr run through the whole crater one day – amazing views. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/crater-run.2.jpg)
![Crazy-wicked staff make all this possible – especially the results in the winter. L to R: Eric, Louis, Scott and Joel. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/staff.2.jpg)
![Perianne Jones ladies and gentlemen. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/perianne.2.jpg)
![Chandra is into the spirit of aloha big time. Shakas all around after a great sunset surf sesh. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/chandra.2.jpg)
![Me enjoying some surfing action one evening. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/surf.2.jpg)
![Big thanks to the man that made this all happen – we’re just lucky that man enjoys surfing too: Justin playing in the surf on our first sunset sesh three days ago. [P] courtesy of Devon Kershaw](https://skitrax.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/sunsets.2.jpg)
