PICTURES

Here are some pictures from the trip. Photos from the race coming soon...

http://picasaweb.google.com/skibum540/Canada#

Quebec Camp 2011

Here are some photos from the sprint race on Saturday at Foret Montmorency in Quebec. The camp went really well with most getting in around 16-18hrs on the week, nearly all of it on snow. The grooming could have been better earlier in the week but we were able to finish the week with a long ski on Sunday at Mt. Saint Anne which opened over the weekend. We decided to stick with this plan rather than racing again on Sunday which I feel was better from a training perspective. The drive back was fairly uneventful although we are now back to dryland training or perhaps wetland training given the amount of rainfall predicted for the next couple of days. Maybe we can get on snow again this weekend. Nearly a foot of snow fell just 30minutes to our south while we were in Quebec but unfortunately the rain over today and tomorrow will pretty much wash that away. Results from the sprint can be found here http://www.zone4.ca/results.asp?id=3186.

Our top finishers were Leah Hart '12 and Eric Lustgarten '14. I think we did well given the amount of training we did during the week.

Something Like a Religious Pilgrimage

Like all true Nordic skiers should, I completed my pilgrimage to Norway this past weekend. The cheap plane tickets brought us to a small airport just south of Oslo, so after a short 45 minute bus ride, we arrived in the city just as the sun was setting, despite it being only 4 o’clock. After a 650 Kroner (over $100 american--food is really expensive there to say the least!) meal of reindeer and fjord-fresh shrimp, we toured around the city for the rest of Friday night. On Saturday again we did more exploring, only taking breaks when we needed to relieve ourselves from the frigid –15˚ C temperatures. After a few mishaps with public transportation, we made it up the hill to Holmenkollen, where we saw the ski jump and part of the world cup course from last year. Surprisingly, the ski jump didn’t appear to be all that big, however, the stadium seating surrounding the landing was rather impressive. Following the long, cold day of walking around the city, we treated ourselves to a home cooked dinner of spaghetti and shrimp, which we cooked in the hostel’s communal kitchen. Sitting in the lounge, with a big plate of shrimp and pasta, watching the men’s classic Kuusamo 10km while in Norway, I could not have been much happier.

On Sunday, we met up with SLU’s favorite Norwegian, Knut, for a walk in the city’s surrounding wood. With the few centimeters of fresh snow that had fallen the night before, and it still coming down, the woods and city were blanketed with the best type of that fresh Norwegian white stuff. We walked through the trails a bit, eventually onto part of the FIS course and ended up on the top of a small ridge, over looking the city. We ended the hike in a rustic lodge, where we were treated to Norwegian pastries and brown cheese. After a small tour guided by Knut, we left later that night for a small fishing village near the airport where we stayed the night.

In the morning, as we boarded the plane, I realized that despite not actually having done any skiing, the trip was well worth it and would definitely get me through the tough week of essays and presentations that was to come. Between naps on the plane, I thought about how beautiful and wonderful the country was, trying to figure out when I would next be able to return.

More photos from camp

Some skate intervals yesterday in the pouring rain, which led to glare ice on the trail today. But with some fresh snow coming down all day things were better by the afternoon. Everyone seems to be here now; SLU, UVM, Colby, Bowdoin, Bates, Burke, some Middkids, Biathletes and Canadian teams. There's a lot more terrain open and something resembling grooming happened today. Here's some more pictures. Connor has been taking a bunch so hopefully he'll post those too.


Cameraman Carlos and Kyle


Waxing up


Icy trails today, but falling snow made it much better a few hours later


Wet boots suck at training camp. Here's the boot dryer I made. My first one blew the circuits in the house but this one is alright so far.


Kyle strides in the falling snow Tuesday morning

For those who were wondering...

There is snow in Canada. Buckets of it. We skied for 3 hours today, saw a moose, and never took the same trail twice. Internet is shaky, but we'll keep trying to post stuff and updates.