Canada Extravaganza - Candy Cane Cup Round 3!

Hello Everyone!

Spinning while watching QUEEN ELSA!

I hope that you have all had a wonderful holiday season so far. I thought I would just give a quick recap of our first race weekend that happened right before finals (hence the late blog post). The week leading up to the races was unfortunate as we lost all our snow in Canton. We made it work, though, with some ski erging, running, and spinning (to Frozen I might add!). Seeing as it was the weekend before finals, not everyone made the trip to Nakkertok; however, we had a great group each day as some went home to study and some would drive up for a racing "break." Those of us that raced multiple days got to stay at Robyn's house which was amazing! Thank you so much to the McIntosh's for hosting us. They were so kind, and the food was truly special (long time fans of the blog will likely notice that this is usually my favorite part of any race weekend haha). Their "podium breakfast" definitely powered me to my best race in a LONG time. I think we were all also excited to have tacos that were not from Dana's Taco Tuesday. So, thank you so much from the whole team! It was wonderful to have a respite from finals' stress and also not have to drive four hours each day.

Lucy & Em staying warm (I can't even make a normal face when I'm NOT racing!)

The Candy Cane Cup is always one of my favorite races! It was our third time going. It was a bit different this year, because it was also a NorAm, meaning the level of competition was much higher. This was great, though, and the volunteers and everyone out there was awesome as always. 

There was not much snow, so our warm ups and cool downs were running; however, the race course was in fantastic condition. The first day was a classic sprint. On the whole, I would say most of us struggled, since it was the first real race of the year, we hadn't been on snow all week, and we don't sprint very often. Charlie had an awesome day – I don't think any of us have seen someone make up time on an uphill like he did! Beast mode for sure. Brian made it to semifinals, which was awesome. I was very proud of Kai and Emily for putting themselves out there when they weren't feeling well/recovering from injury. Ian, Steph, and I were really happy to get some practice in heats.

Qualifier Results
Heats

Brian sending it!

Mattahawko!

Saturday was a new day (5k/10k skate), and I think most felt it went better! Kate had her first race back from an injury and crushed. Steph was in the top 25 and Jackie was in the top 15. I was just glad to get some better race feelings in a short skate race than I've had in a while and ended up in the top 10. We all cheered for each other at the finish line, since we started next to each other in the unseeded group (gotta love racing outside the US!) So, that was really fun. The guys did really well too, with Brian just off the U20 podium, Ian and Kai in the top 15 for U20s, and Cam in the top 20 for U20s! Matt was our only senior guy, so his field was much bigger, but he did a great job.

Skate Results

Jackie getting after it

Cam carrying some speed into the hill!

Steffi rocking the glitter (now biodegradable - thank you Tim!) AND the race :)

Everyone had a 10k classic on Sunday (before heading back for finals!) I was super proud of Matt for racing again despite going back to study Saturday night. Graham and Charlie also came up. It was Graham's first classic race this year, so it was great just to see him get out there and have fun. Charlie crushed and was just outside the top 10 for U20s! I was also just outside the top 10, and I was so proud of Steph for cracking the top 20!! Killer. Jackie, Kate, and Emily were all right together, which was cool to see.

Classic Results

Kai looking speedy!

Thank you so much to the race photographers. You can find great photos here from Doug Ranahan and here from Jo-Ann Holden and here from Robert Smith. Thank you so much to the McIntosh's as well for being absolutely AMAZING hosts. The Richters made fantastic cookies for us post-race as well, so thank you to them. ETown and Dana (the photos in the blog are from her) were wonderful as always. Thank you so much to Nakkertok for such great racing. Happy New Year to all!

Thankful for your patience! - A Camp Recap

The Forêt! (Gabby photo)

A MEGABED full of team love (Em photo)

Before I begin, check out this AMAZING video from Jordi! If you want to save yourself some reading, it will give you a better recap than I could ever put into words. She did a truly spectacular job.

Videographer extraordinaire, Jordi! (Gabby photo)

It’s a bit late, but we can’t miss a run down of Thanksgiving camp! Honestly, this one was the best I’ve ever been to. This team is amazing - the senior in me is getting a bit sad! We had awesome snow, though not everything was open due to logging. Still, toward the end of the week, they opened up some of the big trails up top, which were super fun. The team brought their A game for all of our workouts, with more people staying out for the max time than I can ever remember. They also brought their A game for cleaning up around the house, which, when you have more than 20 of us in a house, is so important! Most importantly, everyone was excited to spend time doing the little things that make camp fun. Settlers of Catan, dancing in the kitchen, watching Hannah Montana or High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (don’t worry, we’re already die hard fans), attempting to carol in the van, or all piling into megabed. This is truly a special crew, and I love them all.

Annual water polo! (Dana photo)

The week started more eventfully than usual, as the truck was out of commission. So we packed up 3 vans the old fashioned way and left the trailer at home. It was surprisingly not much of an issue at all (it helped that it was warm for waxing outside!). 

We did an adventure run the first night on the mountain. After that, it was basically all skiing except for the dreaded morning runs (though again - this team killed it and were on time at 7 AM!) and some strength with an afternoon run on Tuesday.

Home sweet home! (Dana photo)

FOOD (Dana photo)

I could go through each day, but I’ll spare you the details and let the pictures do the talking. In no particular order...

Someone missed the matching memo, but we love him anyway (L:R; Brian, Jordan, Jordi, Charlie, and Kai)
(Gabby photo)

Sometimes we did art (Cam's masterpiece between ski session)
(Dana's photo)

In need of recovery (Jackie)
(Gabby photo)

Spectating is recovery? (L-R: Em, Gabby, Jackie)
(Em photo)

Recovery. (Dana photo)

A happy Goober & Kandy (Gabby photo)

A very important meeting at MSA
(Dana photo)

You could say they've got personality (L-R: Steph, Jackie, Natalie, Jordi, and Jordan)
(Gabby photo)

Timmy and Matt cruising (Kate photo)

There's nothing better! (Em photo)

I was all smiles with the TREES (Em photo)

Roll train :) (Dana photo)

Some highlights included a slow and snowy day at Mt. Ste Anne, some long L3 classic, and some leg burning L4 skate intervals. Thursday was a massive Thanksgiving feast. The last day was the time trial as usual - a skate 10k for both men and women. Everyone did really well, but it is also worth remembering that this time trial is just that and doesn't have any bearing on how the season will turn out. Results can be found below.

Men's Results

Women's Results

The EISA trying to figure out football (Em photo)

Sometimes we skied (Kai)

Thanks so much for keeping up with us! We are all so thankful to our families and missed them over the holiday, but are grateful for all that they do, so we are able to have these wonderful opportunities. So thank you to everyone behind the scenes who support us unconditionally! Stay tuned for some more (late) updates of our early season racing - the Candy Cane Cup/NorAm at Nakkertok, IBU (biathlon) trials in Craftsbury, and the first Mid-Atlantic Junior National Qualifier in Gore!

Happy Thanksgiving! (Dana photo)

Jelley from Vermont!

Hey everyone! My name’s Natalie Jelley and I’m from Bennington, Vermont (South Western). This summer I spent most of my time working three different jobs, but I was able to find a balance, so I could fit in some good training! I worked on a farm most of the time but when I wasn’t there, I was able to help with the BKL summer camp at Stratton Mountain which was lots of fun! I also did a lot of distance training at my home mountain, Prospect Mountain, or roller skiing around Stratton.

During the school year at home, I was on the XC running and lacrosse teams and of course the Nordic team... My high school team had around fifty kids, including middle schoolers, so the transition to a smaller environment with some more motivated skiers has been great! Another thing I focused a lot on this past year has been my art work. I love to draw and paint, and I’m really hoping to have the chance at getting into an art class that really interests me for next semester. I’m really excited to start figuring out what I’d like to do in the future!


So far I’ve loved all of my classes and all of the training we’ve been doing. I’m so excited for the snow to fall! -  Natalie

I'd like to add that Natalie always has the COOLEST sneakers - Lucy

That's it for introductions from our new folks – I hope you've loved reading about them as much as we love having them around. They have brought a totally new energy to the team that has definitely powered me through the fall. Keep an eye out for them this winter! They are Natalie, Jaden, Meg, Robyn, Kai, Cam, and Charlie. Coming back we have... Seniors: Lucy, Kate, Jackie, and Emily. Juniors: Gabby, Jordan (who has been living it up in France all fall except for a brief and wonderful surprise visit to see us at Thanksgiving camp!), Ben, Matt, and Tim. Sophomores: Jordi, Steph, Brian, Ian, and Graham (our newly minted Men's team captain!). Thank you so much for supporting our training all fall and be on the look out for more news from Thanksgiving camp and our races in Canada this weekend. It has all been a blast, probably my best fall at SLU yet! - Lucy

An Update from Coach Hatton

An Update from Coach Hatton


Hello All!

Coach Hatton here. As you may be aware, I've been working with the SLU team this season, and things are looking good! You may recognize my name; I wrote on this blog when I was an athlete on the team my four years at SLU! However, I've taken over for Coach Kyle and I have big shoes to fill! All the previous Assistant Coaches I've had have done an amazing job here, and I've been trying to take what I've learned from them and apply it in my own way now. I've got to say I'm still learning so much, but the whole team and Head Coach Ethan are very understanding, and I hope they are learning too.

Bounding Intervals at Higley!

Morning Circuits!

If you haven't caught on to the previous blogs written by members of the team yet, here's an overview of the team so far. We welcome two sophomore women, three first year women, and three first year men to the team this season. We have a large team of 21 total, but it has made things exciting! They are a great group. Our team roster is up on the website here. We have athletes from NH, ME, NY, VT, UT, CO, MN, ID, MT, and Canada! An awesome range of diversity!

From what I've noticed, they have really focused on making sure they are aware of their goals, sharing them with their teammates, and verbalizing what they want to accomplish in each skiing session. I've even seen some great positivity, and determination to make things better, mentally and physically among themselves and as a group. This is what makes a successful team, one that is more cohesive and understanding of each other. I'm hoping that this energy continues onward throughout the season!

Graham at the top of our hike!

Early Skiing in Lake Placid (Photo by Emily)

As for the training so far, we've had some very productive sessions. That's not to say there haven't been some not so great ones too! We live and we learn, right? I've been impressed with the team and how they have handled their training thus far. Always asking to do more and yet, also knowing when it's right to step back and say enough. It makes me quite excited for what is yet to come.

Ian Skiing up the Whiteface Toll Road

(Photo by Brian)

Incredible Skiing at Foret in Canada
(Photo by Emily)

We've officially made it through the fall season by doing everything from hiking, rollerskiing, rollerski agility, hill bounding, trail maintenance, running, strength, spenst,
circuit workouts, and even hopping in the pool.








We just got back from a great on snow camp in Canada over Thanksgiving break! The weather was mild and the snow was great! We mainly skied at Foret, but were able to get to Mont Sainte Anne as well. These athletes put in the hours everyday, with double sessions, morning runs, strength, and even a 10K Skate time trial against some other EISA teams, which made for a tiring, yet fun and productive training camp. Results here.

One pole work at snowy Mont Sainte
Anne over Thanksgiving break!

Next up is some easier training, then onto hopefully.. the NYSEF Opener in Lake Placid, followed by the NorAm/ Candy Cane Cup at Nakkertok in Canada, continued with the Mid-Atlantic JN Qualifier in Lake Placid! Before we know it, the Carnival season will be upon us! We hope to see you out there!  Stop us on the trails and say hi! Stay tuned for more updates from the team!

-Coach Hatton

En Route to Canada!

By Lucy Hochschartner '20

Hi Everyone!

We’re on our way to Canada! The past couple weeks since Gabby wrote about our first time on snow have been a dream. A couple weeks ago we had our first full week of skiing at Higley. Our first interval day were very competitive relay races. A shock to the system for sure, but we obviously had to go hard for the most important race of the year. We went to Lake Placid last weekend to pick up a new test ski fleet and get some good hilly intervals in. Innerloopen (the first half of Ladies 5k) definitely hurt the legs. Other notable workouts include strength room circuits that were probably the hardest we’ve done this year and double pole speeds with some single stick. Needless to say, I was sore by Sunday.

Sunny & Speeeeeedy Lake Placid intervals!

This week, we’ve been able to get on snow at Higley basically every day. It’s been amazing. I don’t think I’ve ever had early season skiing this good. We did some skate level three intervals and double pole 30/30s, but for the most part, we’ve been taking it easy before our biggest week of the year. Friday was, of course, water polo! A chance for us Nordic skiers to show off our speed, grace, and coordination (or doggy paddle). Then... we went to Cactus for dinner and Wal-Mart to stock up on snacks. We’re so excited to get up to Forêt. The snow looks awesome, so stay tuned!

Here's a sneak peak into the beginning of our week here!

Nice views

First run in Stoneham!

Snow!

3 Week Recap and Snow!
By Gabby Wangler '21

To recap on the past three weeks, we’ve had a moderate rest week, and then two moderate volume weeks with L3/L4 intensity thrown in. All of which included some hill bounding at Seven Springs and Higley, rollerskiing in the pouring rain, skate agility, participating in Trail Work Day at Higley, and continuing with morning circuits and strength. We are continuing to get on top of these gritty intervals, despite the typical sicknesses going around campus.

Emily '20 and ETown cranking at Seven Springs!

Agility time at Higley

Ian '22, Graham '22, Charlie '23 and Ben '21 crushing bounding intervals at Higley!

Lucy '20, Cam '23, and Steph '22 looking fast!

Meg '22 cruising by!

However, this past week put a little pep in every nordie’s step because it snowed!! (And as I write this now, it is currently snowing the 7-12 inches we’re expected to get by Tuesday morning). Thursday, November 7^th, 2019, was the first day we were able to get on snow. The soccer fields were a little wet and grabby, so we moved to the turf field to play speedball and ski relays. ETown and Dana joined in too! I think everyone wiped out at least once, but it was so fun to be able to get on skis again.

We got lucky and were able to ski at Higley on Friday as well! Some people had to switch over to running halfway through due to their skis being super duper old, but the glide wasn’t half bad for the other people who kept skiing. We stuck to grass strips next to the main road and trails due to limited coverage on the road. (And kudos to the team and everyone who participated with Trail Day at Higley on November 2th; we all worked hard to make the trails look great!)

On Saturday, we got a beautiful sunny morning for arguably my favorite workout I’ve done with the team. We drove down to Mt. Arab for the infamous running intervals starting at the base, climbing to the summit, descending to the base and repeating 3-4 times. It was cold enough to hold the snow from the past couple of days, so footing was a little slick at times. Each interval was supposed to get progressively faster and it was awesome to see everyone digging deep and really going after it. Legendary Coach Herb Brooks could sum it up pretty well with the quote, “The Legs Feed the Wolf”. The legs did, indeed, feed the wolf.

The crew after some hard intervals up Mt. Arab!

On Sunday, half of us stayed near campus and had a solid over distance classic rollerski on Plains and Selleck roads. The other half drove down to Whiteface and skied up the toll road! Wax was tricky since the snow varied from powdery and thick, to windblown and icy. Fishscales were the way to go for sure; the wax didn’t stick as well as we hoped. Nevertheless, we climbed and were presented with an awesome view at the top, and a really fun day overall! 

Spectacular views from the top of Whiteface!

More snow!

Lucy '20, Coach Hatton '18 and Gabby '21 at the top!

Cam '23!

Ian '22!

Tim '21!

With all of the incoming snow, we’ll (hopefully) be skiing on snow at Higley this week. (Update: We were able to ski at Higley, today Tuesday 11/12. It was very soft, but there was lots of it!) T-minus less than two weeks until Thanksgiving camp in Canada! Not that we’re counting or anything…

Also, thank you to Brian ’22, Lucy ’20, and Coach Hatton '18 for the photos!

-Gabby ‘21