Maria, Jo Jo, Caitlin, & Heather

The skiing festival really kicked up this week in West Yellowstone, MT.  The grooming has been great and the trails are full of smiling, happy skiers.  On Monday night my older brother, Matthew, came up to get some skiing in.  He is in graduate school at Boise University in Idaho.   It was nice to catch up with him for a couple of days.  He went back home Wednesday morning to play in a soccer game and have Thanksgiving with his friends.

Wednesday afternoon, we participated in an event hosted by Salomon called “Ski with the Best.”  A bunch of CXC Elite and Saab Salomon athletes met on the Plateau to take groups of kids, high school athletes, and master skiers out for a ski.  There were kids of all ages and it was fun to see everyone having fun and sporting their club and/or high school team apparel.   I worked with a group of high school skiers on some classic technique.  I have not been at this event in the past, but it was wonderful to see such a great turnout, even in a low snow year.

Wednesday evening, my former NMU teammate, roommate, and friend, Tami Kochen drove to West Yellowstone from Boulder, CO.  Tami took a little break from ski training this fall to focus on graduate school; however, she entered the race and had a very respectable result today in the classic race (38^th place).  I miss Tami lots and I was very glad that she took a break from her books to come up to West Yellowstone.   It was great to see her.

Tami Kochen and Maria Stuber

The CXC Women’s and Men’s teams did an excellent job today, even though the results were not stellar.  We will look at the things that were done well and build on them throughout the rest of the season.  The Women placed 20^th, 22^nd, 25^th, 32^nd, and 36^th, while the Men placed 16^th, 27^th, 31^st, and 35^th.

Heather Zimmerman and Maria Stuber

Other noteworthy performances by former NMU teammates include: Morgan Smyth taking 4^th place overall (USST), Lindsey Dehlin taking 8^th (USST), and Lindsay Williams in 14^th(USST).  Also, former NMU teammate, Bob Baldwin drove up from Park City to watch the race and cheer us on which was wonderful.

Morgan Smyth, Lindsay Williams, Lindsey Dehlin

Unfortunately, I was in charge of running the video camera so I do not have any pictures of the race.  I will try to find some good ones to post later.

I’ve been feeling a little bit tired lately, so I’m taking a break from intensity to make sure I get my energy back before the race season.  Today, the CXC Elite team did L-3 classic intervals, and it was difficult not to jump in and play.  Fortunately, the views from the plateau were so beautiful that I was distracted, and I had a blast exploring on my own.  The plateau trail is not groomed, except for the tracks laid down by fellow skiers.  It was sunny and perfect for training again.    

Skiing at the Rendezvous trails is no longer very good, but the plateau has 6-8 inches all over.  Unfortunately, it is hard to imagine snow rolling in tonight, but I will remain optimistic.