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2011 January

Berlin Elementary Winter Carnival!Some of the kids and I after the Berlin Elementary School Winter Carnival. Winter Carnivals are a really neat thing that some of the schools around here are doing. Kids head outdoors and learn and participate in diff...

Berlin Elementary Winter Carnival!Some of the kids and I after the Berlin Elementary School Winter Carnival. Winter Carnivals are a really neat thing that some of the schools around here are doing. Kids head outdoors and learn and participate in diff...

We finally got our last stranded traveler tonight. Now we are really up and running. The weather got even warmer today which led to some seriously fast skiing. Some of the boys crossed paths with Robin Bryntesson doing some intervals after his recen...

We will be posting updates on this week end races at Michigan Tech. in the Upper Peninsula.   The schedules, coarse maps and results (click on http://www.superiortiming.com/)  will be available from this site.  http://supertour.mtu.edu/

Russians Take Two More Medals In Men’s WJ’s Sprint; Bjornsen 14th

Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov was 100 yards away and three minutes from the start of his own classic sprint final when his teammate Elena Soboleva crashed out of the front of the women’s race. Rather than collecting a medal, Soboleva was last in the heat, leaving it up to Ustiugov to cash in. And cash in he did, overpowering Norway’s Sondre Fossli and his own teammate Gleb Retivykh on the homestretch to take World Junior Championships...

Anger Takes Crash-Marred Otepaa Sprint; Two Canadians Top-30

Sure, sprinting is sprinting. But try telling that to Russia’s Elena Soboleva and Germany’s Hanna Kolb. The two were all but guaranteed medals in Friday’s classic sprint at the World Junior Championships when both went for the same track, taking a tumble that cost them the race. As the two struggled to untangle their skis and poles, Kolb’s teammate Lucia Anger skied by with two Norwegians, Kari Oeyre Slind and Ragnhild Haga. Those three took...

I’ve mentioned this from time to time in other posts, but one thing I’ve noticed from the sprint heat times that Jan at WorldOfXC.com has been providing me is that the women’s heats are more likely to increase in speed as the day progresses. I’ve said it enough that I should probably provide some evidence: [...] Related posts:

  1. Düsseldorf Sprint Recap
  2. Andrew Newell: Qualifying vs. Heats
  3. Flashback: Kuusamo Sprint

Bjornsen Leads 3 N. Americans in WJ Sprint Qualifier; Two More Are 31st

For the North Americans, Thursday morning’s classic sprint qualifier was a day of inches and almosts. Out of 15 U.S. and Canadian starters at the World Junior Championships in Estonia, just three cracked the top 30 and qualified for the afternoon heats: Erik Bjornsen (USA) in an impressive 10th, and Canada’s Janelle Greer and Heidi Widmer in 20th and 27th, respectively. But two more were painfully close, and ended up occupying the dreaded 31st position:...

Swix: A Perfect Pole for Every Skier

Ski poles are perhaps the most overlooked aspect of a cross-country ski racer’s equipment. People comment on their ski’s or boot’s weight but too often disregard the extra grams on their ski pole choice.   While your skis and boots glide across the snow over the majority of a race course,  your poles only go forward if you are lifting, swinging or carrying them.   For many people their technique is hindered by their ability to...

The 2011 Yellowstone Rendezvous Race Is On

http://www.rendezvousrace.com/register.html. To support racers in the 25 or 50k division, local community groups man five feed stations along the trails.  The theme to the 2011 Rendezvous Race is “Lost in Space”.  Look for lots of aluminum foil, pointy ears, and galaxy dust.  Bragging rights are on the line.  Racers vote for their favorite feed station and the winners gloat for the rest of the year.

OTEPAA, Estonia (Jan. 27) – Sarah Hendrickson (Park City, UT) was the top U.S. finisher in 18th as the FIS World Junior Ski Jumping Championships in Otepaa, Estonia opened up action Thursday with the women’s HS 100. Coline Mattel of France grabbed gold. Mattel clinched the win with a score of 257.5 and jumps of 96.5 and 98.5m. Slovenia’s Spela Rogeli earned silver and Japan’s Yuki Ito, who recorded the longest jump of the day (99m), took...

OTEPAA, Estonia (Jan. 27) – American Cliff Field (Steamboat Springs, CO) took 19th in Thursday’s HS100/10k nordic combined competition at the FIS Junior World Nordic Ski Championships in Otepaa, Estonia. Johannes Rydzek of Germany won the event in 26:37.7 followed by Slovenia’s Marjan Jelenko and Estonia’s hometown hero Kaarel Nurmsalu in second and third. Field’s time of 29:36.6 was good enough to earn him top-20 honors. Other American finishers included Nick Hendrickson (Park City, UT)...

The long distance ski championships across Europe, Ski Classics, move this weekend to Italy and Marcialonga where the second stage of the series will be held. Ski Classics consist of the six most prestigious cross country events in the world. Marcialonga is a 70km race in classic technique running through the two picturesque Dolomite valleys of Val di Fassa and Val di Fiemme. The winner of the Jizerska Padesatka, the first stage in Ski Classics, Anders...

Some video from todays U23 Skate Distance races in Otepaa.Women first, then men. Mostly Norwegians. The Finnish winner from the women's race (by a minute) is leading a Norwegian from right to left on the screen.Very cold, slow snow.