Let’s explain. The format was basic, a freestyle sprint. Otherwise, that’s where sprints as we know it ended. The 0.66-kilometer course shot off from the start up a gradual V2-able climb. It then rounded a left-hander where athletes descended what looked like a salted banked turn found in a X-Games terrain park. Down to the […]
Three In A Row, Johaug Wins the Hill Sprint Showdown in Åre; Diggins 11th, Caldwell 12th
When Therese Johaug wins a sprint qualifier by 4.5 seconds and Sophie Caldwell qualifies in 23rd, you know it is not your average course. Held at the Swedish national alpine ski area in Åre, today’s event seemed to blend the infamous climb up the Alpe Cermis in the final stage of the Tour de Ski […]
Masters Racing: Getting Lapped At Nationals
A middle of the pack master would have to be an idiot to sign up to race 50km against the best skiers in North America on a FIS-approved World Cup course. The top skiers will be fresh from World Cup Finals in Canmore and competing for important titles, national team selection, and future World Cup […]
Jacquelin secures his first gold medal in men’s pursuit at IBU World Championships; Gow 35th, Doherty 43rd
Thanks to a clean shooting performance on the range and a tactical masterclass on the final lap, France’s Emilien Jacquelin, 24, was able to celebrate across the line in first place in a time of 31:15.2 minutes, after an exciting finish sprint against Norway’s Johannes Thingnes Bø just 0.4 seconds behind (with 2 penalties). […]
The Devon Kershaw Show: Ski Tour 2020 Stage 2 and a Deviation into Biathlon
The Ski Tour 2020 show continued Sunday in Östersund, Sweden with the men’s and women’s classic pursuit races. Again, as we discuss in the podcast, it was Norway and Russia heavy on the men’s side. Actually more Norway than Russia. For the women, Johaug did her thing, but the racing was gritty. A chase […]
Johaug Takes the Stage 2 Win: Brennan in 10th, Diggins 11th
The early evening show, under the lights of Östersund, Sweden’s ski stadium, Stage 2 of the Ski Tour 2020 – a 10-kilometer classic pursuit – got underway as the plentiful moisture falling from the sky transitioned from steady rain to big snowflakes. This was a 10 k race with three discrete tales. First, the story […]
Down to the Wire, Golberg Out Sprints Bolshunov for the Pursuit Win
Picking up where we left off in Östersund, Sweden: a pursuit start 15-kilometer classic. Unlike the women’s field where Therese Johaug “administered a beatdown”, creating a large time gap for herself, the margins for the men were much smaller. A glance at the start list shows yesterday’s winner and Tour leader Sjur Røthe of Norway […]
The Devon Kershaw Show: Ski Tour 2020 Stage 1
It was all Norway in both the men’s and women’s Stage 1 of the Ski Tour 2020 from Östersund, Sweden. Sjur Røthe on the men’s side was pacing perfection while Therese Johaug simply steamrolled. This was clear, Norway had the best skis, and perhaps by default, the fastest skiers almost across the top-10 board. Yet, […]
Perfect Pacing: Sjur Røthe Claims Ski Tour 2020 Stage 1 Win
The six-stage Ski Tour 2020, which runs from Sweden to Norway over the next week, began Saturday in Östersund, Sweden with the men’s 15-kilometer individual start skate. The race began with twilight immersing Östersund with the sky eventually morphing into black as the seeded group of skiers looped around on what FIS called a 4.71 […]
Johaug Tops an All-Norwegian Podium; Diggins 8th, Brennan 9th
Here we go again. A new Scandinavian Ski Tour takes the spot of a World Championship or Olympic Games during this off-cycle year. Six stages working east from Östersund, Sweden to Trondheim, Norway, beginning with today’s 10-kilometer individual start freestyle event. Under clear skies, light fading and shadows lengthening as the sunset looms just a […]
Silver for Susan Dunklee at 2020 IBU World Championships
On Friday in Antholz, Italy Susan Dunklee of the US Biathlon team captured second place in the 7.5-kilometer sprint at the 2020 IBU World Championships. The event was won by Norway’s Marta Olsbu Roeiseland in 21:13.1 while shooting 0+1 on the range. Dunklee shot clean and was 6.8 seconds back. The Czech Republic’s Lucie Charvatova […]
Steve Morales Talks the Early Days of Skiing, The Birkie and Having A Ski Shop in Hayward
Sponsored Content As Birkie Fever is fully here with the 2020 race starting in just eight days, Hayward’s Steve Morales brings us back to the early days of the race and the beginning of New Moon Ski and Bike Shop. Steve Morales – New Moon Bike and Ski Shop – Hayward, Wisconsin from New […]
Ski Tour 2020: The Basics
New on the World Cup this season is the Ski Tour 2020: a six-stage tour beginning in Östersund, Sweden on February 15, and concluding in Trondheim, Norway on February 23rd. (To view the map as a stand-alone web page, click here.) As the interactive map illustrates, races will be held at venues along a similar […]
Snow Australia Seeks Coaches for NSW/ACT Cross Country Program
Cross country skiing in Australia? Unique opportunity to experience skiing in a very different environment while developing the skills of dedicated young Australian XC skiers. Snow Australia are seeking expressions of interest from coaches interested to work with the NSW/ACT Cross Country program in 2020 and potentially beyond. Snow Australia NSW/ACT XC Head Coach The […]
Community Focused Skiing in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire
FasterSkier’s Kathryn Miller will be profiling a number of ski areas this winter. You can find her profile of Bretton Woods here. Wolfeboro XC Ski The Nordic Skier is the local shop in Wolfeboro where you can buy tickets, find trail maps, rent gear, and purchsase nutrition for your ski. The shop is located at: 47 […]
Marathon Fueling Tips with Alayna Sonnesyn
The countdown is on. Marathon season is underway and we are inside the final two weeks before the American Birkie. At this point, “the hay is in the barn” when it comes to training, but there is still time to dial in a nutrition plan to stay fueled and all the way from Cable to […]
Nordic Nation: Brian Gregg and Matt Liebsch-Faster Together
Independent of one another, Brian Gregg and Matt Liebsch are always to be feared as they line up for a ski race. Now in their mid-thirties, their lives have transitioned to other responsibilities that include partners, children, and full-time work. Yet, in the highly competitive world of elite-level ski racing, these two have maintained a […]
The Devon Kershaw Show: Falun’s Mass Starts and Eating Words
Sometimes when the unexpected happens, it’s a good thing. That’s what went down today in Falun, Sweden. In the men’s 15 k mass start skate, it was not a scrum of 20 to 30 skiers in a cluster at the finish. A fast and furious pace set by Hans Christer Holund turned that concept on […]
Johaug Pounces in Closing K to Win in Falun; Diggins 14th
As always, it was a reset: a new day at the start of a World Cup race. On Sunday, the ribbon of snow in Falun, Sweden offered an opportunity for a sixty-six women field to race head to head in a 10 k mass start freestyle race. With a course that some noted was softened […]
Bolshunov Four for Four in Distance Wins; Norris Earns Season Best Result in 24th
Around and around they go. Due to lack of snow in Falun, Sweden, the men again wheeled their way around a manmade ribbon of snow, skating six icy 2.5-kilometer laps. Reduced from 30 to the 15 k distance and without the long, steep climb for which the course is usually known, how athletes would fare […]