Smith Awarded US Nordic Olympic Women Gold Rush Award

By Leann Bentley – Stifel U.S. Ski Team May, 2 2024 In recognition of her outstanding performance and versatility, Sammy Smith of the Stifel U.S. Cross Country Ski Team has been awarded the US Nordic Olympic Women (US NOW) Gold Rush Award. The Gold Rush Award is an annual award that celebrates exceptional achievements and versatility among cross country athletes and is awarded to a World Cup woman athlete who demonstrates outstanding qualities of grit and...

Snow Mountain Ranch Seeks Nordic Director

Job Title: Nordic Director Snow Mountain Ranch (Granby, Colorado) Position Summary: Located on over 82.5KM of world-class Nordic terrain, Snow Mountain Ranch’s Nordic Center is a premiere destination for Nordic skiers! This position supports the work of the YMCA of the Rockies, Snow Mountain Ranch, which operates a mission-based family and group conference and retreat center, serving more than 50,000 guests annually. The Nordic Director is responsible for managing and directing all operational aspects of...

Summer Training: Purposeful, Productive, and a Little Fun

Returning to training after a spring hiatus means laying out a plan for the upcoming training season. In making such a plan, there are a couple of questions that will help to define how the season should go: – Early season dryland training: what should early season training prioritize? And how much of a “break” do you advise taking after the ski season concluded? – Early season roller skiing: how early is too early? What...

Building a betting strategy for ski racing

Betting is a great way to make a sport even more exciting. It adds a bit of thrill and makes the races more interesting to watch. It has become highly popular in the last few years, and there are several options like PolskieKasynoHex.org  list where you can find websites offering legal betting and playing games. It can be a form of gambling that is a little risky, but with the right strategies, the victory can...

Snow Australia Seeks Full-time Coach

  Snow Australia is seeking a full-time cross country skiing coach for the National Training Centre at Falls Creek during the 2024 Australian winter. The coach will be responsible for coordinating and leading on-snow training throughout the season, including for elite and sub-elite athletes, with key aims of developing technical and athletic abilities and fostering a vibrant daily training environment. The successful applicant will have excellent communication skills, relevant coaching experience, sound ski training knowledge...

2024 Stifel Season Awards

Last week, the Stifel U.S. Ski Team announced the 2024 recipients of the Stifel Awards, named after the team’s title sponsor for the 2023-2024 season. Awardees for the “Athlete of the Year” and “Best Comeback of the Year,” among other categories, were nominated and voted on by team members and staff; with Stifel’s backing, those categories were awarded with a monetary prize attached. The 2023-24 season is the first time each discipline represented within the...

Spring Forward: Part I

Spring is nice, spring is fun, spring is a relief after a long, cold winter. But, for diehard skiers, spring is also the new season in which we begin imagining ourselves as next year’s skiers. The snow is barely gone, but already we’re imagining futures in which we glide through snowy meadows, double pole across the flats, charge confidently up homologated uphills, and V2 boldly across finish lines. Our heads are already in next season....

Momentum NW Seeks Head Coach or Program Director

Work Dates:     Year-round Status:              Full-Time, Exempt, or Part-Time, Hourly, depending on experience, qualifications, and interests Reports To:       Momentum Northwest Board President Summary Momentum NW is ready to welcome a new leader to help develop the Puget Sound’s premier youth cross country ski program. Envisioned as either a head coach or a program director, depending on the qualifications and interest of the right applicant, this role is a keystone in our community and...

Team Birkie Announces 2024-25 Regional Team

  (MINNEAPOLIS, MN)  – Emma Stertz, Dolcie Tanguay, Connor Roberts, and David Ronnevik, will join Team Birkie’s Regional Team. The Regional Team is an opportunity for athletes to continue their development of high level ski racing, as post-graduate high school and post-graduate collegiate skiers. “It’s exciting to have a strong group of experienced post-collegiate skiers join Team Birkie’s Regional Team,” said Development Coach Jake Stiele. “All four of these athletes bring with them unique experiences...

Bridger Ski Foundation Seeks Nordic Comp Team Head Coach

  Position Title: Nordic Comp Team Head Coach (high school age athletes) Organization: Bridger Ski Foundation Location: Bozeman, Montana Bridger Ski Foundation (BSF) is a nonprofit community ski organization rooted in Bozeman, Montana. Committed to fostering a love for skiing and promoting athletic excellence, BSF offers educational and competitive programs across Nordic, Alpine, and Freestyle/Freeskiing disciplines for all age groups. Bridger Ski Foundation has a large, robust and invested Nordic ski community. BSF maintains and...

Gus Schumacher Voted FIS ‘Best Distance Performance of the Year’

This coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and A Hall Mark of Excellence Award. To learn more about A Hall Mark of Excellence Award, or to learn how you can support FasterSkier’s coverage, please contact info@fasterskier.com. After the 2018 Olympics, workers at the Minneapolis Parks and Rec Department had to start putting up posters in the old Theodore Wirth Park chalet to “Clean up your glitter.” Thousands of...

U.S. Biathlon Announces 2024-25 Senior National Team and National Development Group

Midway, Utah – The United States Biathlon Association has released the nominated members of the 2024-25 Senior National Team and 2024-25 National Development Group. While U.S. Biathlon remains committed to maintaining high standards for National Team qualification, it also is focused on providing ample opportunities for developing athletes to train and be part of a larger, collaborative team community within the sport and the development pipeline. Establishing the National Development Group is an important initiative in support...

U.S. Biathlon Announces 2024-25 Junior National Team

Midway, Utah – The United States Biathlon Association released the selected members of the Junior National Team for the upcoming 2024-25 season. Junior National Team Virginia Cobb (Westford, VT/Ethan Allen Biathlon Club) Mirra Payson (Lexington, MA/HSC Biathlon) Haley Finch (Anchorage, AK/Alaska Winter Stars) Wes Campbell (Park City, UT/ Team Soldier Hollow) Thor Sheppard (West Yellowstone, MT/Team Altius) Cale Woods (Bozeman, MT/Team Crosscut) Elias Soule (Anchorage, AK/Anchorage Biathlon Club) John Lohuis (Anchorage, AK/Biathlon Alaska) “We are happy to announce the names of the exceptional athletes...

FasterSkier At The Movies: The Best Cross-Country Ski Movie Ever?

Warning: This review contains lengthy passages of unrestrained gushing. Is it possible that the best movie ever made about cross-country skiing doesn’t have a single scene which was filmed on snow? The answer is a decided yes. Because that movie is “A to B Roller Ski,” and it shatters the ceiling for what a movie about cross-country skiing can be. Moving, inspiring, authentic, pure, poetic, and beautiful, ‘A to B Roller Ski’ tells the story...

3rd Annual Sovereign 2 SilverStar Ski Marathon 2024:  Exciting finishes, many winners, great season finale

 Video Credits: Sovereign 2 SilverStar Ski Marathon April 6 & 7 was a winning weekend for Nordic skiing in North America. The Sovereign 2 SilverStar Ski Marathon (S2S) reminded us that late season snow and great conditions are still possible! The 2-day event featured two distances (21k and 40k), two ski techniques (Classic and Skate), co-hosted by two world-class venues – Sovereign Lake Nordic Club and SilverStar Mountain Resort. The S2S attracted over 600...

Team Birkie Announces New Teams for 2024-2025

Sonnesyn, Ketterson, Bolger, headline 8-member, rebranded teams. Team Birkie’s U.S. Ski Team athletes Kevin Bolger and Zak Ketterson, welcome six new members to their top-tier, re-branded teams for the 2024-2025. Former Minnesota State High School skiing phenom and four-time American Birkebeiner winner, Alayna Sonnesyn, returns home to the community where she emerged as a young endurance athlete, and headlines the newly rebranded World Team (formerly Pro Team). 2023 University of Alaska graduates Mariel Pulles and...

Catch Me if You Can—Sophia Laukli: Part II

This coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and A Hall Mark of Excellence Award. To learn more about A Hall Mark of Excellence Award, or to learn how you can support FasterSkier’s coverage, please contact info@fasterskier.com. Sophia Laukli likes to keep busy. That is an understatement. Her non-stop, year round ski and running schedule keeps her trotting across the globe to pursue racing on dirt and snow. In part...

University of Utah Seeks Head Coach

Job Summary The University of Utah seeks a Head Coach for its Nordic Skiing program. The successful candidate will be responsible for the administration and development of the program, including developing and managing a budget, training and competition schedule, travel, and equipment needs.  The Nordic Head Coach will work closely with Director of Skiing Fredrik Landstedt in all aspects of running the Nordic program. An excellent benefits package is included. Responsibilities Work within the university...

A Skier’s Dream: Adaptive Athlete Otis Loga Finds It All at Snow Mountain Ranch

What a gap year it’s been so far for 19-year-old Otis Loga. After graduating high school in Montpelier, Vt., in September, the aspiring Paralympian decided to spend a winter skiing and training out West before starting college. He landed at Snow Mountain Ranch, the YMCA of the Rockies, in Granby, Colo. It was a dream for the relatively new sit skier, who was first invited to a US Paralympic camp in Canmore, Alberta, a year...

Catch Me if You Can—Sophia Laukli: Part I

This coverage is made possible through the generous support of Marty and Kathy Hall and A Hall Mark of Excellence Award. To learn more about A Hall Mark of Excellence Award, or to learn how you can support FasterSkier’s coverage, please contact info@fasterskier.com. Sophia Laukli likes to keep busy. The 23 year old Maine native is coming off her best season as a professional skier. After a grueling four month World Cup season which included a...