On March 22-26, 2006 skiers of all abilities from throughout North America will be able to enjoy three days of fantastic ski events in the Oregon Cascades, incredible afternoon options for spring adventures in the Central Oregon high desert, and plenty of social/recreational events for all ages. All of this wrapped up in one of America's great vacation destinations…Bend/Mt Bachelor, Oregon. For the first time ever, the National Masters has been scheduled for the very...
Canadian racer Dasha Gaiazova, who won the opening 10km mass-start classic race on Sunday (see articles: http://www.fasterskier.com/racing3262.html) continued to lead the way at Spring Series Tuesday night in Caribou, Maine. Gaiazova teamed up with Christine Bisson to win the women's classic team sprint by a wide margin. Women's Podium: Left to Right are Erin Hood, Wendy Wagner, Christine Bisson, Dasha Gaiazova, Anna Mcloon and Kate Whitcomb Randall, Camenisch, Mcloon (in red) and Whitcomb in the...
The second officially scored race at Spring Series and possibly the most exciting, fun-filled event for spectators and racers alike–the classic team sprint relay–came down to a fierce final 50m battle which resulted in a photo-finish between Zach Violett (FSx) and Canadian wonder-junior Alex Harvey. Violett had teamed up with fellow FSx racer Dave Stewart (XC Oregon) while the J1-year-old Harvey was anchoring for possibly the fastest male sprinter in Canada, Phil Widmer. The Canadians...
Sapporo, Japan — Canada’s Beckie Scott finished the 2005-06 World Cup season the way she began it last November in Canada — stepping onto the podium in a World Cup pursuit race. Only this time it was gold in Sapporo, Japan on Sunday. Canada’s most decorated cross-country skier capped off a stellar campaign with her fourth gold medal of the season after crossing the line in the women’s pursuit race with a time of 45...
More photos from the first official day of Spring Series racing at the Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle, Maine. Kris Freeman won the men's 15km mass-start classic race, but perhaps the biggest surprise of the day was Canadian junior skier Alex Harvey dropping David Chamberlain (Atomic) and out-sprinting Zach Violett (FSx) for second place. Full results are now up at http://www.fasterskier.com/racing3258.html David Chamberlain and Brayton Osgood in second and third Marshall Greene (XC Oregon/Alpina)...
Final Part of Three Part Series Trond, we’re centered so much on developing top racers, so what constitutes a talent in skiing to you? Talent is so complex it’s hard to define. I think of talent like a puzzle. Some people have parts of one piece, might be lacking one piece, or some having a more of this type. Obviously talent has to do with physical capacity. But it comes down to having the mental,...
Rocky Mountain Nordic Declares 2005-06 Women’s and Men’s State Champions The inaugural season of the Colorado Cup series of nordic ski races is in the record books. Overall and age-group champions for men and women were named after tallying nine races around the state in classic, freestyle, and pursuit formats. On the women’s side, Karen Waeschle won the overall title needing only a few races to build up a big point total due to her...
Here are some more photos from the first official day of Spring Series racing at the TAMC Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle, Maine. Canadian Dasha Gaiazova won the women's 10km mass-start classic race by over 30 seconds, while Kikkan Randall (APU) and Kate Whitcomb (FSx/Maine Winter Sports Center) sprinted in for second and third place respectively. Full results are now up at http://www.fasterskier.com/racing3259.html The train at the start of the climb, about 2km mark...
SESTRIERE, Italy — He may not have been on top of the podium, but for Steve Cook (Salt Lake City, Utah) the smile on his face told it all. After already winning two gold medals at the 2006 Paralympic Winter Games in Torino, Cook was on the podium for a third time, this time wearing bronze with his third place finish in the men's standing 20K classic race. “This has been an amazing week. I've...
The California Gold Rush has a reputation, well-deserved for many years, to be a spring slush-fest. Many years in the late 1980’s and ‘90’s found snow conditions by the 3rd lap of the contest to be knee-deep in creamed corn snow mush. But even though the Sierra Nevada still has an ample number of warm, late winter days, the past few years of this late-March classic has been anything but “spring-like,†with last year’s event...
The second annual Therapeutic Associates Youth XC Ski Festival, March 25th and 26th, will take place on the Mt. Bachelor trail system near Bend, OR and will include a Skiathlon, Sprint, Terrain Park Demos, Awards, and Raffles for cross country skiers age 13 and under. Races are scheduled as follows: · Saturday, March 25, 2006 Skiathlon (Classic & Skate) 11:30 am · Sunday, March 26, 2006 Skate Sprint! 11:30am Saturday’s Skiathlon will present a fun...
Part Two of Three Part Series Torin Koos is a member of the National A Team for the United States. A World Cup, World Championship and Olympic competitor, Koos brings this experience to the FasterSkier sportscasting arena for the 2005/2006 season. Equipment: Rossignol Skis, Boots and Bindings, Toko gloves and wax, Marwe, Exel poles, Rudy Project Eyewear, Powerbar Home Ski Club: Leavenworth Winter Sports Club ( skileavenworth.com ) Headgear Sponsor: USA Pears ( usapears.com )
Canadian Dasha Gaiazova broke away from a talented lead pack of women to win the first official Spring Series race, a 10km mass-start classic held at the Maine Winter Sports Center, by 35 seconds. Kikkan Randall overtook the Maine Winter Sports Center's own Kate Whitcomb (FSx) on the final climb and managed to hold her off to the finish. Christine Bisson outsprinted Wendy Wagner for fourth place. Karin Camenisch, who suffered a pole-tip to the...
Kris Freeman out-skied a host of other top US and Canadian racers on his way to winning the first official race of the 2006 Spring Series at the Maine Winter Sports Center in Presque Isle, Maine: the mass-start 15km classic. Temperatures were in the upper 20's (F) and the trails were covered by just enough ice and heavily transformed granular snow that there were only very occasional dirty spots. The challenge however was on the...
Source: FIS press release The 31-year-old Beckie Scott is the winner of the last women's Pursuit Cross-Country World Cup race at the FIS Nordic Pre-World Ski Championships in Sapporo. The athlete from Canada finished the course 1,8 seconds ahead of Kristin Steira from Norway. The third place took the German Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle, 29,9 seconds behind Scott. Scott's opponent for the World Cup trophy, Marit Bjoergen (Norway) finished fourth and repeat with that result her overall...
Anders Aukland of Norway won the Norwegian Birkie on Saturday. Hilde Gjermundshaug Pedersen won the women’s race. Source: Langrenn.com “We were skiing fast from the start and until we hit windblown snow and headwind in the mountains,” said Aukland right after the race. This was his first Birkie victory. He had a second place from 2002 as his best. That’s the year the Birkie was a World Cup race. The Norwegian Birkie is always held...
FIS World Cup Cross-Country in Sapporo (Japan), Team Sprint F, 18.03.2006 Germany I with Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle and Claudia Kuenzel won the women Team Sprint competition in Sapporo (JPN) clearly 14,4 seconds ahead of Finland II with Riitta Liisa Lassila and Pirjo Manninen. The third place took team Sweden II with 22-year-old Britta Norgren and Anna Karin Stroemstedt, 14,5 seconds behind the winning team. Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle attacked at her last lap on the last uphill and...
Proving once again that he is skiing as fast as ever, veteran Italian sprinter Christian Zorzi won a photo finish sprint to the line against Norwegian Eldar Roenning to give Italy the Gold in today's 6×1.2km team sprint in Sapporo, Japan. Zorzi and teammate Loris Frasnelli managed to hold off not only Norway's team of Roenning and Tor Arne Hetland, but nearly equally-strong efforts by Germany I (with World Cup overall winner Tobias Angerer and...