This update was sent in by Jesse Crandall, the Head Ski Coach at Western State College in Gunnison, CO. Western State College Ski Team coaches Evan Weiss (Alpine) and Jesse Crandall (Nordic) spent Wednesday evening on snowmobiles pulling a Tidd Tech groomer in the Kebler Pass area just 6 miles from Crested Butte. The heavy snowfall left 12-15 inches of great snow that will provide some amazing skiing for the Western State Ski Team as...
The Italian Biathlon Team tested this training method at Stelvio Pass (ital. Passo dello Stelvio). Located in Italy, the Stelvio Pass is at 2,757 meters, and is the second highest paved mountain pass in the Alps. In preparation for the Olympics in Vancouver, Biathlon head coach Paolo Riva thought to try something different at Stelvio Pass. For the past two weeks, the Italian biathletes lived on the mountain at 2700m, but trained in the valley...
West Yellowstone SuperTour November 23 and 24, 2007 The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association's SuperTour will be one of the highlights of the Yellowstone Ski Festival again this year. The Men's and Women's Sprint races will take place on Friday, November 23rd. The Men's 15K and Women’s 10K Classic races will take place on Saturday, November 24th. To register, visit: Zach Violett leads a few of his FSx teammates during the 2006 15K classic race...
With the kick off of the second edition of the Viessmann FIS Tour de Ski races in December, the Golden Ski event in Nove Mesto na Morave will celebrate its 70th anniversary. The Golden Ski is the most famous skiing competition organized in Nove Mesto and one of the oldest skiing races in the Czech Republic and Europe. The first edition took place on January 6-7, 1934. It was founded by Secretary of the Ski...
At a press conference yesterday, Gunde Svan was announced as the new General Manager of the Swedish National Team. A source in Sweden told FasterSkier that the announcement was “VERY unexpected.” Svan will start immediately and will have responsibility for the Junior, U23, Men's, and Women's teams. Bengt Statin, the current head coach, will continue in that role with Svan overseeing operations as his boss and working with media, PR, bookings, tour plans, and general...
This video begins the same as the earlier NYSEF video posting, but the entire 10 minutes consists of footage of the “Climb to the Castle” roller-ski race.
Ulf Morten Aune, the long-term Coach of the Norwegian Sprint Team including the overall Sprint FIS World Cup winner 2006/2007 Jens Arne Svartedal as well as Tor Arne Hetland and Eldar Roenning, presented a coach’s perspective to the FIS World Cup TD Seminar. His presentation focused on the rules for sprint competitions. After the presentation, he took the time to speak with Sandra Spitz of FIS and provide an update on his team’s preparations. Sandra...
Before leaving for Europe, Andy Newell sent us two technique videos from the recently completed USST camp in Lake Placid, NY. You can see some of the best athletes in the world in action! Classic Skate
The USST members were not the only ones showing their preseason muscle recently in Lake Placid. Many juniors from the New England region did not hesitate to hop in and rub shoulders with the big guns. NENSA capitalized on the opportunity to schedule a fall camp that coincided with USST training camp so their skiers could put some hours in alongside (or maybe a little behind) the top skiers in the country. Among the junior...
Athletes from the Callaghan Valley Training Center, a new Canadian National Athlete Development Center are submitting weekly reports to FasterSkier.com. The writings bring personal perspectives on training, skiing, and life in general. This will be an ongoing series so check back for more reports from these young athletes! The first several pieces are from earlier in the fall. For the past 3 months a small group of very talented cross country skiers and a world...
This is the second installment of a two-part interview. You can read the first installment http://www.fasterskier.com/news4585.html
“There are many different speed of rollerskis and this race had everything from the fastest to the average. A rollerski race is not a ski race. But any race is simply the opportunity to go as fast as you can – regardless of how fast your skis or rollerskis are or if you feel great or totally blow up. If you are healthy, to race and do anything but go as fast as you can...
Wilmington, NY ─ The New York Ski Educational Foundation (NYSEF) Nordic Program hosted the first annual “Climb to the Castle†Rollerski Race up the 5-mile Whiteface Memorial Highway on October 13. With clear skies and fall foliage coloring the trees at the start, racers climbed up New York’s 5th highest peak for an elevation gain of 3,000 feet. They were greeted at the top by frost covered trees and snow on the grass, to make...
Editor's Note: The Austrian Ski Federation's disciplinary commission found the four appealing athletes innocent of any involvement with doping in Turin. We will now see if the CAS agrees… On November 1st and 2nd, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne will rule on the appeal of four Austrian cross-country skiers. At the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin, police found suspicious materials such as syringes, blood bags, medicines and other equipment at the...
Fasterskier.com is excited to announce that the 'Coaches Around the Country' column will be back again this winter! This will be a bi-weekly column highlighting our ski coaches from around the country…. including elite coaches, college coaches, high school coaches, volunteer coaches, and learn-to-ski coaches, and ambassadors to our sport. This is an effort to sample a diverse group of coaches/volunteers and recognize the people who are the backbone of today’s nordic community. If you...
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) announced today the election of three-time Olympian Carl Swenson (Salt Lake City, Utah) to the USADA Board of Directors. Swenson, who competed in cross country skiing at the 1994, 2002 and 2006 Olympic Winter Games, will serve as an athlete member on the 10-person board. An eleven-time U.S. National Champion in cross country skiing, Swenson competed for the U.S. Ski Team on the World Cup 1995-2006, was captain of the...
Canada.com reports that officials plan to hold a job fair this month. “[Applicants] need to be adventuresome and reliable, of course,” said Craig Lehto, director of sliding sports for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Games. The Whistler Nordic Centre in the Callaghan Valley opens to the public this December for cross-country skiing. “We are hiring staff and we want . . . the local community to have an opportunity to be part of...
Here's some photos of skiing Friday in Fairbanks Alaska. Sunny skies and 30-degree weather greeted skiers at Birch Hill in Fairbanks Friday. Snow is thin, but over 10k of trails have been rolled and the skiing is pretty nice. Both UAF and the FXC junior program as well as a few other local enthusiasts were out taking advantage of the early season conditions. The attached shots are of the FXC group during their workout focused...
Final Lake Placid update including race and training shots.