In Falun

We made it to Falun, Sweden, for the Masters World Cup. A bit of a rocky start, as the airline lost one of my bags in Chicago, so I spent the first day here skiing in the same clothes I had worn for about 24 hours of travel. Tried to not go too hard, as I had no dry clothes to change into. Of course my ski boots were in my carry on, so I was covered there.

Here is the view from our hotel room window. That is a sport community college in the foreground, a ski jump in the background. The race stadium is at the base of the jump, behind the college, a 5 minute walk from home.

Bandy practice (a Swedish game similar to hockey) after school on an outdoor rink. All part of the sport complex, and a great way to walk home after the ski, to the sound of skates and sticks.

A street in downtown Falun. The little we have seen so far we like a lot. Bikes, sleds, pedestrians, and everywhere snow. It is about a 15 minute walk, so I might not get there everyday. Lazy, I know.

My wife, Stefani, at the base of the jump after our first ski on the course. The course is beautiful, through forests of pines with rolling hills. Coverage is great, a mix of abrasive fresh snow and manmade snow. It is fairly squeaky snow, and race air temperature for my first race, a 30K classic on Saturday, will be around 5F. Tomorrow I will prep skis with Toko Nordlite Powder X-Cold.