For a cross-country skier, there is nothing worse than the anxiety of
waiting for that first snow to fall. The angst grows as deep as a bridled
race horse waiting for the gates to open. All that we want to do is glide!
Is it too much to ask that the weather reciprocate our enthusiasm?
My options are limited compared to previous years. In my final semester of
college, I don’t have the luxury of escaping to higher altitudes or
latitudes. Final exams, papers, and projects are only a month away. When I
think about it, though, being limited to waiting for the snow to fall is
much less stressful than what I went through in previous seasons.
Last season might have been the worst.
Last year, I’m not sure that winter and I really met at all. After super
conditions on the Dachstein Glacier in Austria in September and a week of
skiing in the Torsby, Sweden ski tunnel in August, I had certainly been
spoiled by the time November rolled around. The U.S. Biathlon Team convened
in Torsby once again in early November thanks to the foresight of our
coaches Per Nilsson and Mikael Löfgren. (Somehow they knew that it was
pointless to travel hours for a few inches; maybe the weather-maker sent
them his plans for the winter.) After a week of tunnel training, though,
most of us were fried from the dozens of loops every day. It was time to
move on, but to where?
www.frozenbullet.com.
Sponsors:
Madshus Ski & Boots (www.madshus.com)
Patagonia Clothing Co. (www.patagonia.com)
Leki Poles (www.leki.com)
Casco Eyewear (www.cascoeyewear.com)
Honey Stinger Energy (www.honeystinger.com)
Lactate Pro & Spirotiger (www.fact-canada.com)
MN Army National Guard (www.dma.state.mn.us)
