This weekend the domestic race scene kicks off with the West Yellowstone Super Tour. After 6 months of preparation and training it is exciting to have the opportunity to show off the hard work. I actually ski more on roller skis, ...
As a student of the sport of cross country skiing it is fun to switch roles sometimes and share my knowledge with others. This year marked the 5th year I have made the trip to Chicago for a weekend clinic with some of the most dedicated and passi...
Last weekend was the 7th annual Driveway Butte Hill Climb in Mazama, WA. This annual event has been an small informal test for the MV Nordic Team, MOD and locals. The race is about 2 miles (perhaps a bit more) and gaind 1,900'. This y...
The smoke continues to haunt the Valley so we took Highway 20 about 40 miles west this morning. When we leave Mazama and head up the Pass in to the Mountains there is a good 70 miles before the next town or services. This area is pretty muc...
September Camp at Telemark started with a huge bowl of fresh blueberries, oatmeal, hard boiled eggs, coffee, juice and just the boys. Eric, Karl and Adam and I haven been enjoying a small camp here at Telemark Lodge this week with Igor, Andy, and Kyle ...
Ships across the ocean.Ships across the sea.Captain, Captain.You can't catch me!Ships Across the Ocean is the favorite game of the summer. After several weeks in the 90F range we have been blessed with some cool weather in Minneapolis which makes...
One of the highlights of my summer has been taking a van full of kids from the Boys and Girls Club to Wirth Park for Loppet Adventure Camp. The City of Lakes Nordic Ski Foundation made this partnership possible. The logistics weren't easy b...
With the CXC Team training camps based out of Telemark Lodge in northern Wisconsin it makes it pretty convenient to catch up with my Hayward family and friends while in town. Hayward was home for a good six years and although I live in Minneapoli...
I have had an extended Spring this year enjoying cool weather for my training camp out in Washington State. The thermometer read 38F when I woke up to head to the airport, with 104F outside in Denver during my layover it became obvious that the h...
"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results" -Albert EinsteinIn order to continue to improve it is important to make changes. I am really excited about my training and preparation for the 2012/2...
It has been a long time since Minneapolis felt like winter, but believe it or no there is plenty of snow still around out West. After enjoying a wonderful warm spring, I returned to my home state of Washington to find some late season snow and sk...
My favorite mug growing up was a small hand made one with 'Sun Flower Iron 1st Place' painted on it. The Sun Flower Relay and Iron event is a running race from Mazama to Twisp through the front country during the peak of the arrowleaf balsamroot ...
"Will you take us outside?" is my favorite question to hear when I walk in the door at the Boys and Girls Club. Freeze TagThe Club didn't receive some of the funding we were expecting so we have been short staffed this week as the regular st...
The past three weeks have marked the most amount of time I have spent in one place for the past year. I enjoy the excitement of travel, but it has been nice to have a standard routine. After taking a good week off from training I have been ...
The 2012 ski season came to a close with the 50km National Championships in Craftsbury, Vermont. The organizing committee and hosts, the Craftsbury Outdoor Center did an amazing job making the event happen. When we arrived in Vermont we wer...
The final few weeks of the ski racing season are mostly racing with not much training. With 8 races over 16 days the goal is to rest and recover. Usually we don't get much opportunity to explore the places we travel to for races but with a ...
The transition to Europe went really smoothly for me. The 7 hour time difference from Minneapolis can mess with your body, but I seem to have handled it easily. I met up with a large group of Americans coming from the World Junior/U23 Champ...
Saturday I had my best race of the year so far in the 'greatest show on snow,' the 39th American Birkebeiner. The race had a deep field with 14 foreigners from Sweeden, Switzerland, Norway, Russia, Canad and Frace joining the Americans at th...
It is the heart of February and the snow in the yard is almost entirely gone and I swear the grass is starting to look green. It is a strange feeling for me to walk outside and cross the grass on my way to go skiing. For the...
Today concluded the Tour de Twin Cities a series of 5 Super Tour races right out our back door. Three races were contested at Wirth which really is right out our back door. On a good snow year it is faster to ski to the venue than it is to...