We’re happy to welcome Patrick O’Brien back to the ranks of the Craftsbury Ski Club, this time as the Assistant GRP Ski Coach. Pat, a native of Putney, VT, raced collegiately for Dartmouth before his stint as a professional ski racer with the Green Racing Project from 2010-2014. While on the GRP, Pat competed in multiple World Cups and also became known to the Craftsbury community as a hardworking jack-of-all-trades with a deep love of...
The Craftsbury Outdoor Center (COC) is now accepting applications for an Assistant Coach with the Craftsbury Ski Club (CSC), supporting both youth and Masters cross country skiing and biathlon programs in northern Vermont. The CSC is seeking an individual with a diverse coaching skill set to assist in developing our Bill Koch League (BKL)/Junior/Master cross-country skiing and biathlon programs. The CSC operates under the umbrella of the Outdoor Center and serves roughly 300 people aged...
This article was made possible through the generous support of our voluntary subscribers. If you value coverage like this, please support FasterSkier with a voluntary subscription. CRAFTSBURY, Vermont — Craftsbury’s SuperTour Finals 40k highlighted some awesome battles amongst the top American men and women. The women started off the day with some extremely fast conditions on the winding and punchy Craftsbury 5k loop. The men took on the course later in the morning and conditions...
This article was made possible through the generous support of our voluntary subscribers. If you value coverage like this, please support FasterSkier with a voluntary subscription. CRAFTSBURY, Vermont — The second day of racing at Craftbury’s SuperTour Finals brought on some hard-hitting team relays. The “Club Relay” had a diverse array of club skiers young and old, along with some college teams. In the afternoon, the “SuperTour Relay” featured the North American pro teams along...
This article was made possible through the generous support of our voluntary subscribers. If you value coverage like this, please support FasterSkier with a voluntary subscription. CRAFTSBURY, Vermont — Craftsbury Outdoor Center kicked off the first of the SuperTour Finals races with a classic sprint on Friday. Yesterday’s weather brought gnarly, foggy, and temperatures in the 50s. Craftsbury’s grooming crew has been putting in long hours over the last few weeks to ensure that conditions...
The Craftsbury Outdoor Center is hiring for two coaching roles within its Green Racing Project (GRP), a year‑round elite Nordic ski program supporting post‑collegiate athletes pursuing national and international competition. These positions are in‑person roles based in Craftsbury Common, Vermont and are integral to the daily training, development, and competitive success of GRP athletes. Head Ski Coach – Green Racing Project The Head Ski Coach is responsible for leading the GRP ski program and overseeing...
This article was made possible through the generous support of our voluntary subscribers who have helped us put our Nat Herz on the ground at the Olympics. If you value coverage like this, please support FasterSkier with a voluntary subscription. Megan Chacosky had just finished cleaning up from dinner when she hopped on the Zoom from the US Olympic Cross-Country Ski Team’s pre-Olympic training camp in Livigno, Italy. “Yeah, that’s okay,” she said. “I appreciate...
When we spoke, Kristen Bourne was sitting on the couch in her living room in Truckee, California, a small ski town she now calls home. Tibetan prayer flags hung loosely behind her, shifting gently in the morning light that poured through the window. The room felt warm and calm — the kind of quiet space that comes from someone who spends much of her year on the move. Bourne smiled easily as she spoke, her...
The first time you meet Patrick Weaver, you might not realize you’re talking to one of the most quietly influential coaches in American skiing. There’s no bravado, no self-promotion. Just an easy Vermont calm — a man who measures his words the same way his athletes measure their training: carefully, purposefully, with feel. On a fall morning, the UVM Nordic team threads through the mist at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center, the quiet hum of rollerskis...
Any given day at Craftsbury Outdoor Center in the summer is a hive of activity. A sculling camp here, a group run there, and throw a rollerski race in too. Everyone though, comes back to the Center’s porch, eventually. On Friday morning, a group of middle school-aged runners, containing more than a few skiers among them, went out for their morning group run. When they came back around, a few lit into the hushed, excited...
The 2022 NENSA Summer Series hosted its first rollerski race of the season at the beginning of July. The Lost Nation Roll took place at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center on July 3rd, and by all accounts, was a huge success. Both men and women raced 10 k in an interval start format on the Outdoor Center’s paved rollerski loop. Coinciding with the Eastern Regional Elite Group (REG) camp, around 40 top Eastern juniors boosted the...
By Ian Tovell and Rachel Bachman Perkins Find FasterSkier’s coverage of Friday’s freestyle sprints here. Saturday: 10 k Interval Start Classic After another 4+ inches of snow fell throughout the day on Friday, NENSA described the conditions for today’s 10-kilometer interval start race as a “banner day for classic skiing” on the two-lap course at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center. The weekend of racing, titled the Henchey Memorial Carnival, included athletes of all levels, was described...
SuperTour racing continued on Friday in Craftsbury, Vermont, as part of the Henchey Memorial Carnival, which also included Eastern Cup and collegiate racing. The three-day event is presented by the Craftsbury Outdoor Center, NENSA, U.S. Ski & Snowboard, and the University of Vermont (UVM), the EISA carnival host school. Racers were faced with snowy conditions for the opening 1.4-kilometer freestyle sprint as a winter storm made its way across the Northeast. Friday morning’s grooming report...
For true skiing connoisseurs, cross-country skiing is where it is at. Downhill skiing might be a little more glamorous, more flashy, and make for the best GoPro videos, but nothing can beat the glorious joy and aerobic challenge of cross-country skiing. A far cry from the gravity-assisted ease of downhill skiing, your first attempt at strapping on cross-country skis might leave you baffled at the physics-defying skills required. But with a little perseverance (and a...
This article has been updated with additional information about the Birkie, about all races in Vermont, and about the current state of emergency orders in Anchorage. FasterSkier has previously reported on the significance of FIS points, points earned in races sanctioned by the International Ski Federation that can be used to compare skiers to one another even when they did not engage in head-to-head competition. Under normal circumstances, an athlete’s FIS points are used for...
On short notice in October, the International Ski Federation (FIS) reversed its fluoro wax ban for the upcoming season. Bryan Fish, Cross Country Sport Development Manager for U.S. Ski & Snowboard, explained this was termed a “delayed implementation”. What had been expected to be a fluoro-free racing scene at the FIS level, became a business as usual wax policy for 2020-2021. In short, fluoros, C8 or otherwise, are allowed at FIS sanctioned events. The FIS...
This past fall, the Craftsbury Outdoor Center (COC) updated its wax use policy. The New England institution was one of the first and among the largest cross-country ski centers to implement a policy curbing the use of perfluorinated wax on its premises. The Craftsbury Outdoor Center supports values and practices that try to minimize its impact on the environment while still providing recreational opportunities for visitors. The Craftsbury Outdoor Center hopes to help lead the...
The US SuperTour kicked off the first races of the new year at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center with a classic sprint. The event, dubbed the 2020 Lost Nation Cup, brings together senior athletes, EISA carnival teams, developing NENSA skiers, and citizen racers for a weekend of racing in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. “Retired” Craftsbury native Ida Sargent won the women’s race in a time of 3:55.47, followed by fellow CGRP athlete Kaitlynn Miller (+0.21),...
The Craftsbury Outdoor Center (COC) in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont has emerged as a premier year-round cross country ski training venue. The COC has also been a leader in embracing and promoting sustainability and environmental stewardships through their own day to day operations and educating their customers. They have invested in energy efficient buildings, a wood-burning central heating system, solar energy, and an abundant garden which allows them to grow much of their produce...
Last week, two long established entities in the New England nordic sport scene released updated ski waxing policies. The Craftsbury Outdoor Center (COC) made its move towards a fluoro-free future while the New England Nordic Ski Association (NENSA) laid out fastidious wax restrictions based on age-group competition. Craftsbury’s homegrown professional ski and biathlon teams race as the CGRP – or the Craftsbury Green Racing Project. The “Green” reflects the team’s Vermont based Green Mountain roots...