By Jason Somers Introduction: Welcome to the jungle My quads were burning from too much snowplowing. My coach’s words were echoing in my head: “You are most stable when tucking.” I willed, begged, and pleaded with my legs to assume the position, but being in this aerodynamic position also meant I would go fast, too fast, because at the moment I had one small problem – I couldn’t see where I was going. This small...
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ANCHORAGE, Alaska — There are several strategies for winning the Tour of Anchorage, the annual 50-kilometer freestyle marathon from one side of town to the other that is the unofficial citizens’ race championship for the State of Alaska. There is one obvious way to lose it: Go out too hard on the climbs of the first 10 k, only to lose steam and be swallowed up by a chase pack at some point in the...
When is a race-time temperature of 2 above not so bad? When it's 16 below at the airport. Team Alaska was named as the Besh Cup series wrapped up in Fairbanks over the weekend, in conditions that one local skier described as "not too cold."
It’s not just a truism that one of the best ways to get good at going fast is to practice going fast. At least that’s the principle that Alaska Pacific University Nordic Ski Center (APU) coach Galen Johnston brings to bear when working with his athletes, no matter their age level or experience.
This summer APU is hosting a masters on-snow ski camp at the Thomas Training Center on Eagle Glacier. Come experience glacier training, just as APU’s Elite team and Olympians Kikkan Randall, Holly Brooks, Erik and Sadie Bjornsen make their seasons. “Skiers are made in the Summer” The camp is coached by Erik Flora, Dylan Watts, and Galen Johnston. Coaching staff has experience at nearly all ages and levels, from recreational to Olympic and World Championship...
The story of why one citizens skier trekked six hours (each way) for a race in a southern port city of Alaska. "Sometimes it’s important to travel for five days so that you can spend less than two hours racing, but do so on a course that goes from a mountain overlook to the shores of the Pacific Ocean," the author explains.