Sunny skies and warm temperatures greeted sprinters on their arrival at Whistler Olympic Park this morning for the men’s and women’s sprint. This is a big chance for the Canadians and the U.S.—all six Americans are capable of qualifying for the heats, with three medal hopefuls in Kikkan Randall, Torin Koos, and Andy Newell. The Canadians are set up just as well, with Devon Kershaw, Sarah Renner, Dasha Gaiazova, and Perianne Jones gunning for the...
Got back up to the venue this morning to check out the Classic Sprint course for tomorrow. Lots of skiers cruising around the short 1.5km sprint loop, testing skis, inspecting the course, and doing final race prep. Zero skis (with synthetic bases) were kicking the best and harries skies (bases rubbed with sandpaper) were gliding [...]
While life in the Village might be rosy, it certainly doesn’t smell like roses. Our window and door are constantly open, but somehow we can’t get rid of the stench. Of all the things they provide in the Village, matches, candles, and fans are nowhere to be found. We’ve looked. Trust me. James and I fell asleep [...]
Got ‘er done. We had an ideal day for the Olympic 15km Skate in Whistler. After a week of warm temperatures and overcast skies, I couldn’t have asked for a better day. The race trail was prepared just right, firm and fast with plenty of spectators lining the course. I started with bib number 59, [...]
Happy Valentines Day. The cross country crew is getting ready for our first race of the Games tomorrow – the 15km Skate, with a little extra motivation from Johnny Spillane’s Silver medal in the Nordic Combined today. The combiners are up in Whistler tonight at the medals ceremony, while the cross country crew is in [...]
“Rain drops keep falling on my head, . . .” We woke up to partly sunny skies this morning, but the clouds moved in quickly and we’ve been getting some serious Pacific Coast rain all day. Fortunately, there are at least two meters (we are in Canada, eh?) of snow on the ground at the [...]
While his Canadian teammates were out marching in front of their home crowd in Vancouver at the opening ceremonies for the 2010 Olympic Games, Devon Kershaw was alone, 60 miles away, watching them on a “fuzzy, little, little screen.” Kershaw got a small consolation prize, according to his Twitter feed—seeing his girlfriend, Chandra Crawford, a few times on that tiny television. But his decision to stay near Whistler was one faced by dozens of athletes...
Sort of. I actually decided to stay in Whistler tonight in order to give the other athletes a little TV time at the Opening Ceremonies down in Vancouver. I wouldn’t want to take all the attention away from everyone else! It’s been another busy day around here with excitement buzzing. Although it’s still overcast, the sun [...]
After taking two days off of skiing for travel and processing, I couldn’t believe how good it felt to simply get outside and go skiing again this morning. So many things have been packed into the past couple of days that it felt like weeks since I’d been on snow. The trails at Whistler were exactly [...]
I arrived in Vancouver for the first time this season on November 1, 2009—barely three months ago. My arrival was completely uneventful and anonymous, getting off the plane, picking up my duffel and ski bag, and walking through customs. That trip was spontaneous and a big risk, taking my chances that there was going to [...]
Vancouver! My bags are packed and I’m ready to fly with the team to Vancouver tomorrow morning. We’ve got a full day of credentialing, briefing, processing (ie. picking up the new Team USA garb), press conferences, and the like. Besides that, I really am not sure what the next couple of days will have in [...]
Unexpected, unsolicited support of the entire US Cross Country World Cup team (well, the men’s team, anyway), as seen on a store front in downtown Canmore. Snow and tracks in downtown Canmore. If you’re into skiing on the street, check out the Madison Winter Festival, February 20-21 around the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisconsin. We are [...]
Another beautiful day for the Classic Sprint in Canmore. The day started well with two US women, Kikkan and Holly, as well as five US men, Torin (2), Andy (10), Simi (24), Cook (27), and Kuzz (26) out of a strong field of 70 some. Kikkan and Torin both ended up in 11th and the [...]
Matt Liebsch kicks back in the Hot Seat after posting the fastest time of the day early in the races. He held onto his seat for at least 10 minutes before the top Red Group skiers started crossing the line. Congrats Matt on scoring your first World Cup points today!
We start racing tomorrow! Friday, February 5: the women race a 10km Skate starting at 10am Mountain Time. The men start the 15km Skate at Noon. Saturday, February 6: the Classic Sprint qualifiers start at 10am for women, followed immediately by the men. Sprint heats start at noon. This is the final World Cup weekend before [...]
Taking a page from MTV’s Pimp My Ride, I bring you a sneak peak of some of the rides on the World Cup. . . Canada’s National Tourism Bus. Err, train? Monster truck? Who knows, but I’d be willing to bet the mileage isn’t as good as. . . Olympic Gold Medalist Chandra Crawford’s Toyota Prius. Be [...]
That’s right. . .the Hopkins boys upset the number one ranked team in the state to take the Section 6 title this afternoon and earn themselves a spot at the Minnesota State Meet! The two teams tied for points and Hopkins prevailed with a 6 second faster average time than runner-up Eden Prairie. From Coach Rob [...]
Some days are simply dialed. Today has been one of those days. Woke up at 7:30am after a full 10 hours of sleep to sunny skies and temps around -5 C (we are in Canada, eh?). Got out for a light morning jog before a filling pancake breakfast at our hotel. The World Cup bus [...]
Good-bye Park City; Hello Canmore. Getting up at 4am isn’t always easy, but I woke up excited and ready to roll this morning. Although it was a long travel day, each leg of the journey was dialed and on time. I’m back in Canmore for the second time this season, this time for the final [...]
I’ve gotten a few questions about the weeks ahead. Here’s what’s on tap: The next big event is the Canmore World Cup, held at the 1988 Olympic venue an hour outside of Calgary. The team convenes in Canmore on Monday, where I will be joined by US Ski Team and CXC Teammates alike. That will be the final [...]