My monthly post about June is up on XC Ski Girl's website. Check it out here if you're interested:http://www.xcskigirl04.blogspot.com/Also, I was finally able to put my classic max test on youtube if you want to witness some of the pain I experie...
The last two and a half weeks have been (another) whirl-wind of travel, training, testing & visits. Here it is, in pictures: After a red-eye flight and (three) airplanes to get from ANC to SLC for my first round of US Ski Team testing I ...
Note: This article has been updated to reflect the correct time between Holly Brooks and Alysson Marshall, and include quotes from Pate Neumann. One was a native. Another was a ringer. Both Brian Gregg and Holly Brooks found themselves at the front of the pack in the first of the The Bellingham Herald. It was Gregg’s second year on the competitive-open team. “The other guys on the team are really fast and it is fun...
We’ve reached a lull in the ski-related calendar, which means more time for producing podcasts. Kicking things off in this episode is a discussion of the 2012 U.S. Ski Team cross-country nominations and an interview with its lone addition, Holly Brooks.
There’s only one new name on the
So, I can finally talk about it, it's official. As is everything on the Internet, right? I'm officially a member of the 2012-2013 US Ski Team! While I trained and traveled with the squad last year and all winter, I was a guest. Everyone made me f...
So, for the past couple of years I've been wanting to write some blog posts about food and nutrition; what works, what doesn't work, what I eat before and after training, etc. I even have a large un-used folder with things like pictures of fresh Alaska...
No, not that A-Team. (Although she’d probably kick some butt.) As discussed recently over at FasterSkier, Brooks just missed qualifying via objective criteria, as she finished 55th in the World Cup overall. That means that if she’s named, it will have to be based upon some discretionary judgement by the coaches. I think you can [...] Related posts:
A friend and avid skier from Seattle, "XC Ski Girl" asked me if I would do a guest post 1x per month on her blog, the idea being to give folks some ideas of what my training goals for the next month is, etc. Here is a link to her blog and my post...
Like everyone else, I had huge intentions of writing a huge blog post (almost a month ago now) reviewing my season, talking about the highs and lows in detail - and covering everything in between. However, in reality, I needed time to rest - both my bo...
At the highest level of nordic ski racing in the U.S., athletes know making the national team isn’t so much of a black-and-white decision; coaches mostly see red. Based on U.S. Ski Team criteria, any skier that ends the season in the red group by finishing in the top 30 of the World Cup or FIS distance or sprint lists is essentially guaranteed a spot on the A-team. Those who finish outside those standards can...
CRAFTSBURY, Vt. – Shaking out the legs, clicking into their skis and moving their bodies just before the Friday’s 30-kilometer mass start at U.S. Distance Nationals, about 50 women looked straight ahead, all likely thinking the same thing. This is it. One more and we’re done. Some prepared for 20 times around a 1.5 k loop thinking each was a victory lap. Afterward, they’d be finished for the season. Four to five months of racing...
Another mini-tour is under the belt, this time in North America. I returned to the states a little more than a week ago to finish off the season on US soil with my club team, APU Nordic Ski Center. Speaking of that team.... how's this for en...
JAY, Vt. – Every uphill has to end at some point. But what if it’s a mountain, and what if you can’t see the top? Nearly 70 women and 90 men probably thought something along those lines as they ascended a 1.8-kilometer freestyle hill climb at the Jay Peak alpine resort on Wednesday. As part of the SuperTour Finals, the event was a pursuit with the mini-tour leader starting first and the rest of the...
CRAFTSBURY, Vermont — Even though she now has a World Cup podium to her name, a win at SuperTour Finals had eluded Sadie Bjornsen (APU/USST) until Sunday morning, when she claimed the 10 k mass start classic on the second day of racing at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center. Rain isn’t usually at the top of the list of desirable ski conditions, but as the snow soaked through prior to start, Bjornsen couldn’t wait to start...
CRAFTSBURY, Vermont — She was busy posting top-20s on the World Cup just last week in Falun, Sweden, but Jessie Diggins (CXC/USST) clearly has plenty of gas left in the tank. For the SuperTour Finals 3.2 k freestyle prologue, she won by 7.2 seconds against a competitive women’s field. Holly Brooks (APU) took second and Sadie Bjornsen (APU/USST) finished third (+8.6), with another 7.5 seconds between third and Becca Rorabaugh (APU) in fourth (+16.1)....
Once again, sorry for the delay in posting. I suppose I've been busy hopping time zones, countries and racing scenes. Surprise, surprise, racing takes it out of you and add some intense travel on top of that plus the new-found 75 degree heat that...
For her final European race of the year, Holly Brooks (APU) left her mark at the top of the results list yet again, holding off Sovenia’s Barabara Jezersek and Alenka Cebasek in the 10 k freestyle pursuit for the overall OPA Cup Finals win in Toblach, Italy. Outside the top three, the rest of the field had no chance — Debora Agreiter (ITA), the fourth-place finish, was 34.1 seconds back. All weekend, Brooks has battled...
Holly Brooks (APU) wasn’t sure how to approach the first OPA cup of her life on Friday, but for Saturday’s 5 k classic she had a better feel for what to expect. Friday’s effort yielded a silver medal and one second’s separation from gold, and Saturday’s race was even closer. Brooks won the individual start race by 0.2 seconds over Barbara Jezersek (SLO), and third-place finisher Alenka Cebasek (SLO) was 0.9 behind. Brooks started directly...
While their compatriots were gutting it out in the World Cup Finals prologue in Falun, a handful of U.S. athletes were contesting the same format at OPA Cup Finals in Toblach, Italy. Friday’s 2.5/3.3 k freestyle event was the first in a series of three races in Italy. Holly Brooks (USA) turned in the top performance for the U.S., coming in second place to Slovenia’s Alenk Cebasek, who won by one second. Brooks has gone...