Ian Torchia – FasterSkier.com

Saying Goodbye to Some Big Names in Cross-Country: an International Retirement Roundup

Ella HallApril 5, 2022

Each year at the conclusion of the race season, there are always a few athletes who hang up their skis and step away from professional racing. The end of the four year Olympic cycle inevitably means a higher concentration of such announcements. Whether it was a fourth or a first appearance at the Games, or a near miss, the Olympics are always a target and their completion provides a good moment to move on. While...

Interviews News

Ian Torchia: An Early Retrospective as he Retires from Professional Skiing

Ben TheyerlMarch 10, 2022

Skiing-wise, Ian Torchia has nearly done it all. And now, in life, he’s ready to do some more. In an Instagram post following the American Birkiebeiner, Torchia announced that he is retiring from professional skiing with his trademark blend of gratitude and humor, saying, “In the end I won’t remember the races won (a few) or lost (many more) but the lifelong bonds of teammates, the support of friends and family, and how special the...

Continental Cup Racing Regional / Local

Sonnesyn and Agnellet Win Close Races at the 2022 Slumberland American Birkebeiner

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 27, 2022

FasterSkier’s American Birkebeiner coverage is made possible through the generous support of New Moon Ski & Bike in Hayward, Wisconsin. While you are at the Birkie be sure to visit New Moon Ski & Bike for all your local expertise. Among the final major races in the ski world in 2020, the Slumberland American Birkebeiner pulled off an event with all the festivities for which the storied event is known. It was pure Birkie fever,...

Continental Cup Racing Regional / Local US Nationals

Norris and Brennan Lead a Strong Showing for APU with Wins at the SuperTour 15k Mass Start Classic

FasterSkierJanuary 17, 2022

By Rachel Bachman Perkins and Ella Hall The 2022 Sun Valley Nordic Invitational continued Sunday with 10/15-kilometer mass start classic races, featuring SuperTour, RMISA collegiate, and Intermountain junior national qualifier divisions. With overnight temperatures in the low teens which rose to roughly 20 degrees Fahrenheit by start time, tracks looked ideal for kicking and gliding on the meticulously groomed trails at the Lake Creek Ski Center in Ketchum, ID. Today’s races featured four laps each,...

Continental Cup Racing Regional / Local US Nationals

Sun Valley SuperTour Rundown: Brennan and Norris Lead the 10/15k Mass Start Classic

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 16, 2022

Quick Recap: We’ll have a full race report up tomorrow, including athlete comments and photos, but here is a quick recap of the action in the men’s 15k and women’s 10k mass start classic, which took place this morning in Ketchum, Idaho. The 2022 Sun Valley Nordic Invitational continued this morning with 10/15-kilometer classic races at the Lake Creek Ski Center in Ketchum, Idaho. While temperatures were warmer than at the start of yesterday’s...

Continental Cup Racing Regional / Local US Nationals

Brennan and Hagenbuch Skate Away with Wins in Sun Valley SuperTour 5/10k Interval Start Free

FasterSkierJanuary 16, 2022

By Rachel Bachman Perkins and Ben Theyerl The final weekend of SuperTour racing in Period II, and the final weekend within the Olympic qualification window, kicked off Saturday at the Lake Creek Nordic Center in Ketchum, Idaho. Part of the 2022 Sun Valley Nordic Invitational, the SuperTour races were held in conjunction with a Montana State University RMISA event and an Intermountain XC junior national qualifier. Highlighting the size of the event, there were 157...

Feature Resources Training Workouts

The Nationally Shared Workout: A Look at the U.S. Pace Project

Pasha KahnJanuary 12, 2022

Last year, in an effort to create a standardized workout that could be easily replicated and repeated, national team coaches presented the concept of the “U.S. Pace Project.” The concept is straightforward: a shift away from time-based intervals to distance-based, centered around repeated laps of a 5-kilometer course. This familiar distance is key. In a call in July, Matt Whitcomb, U.S. Ski Team Head Coach, and one of the creators of the project explained that:...

Continental Cup Racing US Nationals

In-Depth Race Coverage: Slow Heats with Tight Finishes in the SoHo SuperTour Classic Sprint

FasterSkierJanuary 8, 2022

By Rachel Bachman Perkins and Ben Theyerl Precipitation was no longer a threat for the final day of racing in Soldier Hollow on Friday, a 1.5-kilometer classic sprint offered alongside the 2022 U.S. Cross Country Championships, yet classified as SuperTour only. However, athletes still faced unseasonably warm weather as blazing sun brought temperatures into the low 50’s on course during the midday heats. Howling wind and rippling bibs could be heard as background noise as...

Racing US Nationals

Rosie Brennan and Scott Patterson Take Distance Skate Races in Noteworthy Day for APU

FasterSkierJanuary 5, 2022

By Gavin Kentch, Ella Hall, and Rachel Bachman Perkins Tuesday brought distance races to Soldier Hollow, in the second full day of racing at 2022 U.S. Cross Country Championships. The story at the front of the field was strong performances by athletes who had begun the year racing on the World Cup, as Rosie Brennan dominated the women’s field to win by over a minute, and Scott Patterson took the men’s race by roughly twelve...

Community News Regional / Local

Elite Team Preview: SMS T2

Gavin KentchNovember 18, 2021

Team name and location: SMS T2 Team; Stratton Mountain, Vermont Coach: Patrick O’Brien Current roster: Jessie Diggins, Julia Kern, Katharine Ogden, Alayna Sonnesyn, Lina Sutro (women); Ian Torchia, Bill Harmeyer, Ben Ogden, Will Koch (men) Who’s new: Lina Sutro, coming from the University of Vermont ski team Who’s moved on: Sophie Caldwell Hamilton and Simi Hamilton, who celebrated their second wedding anniversary earlier this year, retired from pro skiing last spring and are beginning a new life...

Feature News Racing US Ski Team

Keys to the Castle and Free Fall Rollerski Races Light Up the Northeast

Rachel PerkinsSeptember 30, 2021

As summer turned to fall, skiers from the Stratton Mountain School T2 team (SMS T2), the Sun Valley Gold Team (SVSEF), and the Bridger Ski Foundation Pro Team (BSF) met in Lake Placid, NY for a collaborative training camp, capped off with two stages of rollerski racing. The weekend featured a freestyle sprint event — The Keys to the Castle — on the rollerski track at Mt Van Hoevenberg, followed by a distance stage dubbed...

Feature General News

Seeking Snow: SMS T2 Finds Glide Time in Oberhof, Germany

Ella HallSeptember 22, 2021

With temperatures dropping steadily each day and the first signs of winter visible on distant mountaintops, the mind of a skier inevitably turns towards thoughts of snow. For the professionals this goes one step further: how and when can they get on snow before the season starts? In the US, pre-season snow time is limited. Once the snow disappears on Mount Bachelor, the Eagle Glacier in Alaska is typically the only domestic pre-season skiing available,...

Community News US Ski Team

A PT in Norway: By Ned Dowling

FasterSkierApril 13, 2020

“Get whatever you want. I’m buying.” “It’s ok. I’ve got a card with me.” “No. You’re over here working for us. The least I could do is buy you a coffee and a bun.” Conversation over. Jessie Diggins bought my cinnamon bun and cappuccino. The same Jessie Diggins who won Gold at the last winter Olympics and is a regular on World Cup podiums just refused to let me buy my own snack at the...

Racing World Cup

Attrition in the Fog: Bolshunov pips Krüger for the Oslo 50 k Classic Win

Jason AlbertMarch 8, 2020

Oslo in late winter – it’s be hit or miss. Fog. Bluebird. A maritime climate, with plentiful moisture in the air, a slight drop in temps can morph the Holmenkollen ski complex into a ping-pong-ball-world. Athletes were mere shadows striding into and out of view on a foggy- drizzly day at the Holmenkollen. As spectators were limited to trail side spots as the main stadium was closed due to the Covid-19 virus, for some concerned,...

News Racing

Dyrhaug Outlasts Pack in Sub-2-Hour Birkie; Yeaton Shatters Women’s Record

Alex KochonFebruary 22, 2020

Several course records were shattered on Saturday in a largely faster-than-ever 46th annual American Birkebeiner, with temperatures steadily rising from the 20s at the start into the 30s by the finish of the point to point race from Cable to Hayward, Wisconsin. Eight men broke the two-hour mark in the Birkie’s 50-kilometer skate race, half of which are American, and an Australian national team member who trains in the U.S. broke the women’s race record...

Racing US Ski Team World Cup

Bolshunov Four for Four in Distance Wins; Norris Earns Season Best Result in 24th

Rachel PerkinsFebruary 9, 2020

Around and around they go. Due to lack of snow in Falun, Sweden, the men again wheeled their way around a manmade ribbon of snow, skating six icy 2.5-kilometer laps. Reduced from 30 to the 15 k distance and without the long, steep climb for which the course is usually known, how athletes would fare was yet to be determined. Along the way, two sets of 15 bonus points were available for the top ten...

Racing US Ski Team World Cup

Third Consecutive Distance Win for Bolshunov in Oberstdorf; Norris 28th

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 25, 2020

And the World Cup beat goes on. Nearly 70 men lined up in Oberstdorf, Germany for a 15/15-kilometer skiathlon, battling across techniques in front of a Bavarian Alp backdrop. The venue will be the home of the 2021 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships. The 3.75 k course in Oberstdorf featured a variety of terrain, with the Burgstall hill climb bringing athletes to the high point of the course. To increase the pulse in the long...

Racing World Cup

Nové Město Pursuit: Bolshunov in Command

Jason AlbertJanuary 19, 2020

More snow. More fans. On Sunday in Nové Město, Czech Republic, day two of a pursuit weekend unfolded amidst trees draped in snow and a 5 k course with portions lined with fans. With snow falling, the men raced a 15-kilometer classic pursuit. Rewind to yesterday’s first portion of the pursuit format, a 15 k interval start skate, which established the time-back start positions for Sunday. Russia’s Alexander Bolshunov won that race by a margin of...

General News Racing US Nationals

U.S. Senior Nationals Distance Classic Rundown

Gavin KentchJanuary 5, 2020

This post will be updated throughout the day with additional information. The last time Erik Bjornsen (APU/USST) raced at mid-season U.S. Nationals, it was January 2014. Competing at Soldier Hollow in a series of races designed to choose the American team for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Bjornsen captured his last mid-season national title when he won the 15-kilometer classic interval start race. He was followed by Reese Hanneman, Kris Freeman, and Sylvan Ellefson,...

Continental Cup Racing

Sun Valley SuperTour Results Round Up

FasterSkierDecember 16, 2019

This article has been revised to reflect the correct third-place finisher in both distance races. After a NorAm/Supertour race stint in Canmore, Canada the SuperTour split off and reconfigured in Sun Valley, Idaho over the weekend. Saturday featured a classic sprint at the Lake Creek racing venue a few miles outside of town. APU skier Tyler Kornfield qualified first, and made that mark count as he won the senior men’s sprint in 3:14.837. Luke Jager (U...

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