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Letters to My Younger Self: Murray Banks on Embracing Opportunity and Living Life to the Fullest

Rachel PerkinsApril 11, 2022

Editor’s note: This is the third essay in our series, “Letters to my younger self.” Lauren Fleshman provided the modern locus classicus for this genre, while John Wood and Adam Verrier kick-started the series on FasterSkier. When the private school at which my husband teaches offered him a sabbatical for the 2020-21 school year, we quickly began to fantasize about the ski town(s) in which we’d spend the following winter. A February 2020 trip to...

Book Review Community

Book Review: Going the Distance: Piecing Together a Life of Adventure by Elspeth Ronnander

Rachel PerkinsMay 4, 2021

For those immersed in the ski marathon racing scene, particularly in the Midwest, you’ve likely shared tracks with Elspeth Ronnander. A member of the Vakava Racing Team, a competitive masters group based in the Twin Cities, 36-year-old Ronnander has racked up over 50 marathon finishes in the last 18 years, sometimes within weeks of one another. Outside her rigorous training schedule and full time job as a nurse practitioner, Ronnander is a passionate writer who...

Biathlon Masters Racing

An Excerpt from “Nordic Warrior? A Midlife Crisis in Biathlon” By: Craig Wiggers

FasterSkierOctober 2, 2020

Craig Wiggers is a biathlete based in Ithaca, New York. Below we have a brief intro from Wiggers and an excerpt from his book, Nordic Warrior? A Midlife Crisis in Biathlon. As the title suggests, Wiggers came to skiing and biathlon midlife. His experience and anecdotes reveal a universal truth: it’s never too late to be fearless and try something new. **** My journey into Nordic biathlon as a southern raised, middle-aged, New York transplant...

Community Masters

One For Your Bucket List: Crested Butte’s Alley Loop Marathon

Rachel PerkinsMarch 17, 2020

Rounding the final turn off Butte Avenue toward the Slate River Valley at the start of the second and final lap, I had my eyes peeled for a ride. There: the man dressed in a Birkebeiner-esque sweater with suspenders fastened to his Swix pants just beyond the — is that the Jamaican bobsled team? This is Crested Butte’s Alley Loop, titled a “Birkie qualifier with a twist”, a moniker that falls far short of capturing...

General Masters News Racing

Masters World Cup Wraps up in Beitostølen

Gavin KentchMarch 18, 2019

BEITOSTØLEN, Norway — Team USA led the participation numbers while Russia topped the medal table in the 2019 Masters World Cup, the annual competition for skiers aged 30 and over that wrapped up in this mountainside hamlet on Thursday. Roughly 1,000 skiers from 26 different nations, from the predictable (Norway, Finland) to the unexpected (Thailand!), made their way to the Oppland region for seven days of competition and up to four races per athlete, three...

General Lifestyle Masters News Racing Testing Training

Glenn Bond Returns to Racing for Masters World Cup

Inge ScheveFebruary 15, 2011

Those who have been around North American racing for a while will recall Glenn Bond, who raced full-time with the Canadian team from 1992 to 2002. Well, Bond is back. This serves as your warning.