POSTING

I figured out how to delete all of the advertisements and financial opportunities that have been spammed onto my comments - You would think that they would realize US cross-country skiers are actually NOT interested in gainful employment, since we are XC skiers! Silly-heads. I will try to stay on top of deleting them as they are posted. How irritating.

The trails were great yesterday at Kincaid. Groomed and tracked with courses marked. Maps can be found on the event website, as well as other race information. When I know who is doing the actual timing, I will post a link to their sight too, as it will be updated before the event site is.

Moose count: 1

Dead plant count after 30 days on the road: Zero (believe it or not, that plant above is not dead, just mostly-dead). "There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive."

In an attempt to gain some real comments - a prize to the first person who can name who said the quote above and the movie (GREAT movie!)

THE FINAL COUNTDOWN

The song is by Europe, the location of THIS final countdown (National Championships: the final Olympic qualifier) is Anchorage, AK.

Last year it was cold. When I say cold, I must stress that last year's conditions redefined the word. It was so miserable that I have heard people (when talking about current circuit conditions) ask "is it Alaska cold, or just cold?"

Yeah, it was bad. Like can't breathe, most of the races were canceled, bad.

This year it is downright balmy. 18 degrees on my run yesterday (12 noon) and I am heading out to the venue to ski this morning - course conditions to come.

With almost 300 athletes already registered, it is going to be a good time. Sun Valley ODT is staying in a B&B with a dog named Cuddles who has massive dingle-berries. I can't imagine he gets many cuddles but I will let you know.

The week's schedule.

CA to USA

Somewhere in the US - we just crossed the border. Yay, on our way home! Comfort Inn with Mikey and Reid, Trav and Rick in the room next door.

Better day today, I skied into it. Qualified 18th and ended up 9th. Not good points, not a great day but better. As long as I am winning by Nationals, things will go as I know they can. I need some low points - seriously low.

For now, I will sleep, rest and be ready to let the dog run come January! Night all, Kate

DAY 1 - CLASSIC SPRINT

UPDATED: 6:30am - Morning run. It is WARM out there!
7:29am - Call from the coaches saying it is SO warm, we might need klister skis! 1:45 of ski testing yesterday, waxing and race preparation out the window. And so it goes. I love klister and I hope it goes there. If not today, most likely it will tomorrow.

We have heard forecasts from the teens to the forties so anything goes, here in Canmore, Alberta. Game continued...

11:11am - I start in the back, with the juniors because I don't have any points from last year. I started 4th from last today and passed 2 girls before I even got out of the stadium. To start with - that equals not fast. Another thing that equals not fast is when you are the only one herring boning up all of the hills. I was into it but things just didn't line up for me today.

The good news is that tomorrow we have the exact same race on the same course with the same technique. Believe me, my skis will be kicking up those hills tomorrow.

Most of the team plans to sit out the heats today since US qualification goes off of the prelim. We will all be ready for tomorrow.

Results will be HERE when they come up. I didn't stick around to see how I or anyone on the team placed. If I know before Zone4 posts, I will do another update.

A disappointing day for me but it is done. Fuel for the fire. `kate

BC TO AB

The team left Silver Star, British Columbia Canada yesterday morning and made the crazy-beautiful drive to Canmore, Alberta.

One view from the back of the bus - not to shabby

I woke this morning to a small head-cold and an unplanned day off. I will be out skiing tomorrow if things don't get worse. For now, I am eating lots of Thyme, Cumin and heading for a nap.

Back in connection with the World Wide Web (aka, World Wide sans our last location) so check back soon.

WEST '09, concluded.

Saturday's 15k classic

This first week of the season in West Yellowstone, MT didn't go as I had hoped. Top 30 in the 3 starts so far is not even close to where I need to and know I can be. I had a long ski alone in the sun today to think on it all, came to some good conclusions and this coming weekend is going to be better... good even!

The SVODT is staying in West until Thursday, when we will head up to Bozeman for a skate sprint and 10/15k classic race.

Great job to our US athletes in Europe - getting it done. Podium in your future Bird, we are all routing for you!

THE 4-8 MINUTE RACE

West Yellowstone, MT - Today's race was a sprint. The unique part about it however, was that we only did the qualifier. In the Olympics, if you don't qualify in the top 30, your day will be finished. The best way to select the fastest Americans, that will make it into that top 30, is to give points to the qualification round. With more races this weekend, heats were not run.

Just over 4 minutes for the fastest and as long as 8 and a half for the back of the pack, there was no room for error today. My roommate was 2nd, GO SIMI! (Sorry, I had to get that out of the way.) The other half of our house (that would be me) didn't do so hot.

I don't have any sprint points from last year and so I started 256th, in the back of the pack. Consequently, I did quite a bit of passing, although it was more than my position that led to my 29th place finish. My skis were great (thanks to Mal, Ash & Trav) but my pace was more suited for a 5k.

First start in a year under the belt and I have my 5k pace down for Saturday's race. All is not lost. Here are the top finishers from today with full results available at Summit Timing.

Women:
1. Dasha Gaiazova, Canada
2. Laura Valaas, USA
3. Shayla Swanson, Canada
4. Holly Brooks, USA
5. Madeleine Williams, Canada

Men:
1. Garrott Kuzzy, USA
2. Simi Hamilton, USA
3. Sean Crooks, Canada
4. Drew Goldsack, Canada
5. Reid Pletcher, USA

2009-2010, SEASON START

The birds fly south, the retired migrate to Florida and the skiers pack up their duffel bags to chase flakes in West Yellowstone, Montana. This is November; the season of location change.

Although my ski team comes darn close to immediate, it has been almost a decade since I have had Thanksgiving with my family. This year, we race on the eve of the feast as well as the two days following so the day of thanks will be filled with eating and resting!

Colin, Sophie, Mikey - North of Ketchum, the week before West

A year ago this Friday I raced the first event of the season and tore 2 and bulged 3 disks in my lower back. This time around, things will be better. The classic sprint on Wednesday is a qualifier (roughly a 1.5k race). Friday is a 5k skate with a 10k classic to follow on Saturday. These are three races that I am excited for, confident about and ready to do. Let the games begin.

Ferritin update: From 11 in September to 20 in October, I am now at 30! Continuing my treck back up to 60, where I was in '06, I am headed in the right direction. hopefully a really encouraging post to come on Wednesday! `kate

SHIFTING GEARS

There are sports within skiing - alpine, telemark, cross-country, et cetera. Within cross-country skiing, there are techniques – classic and skate. Dissect the cross-country skate technique and you find gears – V1, V2, etc.

I was recently asked how V2 alternate fit in with the other gears. I believe the best way to relay my understanding is through both showing and telling (read and watch on):

V1 is a very powerful gear but not necessarily one that can be maintained at high speeds (sort of like first gear on a car); it is good for starting, getting up to speed, power, steep climbs, et cetera.

V2 comes next (second gear) and is still very powerful but can be used at a higher speed. In other words, once you get up to speed (or the terrain changes) to propel you past the efficiency of V1, you switch to V2.

When you have reached maximum speed with V2, V2 alternate (3^rd gear) is the next shift. V2 alternate still has a powerful pole-stroke but it is only on one side. The one-sided pole allows for more glide, a strong kick and consequently a technique maintained at even higher speeds (down a hill, on a fast flat, etc) than V2 allows.

4^th gear, one of my favorites, is the tuck skate. You can swing your arms or keep them tucked up depending on speed, wind and how comfortable you feel. It is the technique used when you are going too fast for V2 alternate but not fast enough for a straight tuck. It is a great technique for windy conditions, as it keeps your upper body compact while allowing a strong kick.

A straight tuck is 5^th gear.

Skate Gears - thanks for shooting Eric!

Many times it is NOT necessary to go through all of the gears; when driving a car, it is called speed shifting. While skiing, you might shift from V2 into a tuck, which skips V2 alt. and the tuck-skate. In an extreme case, you might be hammering over the crest of a hill in V1 and go straight into a tuck for a steep downhill (1^st to 5^th gear shift).

I think the most common technique to leave out is the tuck-skate (4^th gear). It is one of my favorite styles but I don’t see it used often. Maybe folks like to recover their legs on the downhill...? I prefer the speed and it flushes my legs better than getting into a tuck (unless I need to catch my breath).

Give transitioning from gear to gear a conscious effort. See if you tend to skip a gear, have a favorite or feel more comfortable in one opposed to another. Work on skiing to both sides (V1 to the right and to the left) and force yourself to practice the techniques, gears and sides that you are less comfortable and coordinated doing.

17 days until the first race of the season.

Living the dream,

`kate

SPEED - the workout

I received a question about a specific speed workout via email recently. On paper, the workout looks like this: 3(6x30s) start, drop-in, transition speeds.

Many teams (including the USST and SV ODT) do this or a similar workout to reinforce technique, tempo and reaction time during specific parts of a race. It is a series of short sprints that practice taking off quickly, changing technique and tempo with an emphasis on speed.

We do each of the 3 specific intervals 6 times (3 sets of 6) and run each set to completion before starting the next. We take 3 minutes rest between each interval and 10 minutes rest between sets. Each interval is between 15 and 30 seconds and the entire workout takes about 2 hours.

Starts begin at a complete stop and often use a mock starting gate (complete with starting wand and exact world cup geometry). These speeds get the athlete use to reacting quickly to a gun or voice command, training fast-twitch muscles to go from zero to top speed as quick as possible. They are the shortest interval in this workout, around 15 seconds total. This video is cropped short but shows the actual start.

Kate Whitcomb - classic speed, starts

Drop-ins start by going down a slight hill, using gravity to help reach a higher speed than our own propulsion allows. Drop-ins reinforce technique at high speeds and teach one to ski at a faster speed than attainable without aid. The interval starts once you are up to speed, moving as fast as possible to keep the momentum. These can also be done by getting pulled up to speed (slightly more dangerous, perhaps) and should ideally be done on a nice stretch of road with little or no traffic.

Colin Rodgers - freestyle speed, drop-in

Transitions are speeds that have either a sharp enough corner or grade-change to force technique or tempo to adjust. In lake placid, the team went from a flat, double pole, into a steep enough hill to run (or stride), shown in Andy Newell's video. In Sun Valley, our transition course includes a sharp corner on a hill, which demands tempo and technique changes (as well as positioning when done as a group).

C. Rod, E. Fag & S. Ham - Freestyle speed, transition

I hope everyone is enjoying the cool fall weather. Temperatures have been ideal for training in Ketchum this week. Sun Valley has started blowing snow on Dollar mountain and there is some natural stuff on Baldy. I hiked through about a foot of snow yesterday, en route to Pioneer Cabin and ate some while running Baldy earlier in the week. Snow is here and West is just weeks away. Game on!

THE LAST 4

Childhood bedroom, Worthington, MA - From intervals and lots of good food in Placid to easy running and story telling in Virginia (good food there too!) the last 4 weeks have contained lots of training, travel and laughs.

Starting with a week at my folks place in Worthington, MA, I jumped into a 5k running race with my dad. Some good sleep and sea-level interval training rounded out my first week.

Lake Placid brought some cooler weather and overcast. Nicole and I finished a distance run in sleet and rain and the group skied a section of the time trial in heavy wind and a bit of precipitation but we had dry pavement and good visibility during the roller ski workouts that involved highway skiing (which is when it is most needed).

I then shot down to VA to catch up with come college girl-friends. Thanks for putting us up and putting up with us Laura! Thanks for traveling with me Brie-Brie. I love you girls! Spring break in Idaho?

Now I am home, about to get a turkey sandwich for lunch, delivered bedside (thanks Dad) before heading out to do some specific strength on my roller skis (if you have not noticed, I love run-on sentences). Then it is back to Idaho for the final push before the first races.

The snow has already flown (my 5th graders had a snow day last week) but I won't put my roller skis away just yet. I hope everyone is enjoying the fall colors!

Afternoon hike with the girls (Brie, Kate, Laura), somewhere in VA

LP camp, headed out to ski - the sun joined us in the end

Easy f-roll sunflower ski, Worthington, MA

VERMONT

Middlebury, VT - The Placid camp ended and I shot across the lake (no sign of Champ this time). I spent the night at a friends house (Thank you Jan & Brad!), popped in to see my College coaches (sorry to miss you Patty) and had lunch with my little bro by the river (I love you Jake!).

Less than 24 hours in the town I called home for 4 years. This weekend brings stretching, foam rolling and jogging for recovery then it is back to intervals on Monday.

Sorry for the short update - Pictures to come from LP camp and training at my folks.

SPEED

Today was a snow-day, back home in Ketchum, Idaho! Here at the Olympic Training Center in Lake Placid, NY however it was a great day to roll. Fed below, a video from Andy Newell's YouTube page consisting of video from yesterday and this morning's workouts. Thanks for the face-time Andy boy. I am in black spandex shorts, a florescent tank and helmet (like everyone else :)

Video by Andy Newell, xskifilms

Fe

As a female, endurance athlete living at altitude, I have three strikes against me when it comes to Ferritin. A ferritin score indicates iron storage in the body. A normal range for Ferritin is between 8 and 250. For a healthy female athlete, I have been told I should shoot for 65 (20 being the ABSOLUTE lowest).

Iron is important because it is responsible for getting oxygen to my muscles and also for cell growth. A week ago, my Ferritin was at 11. Translation = I failed the test miserably!

I have blood work done at least once each year to keep me honest on just this sort of thing. With two months until the first races I won’t lie – this slip is not good. It makes me weak in my training and slow with recovery. I do have time, however to make amends.

Liver and onions, who knew that something so nasty looking, sounding and smelling could be half good. Okay, not quite half-good, but I will give it an honest 38% good. Liver is on the top of the list of iron-rich foods, lucky me. Oysters and beef round out the top three Heme (from animals) iron options. Soybeans, lentils and molasses are some of the highest Nonheme (from plant) choices.

Of course it is never as simple as just eating a steak - Iron bonds to Calcium, which inhibits the body from absorbing either element. There goes my refreshing glass of milk after dinner! Red wine contains tannins, which also decrease absorption (so that glass of red wine with red meat needs to be rethought too). Things like vitamin C and white wine help the body absorb iron but lets be honest, a glass of OJ just doesn’t cut it with steak!

I am at sea level this month, which will help me boost my Ferritin too (I hope). I will get re-tested upon my return home (October 15^th). Results from that to come – you can hardly stand the suspense, I know.

Thanks for reading,
Kate

BORN TO RUN

Born to run, a claim that I would not make about myself (although I do enjoy it). I have always thought of myself as a Big Dog (a don't jump out of the truck, take it easy on the pavement sort of deal). Over the years, my ipod, new shoes and good friends have helped with motivation on long runs until now...

After reading Christopher McDougall’s Born to Run, I don’t know that I need them anymore. My last run was solo, without music, sans shoes and effortless. The shoeless part was only 10 minutes out of 90 but regardless; I have a new take on putting one foot in front of the other.

I usually prefer to relax with historical novels or straight up fantasy; leaving the training, nutrition and competition topics to real life. That said, this book covers all of the topics that I usually shy from AND, I loved it, recommend it and am writing about it. Translation: read it.

Christopher McDougall, a middle-aged guy trying to lose a few pounds by running a few miles each day, wondered why he kept getting injured. He went past drug cartel, into the canyons of Mexico in search of the secrets of the Raramuri tribe to find out.

Even if you are not a runner, this book speaks about the passion of doing something you love - about finding balance and having conviction. In fewer than 300 pages, this book had me (a self-motivated, lover of running and health conscious athlete) rethinking my nutrition, athletic equipment and gave me a mental overhaul. If nothing else, it is nice to hear another side of a much-discussed topic – running injuries.

As an aside I would like to note that Born to Run is my 7^th book completed since summer. It puts me exactly 6 books ahead of Simi, my roommate and competition in our reading club (and by club, I mean race). More to come on THAT in the future, I am sure.

WHISTLER CAMP

WHISTLER - The Sun Valley Olympic Development Team (ODT) has made it to Whistler, BC, Canada. You can follow our tweets on Twitter, if you are ever in need of short one-liners about where the ODT is and what we have been up to. You can also check it here - see sidebar to the right, which now contains the direct feed.

After a long drive to Seattle, we picked up a ridiculously nice Explorer van from T-dub, one of the most generous dudes that I have the pleasure of knowing. Thank you Tony! From there to here, the drive was significantly nicer (a 30" flat-screen sometimes has that effect on a drive).

Today brought L3/4 classic intervals with it. We joined the USST and some inspiring juniors on the Olympic sprint course. My back feels strong and I was light and snappy today - a good session for sure. Stronger and closer, it is all I can ask.


5x6min later, Nicole, Colin and I sped up leg recovery for 12 minutes in the river. This afternoon brings a distance run (1.5 hours) and again, we will be ready! Each day, each workout, we must be stronger, more recovered, faster, quicker... closer to our goals. Every workout. Everyday.

Naptime.

SUMMER'S END

KETCHUM - This summer started out with some bloody-hard training, literally! My 5th graders are on summer break, so I have not had the chance to visit regularly with them. I have seen them around town, however, and we have shared stories and scars of our adventures.

A German Shepard bit me in the face while on a run one night. The following day, I cheered one of my 5th graders on in a skateboard competition. He fell while attempting a new trick and we jumped into the river after to sooth our wounds and laugh the pain away.

I watched an uphill time trial that some of my ITA kids participated in. One boy was pretty upset with his final result so I went on a cool-down jog with him post finish. We talked about goals and how the most meaningful ones are not always so easily reached. I told him about a rock climb that I tried over a dozen times before making even the first move. In the end we both decided to keep at our goals, regardless of how many times we have to try.

Although I have not had a scheduled ITA community-project summer, I had some great opportunities to interact with my past and current ITA kiddos. Being an athlete isn’t 9-5 and good role models can’t punch out for the weekend. I trained hard to get closer to my goals this summer and tried to make sure that those around me made it through their own blood, sweat and fears to stay on track towards theirs. Ski racing might be an individual sport, but it takes a great community too. Thanks to all who have given me support through my first 3 years of living in the Wood River Valley!

Fall is here, by my calendar, and I start the drive towards to the 2010 Olympic venue tonight (literally). We are going there for a training camp. Figuratively, I started the drive towards Vancouver long ago. More from across the border...

DUFFEL USA

KETCHUM - It is week 18 of 52, according to the average skier’s calendar (May 1st being the start of the new training year). Week 18 does not seem that far along but in reality, it is almost fall. Snow is around the corner!

I took it easy this past week after a 2-week volume block. My family was in town for the lull before the travel storm. Matt, my brother, and I joke about where we are from - Duffel bag, USA for me during the ski season and Duffel International for him.

Matt, Dad, me, Jake & Mom

Ski season means time spent on the road, living out of a Duffel bag. You pack for a race and wear the same things day after day for two weeks. You come home, empty the duffel into the laundry machine, take it out of the dryer and put it directly back in for another two-week racing adventure.

This year, I am REALLY excited to have a new house (aka, a new duffel bag). It is the Patagonia Stormfront 100, which is waterproof up to 6 feet! Why, you might ask, would a skier want a waterproof bag? Well, I will tell you, that we travel in a van with our skis and bags on top, open to the elements. I am hoping that the Stormfront 100 will not only be waterproof up to 6-feet, but also up to 90mph! Stay tuned for results and thank you George and Patagonia for the bag - It will be glorious to have dry clothing without having to worry about the tarp flying off the van roof… again.

Tomorrow I pack for the first chapter of this year’s Adventures in Duffel, USA. The Sun Valley ODT leaves for a Whistler training camp (Aug 26) - then home to Idaho for a bit before heading off to sea level camp at the OTC in Lake Placid (Sept 26). After the New York chapter, it is just a turn of the page before the first race in West Yellowstone (Nov. 25).

It is every day’s mission to better prepare me for the next. This is week 18. It is 14 weeks from West, 6 months from Vancouver… Today, I made myself stronger for tomorrow and tomorrow I will do the same.

Living the dream and giving my all, Kate

YOU ARE INVITED

Come join Sun Valley's own 2010 Olympic hopefuls for a night of music, food and inspiration. Bryon Friedman, a former pro alpine racer, will be providing the majority of the auditory ambiance.

Bryon skied on the US Ski Team before a premature retirement due to a leg injury in 2005. As a National Champion and top 10 World Cup skier, we are lucky to have Bryon supporting our current dreamers and do-ers.

An acoustic/folk rock rhythm, his music can be listened to HERE. One of my favorite songs is Couple of Friends.

Ruben Macaya, SVSEF alpine director and former US Olympic team coach, will provide an Argentinean lamb dish.

August 16th, 5-9pm
Forest Service Park, Ketchum
Adults $25, Children (6-17) $15, Kids under 5 free
email karoline@svsef.org for purchasing information

Click on the image to see it full size (and be able to read it)

I hope to see you there!

PETTIT TO TIMP

IDAHO/UTAH - Summer is in full swing, here in the Wood River Valley. The Olympic Development Team just got back from a week-long camp in Utah. Thank you Scott, Chris and the team at Soldier Hollow who let us monopolize the place for 5 days.

We spend our nights in the basement, strewn across the deck and lawns of the SoHo venue. We tried our best to play nice with the other residents, mainly earwigs, during the day - and by nice I mean ran from, cussed at and stomped on.

We played hard, slept like rocks, and smiled all-day everyday. We put in some solid hours of training and took advantage of the steep-grade roller ski trails. Video clips from technique to come in a future post.

Simi found dueling bananas in the same peel that Trav adopted and coddled the entire week. The affair concluded with a full-on photo shoot (evidence pictured).

We hiked Mount Timpanogos (11,749') and swam in the ice covered mountain pond on the way down (see video below). We glacided, made friends with some mountain goats, and thought of our teammate Willie, often.

After the hike, we hit up the 7 Peaks water park. I received a black-and-blue the size of a soft ball from the blue slide. Simi almost fell 25 feet after launching himself down the same blue slide and Trav beat me in a head-to-head race (our excuse to avoid doing the blue slide again).

Our return trip home was uneventful, although Sim's roller ski did fly off of the van on the Interstate at 80mph. No one was hurt and the ski was recovered, somehow undamaged.

Pettit Lake, thanks Sinnotts! and hiking Timp

All for now folks. Live your dreams, don't just visit them at night!

CITY OF ROCKS

Earlier in the week, I headed to the City of Rocks with part of the team. It was a chance to get out of town before the 4th of July rush started and add some variation to strength.

We slept hard under the stars, ran long in the morning and climbed until dark. I think we fed the neighborhood chipmunks about as much as we fed ourselves (a lot!) and probably each came home with a few new smile lines. Good times, good training and good company.

I did make that jump, just not on camera. Promise! After the city, we returned home to an uphill running time trial, know as Harpers. One of our coaches, Chris Mallory, took some video:

For Mallory's update on Harpers, as well as future goings-on with the ODT, check out our team page on faster skier, or our SVSEF site.

This morning was our first public hike (images below). We headed from Lake Creek to the top of Fox Creek with ideal weather in tow. Thanks to all who showed. We look forward to an even bigger group next time! As always, click on the images to see them full sized.

Laugh hard and live your dreams,
Kate

More public hikes to come - maybe even a winter ski or two. Check back for dates.

RUNNING, RACING & MUSHROOMS

I worked for 8 hours on Friday night, cocktailing in heels and a dress. I got off work at 1am and was packed and asleep by 2. After 4 hours of being dead to the world, I was up and running again. I headed north, to Stanley, for my second triathlon.

After having some beginners luck in last year's sprint, I decided to do the full Olympic distance.

The water temp was 52, as was the air. There were 51 kilometers to race and a light rain. I ended up 17th over all (3rd female) and my back survived a FREEZING cold 40k bike so I am thrilled.

My swim is my Achilles; something I will have to work on for next year. Thanks to teammate Sarah Groff for the wetsuit, I stayed warm during the first leg. Heat was not an issue however, it was pace. The 2nd place female beat me in the swim by over 6 minutes!

1 Trish Deim 2:19:59
2 Ashley Crawford 2:30:28
3 Kate Whitcomb 2:33:55

Thanks for all who offered advice and equipment! Each year I get things figured out a bit more. I had aero bars, a real wetsuit, zip ties for my shoes and endless advice from friends around the nation. You know who you are - thank you!

For full results: click here

In other news: I have gone on some great runs lately and our Harper's time trial is tomorrow (Monday, June 22nd). I am extremely sore from yesterday's effort but hope to get a PR regardless. Stay tuned.

Roommate, Monkey and Cmall, hit a burn section on our Pio Cabin run last week.

Miles, checking for Morel mushrooms (top secret location)!

Some little guys, making their place in the world. No morels yet...

THE FINAL 5

Girls on the Run is an after-school program that teaches girls to be strong and confident. It gives a support system during a critical age of development, enabling young females to take control of their feelings and bodies, using running as an outlet.

This spring was my second season of being a volunteer coach for Girls on the Run. We train for 6 weeks in preparation for a 5k finale run. We meet twice a week to eat a healthy sack, run and play games. We work on critical skills such as cooperation, listening, and being a good friend during these sessions as well.

The following images are from the 5k, held at Heagle Park in Hailey, ID. Goodie was a sponsor, which was most apparent at the Happy Hair station. Girls (and coaches) painted, clipped, braided and wrapped their hair with all sorts of colorful accessories to celebrate the 5k run.

As far as my training is concerned I am still logging the long hours, living life and loving it. 2o hours this week, 24 next and my Sorrel is ready to eat in my garden. I am one of the luckiest kids in the world.

Sisters, Tara and Tess help each other get dolled up

Leaving my fate in the hands of one of the girls

Ella (GOTR) with brother Gill, one of my 5th graders

Danielle and Savannah strike a pose, just before the start

Alexa, women's winner, coming across the line

Alyssa, our first Ketchum GOTR finisher, bringing it home

Everyone was #1 on this day (notice the bibs)

101

Ketchum, ID - My hundred and first post, with the new year well on its way. We are still grooming up past Galena (Horse Creek) and running in shorts down in town. The single-track is drying out, so there are new trails open each day. We had some solid rainy days, which has led to tons of flowers, buds on the trees and lots of green to come! I even got an afternoon of thunder, which is an eastern characteristic that I miss terribly.

I have been coaching Girls on the Run again this spring and our final 5k race is this coming Saturday, May 16th.

Other than getting dolled up for The Derby (Billy Cook, pictured, won big on Mind The Bird), I have been putting in some solid hours.

M - 4x4 L4 run intervals, strength
T - Easy 1:15 run + 1:15 spin
W - 2hr ski w/ video work, strength
H - 2:15 run
F - 3x7m L3 FS roll intervals, strength
S - Off
U - 2:30 run

Oh, and I planted my garden today, yay! Of course we leave for Bend Camp on the 19th, so it will probably die while I am away. No roommate yet to water the poor little guys. Stay tuned for their fate.

DAYS OF EVERYTHING

CO Heidi to backcountry, ID

Like any job, cross-country skiers get their two weeks - ours are just two weeks of UN-paid vacation.

How are these two weeks different that the 351 other days of a pro-athlete's life?

They are not logged. I wake up and go for a run, I meet friends for coffee, I go for a backcountry ski and then bee-line it to a deck for lunch. I shoot to the gym and finish the day with a bike ride and some grilled food. I wear lots of sunscreen and still get burnt. I laugh more than I speak and I am going all day long. I sleep hard at night and I am thankful every minute.

These are the days of everything. You can do it all because there is not a race in the morning and there are no intervals at 7am. They are not days of slacking, in fact they are filled over the rim. I am healthy, I am able and these are my 2 weeks.

I am the luckiest kid ever and May first is on Friday. It might be the start of the weekend for most, but for me it is the begining of 2010. I have been sick and injured, broke and currently homeless but Vancouver is 10-months away. There are skeptics - but I am not one. The game has been on since I was 5 and it will not end today.

Living the dream,
Kate

EASTERN SPRING

Spring in Vermont; something I miss terribly. I flew into Burlington for my "little" brother's birthday (little in age but 6'4" in height). We had some fun at his place in New Haven and I had the chance to catch up with some college friends.

After a few great days in the green mountain state, we headed home to surprise my folks and to catch up with our big brother (for my mother's birthday).

Happy Birthday Mom, and Jake!

Some of the highlights from the Vermont portion.

Training is going well, I am back in Idaho and my back is feeling roughly 75% these days (which is great)! I hope everyone has a good case of spring fever!

I have started coaching again (Girls on the Run) and training for the current year. The game is still on! More to come.

COUNTING TIME

For those of you who keep a training log, you might be surprised to realize that not all athletes record every minute they train. Sometimes as little as half of a session might be logged – or none at all.

In a recent email correspondence with a friend, I mentioned that I don’t bike very much in a big volume week because it doesn’t count as full-time. This fueled the following dialogue:

If you ride constantly for an hour, why wouldn’t you log an hour?

When you go down a hill while skiing you are gliding. When in a tuck however, you are still required to use strength and balance. When on a bike, especially on a road bike, a downhill does not require as much. Biking is also non-weight bearing; your body does not have to hold itself up because you are on a seat. Both of these factors move biking further away from being applicable to cross training for XC, which is why many athletes count bike training as little as half-time.

It has been a long debate with coaches for me, since I feel as if I am in L4 every second of a mountain bike ride and most of my road rides are trying to catch the pack in front of me. I have long since given up the argument and simply count races at 75% time and rides at 50%. Some recovery spins (on a road bike), I don’t count as time at all but make sure to note the activity.

Are there other activities that you don’t count, or log only partially?

There is a debate on how to count strength in a log. Some athletes log half-time because you do an activity and then rest. Some count 70% or even full time because rest is necessary and maybe heart rate is still up... Our team brought up this question to our coach and we did a field test to figure it out.

Our coach took lactate tests throughout a strength workout, taking blood samples from all athletes during both rest and active times. 4-6mmols of blood lactate is typically L3 (threshold). This is the highest effort that your muscles can clear all lactic acid. Much higher and you start to feel “the burn” which is acid pooling in your muscles and you move into L4 (race pace).

Throughout this strength session, some of our readings got up into the 12mmols! Mine were between 6 and 8 and only lowered into the high 4s during rest periods. We determined that during that strength protocol, not only should we count the whole session (100% time), but consider it a hard workout. We would not want to schedule it just before an important race, for example.

Because of that test, I log my strength as full time, marking half in L1 and the other half as L3 (even though my lactates read into L4 at times).

As far as other activities counted as partial time, I always stop my watch when I stop to refuel or talk to a coach. The hike up Hyndman mentioned in a previous article was logged as 5 hours. That does not include lunch at the summit or swimming in the river.

Spenst usually takes about 45 minutes but I count it as 30. We do it as a group and sometimes I am waiting for my turn to jump hurdles and the like. I don’t get too carried away with starting and stopping my watch, I just estimate the on-time.

How would you count this?

I have not figured out how to count something like hot yoga or tele skiing. These are activities that are definitely not XC ski specific, but I do them so rarely that they really make me sore! Hot yoga might not be cardio, I will admit to that, but if it makes me unable to walk the next morning it has got to be some sort of strength. So far, I note that I did an activity like yoga but have not counted it in my overall total time.

Does this count?

Anyone out there have any insight? I realize that this article might be a bit controversial (especially saying that biking shouldn’t be counted 100%) so feel free to comment and get a discussion going. I think the most important thing when keeping a log of hours and activities is to keep it the same year to year. You will be comparing yourself to yourself more than to others in the end anyway.

Game on!

WAX MUSEUM

My race year was a wash but... I am running and biking (adding skiing back in soon) and getting general fitness back up to par.

The upside of being hurt, is that it forced me to think about my future and gave me some extra time to spend with "my" kids.

The 5th graders recently did their annual Wax Museum. I am pictured with Pablo Picasso above, but Vikings, sport legends, family members and rock stars were all represented.


The students researched, wrote bios and created costumes and posters. The actual Wax Museum was the culmination of their research. Each student stood in front of their poster, in full costume and character. When other students and visitors came up to press their "push" button, the students would come alive, telling about their lives (and in some cases, their deaths).

After being interviewed by the internal Hemingway media, they were later broadcast throughout the school on TV.


I have been able to join the 5th graders for this kind of adventure rather than hear about it from the road - one of the silver specks that has lined my rain cloud this winter.

The road to achieving a goal can be a rocky one. It doesn't mean you can't get there; just that it isn't easy. Having the support of friends and family along the extra bumpy section this year has kept my hubcaps from falling off.

Thanks for having me in your class kids!

PT & RACING

I am getting back into training with the help of Koth Physical Therapy (THANKS John!). Tomorrow is my first day back on skis, but I have not been staying away from skiing completely... I was out watching Western State Championships this morning where the best of the west put their game faces on.

SVSEF, receiving a team award

Maddy takes the podium!

I have a centralized bulge, one that does not require surgery or injections, YES! My race season, although never really getting started, is over. I am told, however that come May 1, I should be training with the team as an athlete at 100% so 2010 is not out of the picture.

The first thing that John and I tackled in PT was getting movement and feeling back into my arms and shoulders (an injury from jumping into swimming full throttle).

Cross-country skiers, regardless of swimming hours, could probably all use a good stretch across their front. Almost everything we do involves strengthening (aka tightening) our chests. That is one reason why we do so many upper back exercises in the gym (to balance things out). Here are a few stretches to get things started:

Corner stretch - stand in a corner or doorway and stretch forward, bringing shoulder blades together and feeling the stretch across the chest. Hold 3-4 times for 30 seconds.

Sleeper - lay on your side with your head supported. Your torso should be 90 degrees to the floor, your bottom arm, 90 degrees from your body and bent at 90 degrees. gently push your bottom arm towards the floor. Hold on each side, 3x20 seconds.

Foam roller - lay on your back with your arms out to the side. Relax and feel gravity pull your shoulders towards the floor. Rotate palms up and palms down a few times, holding for 20-30 seconds.