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