After two full days of travel I arrived for the third time this year in Ostersund, Sweden, and the second time this year for a world cup event.  Somehow I managed to escape suffering from jetlag this time over.  I stayed well-hydrated on the airplane and despite sleeping only a small amount on the flight overseas, slept extremely well the past two nights

Upon landing in Ostersund it was the first time I’d seen snow since entering Europe—Munchen greeted me with pouring rain and high winds.  Ostersund itself is covered with snow but the venue has a solid base comprised of natural, manmade, and saved snow, and the snow guns are blowing nonstop.  The venue is so busy in the mornings that, without any trail markers or right-of-way established, you have the keep your eyes open so as not to run into anyone.  There are local skiers, the local ski and biathlon clubs, and national teams from Sweden and the Ukraine in addition to our team.  The sun doesn’t fully rise until around lunchtime and sets by 3:30pm so we’re especially lucky that the trail system is fully lit for afternoon training.  After only two days we’re already dialing in our new skis (the ones we had a chance to try this summer in Torsby) and have plans for Vo2max testing later this week at the university lab. 

For now we’re staying at apartments right on the trailside so transportation isn’t an issue and we can head out to ski whenever we want.  This setup is really nice because we’re able to shower and eat something warm immediately after training for the best possible recovery.  Next Sunday we’ll be moving to a hotel in town so we can get away somewhere quiet between races and training.  I’ve heard that 10,000 tickets have already been sold so Ostersund should soon be hopping!

Training for me is back in full swing…almost.  Last week was my first experiment with skate intervals after a two-week hiatus.  We kept the reps short at four intervals, lasting four minutes each.  Doing them at the rollerski loop in Lake Placid wasn’t the easiest way to get back into intensity training for two reasons:  the hills are long and steep, and shooting is really tough because you have to shoot immediately after you crest the last hill!  For the most part, my body experienced “supercompensation” effects and I felt really great for the first interval, attacking it..and the next and the next.  But by the time I was finished my fourth one, my legs were aching so I was glad to call it a day.  Several days later I repeated the workout, except this time I did the intervals in double pole technique instead of skate and hit some of the highest heart rates I’ve ever seen for that technique, thanks to a well-rested body.  I’m still especially careful to stay on top of appointments with the chiropractor and physical therapist while I’m in a recovery phase.

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