Sorry for the delayed post, but I do have a great excuse.  It all started when my laptop DC power outlet started glitching 3 weeks ago.  I was just about to leave for the World Cup in Canmore and my computer charger stopped working.  Now I’m not talking about semi broken, it was beyond repair.  I would know, because I have been constantly Jerry-Rigging/fixing the charger for the last year and a half, and it doesn’t help when you computer is 8 years old.    Anyway, a day or two before I was leaving for Canmore my computer stopped working and I decided that the only way to fix it this time was to take it completely apart, find all the faulty pieces, and replace them.  So my excuse for the delayed post would be that my computer was in about 150 pieces and I was waiting for the replacement parts in the hope that I would be able to put it all back together and still have it all working.  Fortunately it is now fixed . . .   

This past weekend I raced in the longest race that I’ve ever done.  I was nervous going into the Boulder Mountain Tour.  Not only is it three times longer than the most I’ve ever raced, but it is held in my home town.  Being a Nordic skier growing up in Sun Valley it was a race that I always wanted to compete in, but was always busy with other, more important races.  Finally old enough and free of JN qualifiers, I would get to race the Boulder, providing me with a time to tell people when asked about it (as it was commonly assumed that I had raced) and an opportunity to compete in my first marathon.

I first entered the Nordic skiing community as a classic distance skier.  As a J2 at US Senior Nationals I had an amazing race and finished as one of the top juniors.  Only skiing for two years, I had picked up the classic stride fairly quickly and I knew how to use it to go fast.  I remember thinking how easy it was; I just focused on swinging everything forward. Skate or Classic? It was no question which race I would do better in. From this year on classic skiing was my technique.

As far as all the races at Nationals, the only one I need to reminisce about is the 15k classic. I mean the 10k was great, don’t get me wrong, but I just spent the entire race pacing myself and trying not to hit the wall like I have done in so many skate races in the past. The sprint race was extraordinary, but all I really did there was qualify for the heats and be one of three people that didn’t crash in the quarters to move on. The classic race on the other hand was definitely worth remembering. Here is what I recall:

I did not leave Houghton with what I wanted (tickets to Poland), but instead left with a lesson learned. I had a good skate race, feeling strong and energetic, however, this was followed by a bad classic race, feeling off-tempo and distracted. Putting my past results behind me, I entered the sprint day relaxed and ready to go for it. That is exactly what I did, qualifying 13^th, a whole 19 places better than last year’s sprint. I was pleased with my result, but I still needed to perform in the heats. After the gun-shot, I started out fast and got into good position. A position that would have qualified me to World Juniors and might have advanced me to the next round, but nearing the stadium I found myself on my hands and knees with my hopes/dreams/goals thrown out the window. Gambling on a sprint is always risky business, unfortunately my week at nationals forced me to roll the dice.