At long last we got a nice first day on snow today.  Bolton got a good dump in the last storm and the cold temps the last few days have helped it set up.  The fields are fun and the trails are an adventure!

Thumbs up!

What is this white stuff?

Skiers circling the fields…

Jo with the setting sun in the background…

With Mother Nature throwing us a bit of a curveball we ended up in our fourth new location in my four years of Fall camps.  This year’s dream vacation spot….  Stowe, VT.  We had a great weekend with a good mixture of hard stuff, speed, strength, and distance.  There is snow in the forecast and a crusty base up at Bolton so we should get some skiing in this week.  Everyone has been training really well so when the snow does come we will be ready to rock…  until then here are a few shots from camp.  The athletics website has a Flickr site where more pictures and higher quality images will be uploaded.  Below is a link to the UVM Flickr site as well as some pictures on a  Middlebury Flickr site from a time trial we did with them earlier in the fall.

UVM Athletics on Flickr… (UVM Skiing)

Photos from Brandon Gap time trial…

Thanksgiving

We are ready for snow!

It’s been a great fall.  Between the alpine and nordic teams we welcomed 10 new faces in September.  We graduated a few people that will be hard to replace last spring but the newcomers have brought some great energy and we can’t wait for winter!

In the spring of 2004 the Vermont Ski Team began participating in the MS Walk in Vermont.  Molly Gray a UVM alumnus and former captain of the ski team tells the story….

“The Ski Team first participated in the Vermont MS Walk in the spring of 2004.  We wanted to pitch in and do something for the community that supported us, cheered for us, and believed in UVM athletics.  I felt a deep personal connection as well because the disease had shaken my world in a way I would have never imagined.  My mom, a skier herself and member of the US Alpine Ski Team, was diagnosed with MS in the spring of 1999.  We, my family, couldn’t believe it then, and still have a hard time today, understanding why our Mom, our invincible Mom, could be the hostess for this kind of debilitating intruder.  I soon came to find out that she was not the only one in Vermont living with this frustrating, disabling, and, in her case, incurable disease.  However, like many in her situation, she was determined to continue to be the invincible Mom.  Despite her worsening symptoms she missed not one home carnival when I was skiing for UVM, not only coming out to show her support for me and the women’s team, but almost literally dragging herself out onto the course to cheer for the men.  Today, be it in the spirit of the ‘invincible mom’ living with the challenges of MS or in the spirit of giving back to a supportive community, it gives me great pride that the walk and the Team’s participation continues.”

If you’d like to support our team’s efforts you can donate to Walk MS through the following link and choose a team member to donate on their behalf….

http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR/Walk/VTNWalkEvents?team_id=163576&pg=team&fr_id=10041&et=q1WQzBYlq6t8UtpWYcG3Ug..&s_tafId=100779

Juergen picked up where he left off last season winning the opening classic race of the season.  He lead home a strong showing for the men with Franz in 9th and Chris 23rd.  Finishing as the second team in the first race of the season is a good start and I think everyone is capable of improving as the season progresses.

In the women’s race Jennie and Caitlin lead the way finishing 7th and 8th on a challenging course.  Kat rounded out the scoring with a 24th place finish as the women finished fourth today behind strong Middelbury and Dartmouth teams and a surprising Colby team.  The alpine teams had strong days with David Donaldson winning the men’s slalom and Lyndee leading home Jilyne and Kara in a 3,4, 10 finish by the women.  Overall we had a solid start as the whole team is sitting in 2nd behind Dartmouth.  With the slalom and skating events coming up we are optimistic that we could overtake Dartmouth if we ski to our potential tomorrow….

While we are sad to see them go we retired our old steeds this week.  They have carried us safely to and from training and racing for the last five years but it was time for a change.  We received delivery of the new vehicles on Saturday before heading out for Thanksgiving camp but sadly they were not yet registered so we left them behind in the parking lot.  While we were in New York we got a look at a green alternative that we could have considered.

Posted in Training, Uncategorized | No Comments »