We just got back from the 30k after stopping by Taco King for the best post race meal out there.
It was a doozy. Tough course and started it out with slick skis. So I tried to double pole as much as I could and keep in contact with the front group but on the main climb of the course they would pull away each time and I slowly fell back. After the 3rd of 4 classic laps I had closed back to within maybe 10 seconds but we hit the big climb again and I never saw the pack again. Luckily for me Noah Hoffman and I were able to ski together for the skate leg. He is a tough and talented junior who I stayed with in Aspen this year. We traded off leading out there and managed to pick off a few guy and with a few k's to go on some flatter sections I took off and he couldn't quite keep up I think I ended up 9th and him 10th, the 5th and 6th Americans I believe. Good day and tough racing. Looking forward to a wicked tough 50k on Sunday and a day off in between.
James
Friday, March 28, 2008
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Whistler part 2
I've been back home for a few days and are getting ready to head up to Fairbanks for Long Distance Nationals and a midweek 10k. First, the 15k from Whistler.
That was nuts. Seven people broke skis during the race! That just doesn't happen. The conditions were a big element that day as well with it snowing big, wet flakes on top of a granular base that broke down easily. This meant that down the course there was a hard glassy lane where the new snow had packed down and just off that was really soft. Every so often there would be ruts up to 6-8 inches deep where the hard layer had been broken thru and combined with the heavy falling snow making the visibility less that ideal. Then on some of the more technical downhills there were craters on the corners where people had augered in. Bottom line.... you had to be on your toes.
Since this was a learning week more that anything I started out the first of the three 5k loops harder than usual so I could see if I could get away with that since there was a big downhill after a bit opening climb. Turns out it was kind of a mistake. I felt good on the first lap and could see that I had picked up some time on the guys in front of me but there was a pretty flat rolling section where a lot of time could be gained or lost if you didn't carry your speed well. Those sections aren't usually my natural strong point but I skied that section pretty well on the first lap unfortunately the next time thru was pretty rough. Turns out I started a little too hard and after one lap of 2 big climbs and the flat section in between without many places to recover I went a little under. I managed to hold it together pretty well and still kept George Grey (one of Canada's top guys) who started 15 seconds behind me behind me. On the final lap things started to click again but I had lost way too much time on the second lap to do much in the results but I did finally figure out how to ski some of the the more technical sections of the course and pace the hills better. So I learned something.
Other than checking out the courses and getting a feel for how they ski, the big thing to take away from Whistler is be prepared for anything. With the conditions constantly changing there you just have to be ready to put your head down and suffer.
Off to Fairbanks.
That was nuts. Seven people broke skis during the race! That just doesn't happen. The conditions were a big element that day as well with it snowing big, wet flakes on top of a granular base that broke down easily. This meant that down the course there was a hard glassy lane where the new snow had packed down and just off that was really soft. Every so often there would be ruts up to 6-8 inches deep where the hard layer had been broken thru and combined with the heavy falling snow making the visibility less that ideal. Then on some of the more technical downhills there were craters on the corners where people had augered in. Bottom line.... you had to be on your toes.
Since this was a learning week more that anything I started out the first of the three 5k loops harder than usual so I could see if I could get away with that since there was a big downhill after a bit opening climb. Turns out it was kind of a mistake. I felt good on the first lap and could see that I had picked up some time on the guys in front of me but there was a pretty flat rolling section where a lot of time could be gained or lost if you didn't carry your speed well. Those sections aren't usually my natural strong point but I skied that section pretty well on the first lap unfortunately the next time thru was pretty rough. Turns out I started a little too hard and after one lap of 2 big climbs and the flat section in between without many places to recover I went a little under. I managed to hold it together pretty well and still kept George Grey (one of Canada's top guys) who started 15 seconds behind me behind me. On the final lap things started to click again but I had lost way too much time on the second lap to do much in the results but I did finally figure out how to ski some of the the more technical sections of the course and pace the hills better. So I learned something.
Other than checking out the courses and getting a feel for how they ski, the big thing to take away from Whistler is be prepared for anything. With the conditions constantly changing there you just have to be ready to put your head down and suffer.
Off to Fairbanks.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Whistler
We got down here after a surprisingly long travel day due to the 30 stoplights we got to hit coming thru Vancouver on our way from Seattle to Whistler. Once we got thru there it wasn't too much better since they are in the process of widening the road. I also heard they are putting in a train from Vancouver to Whistler which would be a sweet addition to the area. But driving has been the theme of the week. Almost 30 minutes each way and we are staying about as close as you can. Given that they had a blank slate I'm not too sure why they chose an area not too close to anywhere?
On to the racing... I had heard that the snow here is a little funky and waxing can be pretty tricky. I can confirm that it is. The sprint relay on the first day was a good introduction to some faster racing after 5 weeks with nothing under 30k and a good introduction to waxing here as well. It was gray and just over freezing most of the day until our prelim round when it started to snow. We had great skis in the first round and had no problems making it thru to the finals. By the time the finals started 30 minutes after the rounds the kick wax was completely different. Even though we were able to re-wax the skis just weren't that good and we did quite poorly but we figured that it was our least important race of the year, so we slept okay.
There is a bit of luck and guesswork here since the condition on the test track is totally different from the race course combined with the near constantly changing conditions. Also it seems the ski and application of the wax makes a huge difference. One of my teammates Jeff Ellis had sweet skis on the relay day with the same wax combination. That said, Erik and Casey have done a sweet job of testing many combinations and getting us some really good skis. Yesterday in the 10k my skis along with the rest of our guys were as good or better than anyone and the APU girls had the best skis in the field. It is just tricky.
Getting to yesterdays race was a little more complicated that I had planned. My ride to the race (Kevin) is staying with another team and his car was all of a sudden too full for both Annie and I to squeeze in so at 9:30 the night before the race I emailed one of the Canadian teams staying here and we were able to get a ride with them. I called Kevin in the morning and told him I was just going to go alpine skiing and I didn't need a ride, he believed me. He believed me so much that he tried to scratch me from the race and when I got down to the race most of the races thought I was going alpine skiing too.
Like the relay day, wax once again was changing all the time so we had to make a call on race wax about 10 minutes before the start, just enough time for a quick test and a little adjustment and off to the start. Out of the start on the first of 3 laps my skis rocked! I was skiing relaxed and smooth and quick and all those things that you want to do up to the top of the course (4 or 5 minutes) before dropping back down for the flat and s-turn sections of the course. I never heard it while I was out there but after the race I heard I was in 2nd on the first lap. After that I started to fade a bit. The skis got a little slicker and I started to feel the effects of the relay some soreness and stiffness started to creep in... and I ended up losing about 15 seconds on the last lap... Other than the lost time on the last lap pretty good classic race for me and it bodes well for today's 15k skate. Until then... Some venue photos...
Friday, March 14, 2008
Headin' out
I did what was pretty much my last hard workout of the season the other day, feels a little weird. A 10k tempo workout on the Junior National course after 2 days of intervals. So the last 2 days I have been getting body work done, massage, active release, and acupuncture, along with the usual pre-travel routine of getting my skis zeroed (putting the same wax on all of them for testing) and laundry. So tomorrow morning up at 4 am to get to the airport. Annie will be down for this trip so I'll try to have some photos and video up from the week. Bon voyage.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Back to work
Well... I got sick this past week and so did my computer. The computer is in the process of being replace and I am back to healthy now and getting back to doing some hard training after a few days off following the Tour. After two 50k's and two 30k's in the past month it is time to get some faster hard training in before a 10 and 15k next week in Canada. So this week is back to some old fashioned intervals. Find the longest hill in town not being used for Junior Nationals (about 4-5 minutes up the Spencer Loop) and hammer up it 5 to 6 times a day, then rest up a few days before I leave on Saturday.
I've also been getting back to work at Skinny Raven a few days a week to keep the place running while the boss is in Hawaii for to weeks. I'm an enabler. Which has been good since while the intensity is up the volume of training has been pretty mellow.
I've also been getting back to work at Skinny Raven a few days a week to keep the place running while the boss is in Hawaii for to weeks. I'm an enabler. Which has been good since while the intensity is up the volume of training has been pretty mellow.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Southam on top at home
50-K: Anchorage Olympian gets a break to finally win city's premier nordic event.
By BARRY PISER
bpiser@adn.com
Published: March 3rd, 2008 02:39 AM
Last Modified: March 3rd, 2008 01:10 AM
James Southam has had his share of skiing glory in the past. Among the highlights: winning back-to-back 10-kilometer U.S. National Ski Championships and representing Alaska and the U.S. at the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy.
The Tour of Anchorage hadn't been quite as kind to the Dimond High and Alaska Pacific University graduate. For whatever reason, Southam could never put it all together for Anchorage's showcase nordic skiing event, and one unlucky thing or another kept him from success on his hometown's biggest stage.
A few times he ran out of energy or "bonked" as he put it.
Another race he "pooched the wax" or messed up prepping his skis for the trail conditions.
One year he felt he might break through but got sick and couldn't compete.
"I just never had a good day," said the 29-year-old Southam, who also has missed a few Tours while competing overseas. "I've been over in Europe this time of year, but this year there's no World Championships or Olympics, so I'm just racing in the U.S. this year. I wanted to try to finally win this thing."
Luck (and possibly his Olympic-caliber athleticism and skill) was on Southam's side Sunday when he took home his first Tour of Anchorage title in the men's 50-K freestyle with a time of 2 hours, 7 minutes and 12.1 seconds over Norwegian Thomas Oyberg, who will ski for UAA in the fall.
It was Oyberg who had a run-in with bad luck under Sunday's sunny and blue skies.
The duo broke away from the lead group pretty early. Southam was game to feed off the Norwegian, who won the Pia's Classic 30-K in February, for the rest of the race.
"I knew if I could have him with me it would be a much easier day. I was like 'Come on, dude, stick with me and let's ski away from everyone,' " said Southam, who trains year-round as a member of the APU Ski Club and Rossignol teams. "We got over the top (of Spencer Loop) together and he took the lead for a while, which helped me out so much. I was hoping we could ski away from everyone and duke it out toward the end."
One of the quirks of the Tour of Anchorage, which had a field of more than 1,500 racers, is maneuvering through the mass of skiers clogging the trail. Along the often narrow trail between Service High School and Tudor Road, Southam and Oyberg made like speeders in rush hour traffic, darting in and out of their slower compatriots.
"We had been bobbing and weaving, bobbing and weaving," Southam said.
With Southam in the lead, Oyberg misjudged his speed and collided with a 40-K skier.
"I crashed so bad," Oyberg said while examining some damage to his skis. "I thought I braked."
Southam looked back and thought about waiting for the fallen Norwegian but decided to push on alone, not knowing how close the rest of the lead pack was. The decision paid off as he beat Oyberg and the rest to the finish.
Oyberg, while stricken with some of the bad luck that had plagued Southam, wasn't sure it would've mattered if he had fallen or not.
"He was stronger than me," he said.
In her first Tour of Anchorage, Holly Brooks, an assistant coach at APU, won the women's 50-K freestyle in 2:25:15.7, just ahead of two of her pupils, Kasandra Rice and Kate Arduser.
Brooks, a standout skier at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash., was ecstatic to be racing after spending a lot of races on the sidelines coaching.
"It's so fun," the 25-year-old said. "It's sunny and beautiful and people are cheering each other on. I just wish we could do it more than once a year. It's important to get out and race yourself every once in a while to remember what it feels like."
Brooks, who normally misses the Tour due to coaching duties, still managed to school her two APU charges.
The trio went ahead from the start, taking turns leading and following. Like Oyberg, Rice fell on the top of Spencer Loop but caught up 10 kilometers later.
Using some of her coaching knowledge, Brooks, who admitted a sprint is not her strong suit, decided to make a move on Sisson Loop with three kilometers to go.
"Both girls are really good sprinters, so I knew I had to make a move early," she said. "After I made the move, I thought it might have been too early, but somehow I was able to hold it till the end."
The move pays off with more than just the glory of winning: Now Brooks has bragging rights and with them, just a bit more sway in training sessions.
"They'll listen to what you say a little more when they see you do well," she said.
Contact ADN sports reporter Barry Piser at 257-4336.
American Ski Marathon Series
21st Annual Tour of Anchorage
Sunday
Finish at Kincaid Park
Men's 50K freestyle
1) James Southa, 2:07:12.1; 2) Thomas Oyberg, 2:07:39.6; 3) Martin Rosvall, 2:07:43.6; 4) Dylan Watts, 2:08:09.1; 5) Anders Haugen, 2:09:55.0; 6) Bart Dengel, 2:10:42.8; 7) Seth Downs, 2:10:55.4; 8) Brent Knight, 2:12:04.8; 9) Christopher Clark, 2:15:28.1; 10) Peter Kling, 2:17:15.9; 11) Frode Lillefjell, 2:17:15.9; 12) Adam Verrier, 2:17:22.0; 13) Paul Schauer, 2:17:37.9; 14) Cory Smith, 2:23:14.4; 15) Chet Ferhmann, 2:23:15.9.
Women's 50K freestyle
1) Holly Brooks, 2:25:15.7; 2) Kasandra Rice, 2:25:44.1; 3) Kate Arduser, 2:25:56.1; 4) Rachel Steer, 2:34:04.3; 5) Kate Fitzgerald, 2:36:59.1; 6) Christina May, 2:40:14.3; 7) Becky Hauser, 2:43:18.9; 8) Diana Johnson, 2:45:39.2; 9) Shannon Donley, 2:51:09.9; 10) Nancy Pease, 2:51:27.6; 11) Erika Downs, 2:52:15.6; 12) Carly Reimer, 2:52:43.0; 13) Shannon Brockman, 2:54:08.9; 14) Rosalyn Singleton, 2:55:15.7; 15) Kelsey Cooledge, 2:55:41.0.
By BARRY PISER
bpiser@adn.com
Published: March 3rd, 2008 02:39 AM
Last Modified: March 3rd, 2008 01:10 AM
James Southam has had his share of skiing glory in the past. Among the highlights: winning back-to-back 10-kilometer U.S. National Ski Championships and representing Alaska and the U.S. at the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy.
The Tour of Anchorage hadn't been quite as kind to the Dimond High and Alaska Pacific University graduate. For whatever reason, Southam could never put it all together for Anchorage's showcase nordic skiing event, and one unlucky thing or another kept him from success on his hometown's biggest stage.
A few times he ran out of energy or "bonked" as he put it.
Another race he "pooched the wax" or messed up prepping his skis for the trail conditions.
One year he felt he might break through but got sick and couldn't compete.
"I just never had a good day," said the 29-year-old Southam, who also has missed a few Tours while competing overseas. "I've been over in Europe this time of year, but this year there's no World Championships or Olympics, so I'm just racing in the U.S. this year. I wanted to try to finally win this thing."
Luck (and possibly his Olympic-caliber athleticism and skill) was on Southam's side Sunday when he took home his first Tour of Anchorage title in the men's 50-K freestyle with a time of 2 hours, 7 minutes and 12.1 seconds over Norwegian Thomas Oyberg, who will ski for UAA in the fall.
It was Oyberg who had a run-in with bad luck under Sunday's sunny and blue skies.
The duo broke away from the lead group pretty early. Southam was game to feed off the Norwegian, who won the Pia's Classic 30-K in February, for the rest of the race.
"I knew if I could have him with me it would be a much easier day. I was like 'Come on, dude, stick with me and let's ski away from everyone,' " said Southam, who trains year-round as a member of the APU Ski Club and Rossignol teams. "We got over the top (of Spencer Loop) together and he took the lead for a while, which helped me out so much. I was hoping we could ski away from everyone and duke it out toward the end."
One of the quirks of the Tour of Anchorage, which had a field of more than 1,500 racers, is maneuvering through the mass of skiers clogging the trail. Along the often narrow trail between Service High School and Tudor Road, Southam and Oyberg made like speeders in rush hour traffic, darting in and out of their slower compatriots.
"We had been bobbing and weaving, bobbing and weaving," Southam said.
With Southam in the lead, Oyberg misjudged his speed and collided with a 40-K skier.
"I crashed so bad," Oyberg said while examining some damage to his skis. "I thought I braked."
Southam looked back and thought about waiting for the fallen Norwegian but decided to push on alone, not knowing how close the rest of the lead pack was. The decision paid off as he beat Oyberg and the rest to the finish.
Oyberg, while stricken with some of the bad luck that had plagued Southam, wasn't sure it would've mattered if he had fallen or not.
"He was stronger than me," he said.
In her first Tour of Anchorage, Holly Brooks, an assistant coach at APU, won the women's 50-K freestyle in 2:25:15.7, just ahead of two of her pupils, Kasandra Rice and Kate Arduser.
Brooks, a standout skier at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash., was ecstatic to be racing after spending a lot of races on the sidelines coaching.
"It's so fun," the 25-year-old said. "It's sunny and beautiful and people are cheering each other on. I just wish we could do it more than once a year. It's important to get out and race yourself every once in a while to remember what it feels like."
Brooks, who normally misses the Tour due to coaching duties, still managed to school her two APU charges.
The trio went ahead from the start, taking turns leading and following. Like Oyberg, Rice fell on the top of Spencer Loop but caught up 10 kilometers later.
Using some of her coaching knowledge, Brooks, who admitted a sprint is not her strong suit, decided to make a move on Sisson Loop with three kilometers to go.
"Both girls are really good sprinters, so I knew I had to make a move early," she said. "After I made the move, I thought it might have been too early, but somehow I was able to hold it till the end."
The move pays off with more than just the glory of winning: Now Brooks has bragging rights and with them, just a bit more sway in training sessions.
"They'll listen to what you say a little more when they see you do well," she said.
Contact ADN sports reporter Barry Piser at 257-4336.
American Ski Marathon Series
21st Annual Tour of Anchorage
Sunday
Finish at Kincaid Park
Men's 50K freestyle
1) James Southa, 2:07:12.1; 2) Thomas Oyberg, 2:07:39.6; 3) Martin Rosvall, 2:07:43.6; 4) Dylan Watts, 2:08:09.1; 5) Anders Haugen, 2:09:55.0; 6) Bart Dengel, 2:10:42.8; 7) Seth Downs, 2:10:55.4; 8) Brent Knight, 2:12:04.8; 9) Christopher Clark, 2:15:28.1; 10) Peter Kling, 2:17:15.9; 11) Frode Lillefjell, 2:17:15.9; 12) Adam Verrier, 2:17:22.0; 13) Paul Schauer, 2:17:37.9; 14) Cory Smith, 2:23:14.4; 15) Chet Ferhmann, 2:23:15.9.
Women's 50K freestyle
1) Holly Brooks, 2:25:15.7; 2) Kasandra Rice, 2:25:44.1; 3) Kate Arduser, 2:25:56.1; 4) Rachel Steer, 2:34:04.3; 5) Kate Fitzgerald, 2:36:59.1; 6) Christina May, 2:40:14.3; 7) Becky Hauser, 2:43:18.9; 8) Diana Johnson, 2:45:39.2; 9) Shannon Donley, 2:51:09.9; 10) Nancy Pease, 2:51:27.6; 11) Erika Downs, 2:52:15.6; 12) Carly Reimer, 2:52:43.0; 13) Shannon Brockman, 2:54:08.9; 14) Rosalyn Singleton, 2:55:15.7; 15) Kelsey Cooledge, 2:55:41.0.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Finally!
Finally I won the Tour of Anchorage!
I have had so many really bad races at the Tour over the years to finally win the thing was pretty sweet. Best of all I got to do it the way I would have hoped to, a 40k breakaway. Frode set the pace out of the start and after switching off a few times he retook the lead going up Spencer Loop which is a really hilly 7k stretch of trail. Then Thomas Oyberg took off shortly after we got onto the climbs and got a small lead that I let grow a little bit while I sat behind Frode waiting to go. Once I did and caught up to Thomas I took the lead and tried to pull open a gap on the rest of the field. I felt really, really good on that part of the course and had to hold back a bit and tell Thomas to stick with me and we can ski away with this thing.
The Tour has about 10k of hills at the start then about 38k of flat before some climbing up to the finish at Kincaid. We made it to the top of the climbs and I was pretty sure if we worked together we could hold off the rest to the end and make it a two man race.
After the decent he took over the lead while we dodged, bobbed, and weaved thru the 40k skiers that make the Tour somewhat of an obstacle course. Once it was my turn to lead again I passed a group of 40k'ers and Thomas got tangled up with one of them and went down hard... $@%#! I looked back and knew the other guys couldn't too far behind and decided just to go for it.
So from there it was just a mental battle of keeping the pace up on the long, long, long flat section. Fortunately the skis were running quite fast other that the stretch of trail the people use as a doggy bathroom and is quite brown... Another big help was the little tailwind I had along the coast that just as easily could have been a headwind. Also my wife was out on the course handing me drink bottles about every 12k which made huge difference when you are doing a solo effort for that long, no way I would have mad it without those. Almost didn't anyways. At about 3k from the end my legs started gettting pretty wobbly and things started getting a little blurry. Fortunately I had a good sized lead and was able to finish off my drink and get my legs back under me a cruise on in. It felt so nice to come into the stadium filled with people with big lead and have the luxury to enjoy the finishing lap.
Also- Thomas was able to hold on for second outsprinting a group of 4 I think.
I have had so many really bad races at the Tour over the years to finally win the thing was pretty sweet. Best of all I got to do it the way I would have hoped to, a 40k breakaway. Frode set the pace out of the start and after switching off a few times he retook the lead going up Spencer Loop which is a really hilly 7k stretch of trail. Then Thomas Oyberg took off shortly after we got onto the climbs and got a small lead that I let grow a little bit while I sat behind Frode waiting to go. Once I did and caught up to Thomas I took the lead and tried to pull open a gap on the rest of the field. I felt really, really good on that part of the course and had to hold back a bit and tell Thomas to stick with me and we can ski away with this thing.
The Tour has about 10k of hills at the start then about 38k of flat before some climbing up to the finish at Kincaid. We made it to the top of the climbs and I was pretty sure if we worked together we could hold off the rest to the end and make it a two man race.
After the decent he took over the lead while we dodged, bobbed, and weaved thru the 40k skiers that make the Tour somewhat of an obstacle course. Once it was my turn to lead again I passed a group of 40k'ers and Thomas got tangled up with one of them and went down hard... $@%#! I looked back and knew the other guys couldn't too far behind and decided just to go for it.
So from there it was just a mental battle of keeping the pace up on the long, long, long flat section. Fortunately the skis were running quite fast other that the stretch of trail the people use as a doggy bathroom and is quite brown... Another big help was the little tailwind I had along the coast that just as easily could have been a headwind. Also my wife was out on the course handing me drink bottles about every 12k which made huge difference when you are doing a solo effort for that long, no way I would have mad it without those. Almost didn't anyways. At about 3k from the end my legs started gettting pretty wobbly and things started getting a little blurry. Fortunately I had a good sized lead and was able to finish off my drink and get my legs back under me a cruise on in. It felt so nice to come into the stadium filled with people with big lead and have the luxury to enjoy the finishing lap.
Also- Thomas was able to hold on for second outsprinting a group of 4 I think.
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