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.