20k

Today was a frustratingly good day. The good part is my legs felt great, the bad was I couldn't catch a break. I started in the second row and a minute before we started the guy in front tells me that this is the first time he has double poled hard since his shoulder surgery... great. So needless to say I didn't come off the line towards the front. Still I had a relatively easy time working my way up to the top 5 after the first lap. Sovereign Lake is a tricky place to do a skate mass start because the trail is always bending a little bit making getting around anyone pretty tough. Today that was made trickier since the outside of the course was rock hard in places and bottomless in others so you never quite knew what you were going to get when you tried to go by.

So one lap into the 20k going thru the stadium I am where I want to be in 5th place. I wasn't very comfortable behind the guy in fourth so I just stepped out to create my own lane and cruise. Next thing I knew I was on the ground. Someone skied over the tip of my ski and I got up in about 20th. #$%#. Time to work my way back up thru the field. I managed to get to around 6th-ish by the top of the course and managed to stay from 3rd -8th until the big climb with about 4k to go where I tried to move up and see if I could break away with a small group to the end. Alex Harvey had the same idea and I got cut off and lost my momentum and by the time I got it back he was off the front. I managed to close down part of the gap and get a break on the others but they closed up to me in the stadium and I was pretty well shot. I gave it another try on the climb before the finish but it was super soft once you got away from the middle of the track so that didn't work and I came in 7th. The way the race shaped up was a little frustrating but the legs were there and now I am looking forward to Saturday nights 15k classic under the lights.

Until then.

Recap

Yesterday was not too bad. 7th place, 2nd American and I got Kuzzy by the 2 seconds he beat me by in the skate race last weekend. It snowed about 10 cm overnight and with some good work by the groomers who passed over it half-a-dozen times before the race started and it set up pretty well. The snow was pretty crazy with skis running very differently all over the course. 

I skied solid which at Silver Star is what you need to do. There aren't many places to rest and there are a lot of sections where you can work the terrain and pick up time so it takes a pretty steady effort. We had two laps of a 7.5k course and racers starting every 15 seconds. I was one of the first of the A seed guys so I had to just go out and ski hard. I was in the lead at every time check but there were a few too many fast guys starting after me and it was a pretty tight race with 2nd-10th place within 40 seconds. One section of the course I had a hard time with on the first lap but other than that I was really happy with how I skied. I feel like my race fitness is still building which bodes well for the second half of the season. 

The races in Whistler were moved to Silver Star so everyone gets to stay here for the week. We had to change houses but if there is a place we have to be for 2 weeks, this is where I would pick. Great skiing literally right our our back door and generally comfortable living. 

The schedule now is a 20k skate mass start on Thursday and a 10k classic on Sunday. Monday we go home and I get to see my girls!

Silver Star pre-race

Tomorrow is the 15k skate here is Silver Star, BC. They ended up changing it from a classic race last night because of thin snow just in time for a little snow storm last night. Suits me just fine. The course is setting up nice and firm and it should be a pretty fast race. The body after a few easy days this week is coming around and I have been starting to feel like myself again. I was feeling pretty wasted on Sunday and Monday but it is amazing what a couple good nights sleep can do!

After the move from Utah to Silver Star, next week is looking like it could be up in the air as well. Whistler has lost their snow and if they don't get a substantial storm by tomorrow night the races will be moved to either here in Silver Star or to Canmore. Both are great places to be and race but the American teams have either blown or stretched there budget a lot with the last change of venue so it will be interesting to see who can absorb another change. 

First thing though, tomorrow. 

A busy week

Considering that I had had only one good nights sleep since Hazel was born, the races went super well. Even if I had been well rested I would be pretty pleased with the results. 4th and a 5th on two pretty flat courses at 8000 ft with no time to adapt is okay with me. It just felt good to be racing more like myself again after last year. 

It's been a crazy week and now am on my way up to Silver Star, BC for next weekends races to replace Soldier Hollow that is snowless. Silver Star will be a great replacement for SoHo and I'm looking forward to the next two weekends on some World Cup race courses!

Annie and Hazel are doing great and today was Hazels first bath! It's been fun to get the updates from back home but it will be so nice to be back with them in a couple weeks.