From the FasterSkier archive — posts syndicated from athletes’ and coaches’ own blogs between 2004 and 2012, kept online as published. Current coverage is at fasterskier.com.

Kershaw’s Korner: Some days I boarder-line hate the sport of cross country ski racing.

Yep, some days I wish instead of gliding around a course that’s being battered with snow and wind, I could be doing a sport like Mr.Usain Bolt or Micheal Phelps. That’s because with both those dudes the only real factor stopping them from reaching their potential in their respective races is their actual shape. In Beijing this past summer Bolt even tried his best to have as little technological advantage as he could (it appeared) as he ripped up the 100m stretch wearing an xxl singlet that was flapping in the wind like a windsock at a heliport.