FasterSkier

Category: XCFeeds

A collection of live feeds from cross-country ski blogs around the web.

  • Most Improved: Women’s Sprint

    Continuing on from Monday’s post, we turn now to the most improved women sprinter last season.

    Here’s the table of the top ten most improved female sprinters on the World Cup:

    Change in average of the best five sprint races using my alternative points measure.

    Name Change ’08-’09 ’09-’10
    BJELLAANES Karianne -69.1 96.1 27
    JATSKAJA Oxana -66.9 102.2 35.2
    JACOBSEN Astrid -34.8 68.1 33.3
    VISNAR Katja -34.8 49.9 15.2
    CUINET Aurore -30 58.3 28.2
    GAIAZOVA Daria -25 70.7 45.7
    UDRAS Kaija -24.8 72.4 47.6
    KOROSTELEVA Natalia -22.1 26.8 4.7
    INGEMARSDOTTER Ida -21.3 24.9 3.7
    GJEITNES Kari Vikhagen -17.3 50.1 32.8

    First, the familiar names (at least, familiar to me).  Korosteleva and Ingemarsdotter are both excellent sprinters who’ve been around for at least a handful of seasons.  Astrid Jacobsen is an interesting name to appear: her best sprint seasons by far were ’06-’07 and ’07-’08.  She had a significant drop off the subsequent year in ’08-’09, which helps her show a major improvement for the ’09-’10 season.  Wikipedia is telling me that she had some significant injury and illness issues during the ’08-’09 season.  She appears to have bounced back with some good races in Vancouver, the Tour de Ski and one or two solid World Cup results.

    Katja Visnar is a Slovenian skier who mainly seems to have succeeded in advancing further through the heats this past season, including several top ten results (6th, 8th and 9th).

    Here’s the results for each of these ten skiers:

    Recall that this is all using Distributed Sprint Points, which are explained here.  There are a lot of athletes here that I’m not so familiar with, so I’ll keep my commentary to a minimum.  Korosteleva’s “improvement” might also be mainly the result the slight dip in performance she had in 2008-2009.  French sprinter Aurore Cuinet had a handful of significantly improved sprints this year: 8th, 13th and 15th in World Cups.

    Karianne Bjellaanes is a Norwegian sprinter I had actually not heard of before who definitely had two promising 5th place finishes in WCs last season.  Canadian Daria Gaiazova generally hasn’t had too much success sprinting but managed two 12th place finishes last season as well.




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    Related posts:

    1. <Most Improved: Men’s Distance
    2. <Most Improved: Women’s Distance
    3. <Most Unimproved Women: Distance


  • How do you stay cool?

  • Adirondack Hike

    I brought a group of boys over to the Adirondacks today, with the goal of hiking Gothics, Armstrong, and the Wolfjaws from The Garden. It was meant to be a lolli-pop, with an easy start running to Johns Brook Lodge, then a moderate ascent of Gothics via the Ore Bed Trail. The total span style=”font-style: italic;”should /spanhave been 14.7 miles, and approximately 3,500′ of elevation gain.Unfortunately the parking lot at The Garden was full, so we had a slight change of plans.br /br /We drove to the Rooster Comb trailhead and began a rough ascent of Hedgehog and on to Lower Wolf Jaw at the 5-mile mark. By this point, we had already gained about 3,200′, and we were still over 3-miles from the summit of Gothics (with 2 intermediate summits between). Everybody continued on through the col and then to Upper Wolf Jaw @ 6.5 miles (3,900′ of gained). Some of the group took a long rest on Upper Wolf Jaw, while the rest of us pushed on. With our new starting point, the major change meant our hike was now an out-and-back, meaning every summit would be climbed twice…br /br /Another 0.8 miles out and we arrived at Armstrong Mountain; 7.3 miles (4,200′ gained). David and Jack continued on to bag Gothics; 8.2 miles (4,700′ gained).br /br /By the end of the day, we were out for 6:45 car-to-car. Add in almost 5 total hours span style=”font-style: italic;”in/span the car, and it was a long day. Not to mention the fact that it was over 80* and we were all out of water with 5+ miles to go.br /br /Totals:br /short group: 13 miles, but with ~4,600′ of gain.br /middle group: 14.6 miles, ~5,100′ gain.br /long group: 16.4 miles, ~5,800′ gain.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/1847564486460994594-5974620574898834469?l=gmvsxc.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

  • Think you’ve got the Golden Wheel?

    Hey all-
    We’re putting together a rollerski race this sunday at the Jericho rollerski trails, and you should be there.  It’s going to be a 15k for men, 10k for women, in the afternoon.  It’s going to be featuring a bunch of the US’s top biathletes as well as many skiers from around New England, including the 10 skiers of the GRP.  The race will also be followed by a barbeque for all racers and spectators.  It should be a lot of fun and one of the best rollerski races you’ll find anywhere in the summer.  Registration is at skireg.com.  Winners will receive the almost famous “Golden Wheel.”

    Questions? Want to volunteer?  email craftsburygrp@gmail.com.

  • New Paltz Camp

    Another week another camp! This week we packed up the car and headed to New Paltz for the second consecutive year. Last year was so much fun the word seemed to spread within the group and this year 5 athletes and I made the journey East.
    (My car has looked like this for 75% of the summer! Sweet!)
    First off I want to thank the entire Mancuso family for hosting this camp at there home. Without them stepping up and providing accommodations, food, coaching, and support this camp would not take place. I would also like to thank Art Stegen, and Greg Malia for helping out as well.
    (Adam and Reed with our host and athlete Gabby Mancuso)
    The New Paltz area is a really special place. Being only an hour outside of NY City you would assume that there would be no place to roller ski and limited places to even train. Well you would be wrong because this place is awesome! In the heart of the Gunks there are miles and miles of carriage trails to run on, as well as some sweet roads to roller ski on. There are also some huge climbs around with the Catskills being so close.
    With so much to do, the time and the camp really flies by. We arrived on Thursday and got right in to it heading out for a skate technique session, followed by a trail run up to the Mohonk Mountain House. This place is sick ! It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Once up to the grounds we went through a rock scramble and then climbed up to the fire tower. We even poached a swim in the lake, though somehow I think the lifeguards knew we were not guest they let us sneak in and out!
    (The Mountain House from the fire tower)
    On Friday we got in a skate OD in the morning and then a classic technique session in the afternoon. Saturday the group headed out for a classic roller ski and then in the afternoon we went for a sweet mountain bike ride up in the Gunks! It was refreshing to be able to ride a few miles and then jump in a mountain lake, ride a few more miles and then jump in another lake. Pretty spectacular training. Sunday morning we headed south to West Point for a time trail. Last year we classic skied the TT so this year we switched it up and went with skate. Now we have a baseline for both techniques. The TT is primarily uphill for 5 or 10k depending on age and ability and has a huge shoulder so it is also safe.
    (All these camps are hard work for the coaches as well but hey I cant think of a better way to spend the summer!)
    The kids all were hurting and put in some good efforts. This time of year it is good to remind the body what it takes to put in that kind of effort. Though for some of them it was there third TT in as many weeks. Luckily there are no camps this week, other than vacation so we are working hard back in Rochester with the rest of the crew!
    (Reed’s new profile picture, I’m sure this will be on Facebook very soon!)
    (The R.N.R Boy’s Minus Dylan who forgot his sneakers and rocked the five fingers on the run and rock scramble! Needless to say his feet were hurting at this point)
    (The crew back to work on Monday)

    (Get after it ! )

  • New Paltz Camp

    Another week another camp! This week we packed up the car and headed to New Paltz for the second consecutive year. Last year was so much fun the word seemed to spread within the group and this year 5 athletes and I made the journey East.
    (My car has looked like this for 75% of the summer! Sweet!)
    First off I want to thank the entire Mancuso family for hosting this camp at there home. Without them stepping up and providing accommodations, food, coaching, and support this camp would not take place. I would also like to thank Art Stegen, and Greg Malia for helping out as well.
    (Adam and Reed with our host and athlete Gabby Mancuso)
    The New Paltz area is a really special place. Being only an hour outside of NY City you would assume that there would be no place to roller ski and limited places to even train. Well you would be wrong because this place is awesome! In the heart of the Gunks there are miles and miles of carriage trails to run on, as well as some sweet roads to roller ski on. There are also some huge climbs around with the Catskills being so close.
    With so much to do, the time and the camp really flies by. We arrived on Thursday and got right in to it heading out for a skate technique session, followed by a trail run up to the Mohonk Mountain House. This place is sick ! It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Once up to the grounds we went through a rock scramble and then climbed up to the fire tower. We even poached a swim in the lake, though somehow I think the lifeguards knew we were not guest they let us sneak in and out!
    (The Mountain House from the fire tower)
    On Friday we got in a skate OD in the morning and then a classic technique session in the afternoon. Saturday the group headed out for a classic roller ski and then in the afternoon we went for a sweet mountain bike ride up in the Gunks! It was refreshing to be able to ride a few miles and then jump in a mountain lake, ride a few more miles and then jump in another lake. Pretty spectacular training. Sunday morning we headed south to West Point for a time trail. Last year we classic skied the TT so this year we switched it up and went with skate. Now we have a baseline for both techniques. The TT is primarily uphill for 5 or 10k depending on age and ability and has a huge shoulder so it is also safe.
    (All these camps are hard work for the coaches as well but hey I cant think of a better way to spend the summer!)
    The kids all were hurting and put in some good efforts. This time of year it is good to remind the body what it takes to put in that kind of effort. Though for some of them it was there third TT in as many weeks. Luckily there are no camps this week, other than vacation so we are working hard back in Rochester with the rest of the crew!
    (Reed’s new profile picture, I’m sure this will be on Facebook very soon!)
    (The R.N.R Boy’s Minus Dylan who forgot his sneakers and rocked the five fingers on the run and rock scramble! Needless to say his feet were hurting at this point)
    (The crew back to work on Monday)

    (Get after it ! )

  • New Paltz Camp

    Another week another camp! This week we packed up the car and headed to New Paltz for the second consecutive year. Last year was so much fun the word seemed to spread within the group and this year 5 athletes and I made the journey East.
    (My car has looked like this for 75% of the summer! Sweet!)
    First off I want to thank the entire Mancuso family for hosting this camp at there home. Without them stepping up and providing accommodations, food, coaching, and support this camp would not take place. I would also like to thank Art Stegen, and Greg Malia for helping out as well.
    (Adam and Reed with our host and athlete Gabby Mancuso)
    The New Paltz area is a really special place. Being only an hour outside of NY City you would assume that there would be no place to roller ski and limited places to even train. Well you would be wrong because this place is awesome! In the heart of the Gunks there are miles and miles of carriage trails to run on, as well as some sweet roads to roller ski on. There are also some huge climbs around with the Catskills being so close.
    With so much to do, the time and the camp really flies by. We arrived on Thursday and got right in to it heading out for a skate technique session, followed by a trail run up to the Mohonk Mountain House. This place is sick ! It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Once up to the grounds we went through a rock scramble and then climbed up to the fire tower. We even poached a swim in the lake, though somehow I think the lifeguards knew we were not guest they let us sneak in and out!
    (The Mountain House from the fire tower)
    On Friday we got in a skate OD in the morning and then a classic technique session in the afternoon. Saturday the group headed out for a classic roller ski and then in the afternoon we went for a sweet mountain bike ride up in the Gunks! It was refreshing to be able to ride a few miles and then jump in a mountain lake, ride a few more miles and then jump in another lake. Pretty spectacular training. Sunday morning we headed south to West Point for a time trail. Last year we classic skied the TT so this year we switched it up and went with skate. Now we have a baseline for both techniques. The TT is primarily uphill for 5 or 10k depending on age and ability and has a huge shoulder so it is also safe.
    (All these camps are hard work for the coaches as well but hey I cant think of a better way to spend the summer!)
    The kids all were hurting and put in some good efforts. This time of year it is good to remind the body what it takes to put in that kind of effort. Though for some of them it was there third TT in as many weeks. Luckily there are no camps this week, other than vacation so we are working hard back in Rochester with the rest of the crew!
    (Reed’s new profile picture, I’m sure this will be on Facebook very soon!)
    (The R.N.R Boy’s Minus Dylan who forgot his sneakers and rocked the five fingers on the run and rock scramble! Needless to say his feet were hurting at this point)
    (The crew back to work on Monday)

    (Get after it ! )

  • New Paltz Camp

    Another week another camp! This week we packed up the car and headed to New Paltz for the second consecutive year. Last year was so much fun the word seemed to spread within the group and this year 5 athletes and I made the journey East.
    (My car has looked like this for 75% of the summer! Sweet!)
    First off I want to thank the entire Mancuso family for hosting this camp at there home. Without them stepping up and providing accommodations, food, coaching, and support this camp would not take place. I would also like to thank Art Stegen, and Greg Malia for helping out as well.
    (Adam and Reed with our host and athlete Gabby Mancuso)
    The New Paltz area is a really special place. Being only an hour outside of NY City you would assume that there would be no place to roller ski and limited places to even train. Well you would be wrong because this place is awesome! In the heart of the Gunks there are miles and miles of carriage trails to run on, as well as some sweet roads to roller ski on. There are also some huge climbs around with the Catskills being so close.
    With so much to do, the time and the camp really flies by. We arrived on Thursday and got right in to it heading out for a skate technique session, followed by a trail run up to the Mohonk Mountain House. This place is sick ! It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Once up to the grounds we went through a rock scramble and then climbed up to the fire tower. We even poached a swim in the lake, though somehow I think the lifeguards knew we were not guest they let us sneak in and out!
    (The Mountain House from the fire tower)
    On Friday we got in a skate OD in the morning and then a classic technique session in the afternoon. Saturday the group headed out for a classic roller ski and then in the afternoon we went for a sweet mountain bike ride up in the Gunks! It was refreshing to be able to ride a few miles and then jump in a mountain lake, ride a few more miles and then jump in another lake. Pretty spectacular training. Sunday morning we headed south to West Point for a time trail. Last year we classic skied the TT so this year we switched it up and went with skate. Now we have a baseline for both techniques. The TT is primarily uphill for 5 or 10k depending on age and ability and has a huge shoulder so it is also safe.
    (All these camps are hard work for the coaches as well but hey I cant think of a better way to spend the summer!)
    The kids all were hurting and put in some good efforts. This time of year it is good to remind the body what it takes to put in that kind of effort. Though for some of them it was there third TT in as many weeks. Luckily there are no camps this week, other than vacation so we are working hard back in Rochester with the rest of the crew!
    (Reed’s new profile picture, I’m sure this will be on Facebook very soon!)
    (The R.N.R Boy’s Minus Dylan who forgot his sneakers and rocked the five fingers on the run and rock scramble! Needless to say his feet were hurting at this point)
    (The crew back to work on Monday)

    (Get after it ! )

  • Tour of Southern VT (stage 1)

    a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9xsRlnX8I/AAAAAAAADfY/VtXZMbswiw4/s1600/IMG_5853.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9xsRlnX8I/AAAAAAAADfY/VtXZMbswiw4/s400/IMG_5853.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498738675492020162″ //aHere is our group posing for a picture before the start of our Tour. The past couple of years we have had a mid summer camp in the White Mtns, but this year we decided to mix it up and stay local. Todays stage was a 30-35 km trail run on the AT/LT from Stratton to Mad Tom Notch. br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9xNPUI-JI/AAAAAAAADfQ/ksCO-mfbl04/s1600/100_6371.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9xNPUI-JI/AAAAAAAADfQ/ksCO-mfbl04/s400/100_6371.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498738142305908882″ //aIt’s a beatiful day at Stratton Pond.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9woXiL7wI/AAAAAAAADfI/NGTJlZO0xe8/s1600/100_6373.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9woXiL7wI/AAAAAAAADfI/NGTJlZO0xe8/s400/100_6373.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498737508857147138″ //aThis group is still looking good at 20 km.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9wFHmVI5I/AAAAAAAADfA/FuN5GQgy78E/s1600/100_6379.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9wFHmVI5I/AAAAAAAADfA/FuN5GQgy78E/s400/100_6379.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498736903284138898″ //aStretching them out at 25km.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9vpMMHi3I/AAAAAAAADe4/5dYyZqIlV4I/s1600/100_6382.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9vpMMHi3I/AAAAAAAADe4/5dYyZqIlV4I/s400/100_6382.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498736423480036210″ //aLunch Break.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9u6-qQizI/AAAAAAAADew/2YI90gA5QFw/s1600/100_6383.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 313px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9u6-qQizI/AAAAAAAADew/2YI90gA5QFw/s400/100_6383.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498735629574376242″ //aHang in there boys, only 10 km to go!br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9uLJ7gVLI/AAAAAAAADeo/z71PpSbekdU/s1600/IMG_5857.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9uLJ7gVLI/AAAAAAAADeo/z71PpSbekdU/s400/IMG_5857.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498734807965783218″ //aLeaders of the GC. These 3 broke free over Bromley and came in with a big lead.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9tgsnWfmI/AAAAAAAADeg/At83EXM7YNY/s1600/IMG_5864.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9tgsnWfmI/AAAAAAAADeg/At83EXM7YNY/s400/IMG_5864.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498734078542118498″ //aThe final stretch.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9shW5-5cI/AAAAAAAADeY/ZUr3_MdsxNA/s1600/IMG_5871.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9shW5-5cI/AAAAAAAADeY/ZUr3_MdsxNA/s400/IMG_5871.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498732990382925250″ //aHow long does it take to screw a top on the bottle? Well…if you go to Middlebury and then do a 5 hour workout, you might not realize that it is the wrong cap.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9q3cBCznI/AAAAAAAADeA/QibBTSD4zug/s1600/IMG_5879.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 306px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9q3cBCznI/AAAAAAAADeA/QibBTSD4zug/s400/IMG_5879.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498731170688585330″ //aThe pump at Mad Tom Notch is put to good use at the end of the workout.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9qUZNvUjI/AAAAAAAADd4/31_rmGl0m8E/s1600/IMG_5869.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9qUZNvUjI/AAAAAAAADd4/31_rmGl0m8E/s400/IMG_5869.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498730568641106482″ //abr /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9ptSexKAI/AAAAAAAADdw/0SG1uYUTpbs/s1600/IMG_5892.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9ptSexKAI/AAAAAAAADdw/0SG1uYUTpbs/s400/IMG_5892.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498729896818583554″ //aAfter 5 hours of trail running, boys will still be boys.br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9onec78bI/AAAAAAAADdo/Efv5wJWM8Ng/s1600/IMG_5903.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9onec78bI/AAAAAAAADdo/Efv5wJWM8Ng/s400/IMG_5903.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498728697441284530″ //aEveryone enjoyed a big dinner with plenty of carbos to get ready for tomorrow!br /a onblur=”try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}” href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9oJFAWm2I/AAAAAAAADdg/pcWhNMMxyxM/s1600/IMG_5897.JPG”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;” src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_H2SCM3lmKm8/TE9oJFAWm2I/AAAAAAAADdg/pcWhNMMxyxM/s400/IMG_5897.JPG” border=”0″ alt=””id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498728175214435170″ //aGreat job by everyone today. Tomorrow we have a 75 km ski.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/4680416899705879324-2587997762074020450?l=smsxc.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

  • FasterSkier Article

    The guys at FasterSkier were kind enough (again) to post something of mine at their site.  You can read it here.  I’ll be following up that article with more graphs highlighting skiers from different countries over the next week or two, so stay tuned…

    Related posts:

    1. <Victims & Nemeses: Marit and Justyna Edition
    2. <Bits and Pieces…
    3. <Dope Slap


  • GMVS XC Ski Team 2010-07-27 03:56:00

    p class=”mobile-photo”

  • Tour de France Graphs: Fancy Versions

    Here are the final, updated versions of the fancy, animated sprint and mountain points “graph” and the plot of riders who didn’t finish the Tour with mouse-over text added.

    Remember, Chrome, Safari or Opera are the best browsers to use for these.  I don’t think any of these work with Internet Explorer and the animated one won’t work with Firefox.  You’ve been warned.

    Recall that I’m plotting the cumulative total sprint and climbing (mountain) points for each team. You’ll see in the animation that these totals can decrease when riders drop from the Tour. And the chart of dropped riders:

    Related posts:

    1. <Tour de France Bump Charts (Updated)
    2. <Tour de France Bumps Chart: Stage 14
    3. <Stand Back! This Graph Is Alive!


  • Most Improved: Men’s Sprint

    Now that I’ve introduced Distributed Sprint Points (DSPs), an alternate measure of sprint race performance, we’ll go ahead and give it a trial run, warts and all.  Since DSP is decidedly still in the experimental phase, take this with a hefty grain of salt.

    My procedure will mostly track what I did to measure the most improved skiers in distance events.  For an explanation of my alternative sprint points measure, see here.  Once I’ve calculated these values, I simply found the difference in the average of each skier’s best five races.  Athlete’s who had done fewer than five sprint events in either the ’08-’09 or ’09-’10 season were ineligible.

    The ten male skiers showing the biggest gains are shown in the following table.

    Change in the average of the best five sprint races, using my alternative points measure.

    Name Change ’08-’09 ’09-’10
    KRECZMER Maciej -28.4 66.5 38.1
    MODIN Jesper -15.9 22.8 6.9
    KRIUKOV Nikita -10 11.2 1.2
    VON ALLMEN Peter -8.9 58.7 49.9
    POLTARANIN Alexey -7.5 53.5 45.9
    PETTERSEN Oeystein -6.8 13.5 6.7
    JOENSSON Emil -5.6 6.2 0.6
    HELLNER Marcus -4.9 15.4 10.4
    EIGENMANN Christoph -4.6 44.8 40.2
    NEWELL Andrew -4.5 10.5 6

    The first thing to note is that only the top 4 or so posted genuinely large gains.  For whatever reason, the rest of the top ten consists of skiers who improved, but modestly.  This might be a result of my alternative sprint point system, or it may be that there just weren’t a ton of large improvements among male sprinters this past season.

    There are plenty of familiar names on this list, though.  Emil Joensson, Marcus Hellner, Oeystein Pettersen, Nikita Kriukov and of course Andy Newell are all elite level sprinters who seemed to have had better sprint results in ’09-’10 than in ’08-’09.

    Maciej Kreczmer is a veteran Polish skier who’s been skiing World Cups since around 1999.  Jesper Modin is a young Swedish skier who seems to have managed several top ten finishes and his first podium (3rd in Rogla) this past season.

    Christoph Eigenmann is a veteran Swiss sprinter.

    Let’s look at each of these ten skiers.  The graph below shows their results using my alternative points measure.  The red dots are races where they did not make the elimination rounds, the blue dots are races where they did.  Remember to be careful with this new point measure.  It is still experimental, and as we’ll see doesn’t always work the way we’d like it to. (Click through for larger version.)

    I’d say the only people who don’t seem to fit in a “most improved” scenario are Christoph Eigenmann and Peter Von Allmen.  If you look at just their two most recent seasons, I can see why they’re showing up as improved, and it isn’t the fault (I think) of DSPs.  Instead, we just have two cases where each skier did considerably more races in 2009-2010 than 2008-2009, and while their top 5 races are better, it may be that their top 5 races don’t adequately describe their seasons.

    In general, looking at most improved sprint racers seems more susceptible small differences in results from year to year. But then, I think it’s fair to say that sprinting is generally more volatile, in that it’s easier for good sprinters to fall far down the results sheet.

    Related posts:

    1. <Most Improved: Men’s Distance
    2. <Most Improved: Women’s Distance
    3. <Most Unimproved Men: Distance


  • On The Road

    A

  • Red Group Racing 2010-07-26 07:02:56




  • Tour de France Charts

    With the final stage complete, it’s time to wrap things up with some final versions of the charts I’ve been making over the past week. Actually, this isn’t really the final post. I’ll be tinkering with some of them and posting what I come up with from time to time. Also, the fancier, SVG (scalable vector graphics) versions with mouse-over text and animations won’t be updated in this post. Look for those later in the week.  Also, if there’s something you’re dying to see, mention it in the comments and I’ll try to oblige if I can.

    First up, the GC chart:

    You’ll notice that I’ve switched from plotting GC rank to plotting the minutes from the peloton (defined as the median rider after each stage).  The darker black line is the average for all riders.  And of course, I’ve labelled the stages so you can tell which ones were mountain, flat etc.  Here’s the same plot but broken down by team (click through for full version):

    Next up, average speed by stage:

    And again the same plot broken down by team (click through for full version):

    And finally, a look at how the top and bottom three riders from the Prologue faired for the rest of the tour:

    As I’ve mentioned before, this was kind of fun, even though this site is supposed to cover skiing.  So I’m going to continue making these kinds of charts for the grand tours (TdF, Giro and Vuelta) as best as I can.  I have some ready to go for this year’s Giro so stay tuned…

    Related posts:

    1. <Tour de France Bump Charts (Updated)
    2. <Tour de France Bump Plot: Stage 12
    3. <Tour de France Bumps Chart: Stage 14


  • Congratulations to Skyler, Isabel and Heather

    Congratulations to Skyler Davis, Isabel Caldwell and Heather Mooney for being invited to the National Elite Group Camp that will be held in Lake Placid this October. br /12 skiers from around the country were chosen based on their fine results, dedication and promise. They will be training with USST athletes and coaches for a week in mid October.br /The 3 SMS skiers make up 75% of the Eastern skiers and 25% of all of the skiers invited. Not bad for a team of 15 kids!br /

  • Club Med for JackedUp

    My place of Work

    Going out for a ride in the 100degr heat breathing copious amounts of dust and diesel exhaust.

    Using the “Ergominator” Never nearly enough

    Shelter close by
    Since May I have been at a place as close to Club Med as I will ever get. I am some where in Afghanistan taking care of Service Members while running a Troop Clinic and also doing Anesthesia in my off time.
    As the summer progresses the heat and dust have become quite oppressive. Lately my resolve to train has floundered, although seem to be going through a revival. The end is coming near. Currently, riding a donated at least 45 lb armoured mtn bike. Most of the time wearing a particulate mask. Have been able to start a small but dedicated Kettlebell Training Group. We have had multiple torture sessions with the Guru, Anthony Diluglia.
    The lodging here is 4 star with tons of awesome food, laundry service, and countless other amenities. For the last month I even have a private area in a tent. Luckily the people here have been amazing. The Unit I am assigned to have gone to great lengths to make me feel welcomed and taking care of me even building a custom stand for the “Ergominator” and . When at the Hospital, the Staff there have taken excellent care of me. A great place to work and spend time at a new home with quality people.
    It has been both sobering and honor to take care of Service Members who not only completely dedicate their lives, but at times give life and limb for their Country. To uphold and protect the American way of life.

  • Club Med for JackedUp

    My place of Work

    Going out for a ride in the 100degr heat breathing copious amounts of dust and diesel exhaust.

    Using the “Ergominator” Never nearly enough

    Shelter close by
    Since May I have been at a place as close to Club Med as I will ever get. I am some where in Afghanistan taking care of Service Members while running a Troop Clinic and also doing Anesthesia in my off time.
    As the summer progresses the heat and dust have become quite oppressive. Lately my resolve to train has floundered, although seem to be going through a revival. The end is coming near. Currently, riding a donated at least 45 lb armoured mtn bike. Most of the time wearing a particulate mask. Have been able to start a small but dedicated Kettlebell Training Group. We have had multiple torture sessions with the Guru, Anthony Diluglia.
    The lodging here is 4 star with tons of awesome food, laundry service, and countless other amenities. For the last month I even have a private area in a tent. Luckily the people here have been amazing. The Unit I am assigned to have gone to great lengths to make me feel welcomed and taking care of me even building a custom stand for the “Ergominator” and . When at the Hospital, the Staff there have taken excellent care of me. A great place to work and spend time at a new home with quality people.
    It has been both sobering and honor to take care of Service Members who not only completely dedicate their lives, but at times give life and limb for their Country. To uphold and protect the American way of life.

  • Club Med for JackedUp

    My place of Work

    Going out for a ride in the 100degr heat breathing copious amounts of dust and diesel exhaust.

    Using the “Ergominator” Never nearly enough

    Shelter close by
    Since May I have been at a place as close to Club Med as I will ever get. I am some where in Afghanistan taking care of Service Members while running a Troop Clinic and also doing Anesthesia in my off time.
    As the summer progresses the heat and dust have become quite oppressive. Lately my resolve to train has floundered, although seem to be going through a revival. The end is coming near. Currently, riding a donated at least 45 lb armoured mtn bike. Most of the time wearing a particulate mask. Have been able to start a small but dedicated Kettlebell Training Group. We have had multiple torture sessions with the Guru, Anthony Diluglia.
    The lodging here is 4 star with tons of awesome food, laundry service, and countless other amenities. For the last month I even have a private area in a tent. Luckily the people here have been amazing. The Unit I am assigned to have gone to great lengths to make me feel welcomed and taking care of me even building a custom stand for the “Ergominator” and . When at the Hospital, the Staff there have taken excellent care of me. A great place to work and spend time at a new home with quality people.
    It has been both sobering and honor to take care of Service Members who not only completely dedicate their lives, but at times give life and limb for their Country. To uphold and protect the American way of life.