FasterSkier

Category: XCFeeds

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

  • Snow at last!

    I have been in Ostersund, Sweden preparing for the start of the World Cup for a little over two weeks now.  Despite the unseasonably warm temperatures, the skiing has been good enough to log some quality training.   The Swedes are … Continue reading →

  • Great Skiing At Trollhaugen – in the St. Croix River Valley!

    Trollhaugen was a busy place on Wednesday morning, with a full parking lot and a bus load of high school kids out enjoying some early season skiing!

    It’s November, and believe it or not, we have great xc skiing here in the St. Croix River Valley.  Trollhaugen‘s dedication to Nordic skiers continues this ski season, through allowing Nordic skiing anywhere on their many perfectly groomed alpine runs, from 7AM – 9AM.  After a few more days of snow making, their 2.5 Troll Hollow Nordic loop will be finished up and covered in a beautiful blanket of snow.  The Troll Hollow loop has 100% man made snow coverage and is lighted late into the night, making for one of the most convenient XC Ski venues in the region – with guaranteed snow!


    I’ve enjoyed skiing at Trollhaugen twice already this season, and have enjoyed skiing around on the flats at the bottom of the hill, and have also gotten in a great workout by skiing up and down the big hill.  As a bonus for skiing up the hill, you can ski down, practicing your slide turns (or Tele turns if you’re a better skier thank I).  Finally, Steve Edling tipped me in on a great little tip for skiing at Trollhaugen on a busy day, suggesting that I ski back and forth on the bowl at the top of the hill.  Up at the top, there is a great bowl, with a curving trail and fun terrain that provides a great workout.  

    Come on out and join us this morning at Trollhaugen from 7 to 9 for a fun ski, including a beginners lesson at 7:15 – just look for the Cyclova XC jackets.  Also, I will be leading the wax clinic at Trollhaugen’s Nordic Race Clinic tomorrow at noon.  Come on over to Trollhaugen and check it out!

    The father & son team of Pedersen & Pedersen out acending the Troll, and sporting a Cyclova XC “Ski Like Landgraf” hat.


  • Snow in Ostersund

    Snow in Ostersund

    Finally a little bit of natural snow is falling here in Ostersund. This is the first snow falling out of the sky that I’ve seen this year! Just in time for the US crew racing the IBU cup here this morning!

  • West Yellowstone: A Summary (part II)

    It’s been a long time since I’ve considered myself a distance skier. I’ve put my focus on the sprints and that has continued to be the emphasis of the training Scott has prescribed. But this dryland season we spent most of our training efforts on aerobic endurance, and on Saturday it showed its worth.

    Traditionally, the distance course at West is a pretty mellow one with a gradual climb in the middle of the 5km lap. This year they spiced it up, adding a serpentine portion of the new trail Doug’s Doodle, and sending us down and back up Telemark Hill, the one which ended and made painful the sprints on Wednesday.

    (I got hooked up with a new race suit from Madshus, which apparently offered some confusion to my Mom during the second lap of the race, when she completely missed cheering for me as I climbed the hill)

    Because my distance points aren’t too hot I started in the seed after the A group. The good part of that situation was that I started just as those guys were lapping through. I managed to accelerate and catch a ride on Canadian Pate Neumann for his final two laps. I felt GREAT. Well, it helped that the skis were awesome. But I also felt great. Technique, energy, everything was there. I ended in 15th place, 45sec out of 7th. It’s nice to know that with the right training I can start to hold my own in both distance and sprint racing. It’s going to be a good year.

    I’m in West for another few days before heading to Bozeman for more Super Tour action.

  • West Yellowstone: A Summary (part I)

    After a short break in the Methow and some skiing at Klipchuck (thanks, Scott!), Alison, Mom, Dad and I jumped into a few trucks and headed east for West Yellowstone, MT and the opening Super Tour races. It’s been two years since I was last in West and that time, I wasn’t feeling too hot. This year training has been right on point and I got a good bit of acclimation at Silver Star. We’ve intentionally kept high intensity training to a minimum as a means to continue building until US Nationals in January, so this week’s sprints weren’t likely to be my finest.


    The sprint course was damn tough – 1.6km point-to-point with the finish at a HIGHER elevation than the start. The course started and rolled along nicely for about one kilometer before descending a 150m long hill, wrapping around the bottom then climbing back up. The finish line was the very crest of the now-famous (at least among those who have raced it) Telemark Hill. Hell of a climb, that one. The sprints were a unique format: two qualifiers, the classic beginning at 9am and the skate beginning one hour later.

    Scott and Ben (Husaby) did their usual amazing job with waxing and both MOD and Bend Nordic had great glide and better kick for the first qualifier. My new Madshus boards completed the package, and an Ultratune XC02 grind served to out-glide a lot of others out there. I finished the classic race in 17th. It was by no means my best sprint but there’s still a lot of work to do before we reach that point. The skate race was similar in performance with a 15th; much is there but much work is left to be done. And once again, my skis were rockets. Thanks, guys!

  • West Yellowstone: Race Time!

    It was a beautiful day out here in West Yellowstone for a classic race.  Post race photo of GMVS past and present: Heidi, Devlin, Coach and Athlete Evan, Kristin (Williams), Ryley, and Peter (APU).
    I got out to the stadium early with skis and waxing equipment to find rock hard tracks, sub zero temps, and gathering masses of teams from throughout the West and Canada.  I prepped our skis last night through top coats and ironed in base layers for kick which proved important with abrasive, cold snow.  After a quick test I found a top coat for the girls and got to work.
    MK and Heidi were in the B seed this morning which started in front of the A seed (B, A, C) so they had a unique opportunity to take to the course as rabbits.  As they arrived in the stadium they were present with the situation at hand, very collected, and ready to ski their own race and focus on technical and strategic goals instead of being overwhelmed — I was very impressed.

    The temps rose steadily through the morning–at least in the sun–and the wax didn’t change that much by the time the boys went out.  Devlin was giving a new pair of Fischers their first competitive ride and adapting to racing at altitude.  Somehow he handles this stuff with grace: a smile? a shout out to MJ? the satisfaction of skiing the best first 2km of classic “in my life?” Solid work.
    Evan dusted off his old cow suit and pridefully ran the dual tags of Williams College and GMVS for the first time in competition today.  Evan is in fantastic shape and is a boon to our training group.  Today he led the boys with a 58th place finish after helping the girls warm-up.
    “Uncle Dave” Chamberlain also got into the action today and skied a fantastic race, placing 23rd in the suit of his new employer and GMVS Sponsor, Boulder Nordic Sport.  Dave traveled to Italy with us last fall and always provides good energy to our team.
    Ryley is making gains in his his classic technique.  We are working on flexibility and moving dynamically on skis–he is as strong as an ox and with continued work he will be a force.
    Heidi had the team’s highest result with an impressive 28th place finish.  She was the top 16 year old and the first J1 not from altitude.  We did a specific workout on the race trail a few days ago and she had a definite strategy for pacing — she nailed it and skied a strong race.
     MK has been focused on technique refinements in classic and skate as she comes from a running backround.  Yesterday we had a great session on Double Pole which seems to have paid off  today.  Here she charges up the last hill in a dynamic and forward position.
    Kaitlin had an awesome effort today too!  Here she takes to the course under a cloud of smoke from the fire the starters were using to keep warm.  We’ve been working on her motions too — and we have seem to have made great strides in reducing some of the back pain she experienced last season in classic.  Her only comment at the end of the race was that she could have gone out harder because she still had some left in the tank at the end — a great problem for sure!
    Hans took the day off today and helped with wax testing, cheering, and taking photographs.  He is recovering from a back injury and has had a super solid training block over the last seven days — his upbeat attitude was awesome out there today — here he and Middlebury first-year Heather Mooney cheer in the bright sun on Telemark Hill.
    We’ve created a great mobile strength routine which will appear on the blog and fasterskier over the coming weeks.  Evan and I have been working with Brie Pike-Sprenger, a former DPT for the Women’s US Ski Team Speed Team.  She has extensive knowledge in rehabilitation and preventative exercises and a huge asset to the team.
    Tomorrow is a much needed day off and we are going to take a team van ride to see some sights outside of West!

  • Some Photos

     Check out these pictures of yesterdays 15km Skate from Fasterskier.com. Some of the pictures give you a pretty good idea of how stormy it go in the middle of the race.

    Check out the full article HERE

  • Not Quite Winter in Sweden

    A month after the rest of the GRP left for Finland, I finally found myself on a plane getting ready to start my biathlon race season.  A week ago, I arrived in Ostersund, Sweden for US Biathlon’s first on-snow camp of the winter.   With temperatures in the 40s (Farenheit), rain pouring down, and more of the same in the forecast, we felt very lucky that  the Ostersund staff had the foresight to stockpile a tremendous amount of snow last spring (under a thick layer of sawdust).  They saved enough to cover a 4 km race trail 6 m wide and still have some in reserve.  Tomorrow, Sunday, we will compete in our first race of the season: an IBU Cup sprint.  Following that, some of us will remain in Ostersund for the first World Cup next weekend, and some of us will travel to IBU races in Austria and Italy

    This is my first visit to Scandanavia and my biggest adjustment has been adapting to the short amount of daylight.  Although it gets light around 8:00, we don’t get that soft golden yellow light that I typically associate with early morning until around 10:30.  The sun starts to set around 2:30 and by 3:30, it feels like nighttime.   One of my favorite moments so far came one evening as I was walking through town under some street lamps.  I was feeling a little bummed about the darkness until I noticed tiny ice crystals on the sidewalk catching the light just right and sparkling in the dark.  As I walked, I felt like I was passing through a shimmering tunnel.

    We are staying in some cabins at the race venue, along with the French and Japanese.   We share a common dinning room where we are served buffet style.  During meals, there is often a giant projection screen set-up with Eurosport TV.  We’ve been able to watch XC World Cups (including Kikkan’s 4th place finish in the classic sprint) and our Lake Placid luge friends competing in Innsbruck.

    The race course following a midday rainstorm.

    The race course following a midday rainstorm.

    One of our favorite pastimes is watching people ski by out our window.

    One of our favorite pastimes is watching people ski by out our window.

    Me, out enjoying an easy classic ski. Photo: Sara Studebaker

    Me, out enjoying an easy classic ski. Photo: Sara Studebaker

    My goofy teammates, heading out for an afternoon jog.

    My goofy teammates, heading out for an afternoon jog.

    With limited ski trails open, we've had the opportunity to explore a lot of the single track biking and running trails. The venue sits at the edge of a large spruce and pine forest. A lush carpet of spaghnum moss covers the forest floor. Blueberry bushes and lingonberries seem to be the other common ground plants.

    With limited ski trails open, we've had the opportunity to explore a lot of the single track biking and running trails. The venue sits at the edge of a large spruce and pine forest. A lush carpet of spaghnum moss covers the forest floor. Blueberry bushes and lingonberries seem to be the other common ground plants.

    The weight rooms that we train at have lots of ping pong tables. Ping pong is the team's 2nd favorite sport. Our European coaching staff are especially good at it. Here you can see Lowell and Leif taking on coaches Per and Armin.

    The weight rooms that we train at have lots of ping pong tables. Ping pong is the team's 2nd favorite sport. Our European coaching staff are especially good at it. Here you can see Lowell and Leif taking on coaches Per and Armin.

    Coach Armin shaving down my rifle stock. Some of the modifications I made to it got in the way of the race sponsor stickers, so the material control officers wouldn't pass my rifle until it was fixed.

    Coach Armin shaving down my rifle stock. Some of the modifications I made to it got in the way of the race sponsor stickers, so the material control officers wouldn't pass my rifle until it was fixed.

    The Norwegians have gotten a lot of attention the last couple years because of their giant mobile waxing facilites on the World Cup circuit. Apparently the trend is growing.

    The Norwegians have gotten a lot of attention the last couple years because of their giant mobile waxing facilites on the World Cup circuit. Apparently the trend is growing.

    Hot dog anyone? We've been eating lots of fish, potatoes and pasta, but this caught us by surprise the other day.

    Hot dog anyone? We've been eating lots of fish, potatoes and pasta, but this caught us by surprise the other day.

    We celebrated Thanksgiving a couple weeks early while we were still in the States. Annelies's parent's invited us to their home in Saranac Lake, NY. I'm very grateful that we celebrated early: Thanksgiving dinner in Sweden consisted of fish and potatoes. Photo: George Cook

    We celebrated Thanksgiving a couple weeks early while we were still in the States. Annelies's parent's invited us to their home in Saranac Lake, NY. I'm very grateful that we celebrated early: Thanksgiving dinner in Sweden consisted of fish and potatoes. Photo: George Cook

    Mainstreet Ostersund. The city is decorated with many lights. I explored the downtown and waterfront areas last night after dinner. The stores were already closed for the day.

    Mainstreet Ostersund. The city is decorated with many lights. I explored the downtown and waterfront areas last night after dinner. The stores were already closed for the day.

    I think this beautiful building must be the townhall or regional government seat.

    I think this beautiful building must be the townhall or regional government seat.

    Ladie's movie night

    Ladie's movie night

  • Kuusamo Sprint

    Yesterday was the first World Cup Sprint of the year. I had a really solid day of sprinting. The conditions were very unusual for Kuusamo… Usually its really cold and slow, but this year it was right around the freezing point and all ice. It made for some fast laps out there. I finished 4th in the qualifier and felt confident going into the heats. I made the call before the race to pick a pair of skis that would have tons of grip for the climbs but I knew that I would have trouble keeping up with the pack on the downhills. At the start of all of my heats I would lose contact with the other guys on the first big downhill, and have to work my way back to them. When I got to the final big hill I was always 5th or 6th…  I had such amazing grip going up that hill, I could glide up without any slips and make up all the time I needed.
    This was the first time I have ever made the final in a World Cup sprint. It was a pretty good feeling at the start line knowing that the worst I could finish off the day was in 6th. About 10 minutes before the start of the final, it started to snow pretty hard. I was skiing on full klister, which would ice up on the fresh snow if I stopped moving my skis. On the start line I was just focussing on keeping the skis moving. I could feel them wanting to ice up… I got off the line without any problems until the top of the downhill. My ski must have got caught up on some fresh snow and my klister grabbed and almost threw me face first down the hill. Luckily I was able to hold on and not wipeout.  The final went exactly like the other heats, I got dropped on the downhill and bridged the gap back up the last hill. Coming into the final straight I was still in contact with the leaders but I was sitting in 6th. I was able to pass the Finnish skier in the final straight and I was gaining on the Norwegian but ran out of time. I finished the day in 5TH! I couldn’t believe it, I didn’t think I would be making the final at all this year.
    There are two more races in this Kuusamo mini-tour, today is a 10 km Skate, and Sunday is the 15km Classic pursuit start.
    Here are a few photos from the heats.

    Top of the hill in the qualifier
    rocking my MO

    climbing the last hill in the 1/4 final with all the coaches watching on from the sidelines

    semi final start

  • The First Race of the Year is in the Books!

    It was a very challenging 15km skate today. The course was full of false flats and working downhills. My race plan was to go out at a comfortable pace, find my rhythm, and try and build to the finish. I went out at a comfortable pace, and it turned into an uncomfortable pace by the end of the first lap. Altitude is a silent killer! I was able to keep it together enough for a 10th place finish, respectable in my opinion for the end of November. It was for sure one of the toughest races I have done. The sensation is hard to describe; you feel as if you are skiing at a medium/slow race pace, but at the same time it feels like you couldn’t go any harder if you tried. Your heart rate is pinned, and with any increase in speed (especially on the climbs) you end up full to the brim with lactate. Another surprise factor of the day was the freak snow squall that blew in right in the middle of the men’s race. It coated the slick trails with that deadly powdery fluff that is detrimental to your glide. It affected the speed of the skis, but more noticeably it turned the rest on the course into work.

    Todays race was an excellent wake up call to the body. Race season is upon us and it hurts like hell! Tomorrow’s 10km classic is going to be fun. We are using the same 5km loop as today, and the steady grade will mean lots of kick double pole and long, smooth striding. It is time to get my BIG on and ski like the 6ft beast I pretend to be.

    For full results on the day and a start list for tomorrows 10km classic click HERE

    I would also like to send out a huge congrats to my friend Lenny Valjas on his 5th place finish today in the classic sprint World Cup in Kuusamo! Lenny stormed through the heats with his fierce looking mustache and was the top Canadian of the day. Also congrats to AWCA teammates Alysson, Drew, Kevin and Nish for representing the team on the World Cup. Today was the first race of a three race mini tour for the crew. Full results from today’s race along with results for the rest of the weekend found HERE

    Time for bed. Another tough day of racing tomorrow!

    Pate

  • West Yellowstone 10k

    Today was the 10k and 15k skate races in West Yellowstone. The temperature was about 28ºF, and it was alternately sunny, cloudy, or puking graupel. Luckily for the girls, the graupel held off until the dude’s race. We had firm and fairly fast tracks throughout our competition. Unluckily for Pete Kling, the sky darkened and visibility was around 10 yards as snow-pebbles pelted down just before his start. After that little deluge the ~1 inch of styrofoam-like precipitation slowed ski speeds considerably.

    It was a good day for the APU ladies. When the first results were posted on live timing, after the A seed had finished, we were 7th, 8th, and 9th. I was happy with 8th, and though Fitz had a bit of a rough one in terms of altitude, she still pulled of 7th. Our newest teammate Rosie Brennan had just arrived from Alaska, and blasted into 9th place. Unfortunately someone moved into 8th ahead of me as I was putting warm ups on to go watch the boy’s race, but all in all it was still a solid day. Three girls in the top 10, that’s pretty good since half of our women’s team is in Europe!

    My original plan was to start pretty aggressively and attack the beginning. However, my body wasn’t really responding when I tried to push in warm up, and this course is just so gradual and continuous that I decided against an ambitious start. As I skied the first couple of kilometers my body started to open up a little bit and I was able to ski the uphills well. It was never anywhere near the level of aggression that I would have on hills at sea-level, but I felt like I was able to push some. Unfortunately, my problem at altitude is never the uphills it’s the lack of recovery afterwards. I am used to going into some oxygen debt on uphills, so they feel relatively similar at lower elevations. The trouble comes when I can’t relax and recover on downhills and gradual terrain. I felt that a little bit as I began the second lap. The first few kilometers were very gradual but definitely had a net gain in altitude. I was paying my oxygen debt after Telemark hill at the end of the first lap, and really wishing for some recovery time! That was the low point in my race, but as soon as I reached the hills again I was able to ski them even better than the first lap. My splits put me in the top ten, and since I was hoping to better my 10th places from Wednesday, I tried to really work the terrain on the last few kilometers. I wasn’t able to finish as powerfully as I would have liked to or would have done at sea-level, but in all I think it was a solid effort.

    Tomorrow I am looking forward to having some more hemoglobin on my 5th day at altitude, and racing in some good sturdy classic tracks. I am hoping to improve my place again, and am really excited to get out there in the morning!

    This just in: the temperature has officially (on our car thermometer) dropped below 15ºF in West Yellowstone, and we are STOKED. Alaskan weather, more hemoglobin, and classic skiing– I never thought I would say this, but I really think it’s time to bust out the whapsticks. YEEEEEHAW!

    [Yeah, that’s our team Buick. That’s what we were driving when the thermometer was dropping this evening! APU style: pure luxury]

  • Season of the Kikkan

    I know the World Cup season is only two individual races old, but I’m jazzed about Kikkan Randall’s chances this year. Her one “weakness” – relative to the most elite racers – has been her classic skiing, in both distance events and, more importantly, sprints, but so far this season she’s showing some real chops along both axes.In the 10k skate at Sjusjøen last Saturday, she turned in a distance

  • Sprint Relay Pictures

    This morning we hosted the Peru Relays in order to work off some of our Thanksgiving dinner.
    Temps were rising quickly into the low 40’s.
    After a good warm up, we formed three teams of three.
    each skier skied 1.2 km before tagging off.
    Everyone had to do 4 “legs”.
    oops…
    Austin, Eric and Erika led off.
    Erika skied consistently with all 4 legs within 6 seconds of each other.
    Gino, sporting his Rocky Mtn tights.
    Natalie sporting her Dartmouth muscle shirt.
    Izzy tries to hold off Tyler.
    Eric rounds the “garden corner”.
    Austin zips around the “woodpile corner”.
    Karina teamed with Austin and Tyler for the win.

    T-bone.
    Annie storms up the hill.

    That was tough.
    Erika tags Gino.
    Timers shack.

    Post race pose, with teams below.



    Room-mates.

  • Missed Medals

    Missed Medals

    A reader asked on Twitter the other day if I’d recalculate the tallies for Kris Freeman’s top ten, top three, etc. results if we went back and removed a certain Estonian skier from prior results sheets.

    I’m going to preface this with some standard caveats about how I can’t know for sure when Andrus Veerpalu was clean or not clean. He certainly failed a drug test recently, and the way public opinion works with doping is that basically all his results are now suspect. I’m agnostic on that question, but since this was a fairly interesting data exercise, I thought I indulge the haters out there.

    But I’m going to take it one step further and tally the missed opportunities for all skiers, not just Freeman, if we remove Veerpalu. We’ll start with the least important consequences and work our way up.

    There were 78 different skiers who would have moved up into the World Cup points (from 31st to 30th) if you removed Veerpalu. There wasn’t really one skier who bore the brunt of this; the most it happened to any one skier was 3 times. North Americans in this group include Kris Freeman, Carl Swenson, George Grey,  and  Dan Roycroft, all once.

    Next, removing Veerpalu will move some skiers up from 11th to 10th. This was also fairly evenly spread out among 43 different skiers, including Carl Swenson again.

    More dramatically, removing Veerpalu from the results will bump 13 different skiers up from 4th to 3rd. Here is where we finally include Freeman’s famous WSC “medal”. Also notable is that Mathias Fredricksson would gain three more podium finishes in WC races due to this change.

    Finally, the big kahuna, and I was a little shocked at the results. There were five skiers who would gain a victory out of this transaction. Two Olympic gold medals and two WSC gold medals. When Veerpalu’s ten wins get apportioned out, one skier gets five of them: Frode Estil. And it kind of makes sense, since he was another classic ultra-specialist.

    I didn’t bother removing any of the Finns or Russians (although a lot of the Russians who’ve been caught haven’t been nearly as accomplished). Perhaps I’ll tackle that in a follow up.

    Magnifiques!

    I jest. It’s just that Maurice Manificat’s name looks like what a dumb American who doesn’t speak French might think the French word for ‘magnificent’ is. Heck, maybe Manificat is somehow etymologically related to ‘magnifiques’ or a synonym, but I wouldn’t know.

    In any case, he sure had a good race a few weekends ago in Bruksvallarna. How good was his race? Well, let’s see how it stacks up versus how he’s fared against that particular field in the past:

    I used similar graphs a lot last season, but I’ve updated the look of them somewhat. The dots are from that weekend’s race, and each one represents the difference in percent back between Manificat and the others in the top 20. All values are greater than zero because Manificat won.

    The shaded area and red line show the typical (and range) of values for Manificat prior to that race. Note that with the exception of a somewhat poor season in 2008, he had been basically on par with this particular group. So this result is not what I’d call ‘typical’. Indeed, Manificat followed up this performance with an OK but not great 17th in Sjusjøen. That’s not to say he won’t regain that kind of form, but it’s possible that we’ve simply seen the range of performances we’re going to see from him.

    Related posts:

    1. <USST Preview: Kris Freeman
    2. <The Mysteries of Andrus Veerpalu
    3. <Revisiting The Mysteries Of Andrus Veerpalu


  • It’s Race Time!

    West Yellowstone, it’s a pretty cool place. Lots of snow, sunshine and some really fun ski trails. West Yellowstone is the Silver Star of Canada. Not in the colorful elvish village sort of way, but in the “it’s the first time everyone gets together for some great on snow skiing to kick off the race season” sort of way. There are tons of teams here, from young junior racers to factory teams to collegiate teams. The town has been rundown with skiers and its awesome. Unfortunately I have limited pictures, but I will attempt to take some over the next few days. Fortunatley, I have some sweet teammates like Jess who took pictures and then let me poach them and post them on my blog (Thanks Jess!).

    Photo: Jess Cockney
    The finishing climb on the sprint course with some mountains in the background
     Photo: Jess Cockney
    Ski testing with coach Cavaliere.
    Photo: Jess Cockney
    Tomorrow is my first official race of 2011! 15km skate. Start lists can be found HERE
    I will be sure to post a race report after things are all said and done. There will be four Academy racers starting tomorrow, Jess Cockney, Graeme Killick, Annika Hicks and myself. Saturday is a 10km classic.
    Lets get this season goin!
    Here are some pictures of fun times in Canmore over the last few weeks!

    Emma checking out the fish on the other side of the ice at Carrot Creek

    Ice treasures! Elk antler frozen in the ice.
    Skating on crystal clear ice is amazing, but kind of nerve wracking at times.

    Emma and I hiking up above Lake Minnewanka on the C Level Cirque. 
    The magnificent Bow Valley
     Lake Minnewanka
     The first pond hockey game of the year!
     

  • Our Thanksgiving ski towards Old Faithful

    Happy Thanksgiving everyone! We’re thankful for so many things out here: great family support, great team dynamic, great skiing, great living situation… the list goes on!
    And the whipped cream on the pumpkin pie was that we got to add another memory to the ever-expanding list. Dev, Ryley and I decided to try our luck with the Yellowstone Park road, and we were not  disappointed!

  • Happy Westgiving !

    Since arriving in West Yellowstone we have a lot to give thanks for ! The weather has been unbelievable with over 20 inches of snow on the ground and seasonable temperatures we have been really lucky.
    (The Gates To Heaven?)
    The goal and reasoning on our decision to come to West was to get some quality early season hours on snow ! I’m pretty sure we have accomplished that with 4+ hours each day. West is more than just training though. It is an opportunity to be a part of the sport. If you have been around Nordic skiing long enough you have heard about “West” and I’m lucky to have been able to experience it. I know why people come and I know why they come back.
    (The Crew)
    RD,JH,LD,MW,GH,MM,JUOM,
    It’s an opportunity to see old friends, meet new ones, and enjoy everything that our sport has to offer. The expo is an amazing opportunity to not only see all of the new products from every major player in the Nordic industry but also to talk to someone who knows what they are talking about. You can walk in to any ski shop in the country and look at skis but the knowledge that is in West Yellowstone is amazing. Each major ski and wax company as well as most apparel companies have there heads of state here in West.
    (WEST FEST)
    I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the TOKO University for my first three days here in west. The job that Ian Harvey does with TOKO here in the U.S is amazing and put together a schedule that included everything from wax formulations to having guest speakers. It was an amazing opportunity that was only made better by those who were involved.
    Alright that’s it for now, it’s time to ski AGAIN ! Yeaaaaa Buddy !
    ROCHESTER NORDIC RACING !

  • Feeding Time

    Again this year, the ‘groom-box’ is back on the Goat Creek Trail in Mazama.       For the past 10 years or so, I’ve kept a box at the side of the ski trail, behind our house, with treats for the groomer.    Usually a few cookies; but sometimes there are surprises.  When we moved from our old house a few years ago, the groom-box moved with us.

    Treat the groomer well.   Early season snow on the Goat Creek Trail.

    Grooming is off to an early start this year.  The trails saw the Pisten-Bully for the first time yesterday, after being rolled out with a snowmobile for a few days.    The MVSTA trails are now officially open for the season!

    When the red flag is up on the trailside box, it certainly gets the attention of the groomer and hopefully the sugar keeps them alert as they lay the carefully carved corduroy.    This ski season is off to a great early start in the Methow Valley.

  • Store Info

    A snowy November morning in front of Cyclova XC, in downtown St. Croix Falls, WI.
    Cyclova XC, Inc opened a new bicycle, xc ski, and trail run store in beautiful downtown St. Croix Falls, WI on October 1, 2011.
    We are located in beautiful downtown St. Croix Falls, WI, about a 50 minute drive from Minneapolis in the beautiful upper St. Croix River Valley, and the gateway to northern Wisconsin’s plethora of silent sport opportunities.  This area is a literal playground for cyclists, xc skiers, and trail runners – with a world class network of trails for our customers to enjoy!  With three wineries, great coffee shops, shopping, theater, bed & breakfasts, and camping (at one of 3 state parks within 8 miles) within a 5 minute walk of downtown there is plenty to do after you’re done with your ride, run, or ski.

    In short, Cyclova XC is a community of silent sport enthusiasts; where athletes and enthusiasts come to purchase their equipment, have it serviced by experts, learn, and enjoy their craft.

    Inside Cyclova XC, you’ll find 3000 square feet of the best assortment of XC Skis, Bicycles, and Trail Running equipment in the US.  All presented in a clean welcoming art gallery type atmosphere!

    It is our goal to provide Cyclova XC customers an enjoyable & clean shopping experience at Cyclova XC.  It is our opinion that most bike and ski shops are cluttered, confusing, and lack expert service.  Friendly, expert service for our customers is always the priority at Cyclova XC.  At  Cyclova XC, you will find the best bikes, xc skis, and shoes, and accessories presented as we believe they were meant to be presented – as art!  In addition to presenting our products as art, we also feature rotating art exhibits throughout our store – to add to the experience.


    Cyclova XC features select XC skis from the top 4 brands on the planet, along with expert service:  Rossignol, Salomon, Madshus, and Fischer!

    Providing all of our customers expert advice (whether you’re a first timer or an Olympian), is at the core of our being.  Every bike, ski, boot, ski pole, shoe, and other technical piece of equipment is carefully fit to each customer.  If the product doesn’t fit the customer and their needs, we simply won’t sell it to that customer.  Equipment fitting optimally is always the most important factor in enjoying your bike, xc ski, and running experience – and we’re here to make certain that happens.
    We believe that servicing the products we sell is as important (maybe even more so) than selling the product in the first place.  At Cyclova XC, we offer a full range of bike service – from flat tire changes to custom bike builds, from tune ups to wheel building.  On the ski service side of things, we offer a full range of waxing services – but are best known for our world class xc ski Stonegrinding and Race Prep Thermo Treatment (hot boxing).  You can depend on Cyclova XC to service your xc skis and bicycles at the same level that the US Ski Team members, factory team members, and other elite racers depend on us for!


    Cyclova XC Co-Owner is among the most experienced XC Ski Technicians in the country.  You’ll also find the most advanced XC Ski specific ski

    Cyclova XC was launched in August of 2009 as a bike & ski team with a daily updated blog.  Here is the story on the name Cyclova XC. The founders and now co-owners of Cyclova XC (Frank Lundeen & Ben Jonjak) launched Cyclova XC with the simple goal of having fun with our sports and building community around them.  When we started the Riverbrook Nordic Ski Team and Leinenkugel’s Bike Team in the 90’s, we had a similar goal – and now this simple goal is again thriving with the Cyclova XC Team.   After more than 2 years of rapid growth & a global audience viewing CyclovaXC.com daily, selling over 150 team bike and ski kits, and suggestions from many folks that we open a store – we have done so.  For the full history on the progression toward the opening of our store, CLICK HERE.

  • Bonus Skiing

    Skiers from Alaska, Montana, Minnesota and Vermont have descended to Peru to find good November skiing. Extra blue was the kick wax of the morning, but most of the crew skated.




    Packer sandwhich (with Caldwell twins for bread).
    Menawhile…inLake Placid, the Mooneys and Sapps enjpy a ski at Van Ho.