The most controversial of topics. After fitness, the best way to ski faster is to do so more efficiently. There are many opinions on what is the “best technique.” We present different viewpoints from around the ski world.
Attendance may have been small at last weekend’s camp, but the coaching was of gold-medal caliber. Seven master skiers, all women, braved the heat Friday through Sunday, learning from and training with Olympian Nina Gavrilyuk at Lakewoods Resort in Cable, Wisconsin.
Skiing for the Soviet Union (until 1991) and Russia, Gavrilyuk won four Olympic gold medals and one bronze over the course of a long and highly decorated competitive career. She also earned 11 World Championship medals and 37 World Cup podiums.
The group began each morning with a session of stretching, strength, and yoga before breakfast. The remainder of the day was occupied by two training sessions, mostly on rollerskis.
Some technique advice from a real pro. (Photo: CXC)
The focus of each workout was on technique and drills as the women took advantage of the excellent coach-to-athlete ratio to improve their skiing. “These women practice a lot by themselves, they’re in good shape,” said Gavrilyuk in an interview with FasterSkier. “The main point was to give them basic drills, the kind of simple stuff they can focus on with their technique.”
In addition to the opportunity to work with a woman with as much elite skiing experience as anyone in the world, the camp afforded a chance to train with a group of motivated, hard-working women. It’s important to provide all-female camps and workouts, Gavrilyuk believes, because some women feel more comfortable in talking to each other and learning from each other.
“It gives them more of a chance to see other women that also train and to grow their own technique. It really gives them a push,” said the coach.
Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen finished second in the 2008 overall World Cup standings, and has three career World Cup victories. She won a gold medal in the classic sprint at the 2007 World Championships.
OSLO, NORWAY – Roller ski training can be a lot of different things to different people, but here is some of the information I have, Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen writes on her blog.
I do a fair amount of roller skiing, but I had to double-check with my training log to figure out what percentage of my dryland training is roller skiing. I prefer not to roller ski during the snow season… 😉
From May 1 through July 31, 2010, 33 percent of my overall volume was roller skiing. That includes both skate and classic. In terms of hours, that’s almost 85 hours. But I have no idea how many kilometers I’ve covered. A wild guess is that for distance workouts in easy terrain, I do about 15 to 20 kilometers per hour.
There are numerous kinds and brands of roller skis, and I’m sure there are a lot of different things that work well. Everyone on the Norwegian national team uses the same setup, which makes it easy to do reasonable fair time trials, and it keeps the field as close as possible on workouts. For classic roller skiing we use Pro Ski C2, and for skating we use Swenor Skate with two different kinds of wheels: #2 wheels most of the time, and #1 wheels at altitude or in challenging terrain. Last year, when I was struggling with an Achilles injury, I used the Swenor Skate Elite. They’re a little heavier than the standard Swenor Skate, but they have a fiber glass shaft, which reduces some of the road vibration from rough pavement.
The Pro-skis classic skis have more resistance than Swenor’s classic skis, but in my opinion they’re significantly more stable. For me, more stability makes me feel more relaxed on the skis and I ski technically better both when striding uphill and double-poling.
Roller skiing for me is one of many dryland training options, just like biking, running, paddling, etc. Roller skiing lets me train specific muscles all summer. Accordingly, I vary between distance, intervals and speed/impulse on roller skis. I also do some technique work on roller skis, but I don’t train roller ski technique, which differs somewhat from snow ski technique. The fastest way to roller ski is not how you would ski on snow and uses a slightly different movement pattern, so given that I never want to specialize in roller ski racing, I only work on those elements that transfer directly to snow skiing.
From Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen’s blog (http://astridjacobsen.com/rulleski.4805004.html), August 7, 2010. Translation by Inge Scheve
MERÅKER, NORWAY – According to the national team head coach Morten Aa Djupvik, there are no better, more efficient methods to increase overall capacity than running. Accordingly, the national team is changing the mix, increasing the amount of running, at the expense of roller skiing.
The Norwegian national team started the new program with a bounding workout in Petter Northug’s home turf Meråkerfjellet on Monday. On a scale from 1 to 10 where 10 is utter exhaustion, Northug admitted that the initial foot workout was hard.
“I’d say eight or nine on a scale from 1 to 10,” Northug said to Norwegian TV station TV2 after the workout.
Northug and his teammates had just completed the workout that is characterized by the coaching panel as one of the toughest in the book, commonly known as hill bounding intervals or “moosehuf’ing.” Translation: six 6-minute intervals up steep suctiony dirt roads in the hills behind Northug’s hometown Meråker.
“This is insanely hard, and it’s key to stay within your target heart rate zone,” says As Djupvik while reviewing his athletes’ heart rates from the morning running workout.
More running
During the Meråker training camp this week, the seven members of the men’s national team are accompanied by six guys and seven women from the U23 national team. Northug and his teammates will have to get used to their running shoes this fall leading up to the 2010-11 season with World Championship in Oslo. The national team coaches have evaluated the situation, and made some adjustments.
“We’re increasing the amount of running substantially from last year, at the expense of roller skiing. We believe nothing beats running when it comes to increasing the capacity, and we think these changes will lift us another level this season,” Aa Djupvik says.
While the snow and the season opener racers are still months away, Northug appears to be on track. ”I feel good, but the key is to stay injury free and train smart. I’m very confident of my training program, and the only adjustment I’ve made this season is more running,” Northug says.
“Petter is better at bounding this season than he was in June. Aside from that, things are as usual, he’s improving slowly but surely,” Aa Djupvik concludes after the Monday workout.
Northug expects more Norwegians on the podium
While the goal for the workout wasn’t necessarily to be the first to the top, the two rookies on the team, Kristian Tettli Rennemo and Petter Eliassen, impressed everyone up the steep dirt roads. The margins on the international circuit were miniscule last season, and everything counts.
“This year we’ve had great energy at the training camps, so now we have to make sure we carry everyone with us into the ski season. Who knows, we might just have five or six racers among the top in the World Cup,” Northug predicts.
Relaxed and fast may seem like contradictory adjectives, but any successful skier can tell you otherwise. Learning to relax while skiing is essential to racing fast at a high level.
Nerves and tension are natural components of any athletic competition, but if untamed they lead to choppy technique, inefficient movement, and a needlessly tiring struggle. “You can be as fit and strong as anybody but still not be able to hang on… You cannot power your way to win a World Cup race,” says Trond Flagstad, ski coach at the University of Alaska Anchorage.
Holly Brooks demonstrates a smooth glide (Photo: Swix Sport USA)
It requires logging hundreds of kilometers and achieving a high level of comfort on skis, but learning to relax can be the difference between the middle of the pack and the front, or between silver and gold. “When you are relaxed your body is working at its optimal efficiency and you are getting every ounce out of each movement,” says three-time Olympian and US Ski Team member Kikkan Randall.
“Athletes that are able to keep cool and calm before big races often perform better – ski more efficiently and effectively,” agrees Holly Brooks, 2010 Olympian and coach of Alaska Pacific University (APU). “I find that when I’m not relaxed, my technique falls apart.”
So how do you do it? Randall recommends picking a few cue words like SMOOTH, STRONG, or FAST and repeating them over and over in your mind. “I block everything else from my mind and just repeat these words,” she says. “Pretty soon, my body just takes over and starts going SMOOTH, STRONG, FAST!”
When you’ve mastered the trick of relaxation, you’ll find yourself able to ski faster, glide farther, recover more easily, and probably enjoy racing more. Flagstad avows, “When you can ski relaxed, you have discovered how to really ski.”
Nicole Deyong doing some resisted double-pole speeds with Sun Valley Olympic Development Team Coach Travis Jones. Photos courtesy of Travis Jones.
As part of FasterSkier’s bi-weekly newsletter the Start List, we’ll talk with a high-level skier each issue about one of their favorite workouts. This time, we spoke with Olympian and national champion Simi Hamilton, a U.S. Ski Team member who trains with the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation’s Olympic Development Team (SVSEF ODT), in Idaho.
One workout that always gets Hamilton “fired up,” he said, are classic speeds-short, all-out sprints, each 20 seconds long.
Speeds are a good way to practice staying relaxed during the high speed and hard effort of a sprint, Hamilton said, because “it’s just long enough to be able to get into that consistent groove.”
“The best sprinters in the world-and I think [Andy] Newell does this really well-they’re so consistent throughout an entire sprint,” he said. “Every single double-pole, every single V2 is exactly the same. You never have to worry about adjusting from being too far forward or too far back.”
In the ODT’s version of the workout, which they do in the summer and through the early winter on snow, athletes will do three sets of six speeds, taking two minutes of easy skiing between each repetition, and seven minutes between sets.
Instead of doing all the speeds on one stretch of pavement, each set of six is done on a different type of terrain, giving athletes a chance to work on many different techniques. For the first set, the ODT will go from a standstill, using an actual start gate. (If you have one, awesome; if not, you can pretend.)
Simi Hamilton in the middle of a resisted double-pole speed.
According to Hamilton, using a wand and going from a standstill is a great way to practice different start techniques, like striding off the line, or mixing in double-pole strokes.
“You’re really getting used to doing it how they do it in a World Cup,” he said. “I think it’s a great opportunity to mess around with some things, experiment a bit.”
The second set is usually drop-in speeds, which start after athletes have coasted down a hill. Drop-ins are a good way to practice high-tempo, fast-paced techniques, without expending the energy of getting up to speed.
The final set is on a steep uphill, or even around an uphill corner, using either classic striding or V1 technique. You can get creative: two weeks ago, ODT Coach Travis Jones had team members doing resisted double-pole speeds for the last set, in which athletes were attached to Jones by a bungie cord and had to pull him uphill on his skateboard.
“It made you feel like you’re one of those guys [in] the World’s Strongest Man competition,” Hamilton said.
Hamilton recommends doing the speeds with other people, going head-to-head. He said that he doesn’t see the workout as too taxing-it’s rare that his heart rate gets above threshold-which makes it a good session to use for a recovery workout or during a week with a heavy training load.
“It’s not hammering level four intervals all day,” he said, “but…when you’re really flying and feeling on, it definitely gives you a ton of confidence.”
Thursday marked the final day of the first training camp of the summer for the Central Cross-Country Ski Association (CXC). Based out of Marine on St. Croix, Minnesota, the camp consisted of 10 days of training at various locations ranging across the St. Croix Valley. With previous head coach Bryan Fish around for the first week before moving on to his new position with the US Ski Team (USST), the camp also functioned as a sort of transitional period between coaching staffs. “I sat back and observed a fair amount the first few days to get a read on people — figure out who was who and where they needed help” said CXC’s new head coach, Jason Cork in an email to FasterSkier. “Having Fish the first week was really helpful for Gus [Kaeding, new Elite Development coach] and I — after he headed out to Park City, we got handed the reins a little.” This was the first time the entire 2011 team was together, although the marathon team was unfortunately not present. Much of this first camp consisted of figuring out goals and plans for the coming year. Workouts followed a fairly basic schedule, including some Level 3 intervals, strength sessions, technique drills, and a track workout. Athletes also did a VOmax test at Wild River Fitness in Osceola, Wisconsin. A primary focus of these ten days was to get a good idea of goals and fitness level at this point in the year, so tests were particularly emphasized. On top of VOmax testing, the team did a lactate test to get an idea of where they should be during distance and intensity training. A special highlight of the trip, according to Cork, was an afternoon of playing (a.k.a. training) with a local youth program.
Garrott Kuzzy with members of the Rochester Junior Nordic Skiers. Photo: CXC
Many of the athletes were also working together for the first time over these past ten days. Commenting on team dynamics in this early stage, Cork said “It looks like it’s going to be a really good mix of people this year. It’s a fairly small team, but we’ve got everything from people who graduated high school last weekend [Jessie Diggins] to people who’ve been to World Championships and the Vancouver Olympics [Garrott Kuzzy and Caitlin Compton]. Everyone seems to work together really well and get along, which is always nice to see when you’re planning on traveling so often during the season.” Diggins, a St. Croix Valley native, added, “everybody contributes something different to the team. There’s a really wide range of people.”
Members of the team out on an OD rollerski. Photo: Brian Gregg
Coaches are currently working on individualized training plans for team members to follow. Now that the June camp is over, athletes will return home for a few weeks of individual training before reconvening for another camp in Hayward, Wisconsin on July 5.
It’s no secret that fast skiers are made over the summer. Hundreds of hours of training include running, bike rides, lifts, and rollerskis, all necessary for any racer hoping to be competitive in the coming winter. But coming off of the racing season, the general feeling is that in springtime it’s best to relax and have fun while starting to build a solid base of strength and endurance. We checked in with various clubs across the country to hear about their plans to kick off summer training during the month of May.
Fasterskier: What is your basic theory on training in May and what are you looking to accomplish? APU: In May we have two goals: bridge ski-specific fitness to the training year and activate dryland training modes (running, strength, etc). This year we have a lot of snow, so we have been skiing 3-4 days every week. Most of the sessions are distance-based. We are now 4 weeks into some dryland, so most of the athletes are ready to bump up the running. Our favorite foot workouts this time of year include longer uphill efforts that provide low impact and a great place to work the heart. Last weekend we climbed a mountain of ~4000 ft gain in 1.5 miles. Bend Endurance Academy: We find that living in Bend gives us an opportunity to utilize the month of May in perhaps a different slant than most of the Nordic world. While May might mean dusting the cobwebs off the rollers in some parts of the country or perhaps crawling out of “mud season” in others, we in Bend are taking a long awaited break. We finished our season with a solid month of crust cruising in April. We will be waxing the boards again soon- gearing up for a few weeks of skiing in June! We consider ourselves lucky.
Take time to be away from the regimen of skiing for a brief period. It makes you appreciate how great our sport is. CXC: Elite and juniors kicked off the year with their first camp in Minocqua, WI May 7-11. The main objective for May camp was to conduct athlete assessments to set baseline general fitness levels of the athlete.
We commonly test VO2, general strength and conduct a 3,000 meter running time trial. Another important aspect of our May camps is to sit down and conduct individual meetings with the athletes to set goals and outline a yearly training plan.
We tweaked our personal meetings this year by having the athletes draft a self assessment in advance. The team filled out a self assessment that outlined strengths and weaknesses. This led directly into planning out the general training themes for each individual athlete. GMVS: We use May as a building period while trying to make training as fun as possible and using all of the resources the Valley has to offer. Last week we hiked and skied Steins (a bump run on Sugarbush), road biked, ran, had two strength sessions and did a low intensity roller ski. Road biking is really fun here with lots of “gap rides,” each with over a thousand feet of vertical. With easy pace rides on this terrain you build a lot of leg strength and fitness. SMS: We look at the spring as a time to start building base endurance and general strength. The goal is to prepare for more specific training in the summer.
Fasterskier: What are your athletes doing for endurance and intensity training at this time of year? APU: For distance, most sessions are 1-2 hours. We will build up to longer workouts as the season goes. For intensity it depends on the individual; Kikkan has been doing some L3 to start building aerobic motor and a couple of non-specific races to keep in touch with racing. Bend Endurance Academy: Whatever they want. CXC: We got out on the rollerskis again and did work on technique primarily in the double pole. The double pole is the foundation of skiing – both skating and classic, so it’s a good place to start tweaking technique. We didn’t go beyond that. Simply getting the team out on rollerskis and logging some mileage was the primary goal.
Athletes enjoy competition, so our athletes recently competed in either a road running race or a mountain bike race. We did this instead of sending the elite athletes out onto the track for a 3,000 meter time trial. These “fun” competitions were a good balance of motivation and getting in some needed intensity to maintain and build upon their basic fitness. There is nothing like sending a competitive athlete out into a “fun” competition to get their motivation back in gear. It was also great to have other local ski racers like Chris Cook and Adam Swank participating.
Caitlin won the half marathon and all the men jumped into a single track mountain bike race. Previous nighttime snows transformed dry pavement to slick roads and made a technical mountain bike course even more technical. GMVS: Endurance revolves around easy runs and long bike rides. Our longest run so far has been 90 minutes on our “teeter totter” loop, which includes nearly a thousand feet of elevation gain (meaning ski walking). On the road bikes we have progressed up to a double-gap (Lincoln and Appalachian) three-hour ride for the oldest. We also get to train a little bit with the alpine program as a handful of them are strong bikers, and that always adds a nice social component to working hard.
On foot we have done easy intensity—focusing on moving lightly—and letting the body adapt to the impact of running. We will run a 3000m the last week of May. We did our first ski walking intervals yesterday, which were actually a little more on the recovery side of things, focusing on using the arms and reintroducing ski-specific muscles. We do ski-specific drills, starting with coordination work that focuses on easy and open movement at least once a week. Even though these sessions are short, they create muscle memory while providing a nice place for the athletes to visualize skiing.
We have done two sets of threshold intervals on the bikes and will participate in three bike races this month. Vermont is pretty cool for road biking—it seems like there are three local races every week from now till the end of summer—so that gets the team out in the community for some fun competition and allows us to see folks we wouldn’t normally see. SMS: We have a little bit of a biking focus and the team does a 100 mile bike in late May. Most of our training is pretty easy, but we usually do one intensity workout per week.
Fasterskier: What are the athletes doing for strength at this point (weight room, specific, splitting your firewood)? APU: I wish it was all splitting firewood and carrying rocks. For strength in May, we spend 2 days in the weight room per week. Bend Endurance Academy: Creativity is rewarded.
Dakota mixes studies and strength.
CXC: Reflecting back on our first four years as an elite program, we found that in the May and June camps four years ago, general strength was an area of focus. Presently, general strength does not appear to be a glaring weakness for our returning athletes, so we did not run the general strength assessment at the May camp this year. We worked with Dr. Jim Mullen at Premier Wellness in place of the strength assessment. Dr. Mullen tested the athletes for range of motion as well as symmetry. We felt this was more important for our senior athletes. GMVS: Our strength training plan has now moved from “beach muscles” (which is our fun name for general strength) to a Medals Test Prep period. We will run the tried and true USSA Medals Test (with modifications we’ve made through the years) at the end of the month. We will be focusing a lot on leg power this year, as that is important for sprinting and for the shorter distances juniors are racing. We are also using our two Ski Ergs in every strength session to prep for the summer of roller skiing. SMS: We are doing a general strength routine twice a week, which includes some arms, legs, and core, and takes about 45 minutes. The goal is to build general strength now and get after specific strength in the summer.
Fasterskier: What is your overall goal in having your athletes do this type of strength work? APU: I believe the main role of strength is to enable more specific training through balanced bodies and aiding in recovery.
A natural strength workout from Bend
Bend Endurance Academy: Hanging out in trees is fun, right? CXC: The objective of the range-of-motion tests were to see if there were any areas that the individual athlete needed to specifically address for both performance enhancement as well as injury prevention. GMVS: Our May strength program is aimed at developing some general strength and addressing imbalances that could lead to overuse injuries during the demanding dryland season. With good reason, there is a lot of thought regarding Compartment Syndrome (CS) right now in the US. Imbalances and weakness in the major muscle groups can lead to overuse of smaller stabilizing muscles and completely derail all the hard work we do through the year. We have been using some exercises I used to recover from two knee surgeries to address this specifically. Core, lateral hip strength, and single leg exercises all help to increase stabilization. In regards to CS, this type of strengthening is beneficial in unloading the lower compartments, utilizing more major muscle groups for stability.
We also incorporate agility into our strength routine to help with speed, quickness, and balance that we don’t get in ski-specific training. As Nordic skiing is an “in-line” sport, unless you’re ripping down a sketchy hill or jumping, your body is not put into challenging positions. We spend hundreds of hours every year moving in this two-plane motion, so we need to address overall athleticism in order to be our best. Look at Northug at the Red Bull Challenge or Newell doing back flips—the best skiers have amazing proprioception!! SMS: It’s good to have a solid platform to build off of.
Fasterskier: If you had to pick your favorite workout to do during the month of May, what would it be and why? APU: Crust skiing in the Chugach mountains. The terrain is perfect for refining skate technique. It is easy to hold high speed and cruise for hours at a time. So far in May we’ve gotten in about 8 hours each week of skiing!
Plus May means we are getting ready for the glacier!!!! Bend Endurance Academy: It would have to be going to the beach. GMVS: Riding the bikes on the gaps is really fun. You can get as much as you want…and sometimes more.
Also, our ski on May 5th on Sugarbush. Skiing corn with budding maple trees alongside is a neat experience. We also hike the lift lines and have change collecting contests. SMS: Group bike rides on well-paved, undulating back roads are a fun way to build some basic endurance and leg strength.
Cross-country researcher Hans-Christer Holmberg from Mid Sweden University in Östersund leads the research team gathered in Meråker.
In the border community to Sweden, they will spend the next few days investigating herringbone technique according to the Trondheim newspaper.
“There was research on the diagonal stride in the 70’s and 80’s, but herringbone has never been examined. In addition we will look at diagonal stride, downhill technique and swing technique. We will also look at how athletes transition into the hills.
“Today we have much more advanced technology, so we can look at things that they couldn’t 20 years ago. Among other things, we can analyze how narrow and broad athletes herringbone, the power curves of the participants in both arms and legs, and even if they use more power in the right arm or leg than the left,” said Holmberg to the paper.
The Swede is aware that he has a good ally on the Norwegian side of the border.
“We work closely with Øyvind Sandbakk and NTNU in Trondheim, but in Meråker we also have Barbara Pellegrini from Trento, Italy, and there are researchers from Salzburg in Austria and from Ljubljana in Slovenia for this project. At the same time, it is ideal to have research in Meråker, where there are many good athletes,” he said.
Both future and past stars, including Marthe Kristoffersen and Frode Estil, are among the athletes that will be under scrutiny during the course of the study, and Holmberg has great expectations for the project.
“We know that skiers Fred Berry and Odd-Bjorn Hjelmeset have good herringbone technique. The same with Emil Jönsson, often running up hills, as did Estil. Each of these skiers have a narrow herringbone technique, and the way up is shorter than if the skis are angled more outward. At the same time the performers have a technique and strength to use a straighter V, and there are many factors that come into play. We believe that we can get answers here,” concluded Holmberg.
Andrew Johnson (Steinbock Racing) – 2010 Noquemanon Champion
This past weekend I was fortunate enough to ski in the Noquemanon Ski Marathon in Marquette, MI. If you have not yet had the opportunity to ski this race, and you have a propensity for long ski races, you should put this event on your calendar for next season. The terrain, excellent snow, technical and demanding trails, and the one-of-a-kind U.P. scenery all combine to create a memorable weekend.
This year’s Noque featured some transformed, cold, and very abrasive snow. The tracks were perfect and the skiing was fast, but once we started racing it was no secret that maintaining kick throughout the entire race was going to be nearly impossible. Even with Toko Base Green Klister binder, the talk in the front pack of the race was all about how long our kick would last. Fortunately, most of the climbing on the Noque course happens in the first 25 kilometers of the race, and the second half of the course is much flatter, with significant elevation loss. It’s quite possible to double pole almost all of the second half of the race (if you have to!), making good classic kick a little less important.
Between the sections of climbing during the first half of the race, there is quite a bit of really nice rolling and gradual terrain. I noticed in our lead pack of 15-or-so skiers that the technique of choice was to double pole as much terrain as possible. I understand this, as I feel that it’s relatively easy to get into a double-pole “groove” and find a good rhythm. Double-poling as long as possible, switching to a stride for the steep sections, and going straight back to double-pole is, to most people, the best way to get to the finish line as fast as possible.
However, once our lead pack settled into a relaxed and consistent pace, I noticed that I could kick-double pole many of the flatter sections much easier than I could double-pole. Knowing that the second half of the race was going to provide plenty of opportunity for double-poling, I figured it was best in the early going to kick-double pole as much as possible and save my double-pole energies for later – particularly since most of the other racers seemed to be double-poling exclusively. Using a relaxed, long, and fluid technique, the kick-double pole allowed me to ski at a lower intensity, save my arms and core for later in the race, and let my legs to do some light work and clear some lactate.
For longer races and marathons where there is likely to be more gradual terrain than most 10 or 15K races, the kick-double pole is an often under-utilized technique. It is difficult to master the kick-double pole to the point where it can be an efficient and, more importantly, relaxed technique; I’ve know many very good skiers who have never developed a really solid kick-double pole in their careers. But it’s worth working on and adding to your arsenal of effective techniques. I have spent a lot of time in the past, during the summer and fall, doing upper-body specific strength workouts on rollerskis. A significant component of these workouts is doing 30 second kick-double pole repeats on both gradual and steeper hills. I concentrate on a long glide, a high position at the start of the downward compression, and fast, powerful motions in both the upper-body compression and kick initiation.
Kick-double pole is your friend. Learn it, and utilize it, to maximize your racing potential! Oh, and put the Noque on your race calendar for next season – you won’t regret it!
Boulder Mountain Tour Wax Tip
Boulder Mountain Tour
Ketchum, ID
6 February, 2010
32k Skate
Start at 10am and on
Forecast/Conditions: Friday night mostly cloudy with a low of 16F. Expect Saturday high of 38F. The snow will stay cold through the race for much of the field. Generally, it is wise to wax colder for the Boulder MT Tour.
Glidewax: Apply LF Moly, scrape and brush, then apply HF Blue/Red mix, scrape and brush. Finish by rotocorking JetStream Blue, brush with a dedicated nylon polishing brush and polish with a thermopad. For skiers anticipating a finish time of over 1:45, go with JetStream Red.
Gripwax: N/A
Structure: A fine linear structure (cold). One strong pass of the Toko Structurite with the Blue bit after applying the JetStream will work well. Follow this by rubbing the JetStream wax on top and polishing it for an optimal finish.
In the past month, the CXC Team Vertical Limit has been all over the west skiing on awesome trails with abundant snow. We raced in West Yellowstone, MT, Bozeman, MT and Silver Star, B.C. Although these trips are a blast, early season races are extra challenging because most athletes competing have spent only 10 days (or less) skiing on snow. Whether you get the chance to travel to snow in November or not, there will inevitably be a time when you want to race fast without having spent much time on snow.
Lots of ski racers live in places where snow is not a given in the month of January. Although I currently live in Marquette, MI where the average annual snowfall is over 200 inches, I was born and raised in Waukesha, WI, where it was normal to be roller skiing well after Christmas. Although the snowfall in Waukesha is not dependable, the ski community definitely is. The Waukesha area high school ski team, Peak Nordic, was started in 1997. This club has grown from six rag-tag beginners to a team of thirty plus racers that won the High School State Championship in 2009. When asked how Peak Nordic could possibly compete with the Northern Wisconsin High School teams that ski on snow from December to March, head coach, Mary Eloranta, said, “Anybody can ski on snow.”
The single most important thing to remember when trying to ski fast without training on snow is specificity. Like other aspects of training, the type of demand placed on the body dictates the type of adaptation that will occur. An athlete will not get fast and powerful by doing all long, slow, distance training. Likewise, an athlete will not succeed in cross-country skiing by running or biking until the snow falls. Fortunately, roller skis provide an experience that is very similar to skiing on snow. It is imperative for cross-country ski racers trying to race fast without snow to do at least 50% of their off-season training on roller skis. While roller skiing activates the same muscle groups used in cross-country skiing, it also provides a great opportunity for skiers to work on technique.
The only negative thing about roller skiing is that rubber wheels tend to be faster than P tex on snow. To make roller skiing even more specific, athletes can find big uphill sections of road to do their intervals and technique work. Another way to simulate the physical and technical demands of cross-country skiing is to do ski walking and bounding intervals. When done properly ski walking and bounding are very similar to classic skiing on snow. It is imperative for athletes to take the time to learn the fundamental skiing movements involved with ski walking and bounding to fully benefit from this activity.
Most cross-training options for cross-country skiers lack the upper body demand associated with skiing on snow. Thus, skiers who are training to race fast without snow must not forget to work on their upper body and core strength. This should be done in several different ways. General strength activities in the weight room or basement will surely pay off in the winter time. Another great way to work on upper body strength is by doing what we call, “specific strength.” Specific strength workouts are usually done with classic roller ski equipment and involve a warm up, 30-60 minutes of strength activities, and a cool down. Specific strength activities include: single sticking, double poling, kick double poling, and core only double poling. Athletes should find a nice gradual uphill and mark off 100-250 meters depending on their strength background. Specific strength workouts involve doing many repetitions of the activities mentioned above. Athletes can have some fun making up workouts that focus on their weaknesses. I would suggest putting an emphasis on single sticking and double poling for athletes looking to build strength fast.
A common mistake made by athletes that are training to race fast without snow is to neglect technique work. Technique must be a focus of training all year round. NMU Ski Team head coach, Sten Fjeldheim, tells his athletes, “if you can’t do it right in the grass, how the heck are you going to do it on skis.” Sten is no stranger to making skiers race fast without snow. At the 2007 National Championships, NMU Ski Team athlete, Lindsey Dehlin, won the 5K Classic race without being on snow more than a few days before the race. Technique work can be very productive on or off the skis when a logical progression is used. Central Cross-Country Skiing has done an excellent job teaching this progression to athletes, coaches, and teams like High School State Champions—Peak Nordic. Contact CXC for a clinic in your area, or go to www.cxcstore.org to purchase their new DVD called, “Cross-Country Technique Progression.”
Maria Stuber, CXC Team Vertical Limit
Maria Stuber is CXC Team Vertical Limit member and her main equipment sponsors are; Vertical Limit apparel, Salomon skis/boots/bindings, Toko wax/gloves/hats, Polar heart rate monitor, Swix poles, Rudy Project eyewear/helmet, Marwe rollerskis, Finn Sisu stonegrinding, Podium Wear race suits.
While some lucky athletes have been training on snow for weeks, many are looking forward to strapping on their skis for the first time. For those of you who haven’t been able to seek out early-season snow, here’s some advice from the Craftsbury Green Racing Project for how to approach your first few sessions on skis. Although it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of the first snowfall, it’s important to remember that correctly managing the transition from dryland to on-snow training will help you achieve your goals throughout the season.
Technique should be everyone’s primary focus as you make the transition to snow. At the Craftsbury Green Racing Project, we are constantly reminded that the more you perform the motions of skiing, the more ingrained they become – so it is essential to establish correct technique in your muscle memory instead of repeating bad habits. And because the feel of snow is different than the feel of pavement, even skiers who have done extensive technique work on rollerskis need to maintain that focus once they hit the white stuff.
A good first step is to identify technique flaws and necessary changes based on your skiing from last season. Then, work with a coach during initial on-snow sessions so that you can get feedback on whether you are accomplishing the intended changes. It’s especially helpful to do video review. Even if you feel like you’re making a drastic change, you may not be doing enough. Pepa Miloucheva, coach of the Craftsbury Nordic Ski Club, says that if you need to adjust the angles in your joints, “a 5% change feels like a 35% change.” Coaching and video review will keep you honest and on-track.
The goal technique work is to develop efficiency on skis. While it is in many ways more difficult to ski efficiently at a slow pace, the bulk of training sessions will be in level one, so it is essential to have good technique even here. To accomplish this, avoid incorporating intervals or too much speedplay into your first training days on snow. When our team was in West Yellowstone, we skied for three days before having our first interval workout. If you don’t have many opportunities to ski before the first races of the season, it’s important to do a serious review of those races – it is easy to fall back on bad habits when you’re tired, so the next sessions should focus on reestablishing good technique in your muscle memory.
To get the feel of the snow, it may be helpful to start out with some basic drills. One drill that Miloucheva suggests is to take off one of your skis, then use your free foot to push off and see how long you can glide. Think about your body position, and what will allow you to stay balanced the longest. Depending on what type of rollerskis you have been using, this drill may be more or less difficult than it was during the summer. Next, consider breaking your technique down into components, such as double-poling and no-pole skiing.
Early-season technique work is especially important for classic skiing. The feeling of kicking on wax and that of kicking against the ratchets of a classic rollerski are completely different. Correct body position and full transfer of weight are required for skiing on snow, and it’s essential to break any bad habits you might have developed on rollerskis.
To work on body position and weight transfer, spend some time skiing without poles. This accomplishes two things. First, poor body position will make you quite uncomfortable, so you’re likely to correct bad posture. Second, it encourages you to put your weight over the correct part of the ski and to transfer it completely, or else you will slip. When you add poles back into your training, try to maintain the body position and weight transfer you had without them.
Finally, once you have worked on your stated technique goals, begin adding speed back into your skiing. Be careful to maintain the same positive changes you have made even when you increase your tempo, as technique degenerates as you tire. The Craftsbury team incorporates two types of pickups, focusing on high tempo and high power separately, into easy distance skis. When you move on to intervals, you can combine the things you have been working on at slow tempo, high tempo, and high power.
These easy steps can help you hit the ground running with a solid technique basis for the rest of the season.
The snow has finally fallen in Craftsbury, VT and the Green Racing Project is making the transition to snow.
After walking on to the Dartmouth team, Chelsea Little improved steadily, earning carnival starts and her first EISA top-10 in 2007. The competitive atmosphere on the Dartmouth team taught her how to be an elite athlete, and greatly raised the level of her own skiing. While Chelsea is excited to put school behind her and train full-time, she appreciates the balance provided by the CGRP program. She is looking forward to getting to know Craftsbury’s wilderness and is already working to create a nature trail and an accompanying curriculum for student groups. Come winter, Chelsea hopes to settle into the national-level racing scene.
USSA has posted PDFs from this fall’s Coaches Education Conference. The PDFs are available for download here. All told their are 11 articles available, covering topics from designing mental-skills training plans to injury prevention and technique.
The full list of articles is below.
Conference Analysis by Pete Vordenberg, U.S. Ski Team Head Coach
Exertional Leg Pain (Compartment Syndrome) in XC Skiers, Dr. Jon Finnoff, U.S. Ski Team Physician, Mayo Clinic
Developing Junior Skiers, The Stratton Mountain School Model, Sverre Caldwell, Head Coach SMS
Common Cross Country Ski Injuries & Prevention, Aaron Saari, U.S. Ski Team Physical Therapist
Cross Country Ski Technique (notes from a video presentation), Justin Wadsworth, U.S. Ski Team World Cup Coach
Coaching Kikkan Randall and the APU Nordic Ski Team, Erik Flora, Head Coach APU
Thoughts and Musings on Waxing Skis and Waxing the Competition, Randy Gibbs, U.S. Ski Team Serviceman
U.S. Ski Team, Olympics and Beyond, Pete Vordenberg, U.S. Ski Team Head Coach
Designing Coach-Delivered Mental Skills Training Plans, Jon Hammermeister, U.S. Ski Team Psychologist
Whole Body Exercise and Double Poling, an Update on the Current Understanding, H.C. Holmberg, Mid Sweden University, Sweden Winter Sports Research Centre
Sprint in Cross Country Skiing, H.C. Holmberg, Mid Sweden University, Sweden Winter Sports Research Centre
This 3-DVD set is a cross country ski-specific presentation from experts in the field. You’re going to hear from Sweden’s cross country physiologist H.C. Holmberg, USST’s sport psychologist Dr. Jon Hammermeister, Pete Vordenberg – USST Head Coach, and Justin Wadsworth – USST coach as well as ex-coach of Olympic Medalist Beckie Scott. Stratton Mountain School Coach Sverre Caldwell speaks on developing young skiers and the U.S Development System. Other topics include Ski Service by USST’s Serviceman Randy Gibbs; physiology, technique, motivation and much more.
Video by the US Ski Team’s Torin Koos – Double Pole and Class Stride. Be sure to read the commentary below the video by US Ski Team Coach Justin Wadsworth.
Commentary from Justin Wadsworth
On the Double Pole Sections:
This video footage was taken while doing Vo2 max work during an intensity block in Lake placid, New york. In the double poling, I want to see Torin stay forward with upperbody. With the group sprint shot, we’re working on skiing relaxed and fast in tight spaces. Double Poling power, going fast, this is translated from the weight room to the ski trails. We’re doing heavy lifts with fast movements, followed by contrast strength. This means higher reps during the contrast phase on the Concept2 machine. We’re always after very fast muscle contractions and carrying over gains from the strength room and in training into ski racing.
On the Classic Striding:
Like most times, the video flattens out the terrain. In most of these shots, we’re skiing the steepest paved terrain we can find ~ up to 15 to 16 percent here. Torin’s keeping a nice quick tempo while keeping the pace controlled. I like to remind Torin to relax the shoulders and always kick off the ball of the foot. These are two keys to skiing fast during the winter.
Torin Koos
Torin Koos is a member of the National A Team for the United States. A World Cup, World Championship and Olympic competitor, Koos brings this experience to the FasterSkier sportscasting arena for the 2009/2010 season.
Equipment: Rossignol Skis, Boots and Bindings, Toko gloves and wax, Marwe, Exel poles, Rudy Project Eyewear, Rossignol Softgoods
Video by the US Ski Team’s Torin Koos – Skating with Liz Stephen. Be sure to read the commentary below the video by US Ski Team Coach Matt Whitcomb.
Commentary with Matt Whitcomb
The New Zealand on-snow footage with Liz comes from a threshold session. Liz does a fine job keeping a controlled intensity effort in actually very steep terrain. Notice how Liz is light on her feet and moves side to side very efficiently with the legs. Notice the shallow compression so she doesn’t end up working too hard during this workout – maybe I’d like to see a little more – but maybe that’s not possible while keeping the workout always in threshold.
She even tries of make a move on Kris Freeman here.
The rollerskiing footage comes from a Vo2 Max session up Whiteface Mountain. I like the upper body compression I’m seeing in Liz. Also, notice Liz’s body position, and the sharpness of her shin angle. I wouldn’t mind seeing Liz get a little more weight transfer from time to time, but all in all it’s quite good. In sessions like this, we talk technique after every four minute interval. I try to give her immediate feedback. We talk about what I’m seeing and what she may be feeling about her skiing, both the positives we want to keep rolling, and also the area to focus in on during the next interval.
Torin Koos
Torin Koos is a member of the National A Team for the United States. A World Cup, World Championship and Olympic competitor, Koos brings this experience to the FasterSkier sportscasting arena for the 2009/2010 season.
Equipment: Rossignol Skis, Boots and Bindings, Toko gloves and wax, Marwe, Exel poles, Rudy Project Eyewear, Rossignol Softgoods
General single stick and double pole drill; Single stick and double pole drill facing away; Kick forward and back drill; Adduction and abduction drill; explosive kick; Drills for classic and skate; General Activity drills; Classic kick; Stable balance.
Skate Progressions (on rollerskis)
Getting started on skate rollerskis; V1; V1 ski loading; V2; V2 alternate drills (no poles)
Classic Progressions (on rollerskis)
Getting started on classic rollerskis; Body position and arm adjustment; Classic double pole technique; Striding and late kick; Kick double pole
Skate Progressions (on snow)
Skate loading; Skate synchronized loading; V2 progression; V1 and V2 alternate – solving leg asymmetry
Classic Progressions (on snow)
Double pole and diagonal stride progressions
Also included:
The Cross-Country Technique Progressions DVD-ROM includes the CXC Academy training plan samples based on 250, 400 and 550 training hours a year, complimentary video extras from the CXC Academy video collection, as well as other content to help you learn more about the program and use its features with ease.
USSA has posted the article “Biomechanical Analysis of Double Poling in Elite Cross-Country Skiers” by Hans-Christer Holmberg, Stefan Lindinger, Thomas Stoggl, Erich Eitzlmair, and Erich Muller. Holmberg is part of the Department of Physiology & Pharmacology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden and the Åstrand Laboratory, Stockholm University College of Physical Education and Sports, Stockholm, Sweden. The other authors work with Department of Sport Science and Kinesiology, University of Salzburg, Austria and the Christian Doppler Laboratory Salzburg,
Austria.
From the article abstract:
Purpose: To further the understanding of double poling (DP) through biomechanical analysis of upper and lower body movements during DP in cross-country (XC) skiing at racing speed. Methods: Eleven elite XC skiers performed DP at 85% of their maximal DP velocity (V85%) during roller skiing at 1° inclination on a treadmill. Pole and plantar ground reaction forces, joint angles (elbow, hip, knee, and ankle), cycle characteristics, and electromyography (EMG) of upper and lower body muscles were analyzed.
The US Ski Team’s Torin Koos put together a number of videos from the the recently completed training camp at the Olympic Venue in Whistler and the on-snow camp in New Zealand. These videos show the best in the country mixing it up during training. If a picture is worth a thousand words, when it comes to technique, video is off the charts.
USST Mens Double Pole
USST Ladies Double Pole
USST Ladies Classic
Torin Koos
Torin Koos is a member of the National A Team for the United States. A World Cup, World Championship and Olympic competitor, Koos brings this experience to the FasterSkier sportscasting arena for the 2009/2010 season.Equipment: Rossignol Skis, Boots and Bindings, Toko gloves and wax, Marwe, Exel poles, Rudy Project Eyewear, Rossignol Softgoods
The US Ski Team’s Torin Koos put together a number of videos from the the recently completed training camp at the Olympic Venue in Whistler and the on-snow camp in New Zealand. These videos show the best in the country mixing it up during training. If a picture is worth a thousand words, when it comes to technique, video is off the charts.
USST Ladies Skating
USST Mens Skating
Torin Koos
Torin Koos is a member of the National A Team for the United States. A World Cup, World Championship and Olympic competitor, Koos brings this experience to the FasterSkier sportscasting arena for the 2009/2010 season.
Equipment: Rossignol Skis, Boots and Bindings, Toko gloves and wax, Marwe, Exel poles, Rudy Project Eyewear, Rossignol Softgoods
Kick off your ski season with area’s top coaches helping you improve your skills. A remarkable collection of coaching talent including former Nordic Olympian Sarah Konrad, special guests and top area coaches will assemble for the 2-day instructional camp to take place Friday evening at Ski Haus, and Saturday at The Lake Catamount Touring Center and Sunday at Steamboat Ski Touring Center
The Camp caters to all ability levels: true beginner to advanced and race oriented. Clinic groups are divided by ability and group size is small so that participants can get the most from their coach. Thanks to Ski Haus, 10/11 Nordic ski equipment will be available to demo at the “try before you buy” demo tents: Fischer, Salomon, Rossignol, Atomic, SWIX, Toko representatives will be on hand with equipment and information to assist you. Last but not least, hearty lunches, happy hour, great prizes and fun camaraderie add to this “not to be missed” Nordic event. For more information and to register:http://thenordiclink.com/Nordic%20Camp.htm.
Early registration fees are $165 for two days and $100 for one day through Dec. 3rd. Register online at Active.com or in person at Ski Haus. Sign up early, this camp will fill up.
![](http://images.fasterskier.com/2010/08/41277_133540576688691_107878629254886_166471_473969_n.jpg" "Women's Camp Wisc. 2010")
![](http://images.fasterskier.com/2010/08/41065_133540680022014_107878629254886_166477_6124135_n.jpg" "Wisc. Women's Camp 2010 2")
![](http://images.fasterskier.com/2009/11/H_Brooks09Yellow_.jpg" "Holly Brooks (APU) (Photo: Swix Sport USA)")
![](http://images.fasterskier.com/2010/02/IMG_2313.jpg" "Andy Newell (3rd) follows Emil Joensson (SWE) across the line. Newell was elminated in this quarterfinal.")
![Maria Stuber, CXC Team Vertical Limit](http://images.fasterskier.com/2009/12/Stuber-copy.jpg" "Maria Stuber, CXC Team Vertical Limit")
![Maria Stuber, CXC Team Vertical Limit](http://images.fasterskier.com/2009/12/IMG_9821.jpg" "Maria Stuber, CXC Team Vertical Limit")
![The snow has finally fallen in Craftsbury, VT and the Green Racing Project is making the transition to snow.](http://images.fasterskier.com/2009/12/DSC02904.JPG" "The snow has finally fallen in Craftsbury, VT and the Green Racing Project is making the transition to snow.")
![Torin Koos](http://images.fasterskier.com/2008/12/torin_koos_headshot.jpg" "torin_koos_headshot")
![CXC Technique Progressions](http://images.fasterskier.com/2009/09/227.jpg" "CXC DVD")
