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Tag: Mosjoen

  • May Skiing in Canada (and Abroad) in Photos

    May Skiing in Canada (and Abroad) in Photos

    The BC development team getting ready to ski out of the biathlon stadium at Whistler Olympic Park last weekend.

    While most people have moved on to other sports by May, the more obsessive skiers are starting the new training year on snow.

    Canada’s “first” cross-country ski “races” of the 2017/2018 season were held on May 6. “First” because, while we haven’t exhaustively researched this, it was the first Saturday after May 1, which is the traditional new year for the Northern Hemisphere. “Races” is also a bit misleading as most athletes were viewing the events as an opportunity to do some intensity.

    Here then, in the order which photos arrived, are the places where people are skiing in May. Did we miss one? Share in the comments below or email photos with caption and credit info to info@fasterskier.com.

    Sovereign Lake, Vernon, B.C.

    The Sovereign Lake Nordic Centre (SLNC) re-opened from May 4 to 7 for the Spring Fling camp and the “SLNC 1st Annual Pushups Classic Time Trial” race. The May camp has been running for years, but was moved to earlier in the month to ensure prime conditions. A number of clubs brought athletes out for technique lessons and long snow sessions. Canmore Nordic broke the pattern by focussing on low-elevation training with shorter training sessions. As the Canmore athletes live at 1,400 metres above sea level, the opportunity to train at 400 metres was more exciting than skiing at 1,700 metres.

    Canmore, Alberta

    The Canmore Nordic Centre lost its snow at the end of April, but Sunshine Meadows just a short drive west in Banff National Park hosted a large group of skiers starting May 9. Ivan Babikov is leading a training block for the Canmore-based national team members, Chris Jeffries has the Alberta World Cup Academy crew, and a number of other groups are there as well.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BT7dTJHjPhS/?taken-by=andrewkchisholm

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BT7TVIfFWrc/

    Sjusjøen, Norway

    OK, not in Canada, but Canadians Dahria Beatty and Russell Kennedy went and enjoyed some superb skiing conditions. They raced at Bysprinten in Mosjøen, Norway, and then moved on to Sjusjøen’s 100 kilometres of trails.

    Menihek, Labrador City, Newfoundland and Labrador

    The Menihek Nordic Ski Club is officially closed, but has snow and will set track for Mother’s Day, according to club president Gerry Rideout.

    Whistler Olympic Park, Whistler, B.C.

    This venue is closed to the public, but has been hosting camps on natural snow. Biathlon got the first weekend of May and cross-country has the Victoria Day weekend. These photos are from the biathlon camp on the Olympic trails, mostly below 900 metres in elevation.

  • Northug beats Bjørgen in Super-Duel

    The super duel at Bysprinten in Mosjoen (NOR) on Saturday was entirely between Marit Bjørgen and Petter Northug. Bjørgen was given a five-second lead on Northug on the course through the city center.

    Shortly into the first of the two laps, Northug had managed to close the gap and hung out comfortable on Bjørgens tails. He stayed there until the last turn, when he decided to pull off a surge and accelerate out of the curve to finish ahead.

    Bjørgen answered the surge with an impressive tempo change, but Northug still managed to get ahead.

    “He’s a coward. I couldn’t get him to pull,” Bjørgen concluded.

    “Marit is actually better than me,” Northug admitted.

    Swede wins the men’s sprint

    While Northug won the “super-duel” with Bjørgen, the Sweden dominated the men’s sprint in Mosjoen. Northug didn’t deliver a particularly impressive qualifying time. He was eliminated from the A-final in the quarterfinals. In the B-final, Northug was among the last to cross the finish line. It is of course possible that he was saving his energy to win the “super-duel” with Bjørgen.

    The men’s A-final was a thrilling battle between Teodor Peterson (SWE), Øystein Pettersen (NOR), Odd-Bjørn Hjelmeset (NOR) and Renato Pasini (ITA).

    Pettersen was ahead from the start and was leading for a long way, but had to let go when Hjelmeset and Peterson surged. In the sharp corner right before the finish, Pettersen looked like he was onto a comeback and passed Hjelmeset, but was an inch short of Peterson. Pasini also managed to drop Hjelmeset on the finish line for third place.

    Amazing Bjørgen

    Among the women, it was all about Bjørgen. She won the quarterfinal, the semifinal and to finish. No games.

    “Winning means a lot. It’s fun to be on the top of the podium. I’m glad I made it to Bysprinten in Mosjoen,” she said with a huge grin after the race.

    Italian Gaia Vuerich was second and Mari Eide (NOR) was third.

    Therese Johaug (NOR) and Dario Cologna (SUI) were also among the many stars on the start line in Mosjoen Saturday. Neither of them made it to the A-finals.

    Results:

    Women:
    1. Marit Bjørgen, NOR
    2. Gaia Vuerich, ITA
    3. Mari Eide, NOR

    Men
    1. Teodor Peterson, SWE
    2. Øystein Pettersen, NOR
    3. Renato Pasini, ITA
    4. Odd-Bjørn Hjelmeset, NOR

    Super-duel
    1. Petter Northug, NOR
    2. Marit Bjørgen, NOR

    From Langrenn.com, April 9, 2011. By Geir Nilsen, translation by Inge Scheve