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

Tag: NMU

  • “Being a Champion of the World, Not a World Champion”: Inside the Norwegian Model of Lifelong Sport with Trond Nystad

    “Being a Champion of the World, Not a World Champion”: Inside the Norwegian Model of Lifelong Sport with Trond Nystad

    When Trond Nystad talks about Norway’s athletic success, he doesn’t start with medals or podiums. He begins with children — specifically, children who love to play.

    “The model of Norwegian sport,” he says, “is to have as many kids as possible, for as long as possible, and try to make them as good as possible.” That simple mantra, lived out in ski clubs from Tromsø to Trondheim, is what he believes keeps Norway at the top of the endurance-sport world.

    “It’s about being a champion of the world, not a world champion,” Nystad explains. “The focus is on learning, mastering things, having fun — not on winning.”

    Trond Nystad (Photo: NordicFocus)
    A System That Lives Its Values

    Nystad has coached at nearly every level — from college programs at Northern Michigan University and the University of Denver to national teams in the U.S., Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Norway. He’s seen systems that thrive and systems that sputter. What sets Norway apart, he says, isn’t a secret training formula but the culture that surrounds young athletes.

    “In Norway, the principles of long-term athlete development — the LTAD model — are lived, not just written,” he says.

    “In some places, LTAD is a document. In Norwegian clubs, it’s a way of life. Coaches and parents make sure kids master skills, become independent, and most importantly, have fun.”

    That lived philosophy keeps kids skiing, running, and playing far longer than in most countries. “Every country that has success over a longer period of time has figured out how to lure kids into sport and keep them there,” he says. “If you have a lot of kids and you teach them a lot of skills, they’ll be driven and have fun. Then it’s easy to talk about high-level training later — because you start with the right foundation.”

    The U.S. Comparison: Knowledge Is Not the Issue

    Nystad has deep respect for the American coaching scene — he spent years building programs here and still closely follows U.S. skiing. “The U.S. has a lot of really good coaches,” he says. “Sometimes the issue isn’t knowledge. It’s that cross-country skiing doesn’t attract as many kids because it has to compete with other sports.”

    The challenge, he believes, is not to clone Norway’s system but to borrow its spirit. “We need more skiers, and we need to take care of them,” he says. “Make sure they have so much fun developing that they don’t want to quit.”

    That message — that development is not linear, and that joy is a strategic asset — could resonate in American junior clubs. “If you have fun and learn mastery,” Nystad says, “success will come. But if you chase results too early, you lose too many kids.”

    Like many elite skiers, Lauren Jortberg and Julia Kern enjoy mountain biking opportunities for a change of pace. (Photo: Julia Kern)
    Against Early Specialization

    Asked when Norwegian athletes begin to specialize, Nystad laughs gently. “Focus and specialization are a little bit mutually exclusive,” he says. “You can be focused and still do more than one sport.”

    Most Norwegian kids, he explains, play several sports until age 15 or 16 — sometimes even longer. “When they’re 18 or 19, they might focus on one main sport and keep a couple on the side — running and skiing, for example, or cycling and skiing,” he says. “It’s part of the culture. People are active.”

    The danger, he warns, comes from well-meaning adults. “A lot of parents try to self-realize through their kids,” he says.

    “They want them to specialize early, to do everything right. In the end, the kids are sick of it, have no fun, and they quit.”

    His takeaway is simple: “Kids are not miniature adults. They’re kids. Let them be kids as long as it makes sense. Life gets serious soon enough.”

    Adam Witkowski poses with his parents after unexpectedly racing a World Cup in Minneapolis in 2024. (Nathaniel Herz/FasterSkier)
    The Role of Parents: Mentors, Not Managers

    Nystad, as a father himself, knows firsthand how difficult it is to strike that balance of knowing when it is time to commit. “Sixteen is just a number,” he says. Some sixteen-year-olds are grown up; they can form their own opinions and take ownership. Others can barely wipe their own ass,” he says with a laugh.

    “But in the end, the kids have to decide for themselves. It has to be something that’s rewarding for them. Our job as parents is to support them — to help them make fewer mistakes, to be mentors along the way.”

    That mentoring role — guiding but not controlling — is something Nystad sees as critical for the next generation of athletes. “We’re supposed to help them realize their dreams and develop,” he says. “Not to live our dreams through them.”

    “Keep It Simple”: Trust the Body, Not the Gadgets

    In an era dominated by data, GPS, and lactate meters, Nystad is refreshingly old-school. He’s not anti-science — he’s trained with and coached some of the world’s most analytically minded teams — but he cautions against what he calls “numbing the senses.”

    “The reason to measure is to understand,” he says. “You measure to confirm your subjective feelings — not to replace them.”

    “If you’re tired, you sleep. If you’re hungry, you eat. If you’re thirsty, you drink. Those are subjective feelings — and they’re more important than any data you can measure,” he explains.

    “Most devices today are not 100 percent correct. Your body usually is.”

    For Nystad, training success comes from continuity, not complexity. “The KISS principle applies — keep it simple,” he says. “In endurance sports, you have to train with continuity for a long time and be patient. Don’t screw things up. Control gives continuity, and continuity is everything.”

    Fun as a Foundation for Longevity

    Nystad lights up when the conversation turns to lifelong sport. “If sport or physical activity makes us happy, we’ll prioritize it,” he says. “Talking about training doesn’t make you better — actually doing it does.”

    He encourages athletes — elite or recreational — to reframe movement as a privilege, not a chore. “We should appreciate every day we get to move,” he says.

    “It means we’re healthy, we have the time, we can afford the equipment. That’s a luxury we need to appreciate more.”

    For parents juggling work and family, his advice is pragmatic: “Maybe it’s better to go for a one-hour run first, and then drink your beer and watch Netflix,” he says with a grin. “It’s just about organizing your day so you get your little quick fix of physical activity.”

    The Norwegian Definition of Success

    For someone who’s coached Olympic medalists, Nystad’s definition of success has nothing to do with results. “I can’t even remember what happened last winter,” he admits. “Success has nothing to do with medals or wins. I’m happy as a coach when the athletes are happy — when they’ve developed as athletes and as human beings.”

    He sees coaching as a human project as much as an athletic one. “I always try to build teams where people work together, respect each other, and do their best. That’s success. If we treat each other well and do the job the best way we can, we’ll reach our potential. Reaching your potential — as a human or as an athlete — that’s success.”

    It’s a deeply Norwegian sentiment, one echoed across their sports system: the process matters more than the podium.

    One of many kids enjoying the features on the course and in the Kiddie Cross terrain park at NordicX in 2022. (Photo: Eric Maurer / NordicX)
    Lessons for U.S. Clubs and Coaches

    Nystad believes that U.S. programs can apply these lessons without mimicking Norway wholesale. “The principles are the same,” he says. “It’s about creating an environment where kids master things, have fun, and stay in sports longer.”

    That may mean rethinking what “development” looks like. “Most of the time, we lose more than we win,” he says. “So it’s okay to have a bad race or a bad day. Focus on skill development and mastery — even when things aren’t going well. If it’s fun, and you keep mastering skills, success will come.”

    He also urges patience from young athletes. “A big mistake is intensity control,” he says. “They go too fast on the easy sessions and too fast on the hard sessions. They believe ‘no pain, no gain,’ but endurance sport doesn’t work like that. The best athletes are the ones who train a lot — and train smart.”

    Technique, Mastery, and Play

    Skiing, Nystad reminds us, is as much art as science. “Especially in skiing, which is such a technical sport, the quality lies in doing things right — not just going hard,” he says. “I see so many people skiing with music in their ears, talking, doing all kinds of things, instead of focusing on perfecting technique.”

    He encourages athletes to “play” with movement: “No one tells us how to do it. We can choose the way that fits our body and our strength,” he explains. “If more people would play with technique, be conscious of their technical and pacing choices, the outcome would be better for most people.”

    Astrid Oeyre Slind (NOR) on her way to a second-place finish in Cogne, Italy. (Photo: NordicFocus)
    The Lifelong Athlete Mindset

    At 55, Nystad continues to coach, ski, and move daily — not out of obligation, but joy. “If you train right, take care of yourself physically, mentally, nutritionally — and have a blast doing it — there’s no limit to how long you can be good,” he says.

    “The moment you start thinking it’s a sacrifice, or that it’s boring — that’s when your career starts to end.”

    He cites examples like Hilde Gjørum, who earned her first Olympic medal at 43, and Astrid Øyre Slind, who made her first Norwegian World Championships team at 34 and won her first World Cup at 37. “There are lots of stories like that,” he says. “Everyone can keep getting better — if you love what you do.”

    Looking Ahead: A Sustainable Future

    Nystad’s final reflections return to sustainability — both of snow and of sport. “Obviously, we’ll have issues with snow,” he says. “Snow storage and snow farming are becoming normal in Europe, and that will change the sport. But cross-country skiing will survive. It’s a great sport — full-body, low-injury, healthy.”

    The real challenge, he believes, is getting people to participate. “We need to sell it for all it’s worth and get more people involved,” he says. “If we can bring more people into skiing — kids, families, anyone — the rest will take care of itself.”

    The Takeaway: “Master the World”

    For Nystad, the essence of sport is not the stopwatch, but the spirit. “The focus,” he repeats, “is on mastering the world — being a champion of the world, not a world champion.”

    It’s a mindset that turns every trail into a classroom, every race into a chance to learn. And perhaps that’s the real secret behind Norway’s golden age of endurance: a culture where success isn’t measured in medals, but in how many people can’t wait to clip into their skis again tomorrow.

    Trond Nystad, the coach of the Norwegian men’s cross-country ski team, takes questions from the media after the relay at the Sochi Olympics.
  • With Dreams Chased and Achieved, Adam Martin Retires from Professional Skiing

    With Dreams Chased and Achieved, Adam Martin Retires from Professional Skiing

    Adam Martin strides at the 2022 Holmenkollen 50 k classic in Oslo, Norway. Martin finished 26th in his third Holmenkollen in March, and recently announced his retirement. (Photo: NordicFoucs).

    Adam Martin’s skiing has always tended to be best described in conjunctions rather than disjunctions. He could do this and he would do that.

    Or, that’s always how his mentors looked at it. My most distinct memory of Martin is from a CXC (Central Cross Country Skiing) camp about a decade ago when Sten Fjeldheim, then Martin’s coach at Northern Michigan University (NMU), gathered a group of us J2s (U16) around in the lobby of the old Telemark Lodge and said, “there’s proof you can be an All-American caliber skier and have a 4.0 GPA too,” pointing to Martin as the example.

    That stuck with me as I watched him as a US skiing fan for years. Martin was giving it everything he could in everything he did, and the juxtapositions that produced were inspiring in their absurdity.

    He would run a combined bike/run hill climb and beat all but one of the cyclists. He would win a local 5 k while pushing for pro runner–caliber paces (seriously, he ran a 14:34). He would compete on the World Cup, and his best result would consistently come at its longest and hardest race – the Holmenkollen 50 k.  

    That pattern strung along almost a decade from his high school career to its final, most striking juxtaposition: Martin had his best season ever in 2021/2022, and now he will retire from professional skiing.

    The pattern held all the way through. He gave it all, in every way, and at everything the ski world had to offer.

    It was exemplary of his philosophy of inclusiveness, of an and; a persistence in bringing in others’ ideas, their accomplishments, their experiences in skiing, learning what he could, and channeling it all into his performance out on the course.

    That stance towards thoughtfulness and inclusion could be figured as an essence to Adam Martin the skier. Something that reached all the way back and followed him all the way through. When we spoke a couple weeks after his retirement, that was the timescale he reached for. “I was lucky to grow up in the nordic skiing community that I did, with a lot of great people helping me in the sport, both getting into it and supporting me today,” Martin said.

    Adam Martin strides through the woods in Falun, Sweden, during a 15 k classic in January 2021. (Photo: NordicFocus)

    That nordic community was the one in Martin’s hometown of Wausau, Wisconsin. He first came to skiing as a 10-year-old there – venturing out on skis after the local skating rink shut down and left his then favorite sport, figure skating, an impossibility. “It was a good winter so there was good skiing at 9-mile (Wausau’s trails) for all of March. My mom took me out once or twice a week for a whole month and I think we progressively worked up to 20 k at the end of the ski season. And that was big for me. I didn’t think about figure skating after that.”

    It was an understated but persistent start in the sport that matched the ski community that Martin would grow up in. An old timber-boom relic in Wisconsin’s Northwoods, Wausau hums along as a city of 38,000 marked most prominently by Rib Mountain, an erratic that signals that glaciers crept across the land there, carving up knolls and hills under the forests that now surround it. It is as perfect ski terrain as you’ll find in the Midwest. Granite Peak, one of the oldest lift-served ski hills in the country, calls one side of Rib Mountain home. Characteristically of Martin, when I asked him if he skied there as a kid he replied “Never downhill. I used to ski up it after the lifts closed in high school though.” Martin was instead drawn into skiing by the rolling terrain at Nine-Mile County Forest, a network of trails a mile south of Rib Mountain that had already been home to a couple generations of nationally competitive skiers .

    Before he joined those ranks though, Martin signed up for the Wausau Night Gliders, the community’s youth program coached by Rachel and Greg Kresse. “We met twice a week, and I was just so excited to see and learn different things in the sport. I remember the first time we learned to skate, and was like thinking, ‘could you V2 in a race?’ Because at that point I was just doing one technique. That was the clincher, I decided I wanted to race. I wasn’t even doing particularly well in the beginning, and getting extremely nervous, but I do remember one race at 9-mile where I had one of my experiences hitting the ‘flow state’ and that was it after that. I was totally hooked on that experience.”

    From there, Martin started to look down the road at skiing. Standing there metaphorically, he saw skiers doing what he would one day hope to do. “[In Wausau] the Hugus brothers were three or four years older than me. When I was in 8th grade Ben [Hugus] won the state Championship. One of them was getting top 10s at Junior Nationals, and then I was good friends with Matt and Chris Nichols who were around my age. I had a lot of great competition in Wausau, and in Wisconsin too. I remember Dylan McGarthwrite (from Hayward) making the Scando (Nordic Nations U18) trip when I was a freshman in high school, and I was really hyped up about that.”

    After gaining that preview of the Wisconsin nordic world, Martin would chase down each and every one of those goals reached by his role models. By the time he was a freshman in high school, he was qualifying for Junior Nationals. Then, he won the Wisconsin high school state meet, and then qualified for the U18 Scandinavian Cup trip with US Ski & Snowboard. With dreams realized and only good things ahead, Martin decided to go all in on skiing.

    Adam Martin pushes over the line during a 15 k classic in Falun in February, 2020. (Photo: NordicFocus)

    His time, and his place in Wausau, were serendipitous in presenting a ready-made opportunity in his own backyard. In the early 2010s, the Midwest was home to a grouping of skiers who would go on to define their generation of American skiing. Martin headed to the CXC Elite Team, where an orbit of skiers that included Jessie Diggins and Kevin Bolger, along with coaches like Jason Cork, Igor Badamshin and Bryan Fish, were all forging the philosophies and approaches to skiing that would eventually influence the direction of US skiing for years to come.

    That it was happening was almost hidden by the shabby surroundings in which they were pushing forward. After joining up with CXC, Martin split his time between Wausau, and CXC’s main training site at the Telemark Lodge in Cable, WI. The training environment was spartan, but the facilities couldn’t even strive for that aesthetic – they were just run down. The VO2Max-fitted treadmill hung out in what used to be a shop floor in the Lodge’s old mall, most athlete accommodations still donned the dull color tones of the 1970s, and the old Telemark World Cup trails were overgrown and uncut.

    It was out of the way, but it was also all about skiing, which let Martin fully lean into his developing thoughtfulness towards his technique and his training. “I took a lot of cues from Igor [Badamshin] there. The thing that stood out for me was that he was so joyful about skiing, and that joy could extend to looking at every little aspect of things. He’d point out a little thing in technique, and would get incredibly excited about it, and that was contagious.” (Badamshin passed away in 2014; read a FasterSkier tribute to him here). 

    That attitude extended to new areas of interest too for Martin, who began to take an amateur’s interest in the sports science behind cross-country skiing. “I just bought a standard exercise physiology textbook and think I like read it cover-to-cover. … I started reading all sorts of exercise physiology, and still do.”

    Martin’s post-grad year was a fruition and a starting point. Going into a year at CXC, Martin was a skier whose results indicated a huge amount of physical talent and mental intelligence. Then, somewhere in the Wisconsin Northwoods, they melded together, and Martin formed a full-on focused approach to skiing.

    But there was a paradox at play too. In developing this holistic approach to skiing, Martin realized he had let go of fitting skiing into his holistic approach to life. “Just focusing on skiing and putting all that pressure on one avenue of my life did not work for me. I really needed to challenge myself mentally and take the pressure off skiing after that post-grad year.”

    That led Martin to another natural stopping point in his skiing career, college skiing at Northern Michigan University (NMU) under coach Sten Fjeldheim. “I really fell in love with the sport again under the tutelage of Sten, and with the incredible team environment there.” NMU had long been a waypoint for talented Midwestern juniors – the path that stemmed from JNQ wins to Marquette seemed almost ubiquitous. That meant Martin joined up with a group of teammates that could help him push and be pushed by him.

    Adam Martin tags Craftsbury Green Racing teammate Caitlin Patterson during a March, 2022 4 x 5 k mixed gender relay in Falun, Sweden. (Photo: NordicFocus)

    Like he had when he was a young skier in Wausau, he looked ahead to see what and where his teammates were achieving results, and found cues he could take, saying that “When I was a sophomore, Kyle Bratrud won the 15 k skate at Nationals in Houghton. He was a year older than me and that really opened my eyes to say ‘ok, we can do this. That level is achievable.’”

    With that long view of what he wanted to accomplish, Martin also found in Sten Fjeldheim a coach perfectly matched to the detailed approach to skiing he had formed. Fjeldheim at the time was somewhere between elder statesmen and guru in his career, which meant that the years that Martin was beyond in his skiing knowledge had found a home. “Oftentimes, before a workout, [Sten] would explain exactly why we were doing it, why we needed to execute it a certain way, and what the physiological effect would be for doing that. That was exciting to me, and it worked really well with how I looked at ski training.”

    As important as his coach was the skiers that Martin called teammates during his time at NMU. “That was a rare team environment, we were all super competitive with each other but in a super constructive manner.” During his four years, Martin was part of teams that included former, present, and future US ski team members with Ian Torchia, Zak Ketterson, Kyle Bratud, and biathlete Jake Brown. At the NCAA Championships in 2016, he, Torchia, and Brown combined to put NMU at the top of the team scoring – all earning All-American status in the process. Across both the 10 k Classic and 20 k Skate races, he and Torchia were the top American-born athletes in collegiate skiing. 

    When Martin graduated in 2017, it was also with a distinction that marked a whole other focus during his time at NMU. He had two degrees  – one in mathematics and one in computer engineering. He had taken what he learned about himself during those post-grad days in Wisconsin, moved on up to the U.P., and nailed it.

    Adam Martin (NMU) racing to a American-leading 23rd in men’s 15 k classic at 2016 U23 World Championships in Rasnov, Romania. (Photo: Pete Leonard)

    With a 23rd in the 2016 U23 World Championships 30 k Freestyle, there were plenty of professional clubs that were interested in seeing Martin continue his skiing career. And he was up for it, if he could continue to take the holistic approach that had seen skiing not be “the only thing” in his life. From a far-flung corner of Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, a call came in from Pepa Miloucheva, the coach at Craftsbury Outdoor Center’s Green Racing Project. The GRP was a top-level, proven club, and also one uniquely structured to have its athletes take an active role in the sustainability and outdoor recreation–focused activism of the Outdoor Center. “It just made sense,” said Martin on his decision to head to Vermont after graduating. “I was getting into a program that was more than just training…I was able to work with them, take the GRE, take grad school classes, and make it feel like NMU where I was very challenged.”

    Again, Martin had put himself in a place where skiing was the thing. A small pocket of rolling hills that were a little bigger than the ones he started out on in Wausau, but rolling, nonetheless.

    On the skiing front, things continued to progress for Martin after joining the CGRP. He made his World Cup debut at the 2018 opener in Ruka, where he placed 51st in the 15 k Classic. That season he also notched a pair of 2nd places at US Nationals in the 15 k Classic and the 50 k Classic, while earning consistent World Cup starts throughout that 2018-19 season. Those World Cup appearances culminated in a season-high 31st place at the Holmenkollen 50k marathon in March 2019. It was Holmenkollen that year which provided another one of Martin’s realizations about himself as a skier. “I started to learn that my strength as a cross country skier is that my physiology is really geared towards distance – it’s definitely not speed or transitions. Holmenkollen specifically has these grinding features that make you get to your VO2 max and have to stay there for a long time. It’s almost a perfect physiological stress for me.”

    Adam Martin during the Holmenkollen 50 k in 2020. (Photo: NordicFocus)

    That further stuck out to Martin especially when he returned to the Holmenkollen race the next season, in 2020. “In 2020, it was a low snow year, so we had to do a different course than the traditional 8 k, and it was more focused on transitions. I just learned again, in one race, a lot about myself as a skier. I was just happy to finish.”

    That Holmenkollen marathon also marked the end of normalcy in skiing for the next couple of seasons to come. “That was my last race on the World Cup before the pandemic, and then I came home to do the SuperTour in Minneapolis right before the World Cup, and I won. It was my first SuperTour win, and then the pandemic happened.”

    Martin was in a weird spot. The markers that he had traditionally used to gauge and reach for new heights in his skiing career would suddenly disappear over the course of the next season. He was making progress, but the road didn’t have as many markers as it did before.

    “[The pandemic] was something everyone dealt with differently, right? But I think for me, the big challenge was that the Craftsbury program is traditionally very communal and very close knit. It’s a big group of athletes – like 30 between our skiers and rowers – and traditionally we’re eating in a dining hall, working together, working out together, and sharing the same gym. That was a super vulnerable situation to COVID, so we went from super communal to basically not going into public buildings for that first year.”

    Adam Martin races a frosty 15 k in Falun, Sweden in January, 2021. (Photo: NordicFocus)

    It was as if someone flipped a switch on the type of training environment that Martin had been in since his days at CXC. His training grounds had always been out of the way geographically, but always included the ability to bounce ideas off his teammates and coaches, to try out new things, and to get feedback then and there. They also had always included a full race schedule, which due to a combination of the COVID situation locally in Craftsbury and Vermont state safety policies, became an impossibility the next season.

    When Martin could race, it was internationally. “I was lucky to get a start on the World Cup at Davos in December, but while I was gone, the state of Vermont changed the rules around COVID travel. (At the time, COVID cases were undergoing a spike.) I got back and I couldn’t be on the ski trails in Craftsbury while I quarantined unless it was like before 7am or after 6pm at night. I knew I was lucky to be getting racing in, but it brought restraints that forced you to adapt your training.”

    Martin credits the imperatives surrounding COVID compliance with giving him a new adaptability to his training approach, even if the changes he made were more informed by what they always had been – his coaches, his intuition, and his constant searching for knowledge that would lead to improvement. “I think there was some changes in those two years that helped me make some big improvements that were probably independent of COVID, but came about because I felt like the pressure was off again for the first time in a while.”

    That intermittent COVID season’s lessons would all come to a fruition in Martin’s skiing at the start of the 2021-22 season. Martin started his season on the US SuperTour circuit, and the SuperTour circuit was to begin in the Midwest. That, for Martin, brought back an extra level of familiarity to the return of a regular racing schedule in 2022. “I was so happy to win that first SuperTour in Cable (in the 15 k Classic).”

    The early part of the season also saw him call to mind some of the moments that he had once seen teammates achieve back when he was based in his home region. When he came out of the first SuperTour period in 2nd place overall, behind former teammate Zak Ketterson and barely missing out on the automatic World Cup start Ketterson earned, Martin turned towards US Nationals in Soldier Hollow in January.

    There, on a sunny Utah day, he won the 15 k Classic, a moment that was “particularly awesome, since it was what I watched Kyle Bratrud do at Houghton.” Over seven years, Martin had had the revelation about who he skied with, and then chased down that moment for himself.

    Adam Martin at 2022 Nationals in Soldier Hollow. Martin would become a National Champion in the 15 k Classic, a goal he set 7 years earlier after watching then NMU teammate Kyle Bratrud accomplish the feat. (Photo: Tobias Albrigtsen / @untraceableg)

    His National Championship and SuperTour results would, in nearly any other season, have seen him shortly to the start line of a World Cup. But for a second winter in a row, COVID was surging (this time as part of the Omicron wave). A slate of World Cups were canceled in January, and the Olympics in February took out any flexibility in the US Ski Team’s lineup. In the Olympic qualifying period, Martin was just behind Scott Patterson for 2nd place in the standings. With a more competitive field than ever before, Martin just missed out on qualifying for the 2022 Beijing team.

    From there, he would continue to race the SuperTour, with his consistency throughout the whole season earning that series’ overall title, which he capped off with a win in the 15 k classic at SuperTour finals in Whistler. He also would get the nod to race the final World Cup period in March. A period that included, once again, the Holmenkollen marathon.

    Martin had a memory and a goal. “I had been 31st there my first time, so I wanted to notch a top-30 finish. I looked at the points list and my bib and knew it was going to be a challenge, but the way the race went out I felt like I could hang onto the pack a little longer than I had before, and with the course being one I knew I liked, I just skied with a confidence that I might not otherwise of had.” That effort and that approach, as it had throughout his career, saw him through to accomplishing his goal. Martin finished in 26th.

    Martin could continue like that – setting goals that, through the constant refinement of his approach to skiing, he would surely accomplish. But that’s where the paradox of his approach comes in again. In powering his skiing through a fine-tuned balance between focus on skiing and focus on other aspects of life, there came a time when the balance would shift towards life. For Martin, that moment is one he says has come:

    “What was important to me in professional skiing is giving it everything I have, and that requires a lot of sacrifices. It’s important to me that I’m giving my best effort, and now I give that to other things in my life. I had so much fun this season, and don’t have to step away with any bitter taste in my mouth. Skiing will always be there – I’ll be doing the Birkie or the Noquemanon next year I’m sure, but I’m ready to push myself in a different sense.”

     

  • Northern Michigan University Seeking Head Coach

    Northern Michigan University Seeking Head Coach

    Northern Michigan University is seeking applications for a Head Coach for Nordic Skiing. The positions will direct, organize, coach and administer the men’s and women’s Nordic skiing program.

    Minimum qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience. NCAA learning portal proficiency, or pass within one month of hire. Possess a current CPR certification or have the ability to obtain upon hire. Demonstrated successful Nordic skiing coaching experience as a head coach or an assistant coach at the professional level, NCAA Division I, II or III level or as a head coach at a junior college, elite club or high school level. Demonstrated commitment to the academic success of student-athletes. No prior involvement with NCAA major rules violations. On- and off-campus recruitment of student athletes.

    Required knowledge/skills/abilities: Education and Training-Understanding NCAA bylaws. Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
    Administration and Management-Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources. Instructing- Teaching others how to do something. Oral and Written Communication-Active listening, speaking, and writing which ensures comprehension and understanding in both the speaker and target audience. Time Management-Managing one’s own time and the time of others. Social Perceptiveness-Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do. Coordination-Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions. Monitoring- Monitoring/assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action. Critical Thinking-Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. The ability to organize effectively. The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. The ability to come up with unusual or original ideas about a given topic or

    situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem. The ability to establish a good rapport and effective working relationship with student athletes, coaches, assistant coaches, administrators, college faculty and staff, alumni, professional colleagues, and the general public. The ability to actively look for ways to help people. Expertise with video editing systems. The ability to work effectively under stressful and high-pressure situations. The ability to develop knowledge of, respect for, and skills to engage with those of other cultures or backgrounds.

    The position is variable shift/variable days depending upon playing schedule, recruiting demands and department events. The salary is commensurate with experience.

    Northern Michigan University, with 7,900 students and 177 degree programs, is located along the shore of Lake Superior in the vibrant, historic city of Marquette, consistently named a top

    spot in the nation to raise a family, vacation, and enjoy an excellent quality of life. See more at www.nmu.edu/marquette. For a summary of the benefits offered by Northern Michigan University, visit https://nmu.edu/hr/benefits and under summary of benefits, select administrative professional.

    Submit NMU staff application, cover letter and resume utilizing our on-line application process by accessing https://workatnmu.nmu.edu. All required application materials must be submitted electronically by May 6, 2021.

    NMU is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer of protected veterans and individuals with disabilities, and is strongly committed to increasing the diversity of its faculty and staff.

    Ian Torchia (1) on the shoulders of Northern Michigan University Head Coach Sten Fjeldheim after he won the men’s 20-kilometer freestyle race at 2018 NCAA Skiing Championships in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. (Courtesy photo)

  • Saturday Race Rundown: Cogne, SoHo, Minneapolis (Updated x 1)

    American Jessie Diggins (center) after winning the women’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint in Cogne, Italy. Germany’s Sandra Ringwald (l) placed second and Sweden’s Johanna Hagström in third.

    FIS Cross Country World Cup 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint Cogne, Italy

    Amidst sunshine and sporting rolled up sleeves on Saturday in Cogne Italy, American Jessie Diggins took the women’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint win in nail-biter fashion. After making it into the semifinals and the final as one of the day’s lucky losers, Diggins outlunged Germany’s Sandra Ringwald by 0.11 seconds, claiming the victory in a time of 3:32.73.

    The 27 year old Afton, Minnesota native now has six individual World Cup sprint podiums, Saturday marking her first individual World Cup sprint victory (not to be forgotten is the gold medal Diggins and Kikkan Randall  won in the team sprint during last year’s Pyeongchang Olympic Winter Games).

    Following Diggins, Ringwald placed second (+0.11), Sweden’s Johanna Hagström third (+0.86), and Norway’s Ane Appelkvist Stenseth was fourth (+1.31). American Sadie Bjornsen also advanced all the way to the final on Saturday where she placed fifth, 2.23 seconds back from Diggins’ winning time. The sixth finalist on Saturday was Eva Urevc of Slovenia, who crossed 2.32 seconds back from Diggins. 

    In her strongest individual World Cup sprint result yet, Julia Kern of the U.S. raced to an 11th place. Prior to Saturday, Kern’s best individual World Cup finish in a sprint was 19th, which she earned at this year’s freestyle sprint in Dresden, Germany. 

    Three more U.S. woman finished in the top 30, with Sophie Caldwell placing in 17th followed by Ida Sargent in 24th and Rosie Brennan in 27th.

    American Kelsey Phinney finished 1.03 seconds outside of qualification, ending the day in 33rd overall.

    Four Canadian women raced on Saturday, with Dahria Beatty leading the way in 38th. The next Canadian finisher after Beatty was Cendrine Browne in 48th, followed by Maya Macisaac-Jones 49th and Katherine Stewart-Jones 51st.

    Results: Women’s Qualifier | Final

    Italy’s Federico Pellegrino (c) after winning the men’s 1.6-kilometer freestyle sprint on Saturday in Cogne, Italy. His teammate, Francesco de Fabiani (l) placed second and France’s Lucas Chanavat third. (Photo: FIS Instragram screenshot)

    On the men’s side, Italians Federico Pellegrino and Francesco de Fabiani put on a show for the home crowd, with Pellegrino taking the win in a time of 3:09.07 and his teammate de Fabiani earning second (+0.48) by 0.03 seconds after a photo finish with France’s Lucas Chanavat, who placed third (+0.51).

    After narrowly avoiding a crash in his semifinal, American Simi Hamilton advanced to the final, ending the day just off the podium in fourth (+3.91). Following Hamilton was Norway’s Sondre Turvoll Fossli in fifth (+4.03) and Sweden’s Marcus Grate in sixth (+27.90). 

    Racing for Canada, Russell Kennedy was the next top North American finisher in 11th. Following Kennedy was American Andy Newell in 23rd and the U.S.’s Logan Hanneman in 27th. Kevin Bolger qualified for the fourth quarterfinal, but did not start and ended the day in 30th.

    Erik Bjornsen of the U.S. Ski Team placed 39th while Canada’s Alex Harvey ended the day in 48th and Evan Palmer-Charrette 59th.

    Results: Men’s Qualifier | Final

    Germany’s Denise Herrmann winning the women’s IBU 10 k pursuit on Saturday at the SoHo venue in Midway, Utah. (Photo: IBU Instagram screenshot)

    IBU World Cup Soldier Hollow (Midway), Utah: 10/12.5 k pursuit

    International Biathlon Union (IBU) competition has returned to the famed Soilder Hollow (SoHo) race course venue in Midway, Utah for the first time in 17 years–the last time IBU/World Cup level competitions were held there was back in 2002, when Salt Lake City played host to the Winter Olympic Games.

    The IBU’s third day of competition in SoHo brought on a 10-kilometer pursuit for the women. Germany’s Denise Herrmann won the event in a time of 28:03.4 after skiing two penalties (0+0+1+1). Franziska Hildebrand, also of Germany, claimed second, finishing 4.2 seconds behind Herrmann with one missed shot (0+0+0+1).

    Racing for Finland, Kaisa Mäkäräinen placed third, 16.5 seconds back from the winner with three misses (2+0+1+0).

    Susan Dunklee was the top North American woman, finishing in 26th (+2:34.5) with one miss (0+0+0+1). Just 0.4 seconds back from Dunklee in 27th  (+2:34.9), was U.S. skier, Clare Egan with three missed shots (0+0+2+1).

    Rosanna Crawford of Canada placed 34th (+2:48.2) after skiing three penalties (0+1+0+2) and U.S. skier Joanne Reid finished 40th (+4:11.9) after skiing two penalties (0+1+1+0). Canada’s Sarah Beaudry placed 44th (+4:33.2) after two missed shots (0+0+1+1) and Emma Lunder, also racing for Canada, placed 51st (+5:41.3) after skiing  six penalties (2+2+2+0).

    Results: Women’s IBU Pursuit 

    Quentin Fillon Maillet (c) after winning the men’s IBU World Cup 12.5-k pursuit at the SoHo venue in Midway, Utah. Norway’s Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen (l) placed second and Simon Desthieux, also of France, placed third. (Photo: IBU Instagram)

    In the men’s 12.5-kilometer pursuit, France’s Quentin Fillon Maillet claimed the win in a time of 30:55.8 after shooting 100 percent. Norway’s Vetle Sjåstad Christiansen, who earned his first IBU World Cup win on Friday, placed second in Saturday’s pursuit,  finishing 25.9 seconds behind Fillon Maillet and missing just one shot (0+1+0+0).

    Simon Desthieux, also of France, placed third on Saturday, finishing 47.3 seconds back from the winner after skiing three penalties (0+1+1+1).

    Racing for Canada, Christian Gow placed 8th (+2:21.2) after shooting clean. American Sean Doherty finishing two places behind Gow in 10th (+2:22.8) with three misses (0+3+0+0). Canadian Scott Gow, Christian’s brother, placed 25th (+3:58.5) after skiing four penalties (1+1+2+0).

    Also racing for Canada, Aidan Millar finished in 39th (+5:25.1) with five missed shots (2+0+1+2).

    Results: Men’s Pursuit

    ***

    Minneapolis SuperTour 20 k/15 k mass start classic

    The SuperTour returned to racing on Saturday in Minneapolis, Minnesota with a 15/20 k classic mass start. The men’s 20-kilometer event was won by Northern Michigan University (NMU) skier, Zak Ketterson in a time of 54:08.0. Ben Lustgarten skiing for the Craftsbury Green Racing Project (CGRP) placed second, 0.9 seconds behind Ketterson. Norwegian Mathias Rolid, also skiing for NMU, placed third, 15.8 seconds behind the race winner.

    In the women’s 15 k event, Kaitlynn Miller of the CGRP won in a time of 50:17.1. Skiing for the Stratton Mountain School T2 team was Alayna Sonnesyn in second place (+25.1). Liz Guiney (CGRP) claiming third (+30.6).

    Results: Men’s 20 k | Women’s 15 k 

  • U.S. Ski Team’s 2018/2019 Nominations

    U.S. Ski Team’s 2018/2019 Nominations

    On Thursday, U.S. Ski & Snowboard released its roster for its 2018/2019 national cross-country team nominations, and the list includes five returning A-team members (four women and one man), an all-male B-team, and seven athletes on the D (development) team.

    Noticeably missing from last year’s World Cup squad are retirees Kikkan Randall, Liz Stephen and Andy Newell (the latter of which isn’t exactly retiring), and Rosie Brennan.

    Kevin Bolger (Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation) during his debut World Cup race weekend in Lahti, Finland, last March. There, he placed 11th in the freestyle sprint and 54th in the 15 k classic. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)

    Simi Hamilton leads the men’s team as its lone A-team member, while Sadie Bjornsen, Sophie Caldwell, Jessie Diggins, and Ida Sargent are all back on the A-team. The B-team includes three returners — Erik Bjornsen, Paddy Caldwell and Scott Patterson — as well as 25-year-old rookie Kevin Bolger, out of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF), who was named to the team after some breakthrough World Cup results last season.

    All four of last year’s D-team were renominated, namely 2018 NCAA champions Katharine Ogden (who swept both races at the collegiate championships) and Ian Torchia, Julia Kern and Hannah Halvorsen. Joining them are three athletes who broke through at 2018 Junior World Championships: Hailey Swirbul, Ben Ogden and Gus Schumacher.

    Seven of the 16 nominees train with the Stratton Mountain School (SMS) in Vermont. Six others are based out of Anchorage, Alaska; five train with Alaska Pacific University (APU) while the 17-year-old Schumacher hails from the Alaska Winter Stars. The Craftsbury Green Racing Project has one athlete on the team (Sargent), as does SVSEF (Bolger). Torchia is entering his senior season at Northern Michigan University.

    Here’s the U.S. Cross Country Ski Team’s nomination list. The team will be officially named this fall.

    U.S. Ski Team 2018-19 Cross Country Nominations
    (Hometown; Club; Birthdate)

    A TEAM
    Men
    Simi Hamilton (Aspen, Colo.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 5/14/87)

    Women
    Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 11/21/89)
    Sophie Caldwell (Peru, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 3/22/90)
    Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 8/26/91)
    Ida Sargent (Orleans, Vt.; Craftsbury Green Racing Project; 1/25/88)

    B TEAM
    Men
    Erik Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 7/14/91)
    Kevin Bolger (Minocqua, Wisc.; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 4/11/93)
    Patrick Caldwell (Lyme, N.H.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 2/18/94)
    Scott Patterson (Anchorage, Alaska; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 1/28/92)

    D TEAM
    Men
    Ben Ogden (Landgrove, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; 2/13/00)
    Gus Schumacher (Anchorage, Alaska; Alaska Winter Stars; 7/25/00)
    Ian Torchia (Rochester, Minn.; Northern Michigan University; 3/8/96)

    Women
    Hannah Halvorsen (Truckee, Calif.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 2/19/98)
    Julia Kern (Waltham, Mass.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 9/12/97)
    Katharine Ogden (Landgrove, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; 11/17/97)
    Hailey Swirbul (Aspen, Colo.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 7/10/98)

  • Under 23 Questions: Zak Ketterson

    Under 23 Questions: Zak Ketterson

    Zak Ketterson (Northern Michigan University) racing at the CCSA opener in Houghton, Michigan. (Courtesy photo)

    In an effort to showcase the North Americans who competed at last week’s International Ski Federation (FIS) 2018 Nordic Junior/U23 World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 20-year-old Zak Ketterson, of Northern Michigan University, who represented the U.S. at his first U23 Worlds (after competing at 2016 Junior Worlds in Romania).

    Last week in Goms, Ketterson placed 57th in the 15 k classic and 65th in the freestyle sprint.

    ***

    “My full name is Zak Eduard Ketterson, but you can call me Zak.

    I was born and raised in Bloomington, Minnesota, and I learned to ski at my high school in 7th grade. .

    I spent the time between U.S. nationals and Junior/U23 Worlds training at home and at NMU.

    The funnest workout I did in the last training year to prepare for this was tanning in Cannes, France, with my Norwegian NMU teammates and Leo Hipp.

    This is my second time in Switzerland and fourth time racing internationally, and so far it’s been very focused.

    One difference I’ve noticed between Switzerland and the U.S. is better manners at dinner.

    Skiing and racing in the Alps is picturesque. Usually racing at altitude is fine for me because I tend to adjust fine. There are infinitely less mountains around where I live.

    One of the things I’m most excited about for Junior/U23 Worlds in Goms is the opportunity to race successful World Cup skiers.

    One race I’m especially targeting there is the 15 k classic.

    I really hope I can chat/make friends with someone from Russia and ask them what’s in the water over there.

    My favorite thing at the breakfast where we are staying is that it is basically the same as NMU.

    Fondue is overrated. The cheese here is really good but not that different from the U.S. And the chocolate — haven’t had any chocolate, won’t have any chocolate.

    If I had a totally free day here and didn’t have to worry about race fitness or training, I’d spend it tanning outside and hiking up one of the biggest mountains.

    The best way to follow me on social media is on Instagram @zaketterson.”

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BeVUygHHWhV/?taken-by=zaketterson

  • Under 23 Questions: Nicole Schneider

    Under 23 Questions: Nicole Schneider

    Northern Michigan University’s Nicole Schneider (2) leads UVM’s Alayna Sonnesyn and Dartmouth’s Lauren Jortberg (r) in the 15 k freestyle mass start at 2017 NCAA Skiing Championships in Jackson, N.H.

    In an effort to showcase the North Americans who competed at last week’s International Ski Federation (FIS) 2018 Nordic Junior/U23 World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 20-year-old Nicole Schneider, of Northern Michigan University, who represented the U.S. at her first U23 Worlds (after competing at 2016 Junior Worlds in Romania).

    Last week in Goms, Schneider placed 40th in the 15 k skiathlon, 44th in the freestyle sprint and 49th in the 10 k classic.

    ***

    “My full name is Nicole Schneider.

    I was born and raised in Plymouth, Minnesota, and I learned to ski at French Park with the Minnesota Youth Ski League.

    I spent the time between U.S nationals and U23 Worlds training with my teammates and working with professors to make sure I don’t fall behind in my classes!

    The hardest workout I did in the last training year to prepare for this was 45 seconds on by 15 seconds off bounding intervals up Mount Marquette with my training partners.

    Nicole Schneider training in late January in Goms, Switzerland. (Photo: Hannah Rudd)

    This is my first time to Switzerland and third time racing internationally, so far it’s been the most beautiful country I’ve ever been to.

    One difference I’ve noticed between Switzerland and the U.S. is the copious amount of snow there is here. Seriously. The snowbanks are taller than me!

    Skiing and racing in the Alps is challenging. Usually racing at altitude is hard for me because I live at sea level! But I came to the precamp here so I’ve had no problems adjusting.

    One of the things I’m most excited about for U23 Worlds in Goms is to see how I stack up against the other girls my age.

    One race I’m especially targeting is the skiathlon because I’ve never done one before!

    I really hope I can make friends with someone from Norway and ask them what their secret is.

    My favorite thing at the breakfast where we are staying is the coffee.

    Fondue is… still haven’t had it here yet! The cheese here is exceptional. And the chocolate is to die for.

    If I had a totally free day here and didn’t have to worry about race fitness, I’d spend it alpine skiing in the Alps.

    The best way to follow me on social media is on instagram at @colieschneider.”

    https://www.instagram.com/p/Bec5CazAjpJ/?taken-by=colieschneider

  • Under 23 Questions: Ian Torchia

    Under 23 Questions: Ian Torchia

    Ian Torchia (NMU/USST) crust cruising with Bernie Nelson (not shown) their second day in Goms, Switzerland. (Photo: Bernie Nelson)

    In an effort to showcase the North Americans competing at this week’s International Ski Federation (FIS) 2018 Nordic Junior/U23 World Championships in Goms, Switzerland, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 21-year-old Ian Torchia, of Northern Michigan University (NMU) and the U.S. Ski Team D-team, who’s representing the U.S. at his first U23 Worlds. 

    On Friday, Torchia placed 27th in the 30 k skiathlon for his best finish of the week after finishing 32nd in the 15 k classic on Wednesday in Goms.

    ***

    “My full name is Ian Michael Torchia, but you can call me Torch.

    I was born and raised in Rochester, Minnesota, and I learned to ski at Eastwood Golf Course.

    I spent the time between U.S. nationals and Junior/U23 Worlds skiing and sleeping.

    Ian Torchia (l) follows Kris Freeman on a downhill during the men’s 30-kilometer classic mass start at the 2018 U.S. Cross Country Championships in Anchorage, Alaska. Torchia went on to place 12th.

    The dumbest workout I did in the last training year to prepare for this was a 6 hour OD with me, myself, and I.

    This is my first time in Switzerland and third time racing internationally, and so far it’s been A1.

    One difference I’ve noticed between Switzerland and the U.S. is lack of directions.

    Skiing and racing in the Alps is beautiful. Usually racing at altitude is great for me because I’m a small guy. There are huge mountains around where I live (Marquette Mountain, Sugarloaf, Hogsback).

    One of the things I’m most excited about for Junior/U23 Worlds in Goms is racing Russians.

    One race I’m especially targeting there is 30 k skiathlon.

    I really hope I can chat/make friends with someone from USA and ask them to steal Zak Ketterson’s white noise machine so I can sleep in silent peace.

    My favorite thing at the breakfast where we are staying is granola, also for lunch and dinner.

    Fondue is unavailable. The cheese here is Le Gruyere. And the chocolate is for my girlfriend.

    If I had a totally free day here and didn’t have to worry about race fitness or training, I’d spend it crust cruising with Bernie Nelson.

    The best way to follow me on social media is on Instagram @fullytorched.”

    Ian Torchia (NMU/USST) during a crust cruise in Goms, Switzerland. Enough snow to ski up on a house! (Photo: Bernie Nelson)

  • With Two Degrees in Hand, Martin Chooses Craftsbury GRP

    Northern Michigan University senior Adam Martin (l) receiving the 2017 NCAA Elite 90 award for having the highest cumulative grade-point average (4.0) at this year’s NCAA Skiing Championships. (Photo: Flyingpointroad.com)

    On the eastern side of the Northern Michigan University (NMU) campus, where Fair Avenue and Presque Isle Ave intersect, a righthand turn presents visitors with a view of the Berry Events Center and the school’s 26-year-old Superior Dome — a semi-Star-Trek-like outcropping in an otherwise conventionally secular setting. Between the two recreational buildings sits another building, the college’s Physical Education and Instructional Facility (PEIF). Designed predominantly as a practice venue for basketball players, the complex attracts other NMU athletes: nordic skiers.

    Skiers who crossed the PEIF threshold glanced fleetingly at the fluorescent-lit, green-and-white basketball courts before heading toward the real reason they’d entered the building’s glass doors, the nordic-ski room.

    Like any ski room, wax benches line the walls and the slight smell of particle board hangs in the air. Skis from the 1970s wait on one wall in an eternal yearning for snow. Certificates honoring the school’s former and current All-American athletes create a collage with newspaper clippings taped here and there. Race bibs and posters scrawled with faded signatures from national champions and graduated NMU Olympians cover any remaining open space.

    Adam Martin racing at 2010 Junior Olympics in Presque Isle, Maine. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)

    As a prospective student sitting on one of the couches that corners the room, Adam Martin was struck by the number of athletes’ names honored and the extent to which many of them took their cross-country careers. An 18 year old in the midst of training with the Central Cross Country (CXC) post-grad program at the time, Martin’s visit was the result of a scouting search by NMU Head Nordic Coach Sten Fjeldheim, the ski room an auspicious scene to any dedicated skier.

    Still, Martin never guessed that three years after enrolling at the university, he would be an adorned member of its accolades — earning four All-American National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) results before graduating in 2017. The results weren’t what he’d expected, nor were they even really part of his plan.

    “I’m not totally into setting very specific outcome goals,” Martin, a Wausau, Wisconsin, native, explained on the phone from New Zealand in late August. “I try to focus a lot more on becoming a better skier, becoming  more fit and really focus more internally on improving myself and then seeing where that puts me at the end of each year.”

    That being said, by the end of his junior year at NMU, Martin had earned All-American status in both classic and freestyle races. He also competed at the 2016 Under-23 World Championships in Rasnov, Romania, leading the U.S. junior men in 23rd in the classic distance race. To top it all off, earlier that same season he raced to third place in the 15-kilometer classic at the 2016 U.S. nationals in Houghton, Michigan.

    Before that nationals podium, Fjeldheim tallied Martin’s on-snow time as minimal. The team had not skied on snow until the week competitors arrived in Houghton. In all likelihood, the top contenders Martin faced had logged anywhere from two to three times as much — many of them had already raced two SuperTours, one in West Yellowstone, Montana, and the other in Sun Valley, Idaho.

    “I really feel like a lot of athletes these days, they’re distracted,” Fjeldheim said during a recent phone interview. “I think you need to have a lot of mental energy to be a ski racer and you’re getting it sucked out of you by reading all this, I’m not talking about scientific research, I’m talking about stuff. You know, so and so is doing this, so and so is doing that. … You’re not thinking about it in terms of what you need to do and what works for you … It’s not about being able to be on a glacier 24/7. It’s not about being able to be on snow … a lot of U.S. skiers can’t.

    “Adam had his best U.S. nationals when he had five days on snow,” Fjeldheim continued. “How do you explain that? Because it’s from May through December that matters.”

    Martin spent his summers training in Marquette, Michigan, with his then-teammates Kyle Bratrud (now a member of the CXC Team coming off a 2017 national championship), Ian Torchia (now a senior at NMU and a second year nominee to the U.S. Ski Team D-team), and Sam Elfstrom (a 21 Title Defender), among others. Martin turned down internships so he could ski. He made skiing his life, not his results.

    Adam Martin at a Glance:
    Name: Adam Martin
    Nickname: Marty
    Age: 22
    Hometown: Wausau, Wisconsin
    When I’m not skiing I’m most likely:
    -Working on a computer project for the Outdoor Center
    -Gaming with the boys
    Most Bad A** Moment: Going for a 3-hour run with my Dad, Fredrik Schwencke, and Ian Torchia at 4:30 am before college graduation.
    Most Embarrassing Moment: Showing up at college graduation sweaty.
    Self-Identified Spirit Animal: A Marten
    Favorite Music Genre: Game of Thrones Soundtrack
    Superpower: I can eat a large Little Caesars pepperoni pizza in under 4 minutes.
    Most Influential Mentor: Sten Fjeldheim

    In his senior year, he once again earned All-American (top 10) honors in both the NCAA classic and freestyle competitions, and competed at the 2017 U23 World Championships in Midway, Utah.

    “From a dedication standpoint, I think I pursued skiing as well as I could, had I set that goal [of a nationals podium or an All-American finish],” Martin said. “Had I really said specifically that I wanted to do those, I don’t think it would have changed anything in a positive manner.”

    Fjeldheim reflected that any time Martin walked into his office, he knew a slew of questions would follow. Martin regularly prodded him, researched Fjeldheim’s answers and returned with more questions. The curiosity stemmed from a desire to not only understand his training, but arm himself for the future.

    “Never a lack of questions from Adam, he really dug into it,” Fjeldheim said. “He empowered himself with a pretty big body of knowledge about physiology, technique and race strategy.

    “It was enlightening for me,” Fjeldheim, an NMU staple for the last 31 years, continued. “Having this young whippersnapper, can-do, nothing-can-stop-me type of kid.”

    As a kid himself, Martin, who turns 23 next month, began skiing at an early age with his parents, not getting competitively involved until his middle-school years. By the time he reached high school his skiing only got stronger, his interest in it as well. He was the state champion his senior year, before taking a gap-year in Hayward, Wis., training partially with the CXC team.

    “I didn’t race very well that year,” Martin reflected. “In terms of putting things in perspective, and maybe even maturing a little bit, though, I’m very glad I did it.

    “Somewhat ironically, because I think most people consider taking time off just to ski as giving up a part of your academic career, I think for me it had quite the opposite effect,” Martin continued. “I really appreciated academics more and put a tremendous amount more time into my academics in college than I did in high school.”

    Adam Martin, a recent graduate of Northern Michigan University, racing to 15th in the men’s 30 k skiathlon at 2017 U23 World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. It was his first top 20 in two U23 Worlds appearances. (Photo: Flyingpointroad.com)

    While at NMU, Martin studied mathematics and computer engineering, eventually earning degrees in both. Along with being a double major, Martin’s four-year grade point average topped out at 4.0, earning him a nomination from the College Sports Information Directors of America’s 2017 Academic All-America First Team and the 2017 NCAA Elite 90 Award.

    Still, even if Martin made his studies look easy, they took effort on his part. His missed many classes for training, 10 alone this past spring for U23 World Championships (which he jocosely pointed out in a FasterSkier profile was still less than last year). He met with instructors outside of class, making his skiing work in large part due to his diligence and his rapport with professors.

    “I was very fortunate at NMU,” Martin explained. “The math department is pretty small and I knew all my professors on I’d say on a personal level, so they were extremely understanding of me going to ski races. I developed a certain amount of respect from them. They let me [leave class] because they trusted that I’d figure things out.”

    Martin’s skiing would not be bogged down by school, and vice versa. The two went hand-in-hand, he could keep his mind off one and become consumed by the other. If Martin’s situation was unique, it wasn’t because of the subject he studied.

    “Find a situation where you have a good relationship with your professors and they’re more than just a person in a lecture hall. I think that’s super important,” Martin said of balancing academics with skiing.

    Adam Martin (2) racing to sixth in the men’s 20 k freestyle mass start at 2017 NCAA Championships on March 11 in Jackson, N.H. (Photo: Flyingpointroad.com)

    In deciding his next steps after college, Martin decided that if he were to pursue a profession in skiing, it would be now rather than later. In his search for a ski program, the inquisitive nature that guided his undergraduate years directed him once again: Where would he see himself get the most out of his skiing? What did he need as a skier and what did each program have to offer?

    Last winter, he found his answer. Nestled in northern Vermont, the Craftsbury Green Racing Project (CGRP) presented itself as a clear solution. Not only did he connect with CGRP Head Coach Pepa Miloucheva, but the program was also financially favorable to him. Under the CGRP, his lodging and food would be covered by the Craftsbury Outdoor Center (COC) and much of his training and race travel by Concept2.

    “I looked at a couple different programs and talked to Pepa in the winter and was very impressed with what she had to say in terms of what she thought I needed to do to get better, how perceptive she was of where I was at without me explaining very much, just from watching me race,” Martin said.

    “Additionally, the Green Team is incredibly well funded. It’s one of the most professional ski teams I think you’ll find in the U.S. and it’s pretty cool to be on a team like that, to feel like you’re absolutely taken care of,” he continued. “That’s a large amount thanks to [COC owners] Dick Dreissigacker and Judy Geer and their support with the Outdoor Center and Concept 2.”

    Four years of college tuition in the back of his mind, CGRP offered not just security, but independence. He would not need to turn to his parents nor spend all his spare time working a second and third job, though he currently works on small-scale computer projects for the Outdoor Center.

    Craftsbury Green Racing Project teammates Adam Martin (r) and Ben Lustgarten during a summer track workout. (Courtesy photo)

     

    “Obviously my parents are extremely supportive, they have to be for me to have made it this far in skiing, but after graduating college, it’s not really an ideal situation for me to have to ask for a ton of support from them,” Martin explained. “So finding a team that covers all this was a huge help and pretty important in terms of not having to worry about that on top of training.”

    Most recently, Martin made the trek to New Zealand for a month-long on-snow camp with the CGRP. He has been working with Miloucheva as well as his Craftsbury’s teammate Ben Lustgarten, who joined the CGRP at the start of last season. On its website, the team lists 12 athletes, four of which are men.

    “He is really great to work with,” Miloucheva wrote of Martin in an email. “Very motivated, works really hard to improve every detail of his technique and fitness, asks lots of questions and always the right ones, which means he thinks about what I say and what I ask him to do. And he is genuinely nice person.”

    While Martin acknowledges that many U.S. skiers are aiming for the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea, his skiing goals, like the equations he works with, tend toward the conceptual as opposed to concrete.

    “I have not set that specific goal, although I certainly will try to be in my best shape during the qualifying period … and give myself as good of a chance as I can,” he said. “Beyond that, while I’m pursuing skiing, I think my goal would be I would like to strive to be a competitive World Cup distance racer … whatever avenues would lead towards that.”

  • Shane MacDowell to Lead NYSEF Cross-Country Program

    Shane MacDowell

    (Press release)

    The New York Ski Educational Foundation (NYSEF) has announced that Shane MacDowell will become the new Head Cross-Country Ski Coach effective September 1, 2017. MacDowell replaces Margaret Maher, who has held the position since 2006.

    MacDowell, originally from Peru, Massachusetts in Berkshire County, attended Burke Mountain Academy in East Burke, Vermont as a cross-country skier before heading to the University of New Hampshire (UNH). MacDowell competed on their NCAA Division 1 Cross-Country Ski Team for four years while earning a Bachelor’s Degree in English and Journalism. During his college athletic career, he earned multiple top-15 finishes on the EISA Division 1 circuit.

    Upon graduation from UNH, MacDowell started his professional career with a position at Boulder Nordic Sport East (BNS), working as a wax technician and sales associate. Simultaneously, he continued his love for skiing and ski racing by serving as Head Ski Coach of the Cape Elizabeth High School Ski Team in Maine and, later, the Head Coach of the BNS Acceleration Project. During that time, he was the Head Wax Technician for the USSA J1 Scandinavian and OPA Cup Finals trips in Europe in 2013.

    Shane MacDowell

    MacDowell went on to hold several coaching positions throughout the United States, including serving as Gold Team Assistant Coach and Head Wax Technician at the Sun Valley Ski Educational Foundation in Idaho. Later, MacDowell returned East to assume the role of Assistant Cross-Country Ski Coach at the Green Mountain Valley School in Waitsfield, Vermont. Most recently, MacDowell has served as the Assistant Cross-Country Ski Coach at Northern Michigan University in Marquette, MI, one of the nation’s premier collegiate Division 1 programs.

    MacDowell says, “I am very excited to be joining such a great program as NYSEF. I look forward to building on the strong program that Margaret has cultivated during her tenure with NYSEF. I plan to use everything I’ve learned over the years with different programs to help each athlete achieve their goals and reach their greatest potential.”

    NYSEF Executive Director John Norton notes, “We’re pleased that Shane has decided to join our team. He brings a level of professionalism and dedication to athletic excellence through his experience at both the elite and grassroots levels. I’m excited to see what Shane brings to the already thriving program that Margaret has helped build.”

    “Shane moves to Lake Placid with ski coaching experience at the college and junior levels” remarked Margaret Maher, who held the position for over 11 years. “I’m excited to see a fellow UNH Wildcat take over the NYSEF program and look forward to watching the athletes grow and excel to the best of their abilities”. Maher has decided to take a full-time job as a registered nurse in orthopedics and sports medicine starting in September. MacDowell will begin work in early August alongside Maher to finish the summer training season.

    MacDowell’s brings a strong level of enthusiasm for the outdoors with him to the Adirondacks. When he’s not focused on cross-country skiing, he canoe races throughout the country and has a passion for building canoes. He also enjoys many outdoor activities like mountain biking, hiking and running.

  • Kristen Bourne on Recovering from Mono and Making NCAAs

    Kristen Bourne on Recovering from Mono and Making NCAAs

    Northern Michigan University’s Kristen Bourne (c) after the 5-kilometer classic race at the 2017 NCAAs in Jackson, New Hampshire. (Photo: Jackie Schneider)

    Two-and-half months into her summer training last year, Kristen Bourne woke up in a cold sweat. Her temperature read higher than normal and no amount of lozenges could soothe her sore throat. The Northern Michigan University (NMU) skier went to a doctor and received antibiotics to treat what was thought to be strep throat.

    But two weeks later, Bourne still didn’t feel like herself, and she wanted to know why.

    Behind her were 215 logged hours of summer training in Marquette, Mich., a 6 1/2 hour drive from her hometown of Lake Elmo near Stillwater, Minn.

    Ahead of her was a promising junior season at NMU, with plans to attend the university’s sports-science graduate program in the winter of 2018. She had redshirted the year before and gained an extra year of development under NMU Head Nordic Coach Sten Fjeldheim, as well as an extension on her National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) eligibility.

    The investment she had put in her season was nothing to scoff at; neither was her uncharacteristic exhaustion at practice. After finishing one session in late August feeling especially spent, Bourne returned to the doctor, and this time, was able to pinpoint the issue.  

    “I went to the doctor that day and they did a mono test,” Bourne explained on the phone.

    NMU junior Kristen Bourne racing to 19th in the 15 k skiathlon at the 2017 U.S. SuperTour Finals on March 27 in Fairbanks, Alaska. (Photo: Lance Parrish, Fairbanks)

    The results tested positive. With fall training just around the corner, and a sudden uncertainty about where she was headed, Bourne began to worry. What did this mean for her season? Was there any way out? Were all those hours of work and training for nothing?

    “I was so bummed,” Bourne, who turns 22 later this month, said. “It was the best I had felt training; when you put in all this work and then realize that you’re not going to do anything and for that long, it’s really concerning.”

    The mononucleosis put her out of training for two months, from the beginning of September until the end of October. These months are not dispensable as they often incorporate a new cycle of intensity sessions, hours and gym time.

    But for Bourne, it was the beginning of a learning process and careful track back to top form, thanks in part to Fjeldheim and his connection to the NMU sports-science department.

    The First: Fielding Mono with Fjeldheim

    What exactly is mono? How does it affect athletes? How might it affect athletes as they return to training?

    These were some of the questions Fjeldheim had when he encountered his first case of mono among his student athletes. While coaching NMU’s cross-country running team, one of his top runners came down with the illness at the end of the summer. (Fjeldheim coached for the NMU running program for more than 20 years, and now solely coaches nordic).

    With the cross-country running season only lasting about eight weeks, there was limited time before some of the more important scoring races, like regionals, appeared next on the calendar.

    Fjeldheim wasn’t deterred. He approached Dr. Phil Watts, NMU’s sports-science program coordinator and professor. Sitting in Watts’s office — a room Fjeldheim had visited when he was a Wildcat — the two discussed the costs and benefits of de-training to the body and ultimately developed a way to help the runner make a full recovery.

    “We laid out a plan with the team doctor on how to bring her back,” Fjeldheim said. “I think she got [mono] in early August and then by early November we ran our regionals and she got third. That’s after running only one other running race before the regionals. I think she ran a running race at the end of October and then second week in November, she’s third in our regionals.”

    NMU’s Kristen Bourne (c) topped the podium at the 2017 CCSA Distance Championships in early February in Houghton, Mich. (Photo: Jackie Schneider)

    After that, Fjeldheim worked with a few other athletes who came down with mono early in their season yet went on to become All-American athletes. Though Bourne would not earn this accolade, she came close.

    By the end of her season, Bourne won both races at the Central Collegiate Ski Association (CSSA) Distance Championships and also qualified for NCAA Skiing Championships. There in Jackson, N.H., she finished 17th in the 5 k classic and was the top NMU woman in the 15 k freestyle mass start two days later, placing 13th and within two seconds of All-American status (top 10).

    All after having mono. How?

    Bourne’s comeback was not without meticulous and methodical planning. Her return to training was slow and her situation was unique: not only did her coach, Fjeldheim, have experience working with athletes who had mono and successfully returned to racing, but Bourne was also the type of athlete who made the return more amenable.  

    Over the course of an entire summer, Bourne routinely checked her heart rate each morning, before getting out of bed. She wrote it down and kept track of fluctuations and differences. Every day.

    When she was diagnosed with mono, knowing her base heart rate was crucial. After two months off and having her spleen examined to ensure it was no longer enlarged, she started exercising again. Each week entailed meetings with coaches and every day, she assessed her resting heart rate and how far off it was from her previous one.

    “We used the morning heart rate as a guide,” Fjeldheim explained. “Once her morning heart rates were back to normal, within say two or three beats of what her base morning heart rate had been for months and possibly years, then we just started with getting back into moving again.”

    He emphasized that this came after making sure Bourne’s spleen was a normal size. Then she safely began training again while agreeing to listen to what her body was telling her via her heartbeat and lactate tests. And she had to keep it to a minimum.

    “When I started working out, it was 15-minute jogs,” Bourne said. “Then every week, I’d sit down with my coaches and re-evaluate how I felt, how that week went. Every two weeks I was doing some lactate tests to monitor my heart-rate zones … then every week adding a little bit if I was ready. Come November, I started actually doing more systematic training instead of just doing low distance.”

    Fjeldheim also monitored Bourne’s sleep patterns to make sure there weren’t disruptions and whether she was gaining or losing weight.

    If any of the numbers were off, she rested.

    “You don’t mess with mono,” Bourne emphasized. “If you don’t feel good, you do nothing. You can’t try and push it out of your system it just doesn’t work that way.”

    NMU junior Kristen Bourne racing the freestyle leg of the mixed relay at the 2017 U.S. Distance Nationals in late March in Fairbanks, Alaska. (Photo: Lance Parrish, Fairbanks)

    This perhaps was the hardest part. While Bourne rested in bed, her teammates were out training. When Bourne finally began training an hour and a half again, her teammates were out doing three. She missed out on more than three months of interval training. And when she did reincorporate hard efforts, she didn’t always feel good.

    “Mentally, it’s really tough,” Bourne said. “I just had to trust what my coaches said and trust myself and keep my fingers crossed and hope that my season would work out. We figured that I wouldn’t start doing well until February because I didn’t actually start doing intervals until the end of November. … I have to give so much credit to my coaches reassuring me all the time and my teammates being so supportive about it, being like, Kristen if anyone can do it, you can do it.”

    Rather than get caught up in what training she couldn’t do, Fjeldheim advised Bourne to focus on what she could do, like improving her technique. 

    “As I told her, hey you know, you’re going to come back from this. It’s not cancer, it’s not debilitating, you didn’t find out you’ve got some rare disease,” he said. “You have mono and we’re going to figure out a plan. You got to have a plan and then they got to buy into it.”

    The experience gave Bourne not only some of her best collegiate results, but also a new edge on her training. She plans to ski for NMU next winter and is considering continuing to race competitively after she graduates.

    “A lot can happen in a year and I can’t set any expectations for myself right now,” Bourne wrote in an email. “We’ll just have to wait and see!”

    ***

    Author’s note: This article is not intended to be a guide on how to train through mono, but rather track one athlete’s recovery from illness.

  • Under 23 Questions with Adam Martin

    Adam Martin (Northern Michigan University) racing to 15th in the men's 30 k skiathlon on Saturday at 2017 U23 World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. It was his first top 20 in two U23 Worlds. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)
    Adam Martin (Northern Michigan University) racing to 15th in the men’s 30 k skiathlon on Saturday at 2017 U23 World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. It was his first top 20 in two U23 Worlds. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)

    In an effort to showcase the North Americans competing at this week’s International Ski Federation (FIS) 2017 USANA Nordic Junior World Championships and U23 Cross Country World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah, we asked those qualifying athletes several questions about themselves — actually, we had them fill in the blanks. Here we have 22-year-old Adam Martin, of Northern Michigan University, who’s representing the U.S. at his second U23 Worlds.

    On Saturday, he raced to 15th in the men’s 30 k skiathlon, and on Thursday, he placed 22nd in the men’s 15 k freestyle.

    ***

    “My full name is Adam Gregory Martin, but you can call me Adam. I was born and raised in Wausau, Wis., and one thing you should know about my hometown is that it is home to Granite Peak Downhill Ski Area, which was one of the first ski areas in North America when it was founded in 1937.

    Adam Martin (Northern Michigan University) racing to 22nd in the men's 15 k freestyle at 2017 U23 World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)
    Adam Martin (Northern Michigan University) racing to 22nd in the men’s 15 k freestyle at 2017 U23 World Championships at Soldier Hollow in Midway, Utah. (Photo: FlyingPointRoad.com)

    I started cross-country skiing when I was in 4th grade, thanks to my parents. I currently train in Marquette, Mich., with Northern Michigan University.

    If I’m not skiing, you might find me trail running or, if it’s a special occasion, studying. If I had to pick a favorite book, it would be ‘The Secret Race‘.

    One of the things I’m most excited about for U23/Junior Worlds at Soldier Hollow is Café Rio. One race I’m especially targeting there is the skiathlon.

    The best advice anyone ever gave me about skiing or racing was ‘Don’t worry about pushing yourself too hard. If you drop dead, I’ll make sure you get back to your family.’

    One of the best race memories I have is trying to hang onto faster skiers who have caught me in interval start races.

    If I could meet one World Cup skier, it would be Ingvild Flugstad Østberg (DM me, Instagram handle below).

    If I don’t end up being a professional skier, I’ll probably be a software engineer.

    I’m missing 10 days of school to be here, and my professors are probably thinking, ‘That’s less than last year.’

    You can follow me on Instagram @adam.martin.94.”

  • NCAA Champs Day 1: Strøm Makes CU History; Miller Nabs Individual Win for MSU

    NCAA Champs Day 1: Strøm Makes CU History; Miller Nabs Individual Win for MSU

    Note: FasterSkier is seeking photos from the nordic races at 2016 NCAA Skiing Championships. Please email info@fasterskier.com with photos of top finishers or for more info.

    ***

    Two juniors, one from Montana State University (MSU) and the other from the host team, the University of Colorado-Boulder (CU), claimed the ultimate collegiate titles on Thursday at 2016 NCAA Skiing Championships in Steamboat Springs, Colo.

    It was the first of two days of nordic racing at Howelsen Hill, and Anika Miller (MSU) and Mads Strøm (CU) emerged as the individual winners in the 5- and 10-kilometer freestyle races, respectively.

    The women's 5 k freestyle podium on the first day of nordic racing at 2016 NCAA Skiing Championships in Steamboat Springs, Colo. Anika Miller (MSU) placed first, Petra Hyncicova (CU) finished second and Utah's Sloan Storey took third. (Photo: MSUBobcats.com)
    The women’s 5 k freestyle podium on the first day of nordic racing at 2016 NCAA Skiing Championships in Steamboat Springs, Colo. Anika Miller (MSU) placed first, Petra Hyncicova (CU) finished second and Utah’s Sloan Storey took third. (Photo: MSUBobcats.com)

    Miller led four Bobcats in the top 10, winning the women’s 5 k freestyle individual start in 13:06.1. Her teammate, Cambria McDermott, placed fourth, 9.4 seconds back.

    “When I finished, I had no idea how I’d done actually until my teammates jumped on me and were screaming,” Miller told NCAA.com. “I had no idea. I just started crying.”

    A native of McCall, Idaho, Miller bested second-place finisher Petra Hyncicova (CU) by 7.9 seconds for the win, becoming the first MSU skier to win an individual title since 1978, when Dan Brelsford (now the director of skiing) won the slalom race, according to an MSU press release. She is also the first female skier to win an individual title for MSU.

    Just one-tenth of a second behind Hyncicova, Sloan Storey (University of Utah) reached the final step of the podium in third.

    An NCAA champion in 2014, Strøm achieved his second freestyle title in the men’s 10 k freestyle on Thursday in 22:06.8. His time proved to be 10.6 seconds faster than runner-up Ian Torchia of Northern Michigan University (NMU). Denver University’s Moritz Madlener placed third (+19.8).

    For Strøm, the win was his fifth in a row and seventh total this season, according to a CU press release.

    “It feels awesome, it feels amazing,” the 24-year-old Norwegian told CUBuffs.com.  “For ten months this has been my goal and to accomplish my goal is amazing. I was so nervous. I knew there was going to be a mass crowd out. I just had to find good skis, good pacing, and push it as hard as possible. It was definitely the best win of the year. Pulling it off when it matters the most is great.”

    Mads Strøm of the University of Colorado-Boulder celebrates his win in the men's 10 k freestyle on Thursday at 2016 NCAA Championships in Steamboat Springs, Colol. (Photo: Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA via CUBuffs.com)
    Mads Strøm of the University of Colorado-Boulder celebrates his win in the men’s 10 k freestyle on Thursday at 2016 NCAA Championships in Steamboat Springs, Colol. (Photo: Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA via CUBuffs.com)

    Strøm explained he had to “push it all the way to the end,” so hard that he was physically ill across the line.

    “I was so tired in the end,” he added. “As soon as I crossed the finish line, I had to lie down.”

    With his seventh win, Strøm is the winningest male nordic skier in CU history. He exceeded the amount of wins of Per Kare Jakobsen (who won six races in 1989) and Ove Erik Tronvoll (six in 1999). It was also the 89th individual win by a Buff, the most of any school in NCAA history, the CU release stated.

    For women’s runner-up Hyncicova, a 21-year-old sophomore from the Czech Republic, second stood as her best result of the season and matched her career best.

    “It was so hard, but it was really nice in the end. I didn’t hope for getting second, so it’s really nice,” Hyncicova told CUBuffs.com.  “I really didn’t have any idea what I was hoping for. In each race you want to win, but I didn’t expect that I would win here because I was always around fifth [place] this season.  I went to Romania a couple of weeks ago [for U23 World Championships], so I was really tired and didn’t feel that great.

    “I was really nervous before the start,” she added. “But once I saw everyone here — the alpine’s and everyone who cheered for us — I was like, ‘Yes I have to do it. I have to do it for the team.’ ”

    Team Standings (through 4 races):

    1. Montana State: 282
    2. Utah: 264
    3. Denver: 263
    4. Colorado: 214.5
    5. Vermont: 154
    6. New Mexico: 139.5
    7. Dartmouth: 126
    8. Alaska Anchorage: 124
    9. Northern Michigan: 122
    10. Middlebury: 81

    “I feel somewhat relieved but happy,” CU Nordic coach Bruce Cranmer said.  “Compared to racing, coaching is way more stressful.  You are worried about everyone and getting the right wax. I am still trying to calm down. I get so fired up.

    “Mads did great,” Cranmer added. “The guy that got second [Torchia] is one of the top U.S. [skiers] that went to World Juniors. [Mads] was on really good form before he got here, so I had high expectations without trying to get too caught up.

    “As for Petra, we were hoping for a top five finish. That is we thought she was capable of.  … For her to finish in second is awesome. … She does really well in skating.”

    Late last month, Torchia led the U.S. junior men in Romania with his top individual result of the week in 15th in the 15 k freestyle. It was his second-best at Junior Worlds since placing 11th last year in the 20 k skiathlon.

    Following Torchia in second, Northern Michigan had three in the top 10 with Adam Martin in fourth (+28.4) and Jake Brown in ninth (+56.1).

    “We knew that if we had a good day, all three of those guys were capable of winning and we just didn’t know which one,” said NMU Head Coach Sten Fjeldheim told NCAA.com. “We weren’t shocked or surprised that they’re all in the top 10, but you never know at altitude.”

    The base elevation of Steamboat Springs’ Howelsen Hill is about 6,700 feet.

    Through four events (two cross-country and two alpine) at 2016 NCAA Championships, Montana State leads the team standings with 282 points and Utah is second with 264. Denver is a close third, with 263 points after two days of racing. With a win and second-place finish on Thursday, CU moved into fourth in the standings, with 214.5 points.

    MSU’s previous team best was seventh, which it achieved last year with 259 points. The University has already exceeded that total at the halfway point of the championships. Racing wraps up Saturday with 15/20 k classic mass starts.

    “The momentum definitely helps our mindset, but the bottom line is we’ve got to go out and race the same way that we race everyday. That’s the way to succeed,” MSU Head Coach Matthew Johnson told NCAA.com. “Trying to mix it up and change it for the championship isn’t going to go well. Coming in with too much excitement isn’t going to go well, but skiing like we’re in the lead and skiing like we’re champions is going to do well for us.”

    5/10 k freestyle results | with splits

    Top 10 men: 

    1. Mads Strøm (CU) 22:06.8
    2. Ian Torchia (NMU) +10.6
    3. Moritz Madlener (DU) +19.8
    4. Adam Martin (NMU) +28.4
    5. Sawyer Kesselheim (MSU) +28.6
    6. Petter Reistad (CU) +35.1
    7. Nick Hendrickson (DU) +40.6
    8. Lars Hannah (DU) +50.1
    9. Jake Brown (NMU) +56.1
    10. Jack Hegman (UVM) +56.9

    Top 10 women:

    1. Anika Miller (MSU) 13:06.1
    2. Petra Hyncicova (CU) +7.9
    3. Sloan Storey (Utah) +8.0
    4. Cambria McDermott (MSU) +9.4
    5. Emilie Cedervaern (UNM) +12.8
    6. Natalia Mueller (Utah) +13.1
    7. Taeler McCrerey (DU) +13.4
    8. Linn Eriksen (DU) +13.6
    9. Ane Johnsen (CU) +14.7
    10. Mary Kate Cirelli (UVM) +17.5
  • Northern Michigan University Seeks Assistant Coach

    Northern Michigan University Seeks Assistant Coach

    Northern Michigan University Wildcats

    The NMU Nordic Team is Hiring

    Visit https://employMe.nmu.edu to obtain additional information and apply for the Assistant Ski Coach vacancy.  This position will assist the Head Ski Coach with all assigned duties associated with the Intercollegiate Ski Programs. Teach in the Health and Human Performance Department as assigned.

    Minimum qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree. NCAA recruiting test proficiency, or passing within one month of hire. Possess a current CPR certification or the ability to obtain upon hire. Demonstrated successful skiing coaching or racing experience at the collegiate or comparative level. No prior involvement with NCAA major rules violations. Commitment to the academic success of student athletes.

    Knowledge/skills/abilities required:

    • Knowledge of NCAA and conference compliance rules.
    • Education and Training – Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
    • Instructing – Teaching others how to do something.
    • Oral and Written Communication – Active listening, speaking, and writing which ensures comprehension and understanding in both the speaker and target audience.
    • Time Management – Managing one’s own time and the time of others.
    • Social Perceptiveness – Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
    • Coordination – Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions.
    • Monitoring – Monitoring/assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
    • Critical Thinking – Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
    • Ability to demonstrate both classic and skating techniques.
    • Ability to use various computer software applications to include video editing systems.
    • Problem Sensitivity – The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
    • Originality – The ability to come up with unusual or original ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
    • Ability to establish a good rapport and effective working relationship with student athletes, coaches, assistant coaches, administrators, college faculty and staff, alumni, professional colleagues, and the general public.
    • Service Orientation – Actively looking for ways to help people. Ability to work effectively under stressful and high-pressure situations.

    The position is ten months; traditionally August through May; variable hours/days, depending on practice and competition schedule, recruiting demands and department events. One year contract subject to annual renewal. The salary is commensurate with experience.

    Submit NMU staff application, cover letter and resume utilizing our on-line application process by accessing https://employme.nmu.edu.  All required application materials must be submitted electronically by April 17, 2015.

    NMU is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities, and is strongly committed to increasing diversity.

  • Schwencke Avoids Sprint Mayhem to Win 20 k; Cedervaern Powers to Victory in 15 k at NCAAs

    Schwencke Avoids Sprint Mayhem to Win 20 k; Cedervaern Powers to Victory in 15 k at NCAAs

    Fredrik Schwencke (9) of NMU celebrates his win in the 2015 NCAA 20 k classic mass start with teammate Kyle Bratrud.
    Fredrik Schwencke (9) of NMU celebrates his win in the 2015 NCAA 20 k classic mass start with teammate Kyle Bratrud.

    LAKE PLACID, N.Y. – The second day of nordic racing at the 2015 NCAA Championships was exciting to say the least, with both the 15 and 20 kilometer classic mass starts coming down to a sprint finish. In the women’s race a fight between two skiers resulted in a new NCAA champion, while the men’s race saw a controversial 100-meter sprint between four competitors.

    Ahead of the final sprint’s mayhem, Northern Michigan’s Fredrik Schwencke crossed the finish line with a time 56:12.3 to earn his first national title. He was followed by the University of Colorado’s Mads Ek Strøm and Rune Malo Ødegård who finished 0.6 seconds and 6.9 seconds behind the winner respectively.

    In fourth was New Mexico’s Aku Nikander (+11.4), while Utah’s Niklas Persson (+21.2) ended his day in fifth.

    The 20 k began with a blistering pace as the Colorado skiers led the group of 40 men through the hilly 5 k Olympic course that features almost 600 feet of elevation gain per lap. As the pack progressed through the four-loop race its size dwindled and by the first kilometer of the final lap there were four remaining skiers in the lead pack – Schwencke, Strøm, Ødegård, and Nikander. The New Mexico skier led for much of the final lap until the final downhill where all four skiers jockeyed for the lead.

    They rounded the corner into the final 100 meters with Scwencke in first and Strøm in second. Behind them, Ødegård and Nikander skied in the farthest left-hand lane, with the Colorado skier in the tracks and the New Mexico skier just outside the tracks to Ødegård’s left.

    Aku Nikander of NMU leads Rune Malo Ødegård of CU and Fredrik Schwencke of NMU in the final lap of the 2015 NCAA 20 k classic mass start.
    Aku Nikander of NMU leads Rune Malo Ødegård of CU and Fredrik Schwencke of NMU in the final lap of the 2015 NCAA 20 k classic mass start.

    All four skiers were in the hunt for gold until Ødegård and Nikander suddenly crashed. While the Colorado skier said it was unclear why he fell, video footage later revealed that Ødegård had planted his pole on Nikander’s ski and lost balance. He fell to the left taking Nikander with him.

    By the time the two got up they were far from the win, as Schwencke and Strøm crossed the line in first and second. Ødegård was the first to recover from the crash and nabbed the final podium position. Race officials said that there was no disqualification due to the nature of the crash and the lack of obstruction by either skier.

    Ahead of the messy fight for third, Schwencke celebrated his win amongst the many Northern Michigan teammates and coaches who came swarming into the finish pen. At one point the first-time NCAA Champion was hoisted upon the shoulders of a coach to the cheers of the crowd.

    After the jubilation of the finish, Schwencke said that he didn’t expect to be on top of the classic podium due to his wellbeing the previous day. The Norwegian from Oslo said he didn’t feel well and had trouble sleeping. Despite his misgivings, Schwencke explained that he kept faith in his skiing throughout each of the four laps in the 20 k.

    “I know that I am better in classic so I was just kind of hoping for the best.  I just tried to ski smart and save as much energy as possible,” he said. “Then after a while, one by one they dropped off and we were four guys in the very end there and I just gave it my all.”

    Due to the falling snow throughout much of the race, the Northern Michigan skier said that his plan was to stick behind the leaders and make a move in the final meters. “I sort of wanted to be third or fourth position because it was snowing so it was a bit slower to be leading so I sort of wanted to be a bit back there and be ready to attack,” he said. “Then they went for it and I felt good so I just tried the best I could to be first in the last turn. The plan worked out very well.”

    Schwencke led the Northern Michigan Wildcats to earn the most team points in the 20 k, as teammate Kyle Bratrud was the first American in seventh and Erik Søderman placed 11th. The Norwegian attributed much of his success to his teammates and said that their collective performances were especially pleasing after a freestyle race that was below their expectations.

    “We have a really strong team and we really wanted to do well. Wednesday wasn’t up to our potential so we really wanted to go for it today and do well and prove that we should be up there,” he said.

    Bratrud, who recently returned from the 2015 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Falun, Sweden echoed Schwencke’s sentiments and said that he was happy to be the first American across the line. At the 2014 NCAA Championships, Bratrud was also the first American in the 10 k classic and finished sixth.

    “Freddy [Schwencke] and I, we are rooming together and both of us woke up and felt really bad this morning. He has been sick, and after the skate race I was pretty much done with the season,” he said. ” I am happy with the day, I didn’t think I was going to finish in the top 30 today so to finish seventh is pretty sweet.”

    “Now the three NMU guys here have all won a national championship at some point so it is a pretty sweet team to be on,” he added. Søderman won the 10 k freestyle at the 2012 NCAA Championships, while Bratrud won a national title in the 15 k freestyle at the 2015 U.S. Cross Country Championships in Houghton, Mich. earlier this year.

    In second, Strøm received a written warning after the Colorado skier took more than one skate before entering the tracks in the final 100 meters. Officials said that they chose not disqualify Strøm because they believed he gained no clear advantage from the technique violation. Before he received the written warning, Strøm explained that the extra skate was due to the layout of the tracks into the finish.

    Colorado's Rune Malo Ødegård leads teammate Mads Ek Strøm in the first lap of the 20 k classic mass start at the 2015 NCAA Championships.
    Colorado’s Rune Malo Ødegård leads teammate Mads Ek Strøm in the first lap of the 20 k classic mass start at the 2015 NCAA Championships.

    Strøm, who set the race’s pace for much of the fist half of the 20 k, said after the race that he was pleased with second place, especially after finishing fourth in Wednesday’s 10 k freestyle – a race he hoped to win. Strøm also added that he was dealing with a sore throat and had been on antibiotics for several days.

    “The race overall was really good and I think it was a high-level race, especially the four in front there. There were a lot of good skiers that couldn’t keep up today,” he said. “Of course I wanted to win but second is not bad, especially with everyone crashing in the end. I could have been fourth.”

    After his third place finish, Ødegård said that he enjoyed the majority of the race and was glad that the pace was challenging from the start. Like Schwencke, the Colorado skier avoided the lead to save energy given the falling snow, and by the time he reached the final turn Ødegård believed he was in good position to take the win.

    “I think I had a really good turn into the sprint, and I gained a spot or two in the finish,” he said about his standing before the crash. “I don’t know what happened. Stuff happens in a sprint and when there’s four people coming in and two meters apart, a lot can happen.”

    The Norwegian has won the last two NCAA Championships classic races, and is the only NCAA male in history to win back-to-back classic titles. His third place finish is his second of the 2015 Championships. While Ødegard was disappointed to miss a third Championship, he said that Schwencke and Strøm deserved to finish ahead of him.

    “I think the best skiers manage not getting into trouble like that, so today I got into trouble so maybe I wasn’t the best skier,” he said.

    As a senior, the 20 k was Ødegård’s last race as a collegiate skier. While he may be done racing for the Buffs, the Norwegian explained he plans to race professionally next year. “I had a great career at CU and I really enjoyed all four years of it,” he said. “Right now I really wanted that win today so I’m a little disappointed with that but I guess to get two third places at NCAAs is good. It shows that I’m consistent and up there. I’m going to ski professionally next year and see if I can do better.”

    New Mexico's Emilie Cedervaern celebrates her win in Friday's 15 k classic mass start at the 2015 NCAA Championships in Lake Placid.
    New Mexico’s Emilie Cedervaern celebrates her win in Friday’s 15 k classic mass start at the 2015 NCAA Championships in Lake Placid.

    Cedervaern Out-Sprints Mayerhofer For 15 k Victory

    The women’s 15 k classic mass start also featured a sprint finish, but instead it featured two skiers – New Mexico’s Emilie Cedervaern and Utah’s Veronika Mayerhofer. The two began the race at the front of the lead pack, which eventually whittled down to three skiers as Denver’s Sylvia Nordskar entered the fray.

    Nordskar lost contact with the Cedervaern and Mayerhofer in the third and final lap as the New Mexico and Utah skiers battled for the lead. Each tried to make a move on the course’s many hills to no avail, util Cedervaern crashed on the last major downhill of the course. The fall gave Mayerhofer a roughly 20 meter advantage as she entered the stadium, but Cedervaern eventually caught the Utah skier and strode into the final meters to take the win.

    The Lobo finished with a time of 47:40.3 and bested Mayerhofer by 1.5 seconds. Nordskar took the final podium spot, 1:11.0 behind the victor. The top three women also finished on the podium in Wednesday’s 10 k freestyle, with Mayerhofer taking the win over Nordskar and Cedervaern.

    Rounding out the top five were Colorado’s Maja Slobakken (+1:15.2) and Utah’s Sloan Storey (+1:15.7).

    Cedervaern said that she believed the win was out of reach immediately after her crash. As she made gains on Mayerhofer, however, she began to realize victory was possible.

    “I fell on the last corner, so I was like ‘oh shoot’ because I felt so good and was like ‘why did I mess this up,’” she said. “But then I was very strong in the double poling so I felt like I was catching her all the time.  On the last turn when I was on her back I thought that I should go for it.”

    New Mexico's Emilie Cedervaern leads Utah's Veronika Mayerhofer in the first kilometers of Friday's 15 k classic mass start at the 2015 NCAA Championships in Lake Placid.
    New Mexico’s Emilie Cedervaern leads Utah’s Veronika Mayerhofer in the first kilometers of Friday’s 15 k classic mass start at the 2015 NCAA Championships in Lake Placid.

    The win marks Cedervaern’s first NCAA title and second podium at her first Championships. The New Mexico junior said she believed it was possible to win Friday’s race due her successful season on the RMISA circuit. She entered the 2015 NCAA Championships as the top ranked skier from the region.

    “It was so close on Wednesday and we have been close the last weeks of the season too, so I thought it was possible, but you never know,” she said. “It is so hard with classic, you have to have good skis and a good day and everything, but I definitely thought that it was possible to do it.”

    In second, Mayhoffer said that she was pleased with her placement despite being out-sprinted in the final meters. The Ute explained that she experienced breathing problems throughout race, which affected her ability to find the energy needed to stave off Cedervaern’s advance.

    “Today I had some breathing problems. I had that last year but this time was the first time I had hard time for breathing, so I didn’t have any energy left for [the finish],” she said. “I just tried my best but [Cedervaern] was definitely stronger today. She was leading more and she was stronger so it’s good that she won.”

    The Austrian said that she didn’t expect to have such a successful NCAA Championships in her first year of collegiate racing due to the challenges of balancing school and skiing. She explained that the support of the Utah team was essential to her and her teammates’ success. With Storey’s fifth place finish and Ane Blomseth’s 10th , the Utah women earned the most points in Friday’s 15 k.

    “Everybody supports each other, and the coaches too do an awesome job. They do everything they can, not just great skis but they try to make everything as easy for us as possible,” she said. “The team spirit is one of the important things because we spend time skiing but also free time most of the time together so that’s the most important advantage for the Utes I think and I really enjoy that.”

    Over a minute behind the fight for first, Nordskar earned her second podium of the week with her third place finish in the 15 k. The Norwegian dealt will illness for much of the 2015 season and given the circumstances, Nordskar was pleased to be in the fight for a top position. Although she struggled with kick and energy the last lap of the course, Nordsakr said the prospect of team points motivated her to maintain third position as Slobakken and Storey attempted to catch her.

    “Today was a very tough day, it was really just getting through because my body is not a 100 percent ready and healthy after this long illness period,” she said. “But I am very satisfied that I got the podium and I got to hold the other girls behind me.  It was really important to get these points for the total.”

    Nordskar, a sophomore, earned both second and third in the 2014 Championships – a feat she repeated in 2015. “I got second and third place last year so I kind of wanted to get the first place, but when you are not 100 percent that is not possible.  You have to be ready and in good shape to win NCAAs,” she said.

    “I have two more years so four more chances,” she added with a smile.

    After the third day of competition, Colorado leads the 2015 NCAA Championships standings with 288 points. Utah is in second and only seven points behind while New Mexico trails by 61 points.

    Results: men | women

    2015 NCAA standings after the third day of competition:

    1.   UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO  388
    2. UNIVERSITY OF UTAH 381
    3. UNIV OF NEW MEXICO 327
    4. UNIVERSITY OF DENVER 290
    5. UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT  272
    6. DARTMOUTH COLLEGE  224
    7. NORTHERN MICHIGAN UNIV  193
    8. MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY  176
    9. MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE 165
    10. UNIV OF ALASKA ANCHORAGE  156
  • World Champs Rookies: 10 Questions with Kyle Bratrud

    World Champs Rookies: 10 Questions with Kyle Bratrud

    Men's 15 k freestyle, 2015 Cross Country Championships, Houghton, Michigan
    Kyle Bratrud collapses after his breakout performance in the the men’s 15 k freestyle at the 2015 Cross Country Championships in Houghton, Michigan. He will debut in his first World Cup and World Championships in Sweden this month.

    We can’t imagine anything much more exciting than making an event like World Championships for the first time, so we contacted the North American skiers living that exact dream this year. The U.S. Ski Team announced its 16-strong senior World Championships team on Jan. 26, and Cross Country Canada selected nine to its squad on Monday. On Tuesday, the U.S. added Ben Saxton as its 17th member.

    Instead of interrogating them with the usual “tell us how you’re feeling,” we decided to pose the following 10 questions to each of the North Americans headed to their first World Championships from Feb. 18-March 1 in Falun, Sweden.

    Kyle Bratrud is a unique addition to the World Champs rookie squad. The Northern Michigan University skier is the only American team member currently on a college ski team roster. At the age of 22, Bratrud is not the youngest skier on the squad (Saxton is 21-years-old), but he does have the least international racing experience. In 2013, Bratrud traveled to the Czech Republic for the World Junior Championships. More recently he competed in the 2015 U23 World Championships in Kazakhstan where he earned 19th in the 15 k freestyle and 37th in the 30 k skiathlon.

    On the domestic front, Bratrud has found much success on the college circuit earning eighth at the 2013 NCAA 20 k freestyle and sixth in the 2014 NCAA 10 k classic. At the 2015 U.S. Cross Country Championships in Houghton, Mich. he had a breakout performance in the 15 k freestyle, which he won by roughly 50-seconds over veteran Kris Freeman.

    After competing in Kazakhstan, Bratrud joined the U.S. Ski Team in Östersund, Sweden for the World Cup weekend before competition gets underway in Falun. Sunday’s 15 k freestyle will mark his first World Cup start.

    Kyle Bratrud racing to 19th in his first race of U23 World Championships, the 15 k freestyle in Almaty, Kazakhstan. (Photo: Bryan Fish/USSA)
    Kyle Bratrud racing to 19th in his first race of U23 World Championships, the 15 k freestyle in Almaty, Kazakhstan. (Photo: Bryan Fish/USSA)

    1. What was the first thing you did when you found out you were named to the World Championships team?

    “I had woken up from a nap and opened my phone and thought I was seeing things, but eventually I realized it was real so I went for a run and ran way too fast.”

    2. What’s been the biggest performance of your career so far? Which race stands out the most and why?

    “Probably the 15k skate at Nationals. I had a really good day and beat some guys I never thought I would beat, also my teammates rocked the day.”

    3. What are you most looking forward to at World Championships?

    “I am extremely excited to soak it all in. Ostersund will be my first World Cup ever and than obviously Falun will be my first World Champs, so I am really excited to see the best skiers in the World compete and get to be in the same race. Also, I am stoked to see just how passionate the Scandinavian fan base is.”

    4. Whats your biggest motivation while racing?

    “My biggest motivation is to get that deep hurt and still feel like I can go forever. Certain races in my career (both distance races at Nationals) have given me this exciting feeling that no matter how much pain I am in, I can keep pushing, so I am always searching for that feeling when I race.”

    5. Which race(s) do you hope or plan to compete in?

    “15 k Skate”

    6. If you could race the team sprint with anyone in the world, who would it be?

    “Probably Federico Pellegrino because he is skiing extremely well this year and with me sprinting, the team would need him to do all the work.”

    Alexey Petukhov (r) tags Sergey Ustiugov during the men's 6 x 1.5 k freestyle team sprint final on Sunday in Otepää, Estonia. The two went on to win by 0.4 seconds over Norway. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)
    Alexey Petukhov (r) tags Sergey Ustiugov during
    the men’s 6 x 1.5 k freestyle team sprint final on Sunday in Otepää, Estonia. (Photo: Fischer/NordicFocus)

    7. Which World Cup skier would you least want to meet in a dark alley (or in the last 100 meters of a race)?

    “Alexey Petukhov. Have you seen the guy?!”

    8. What will be your key to success in Falun?

    “Enjoying myself and racing like it is just another race. This will be a great opportunity to take away valuable World Cup experience.”

    9. Finish this sentence: If I made the podium at World Champs, I would … 

    “Go over to the hottest girl I saw and ask her to what she was doing later. Never underestimate the power of speed goggles.”

    10. Name someone who’s had a major influence on your skiing career.

    “[NMU Head Coach] Sten Fjeldheim. He has taught me how to train effectively, handle the physical and mental stresses of racing, and stay true to myself and the process that is the life of a cross country skier.”

  • NMU’s Bratrud Busts Out U.S. Nationals 15 k Skate Victory, 50 Seconds Over Freeman

    NMU’s Bratrud Busts Out U.S. Nationals 15 k Skate Victory, 50 Seconds Over Freeman

    NMU’s Kyle Bratrud leads Brian Gregg (Team Gregg/Madshus) around 5 k in the first of two laps in the men’s 15 k freestyle, the first race of U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich.
    Northern Michigan University senior Kyle Bratrud leads Brian Gregg (Team Gregg/Madshus) about 5 k into the first of two laps in the men’s 15 k freestyle, the first race of U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich. Bratrud went on to win by 50 seconds for his first national title, and first top 2o at senior nationals, and Gregg finished 14th.

    When Kyle Bratrud woke up Sunday morning, he thought, great — a couple inches of fresh snow, temperatures hovering around the single digits — perfect.

    The 21-year-old Northern Michigan University (NMU) senior was actually serious when he talked about reveling in the conditions after the men’s 15-kilometer freestyle individual start, which kicked off a blustery and snowy first day of U.S. Cross Country Championships.

    “As a smaller guy, the slower the better for me,” Bratrud said.

    And the longer the race, like twice around a new 7.5 k loop at the Michigan Tech Trails, the better, he added. “I’m a pretty endurance-based guy,” he said.

    Three weeks ago, Bratrud placed third in a 15 k classic mass start and fourth in a classic sprint, both Central Collegiate Ski Association (CCSA) races held on the same courses in Houghton. NMU is 100 miles southeast in Marquette, Mich.

    Sunday marked his first time skating Michigan Tech’s new 7.5 k course, at least in a race, yet he already knew it well. And when he burst out of the start in bib 35 of 197 men, he quickly found he was the race leader through every point he received splits.

    “I never actually got a number [for time ahead], but just to get the first split, to hear that I was the race leader, it felt like a Central race,” he recalled. “I get leader splits a decent amount there so to get it here was something else. I definitely wasn’t expecting that.”

    With just five other A-seeded skiers behind him, Bratrud realized he was beating top contenders like Kris Freeman (Team Freebird) and Matt Gelso, of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF) Gold Team, who started before him.

    By the end of the first lap, he had a 27-second lead over Freeman in second. One of Bratrud’s friends and summer training partners at Alaska Pacific University (APU) in Anchorage, Logan Hanneman of ranked third through 7.5 k, another 4.2 seconds after Freeman.

    Bratrud said he never knew exactly how much he was leading by, but he did know that if he kept it up, he was on his way to his first national title and his best national finish by 23 places.

    With U23 World Championships on his mind in his last year of eligibility (Bratrud turns 22 on Feb. 9th), the Minnesota native held his own and won the 15 k in 42:01.6, exactly 50 seconds ahead of Freeman, who started three minutes ahead of him.

    “I was just excited the whole way; I’ve never been in the top 20 at U.S. nationals so that was a little bit an improvement,” he said with a laugh.

    Last year at the U.S. championships in Midway, Utah, Bratrud posted a best result of 24th in the classic sprint. He was 29th in the 15 k classic and 48th in the 30 k freestyle mass start. Two seasons ago, he made it to the 2013 Junior World Championships in Liberec, Czech Republic.

    “Last year [nationals] was at altitude and I don’t ski very well at altitude, so I didn’t feel like my results there were very indicative of where I should be,” he said. “I’ve had some good results at NCAA’s [Championships] and I knew at least a top 10 was possible, that was my goal, so to win was something else.”

    His goal had been to peak at nationals, less than 1,000 feet above sea level in Houghton. With a win, he put himself in a prime spot to be nominated to the U23 World Championships team, which will be announced after the final national race next Saturday.

    “To make U23s, you’ve got to race well at nationals,” he said. “I’ve been skating well all year so the 15 k was kind of my goal and I’m really excited for the 30 k as well, but it’s sweet to start the week with a win.”

    Kyle Bratrud (second from r) with his mom, sister, dad and brother after he won the 15 k freestyle on Sunday at U.S. nationals.
    Kyle Bratrud (second from r) with his mom, sister, dad and brother after he won the 15 k freestyle on Sunday at U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich.

    His family was also there to watch him do so, including his mom, dad, sister and brother. Bratrud said he was happy to ski well in front of them, as well as several Midwest (and non-Midwest) friends and parents.

    “Being from Northern Michigan, we ski here almost every weekend … so I knew the course really well and I knew where I could push myself and where I need to take it a bit easy,” he explained, emphasizing he attacked the long, gradual uphills as opposed to the steepest terrain. “It just felt like another Central Region race for me, just a few more people, but it was really good.”

    Bratrud led two NMU skiers in the top five with sophomore Fredrik Schwencke in fifth, 1:11.6 back. In his second season at NMU (after coming to the university from Norway with assistant coach Haakon Baanerud last year), Schwencke also knew the Michigan Tech Trails well.

    On Dec. 21, he won the CCSA 15 k classic race, edging Bratrud in third by 1.1 seconds.

    “We know this course very well, we’ve raced here a lot and we know we have a good team,” Schwencke, 22, said after Sunday’s race while standing near his dad, who was visiting from Oslo, Norway, with his mom and brother.

    While he was pleased to race well in front of his family, in Michigan for a week and a half and leaving before Thursday’s 30 k classic mass start, Schwencke thanked NMU head coach Sten Fjeldheim, the 2014 national collegiate coach of the year.

    Matt Gelso (SVSEF) led NMU sophomore Fredrik Schwencke for most of the men's 15 k freestyle individual race at U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich. Gelso placed fourth and Schwencke finished 18.8 seconds behind him in fifth.
    Matt Gelso (SVSEF) led NMU sophomore Fredrik Schwencke for most of the men’s 15 k freestyle individual race at U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich. Gelso placed fourth and Schwencke finished 18.8 seconds behind him in fifth.

    “I was hoping for great skis and we had really great skis today,” Schwencke said. “I think our team benefits from slow conditions. We’re not that fast of skiers so we do well when it’s slow.

    “It’s been two exciting years,” he added. “Today was a really good day. I feel much better in classic so it was kind of a surprise doing that well in skate so I’m really excited for the next couple races.”

    Also for NMU, Adam Martin placed 13th and Ian Torchia was the top junior in 16th.

    Fjeldheim called the men’s team’s performance “solid” and a direct result of an entire season of training. He was also proud that they’re all full-time students who trained 85 to 92 hours a month from September through November.

    “Our guys have been super positive and they have been a really fun group to coach,” he said. “They have been working together really, really well. Not just our top four guys, but our whole men’s team; we have seven guys. We have some young enthusiasm in the team .. and right now, it is just good energy and solid training, you know, there is no secret.

    As for Bratrud, Fjeldheim referred to him as a straight-A student with a “hell of a motor.”

    “He has really made a huge commitment to this sport,” he explained. “We work a lot on balancing the athletes’ life between academics and athletics and I think that is what has really helped him. He has kept a really good perspective and I know and Kyle knows now that developing to be a good skier takes anywhere from five to ten years.”

    Now that Bratrud has almost four years of collegiate-skiing experience, Fjeldheim said in another six, he could be “one of the best skiers we have had in a long time. He has just a really, really solid attitude.”

    Freeman Second, Caldwell Captures Third

    Kris Freeman (Team Freebird) racing to second in the men's 15 k freestyle on the first day of U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich.
    Kris Freeman (Freebird) racing to second in the men’s 15 k freestyle on the first day of U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich.

    Freeman in second was surprised to see Bratrud at the top of the results list, but said that’s what nationals is all about.

    “He wasn’t really on my radar, but I guess that’s what nationals is for — for people to come out of the woodwork,” the 34-year-old,16-time national champion said.

    After a slower start than he would’ve liked, the four-time Olympian rallied to post the fastest splits through 23 starters.

    “I was surprised I was behind in the splits early and I just fought as hard as I could,” Freeman said. “[In] the initial couple kilometers, I was twenty seconds down which was not normal and I didn’t go out easy, either, so I’m not sure what was going on there.”

    He tried to latch onto Scott Patterson (APU), who started 15 seconds ahead of him, and closed on him in the first kilometer, but Patterson began to pull away on the initial long climb back up.

    “I was getting pretty discouraged until we got to the top of the course and both he and [Sun Valley’s] Miles [Havlick, who started 30 seconds ahead of Freeman] came into view,” he added.

    The three skied together and Freeman clawed back the time on Paddy Caldwell (Dartmouth College/Stratton Mountain School T2/U.S. Ski Team) and Gelso, who started behind him.

    “I guess it was OK,” Freeman said of his result. “I was second to Kyle, who had a hell of a day so, what can you do?”

    Paddy Caldwell (Dartmouth/SMST2/U.S. Ski Team) racing to third in the men's 15 k freestyle individual start at U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich., for his first-ever podium (and top 15) at senior nationals.
    Paddy Caldwell (Dartmouth/SMST2/U.S. Ski Team) racing to third in the men’s 15 k freestyle individual start at U.S. nationals in Houghton, Mich., for his first-ever podium (and top 15) at senior nationals.

    The eventual third-place finisher, Caldwell was fifth fastest at the halfway point, 0.7 seconds behind Gelso in fourth, 1.1 behind Hanneman, and 5.3 back from Freeman — whom he started 30 seconds after.

    “I was hearing five to twenty [seconds] behind Kris most of the time,” Caldwell recalled. “I saw him only once in the beginning of the race and then I was just hearing that I was some distance behind, but that’s all I heard.”

    The 20 year old ended up third overall for his first senior-nationals podium, 2.7 seconds behind Freeman and one-tenth of a second ahead of Gelso in fourth. Last year at nationals in Utah, he was 16th in the 15 k classic for his previous best.

    “That was awesome,” Caldwell said of Sunday’s race, after pulling his neck warmer over his eyes for a moment to defrost his eyelids. “It was definitely an intense race: real cold, snowy, a lot of people out there, which is really fun, but … tough. But it’s awesome doing a 7.5 k loop. I don’t know if I’ve ever done that, that was pretty fun.”

    At his last race at the Eastern Cup in Middlebury, Vt., Caldwell won the 15 k freestyle mass start by a minute and 17 seconds. He explained that he used that event — which was of the same distance and skate format on a similarly hilly course — as a tuneup for nationals.

    “I wanted to go as hard as I could that race … because I knew today was going to be a day with a lot of solo skiing, which it was” he said. “I skied by myself about the entire time [today] so I really wanted to test that out a couple weekends ago.”

    Gelso started 1:45 behind Caldwell and nearly matched his time, but fell 0.1 seconds short.

    “I am slightly disappointed in that. I was hoping to be a little higher,” Gelso said of fourth place.

    After starting 15 seconds behind Schwencke, he caught up to the Norwegian within the first two kilometers and the two stayed together for much of the race. Schwencke called sticking with Gelso his “main task.”

    “It was kind of nice … he caught up with me, I just tried to hang on,” he said. “He gapped me a bit at the very end, but … I benefited from that.”

    Gelso topped Schwencke by 18.8 seconds at the finish. He spent the holidays at his home in Truckee, Calif., training at some 6,000 meters above sea level.

    “Coming from altitude, I just wanted to go out hard because I would have the benefit of being able to recover quick,” Gelso reflected. “So go out hard and keep it rolling.”

    At points throughout the race, he heard he was in second or third. At 7.5 k, his time ranked fourth, 0.4 seconds behind Hanneman.

    “I knew it was super tight,” he said.

    Rogan Brown of the University of Vermont placed sixth, 1:19.4 behind Bratrud, David Norris (APU) was seventh (+1:26.2), Matt Liebsch (XC United/Gear West) eighth (+1:27.3), Lex Treinen (APU) ninth (+1:45.6), and Patterson 10th (+1:49.7).

    Hanneman ended up 11th (+1:53.9), and Havlick was 12th (+2:02.5).

    One of APU’s World Cup skiers, Reese Hanneman was listed to start but did not race. According to APU Head Coach Erik Flora, he had been planning to race three out of four events at nationals.

    “Going through Period 1 [on the World Cup] is a good stress and a good experience, and coming here, we are looking at the sprint races and the 30 k,” Flora said. “We thought focusing on the three out of the four was going to be a good way and that was going to give him an extra day of prep as well.”

    During the women’s 10 k on Sunday afternoon, the sprint race was rescheduled from Monday to Tuesday because of forecast sub-zero temperatures and high winds. Flora said if they’d known about the switch beforehand, Reese Hanneman might have done the 15 k with an extra day of rest before the sprint.

    Former U.S. Ski Team member Tad Elliott, of the Ski & Snowboard Club Vail Elite Team, was also missing from Sunday’s race as he recovered from “some sort of flu/cold” in Durango, Colo., he explained in an email.

    “Then [I] coughed so hard I injured my back!” Elliott wrote. “I am on the mend and hope to show up later in the week to race. I am still in Colorado getting mom’s love and soup and broth!”

    — Lander Karath contributed reporting

    Results

  • Northern Michigan in control at CCSA Championships

    HOUGHTON, Mich — The Northern Michigan Nordic ski teams used dominating performances on the men’s and women’s sides to take home top honors at the NCAA Central Regional Championship on Sunday. The Wildcats were in control after Saturday’s classic race and used Sunday’s 10/15k freestyle to ensure they remained in first. George Cartwright delivered a victory to lead the men, while Christina Gillis claimed top honors for the women.

    Cartwright’s win was the first in the first-year’s young collegiate career and came on a big stage. He completed the 15k skate loop in 39 minutes, 42 seconds to beat Wisconsin-Green Bay runner-up Santiago Ocariz by 15 seconds. Spots 3-8 were just 5 seconds apart in the tight men’s competition, and NMU skiers Chris Bowler (40:06.6) and Kevin Cutts (40:06.9) completed the scoring from 6th and 7th place to put the Wildcat men in 1st with 79 points on the day.

    Behind NMU, though, the men’s team competition was extremely tight in Sunday’s freestyle. Michigan Tech didn’t have a skier in the top 8 but swept places 9-11 behind the efforts of Oskar Lund (40:16), Jesse Smith (40:38), and Jesse Lang (40:51). This solid display put the Huskies in 2nd place on the day with 63 points.

    Right on the heels of Michigan Tech was the College of St. Scholastica with 62 team points. Mason Bacso and Waylon Manske each cracked the top 10 for the Saints, as Bacso’s time of 40:06.6 was good for 5th and Manske (40:07.8) took 8th. Kasey Bacso (42:04) rounded out the team’s scoring from 21st. Alaska suffered a bit of a drop-off from Saturday’s classic race, but junior John Parry snuck into 4th as the Nanooks held on to 4th place on the day with 60 points. Parry (40:04.3) was backed by Tyler Kornfield (41:16) in 13th and a trio of Alaskans—Henri Soom (41:58.3), Ray Sabo (41:58.6), and Alex Morris (42:02.6)—in spots 18-20.

    Gustavus Adolphus junior Jens Brabbit continued to cement his position as one of the league’s top skiers with a 3rd-place finish. Brabbit (40:02.5) was the first Gustie across the line, but teammate Anders Bowman scored (41:42) as well in 14th to help give GAC 5th place with 56 points on the day. Santiago Ocariz took a familiar spot on the podium as the race’s runner-up, crossing the line in a time of 39 minutes, 57 seconds to lead Wisconsin-Green Bay to a 47 point day, good for 6th place. St. John’s took 7th with 44 points behind Grant Cook (41:44) and Bob Gerten (41:57) in 15th and 17th, respectively. Tom Jorgensen (41:55) led St. Olaf from 16th place.

    The NMU women put together a dominant showing and 1-2-3 finish for the second day in a row to post another perfect score of 87 team points. This time it was junior Christina Gillis who snagged the individual victory, skiing the 10k course in 30 minutes, 20 seconds. The women’s race was even tighter than the men’s, with the top 9 skiers separated by less than 25 seconds. Monica Markvardsen (30:25) was right on the heels of Gillis, while Saturday’s winner Laura DeWitt (30:26) was also in the mix in 3rd.

    The Alaska women were in 2nd with 74 points in Sunday’s freestyle race. Aurelia Korthauer (30:27) led the team from 4th place, and was supported by 3 more teammates in the top 10. Nanooks Julia Pierson (30:42), Anna Coulter (30:44) and Theresia Schnurr (31:02) grabbed spots 8-10. Michigan Tech was 3rd as a team with 57 points in the skate race. Henna Riikonen-Purtsi (30:40) continued to be the fastest female Husky, coming in 7th. Kristen Monahan was next to finish for MTU and ended up in 19th.

    The College of St. Scholastica was the 4th-place team Sunday behind 2 top-12 performances. Eleanor Magnuson (30:33) was 6th and Julia Curry (31:18) was 12th. The College of St. Benedict women finished 5th on the day, buoyed by Christi Nowak (31:34) in 14th. Megan Smith (31:38) was 17th for the Blazers to help give them 49 team points. Erica Hett (32:07) led Gustavus Adolphus with an 18th-place finish to help give the Gusties 45 points and 6th place in the freestyle race. Carolyn Freeman (31:05) was the top UW-GB finisher in 11th place. The Phoenix were 7th on the day with 42 points. St. Cloud State’s top finisher was Hannah Sanborn (32:53) in 28th. Emma Lee (32:26) led St. Olaf in 21st.

    For the weekend, Northern Michigan was tops in both the men’s and women’s divisions. Michigan Tech was 2nd for the men with 139 points, 20 behind NMU. Alaska was 3rd with 132. St. Scholastica used a strong freestyle race to snag 4th with 118 points, just ahead of Gustavus Adolphus (110). St. John’s (92), Wisconsin-Green Bay (74), and St. Olaf (64) rounded out the men’s scores.

    The NMU women posted a perfect score of 174 points, well ahead of 2nd-place Alaska’s 145. Michigan Tech was 3rd with 122, ahead of St. Benedict with 102. They were followed by St. Scholastica with 99 points, Gustavus Adolphus (89), Wisconsin-Green Bay (84), St. Cloud State (53), and St. Olaf (46).

    For the weekend, Northern Michigan had the high combined team score with 323. Alaska was 2nd with 277, just ahead of Michigan Tech with 261. Below are the complete team scores.

    For complete individual results check superiortiming.com.

    Men’s Teams 10k Classic 15k Freestyle Total

    1. Northern Michigan 80 (1) 79 (2) 159

    2. Michigan Tech 76 (2) 63 (1) 139

    3. Alaska 72 (3) 60 (4) 132

    4. St. Scholastica 56 (5) 62 (3) 118

    5. Gustavus Adolphus 54 (4) 56 (5) 110

    6. St. John’s 48 (6) 44 (6) 92

    7. Wisconsin-Green Bay 27 (8) 47 (7) 74

    8. St. Olaf 31 (7) 33 (8) 64

    Women’s Team 5k Classic 10k Freestyle Total

    1. Northern Michigan 87 (1) 87 (2) 174

    2. Alaska 71 (2) 74 (1) 145

    3. Michigan Tech 65 (3) 57 (3) 122

    4. C. of St. Benedict 53 (4) 49 (5) 102

    5. St. Scholastica 46 (6) 53 (4) 99

    6. Gustavus Adolphus 44 (5) 45 (6) 89

    7. Wisconsin-Green Bay 42 (7) 28 (7) 84

    8. St. Cloud State 28 (8) 25 (9) 53

    9. St. Olaf 19 (9) 27 (8) 46

    Combined Team Score 5/10k Classic 10/15k Freestyle Total

    1. Northern Michigan 157 (1) 166 (1) 323

    2. Alaska 143 (3) 134 (2) 277

    3. Michigan Tech 141 (2) 120 (3) 261

    4. St. Scholastica 102 (4) 115 (5) 217

    5. Gustavus Adolphus 98 (5) 101 (4) 199

    6. Wisconsin-Green Bay 69 (6) 75 (6) 144

    7. St. Olaf 50 (7) 60 (7) 110

    8. C. of St. Benedict 53 (9) 49 (9) 102

    9. St. John’s 48 (8) 44 (8) 92

    10. St. Cloud State 28 (10) 25 (10) 53

  • NMU XC Racing Club Team Announced

    This club will help those skiers still interested in developing as XC skiers, the focus will be on training and continued focus on developing both the skiers physiology and the skiers technical skills. Athletes will have the opportunity to ski 5 months on snow and the dry land training is outstanding. Skiers can continue to pursuit their Junior Olympic goals or simply to just continue to train along with other team mates and at the same time achieve their academic goals.


    For more information contact the director of NMU club sports:

    Mr. Brian Gaudreau at bgaudreau@nmu.edu

  • NMU, MTU Net Central Region Ski Awards

    NMU, MTU Net Central Region Ski Awards

    Nordic skiers Martin Banerud and Laura DeWitt of Northern Michigan University have been named the NCAA Central Region Athletes of the Year.

    Martin Banerud, NMU
    Martin Banerud, NMU

    Banerud, a junior from Oslo, Norway, followed up his first team All-Central Collegiate Ski Association selection by placing 11th in the freestyle race at the 2009 NCAA Skiing Championships, missing another NCAA All-America selection by one spot and just 0.2 seconds. He was also 15th in the classic-technique event at NCAA’s.

    Laura Dewitt, NMU
    Laura Dewitt, NMU

    DeWitt, a fifth-year junior, won the Central Region classic title on March 1 and then placed 17th in both the freestyle and classic races at the national championships in Rumford, Maine. DeWitt redshirted for NMU in 2004-05 and took a medical redshirt in 2006-07.

    Among women, Theresia Schnurr of Alaska-Fairbanks also received votes, while Jesse Lang of MTU and Santiago Ocariz of Wisconsin-Green Bay received votes for the men.

    Coach Sten Fjeldheim, NMU
    Coach Sten Fjeldheim, NMU
    Joe Haggenmiller, MTU
    Joe Haggenmiller, MTU

    In other awards, Sten Fjeldheim of NMU was named the NCAA Central Region women’s Coach of the Year while Joe Haggenmiller received the nod for the men. The awards recognized their teams’ CCSA postseason performance.

    Highlighting the CCSA results at NCAA’s was Lang’s eighth place in the NCAA freestyle.

    “It was great for us to break through with our first male NCAA All-American performance,” Haggenmiller, in his sixth season at MTU, said.

    Fjeldheim is in his 21st season at NMU and has helped produce 10 Olympians, five NCAA champions and dozens of All-Americans.

    NMU placed eighth of 21 teams in the NCAA Nordic standings this year while MTU was 11th.

    Fjeldheim (women) and Haggenmiller (men) were previously voted the CCSA Coaches of the Year in recognition of their teams’ 2008-09 regular-season performances.

    The winners were chosen through a vote by the CCSA coaches.