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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: Oslo 2011

  • Atomic: Oslo – Debrief

    Atomic: Oslo – Debrief

    The 2012 Nordic World Championships proved to be one of the best championships in Nordic history.  Great crowds, spectacular racing and beautiful tracks.  The nordic community expected nothing less when the event took place in the acclaimed birth place of skiing.  We called Atomic’s Nordic Race Director, the outrageous Roman Toferer, to get his perspectives on what it is like to be a technician at the World Championships.

    RICK HALLING: Congratulations, you turned in some pretty impressive results.  Your boys and girls from Norway, Sweden, Germany and Finland won Gold, Silver and Bronze.  Are you happy with your results?

    ROMAN TOFERER: Sure, we are  happy with the results.  The Atomic athletes we thought would win medals did win medals except for Hanna Falk in Sprint. It means that selection of athletes has been well done, that we need more is clear but that is in progress.

    ROMAN TOFERER WAS NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO WAS HAPPY WITH THE RESULTS. TORD GJERDALEN OF NORWAY LANDED HIS FIRST EVER INDIVIDUAL PODIUM FINSIH AT A WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS.

    RH: Roman, a lot of people wonder what it is that company reps do at an event like the World Championships.  The national teams have their own wax technicians and equipment coaches.  What did you and your team actually do at Oslo?

    RT: It is nordic skiing.  The conditions change every day.  The job of our team is clearly to test new things like adjustments in wax pockets, new bases, new grindings every day. We react on change of conditions and we are in close contact with the National teams to adapt to those changes.

    So, we will primarily test grinds and choice of wax.  This is done first within the staff of Atomic.  When we have data and decisions, we meet with the national team coaches.  We both discuss what is working best.  Of course, the technicians from Atomic and the national teams will ski together and test what is working.  But you know, the final decision is the athletes.  They ski and test one more time, they choose what is working best for them.

    RH: Tell us about the facilities that the organizers provide for the ski companies for waxing and working on skis?

    RT: Was done very good in Oslo.  We worked in a 30 square room with air-condition, cleaning equipment already there, we took measure instruments, waxing facilities and approximately 400 pairs of skies with us.

    NICE WAX FACILITY WITH OVER 400 PAIRS OF SKIS.

    RH: 400 pairs?!  Was that really necessary?

    RT: Yes, we have developed a new Hard Track Skating ski and this was our opportunity to put athletes on this ski.  We also have a new classic ski with synthetic kick material.  This ski was very popular with athletes.

    RH: So you brought the new Skintec waxless skis to Oslo.  What were some of the reactions by coaches and athletes to this new waxless technology?

    ROMAN USED THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS AS A CHANCE TO INTRODUCE NEW WAXLESS TECHNOLOGY THE WORLD’S ELITE!

    RT: They want us to provide them with these skis as soon as possible.  Spring classic races are soon, very hard to wax for.  But Skintec is for all conditions, not just Spring.

    RH: Did any of the wax technicians react negatively to Skintec because no more kick waxing might jeopardize their jobs?

    RT: No.  Much classic racing will still be on waxable skis.

    RH: It was the World Chapionships.  Not only was it a very major event, but it takes place toward the end of the year.  It must be very difficult to get athletes to try new gear at such a major event at the end of the season.

    RT: No not at all, skiers always want to test when there is new things, especially now when everyone saw what skis Tord had at 50km.

    MEDALISTS LIKE FRANZ GOERING WERE NOT ONLY WILLING TO TEST NEW TECHNOLOGY LIKE THE HT SKI, THEY CHOSE TO RACE ON IT AS WELL.

    RH: It is a pretty amazing setting.  You have the world’s best athletes on perfect tracks as well as the most knowledgeable equipment coaches all in one place for more than two weeks.  Can you take advantage of whom and what is there to test some new designs and technology?

    RT: That’s the reason why I spend so long time up there as well, this is the place where a lot of new experiences get born to develop further.  This is why I just arrived to Khanty today directly from Oslo.

    It must go on!!!!!!!!!!

    THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS GIVE COMPANIES THECHANCE TO MEET WITH THE BEST IN THE WORLD FOR TESTING AND FEEDBACK.

    RH: Did you learn anything at these World Championships about the new gear that you did not already know?

    RT: Yes this is a never ending process, anyway conditions was really not easy, think everyone saw how difficult some races was. Details out from new experiences need to be worked out now after season.

    RH: What is the next event for you and your team?

    RT: Like I mentioned above, I am in Khanty now for Biathlon World Championships.  Our Nordic service team is testing at home and then they will go to the finals in Falun, Sweden next week.  Then, the whole team  will again go to Scandinavia after the season, recruitment and testing goes on!

  • Hoffman Guts Out Top Thirty in Oslo 50km

    Hoffman Guts Out Top Thirty in Oslo 50km

    Noah Hoffman got right in the thick of things today finishing 30th place.

    With a handful of gel packets stapled to his bib, American Noah Hoffman would have blended in better at the American Birkebeiner than into Sunday’s 50 k freestyle at the 2011 World Ski Championships. But make no mistake: the way he was skiing was still world-class.

    Hoffman made it more than 30 kilometers rubbing shoulders with the World Cup podium’s usual suspects—Petter Northug (NOR), Lukas Bauer (CZE), and Maxim Vylegzhanin (RUS)—before finally succumbing to the pace after a broken pole.

    Hoffman in the lead pack at the top of the course on his second lap.

    Battling cramps, Hoffman still managed to hold on for 30th, leading an American contingent that also included Lars Flora in 39th, Tad Elliott in 40th, and Billy Demong in 51st.

    “I feel like there’s a lot more there, for some time in the future,” Hoffman said. “Those guys aren’t that much faster.”

    After a decent start, Hoffman actually made a couple of appearances at the very front of the race in the early laps. He said he was just skiing through, and found himself up there.

    He may have absorbed a few gusts of wind, but he never actually pulled the group himself, and he said that he “certainly wasn’t going to lead.” And, in a mass start race, according to U.S. Ski Team Head Coach Chris Grover, the front is the best place to be, thanks to an accordion effect that leaves those at the tail end of the group chasing hard over the top of every climb.

    “It is so much easier in a group of 50 men,” Grover said, “to ski at the front of a pack like that, than to be at the back.”

    As for those gels?

    “He just knew he needed to get a lot of energy in the race, and there weren’t so many feed stations that were available for these guys. He did a good job of feeding,” Grover said. “He has a hard time during a race getting enough food on board and holding it down—I think it was a smart strategy.”

    Hoffman gets a new pole from US Ski Team coach Matt Whitcomb.

    After surviving four trips around the tough 8.3-kilometer loop used by the men, Hoffman finally came off on his fifth trip up the grinding Styggedalen climb. On the previous lap, he’d broken a pole and had to ski another big hill with just one, which he said was “the start of me getting dropped.”

    In the closing stages of the race, Hoffman was battling cramps. (They hobbled him so much after the finish that he was limping badly, and had removed a boot to massage one of his legs.) But he held on, passing Aivar Rehemaa (EST), Tim Tscharnke (GER), and a blown-up Curdin Perl (SUI) over the last 10 kilometers, while just one man passed him.

    “He hung in there for a long time, and even when he finally started hitting the wall, he didn’t die—he fell back for a while, and then he regrouped,” Grover said.

    The result was Hoffman’s second top-30 of the championships—he was 29th in the 15 k classic on Tuesday.

    Elliott, meanwhile, fell off the pace early, before moving up to a group that included Flora. The two battled for the rest of the race, with the veteran Flora ultimately getting the edge, by three seconds.

    Both those men were far off the lead, but each mentioned the Oslo crowds, which were again pegged at around 100,000. Flora said that it was so loud, “you can’t even hear yourself breathe—and that’s a good thing.”

    Lars Flora leads teammate Tad Elliot on their way to 39th and 40th places respectively.

    Elliott, meanwhile, recounted a moment when he was trying to get a split from Matt Whitcomb, one of the U.S. coaches.

    “I just see his mouth moving, and I can’t hear anything,” he said.

    Like the Canadians, the U.S. team will now travel on to Lahti, Finland, for World Cup races next weekend. Its men’s squad will be Andy Newell, Kris Freeman, and Flora—the current Continental Cup leader from the U.S.—with Morgan Arritola, Liz Stephen, Kikkan Randall, and Holly Brooks make up the women’s contingent. (Brooks is Flora’s counterpart, as the Continental Cup leader.)

    Hoffman will travel to domestic-level European races, while Elliott is returning home to Colorado to train in advance of SuperTour Finals in Idaho.

    As for the championships in Oslo, Grover said that he felt the team “missed some opportunities, with our veterans, in particular.”

    Randall crashed out of her best event, the freestyle sprint—a race in which she was one of two gold-medal favorites—while Freeman hadn’t quite rounded back into shape after an illness set him back.

    On the other hand, Grover said, a number of the developing skiers on the U.S. squad had strong races: 10 of 14 team members cracked the top 30.

    “Among those were some of those younger athletes who we debated…as far as, ‘should we name them to a World Championships team? Are they ready for that level of stress, that level of competition?’” he said. “Skiers like Noah, and Sadie [Bjornsen] and Jessie [Diggins]…As a nation, we’ve been hoping to get going. We know we can’t rely on Kris Freeman, Kikkan, and Andy Newell forever.”

    Grover acknowledged that a top 30 at World Championships doesn’t mean quite the same as it does in a normal World Cup, where stronger athletes like Norway and Sweden get more start slots. But on the other hand, he said, places were harder to come by in Oslo, since most athletes were peaking there.

    “Yes, if you go to a classic World Cup in Norway, then a top 30 can really mean something,” Grover said. “But…I think given the fitness of the group, these results are legit.”

    A fitting backdrop for Billy Demong on his way to 51st place.
  • A Week in Norway: Fischer and Swix Dealer Trip to World Championships

    A Week in Norway: Fischer and Swix Dealer Trip to World Championships

    As a reward to the dealers who were able to sell the most Swix Triac poles and Fischer RCS Carbonlite boots a contest was organized; to the winners a trip to Norway.  First a few days in Lillehammer then down to Oslo for the World Championships.

    Come on New Jersey

    On Monday the nine dealers from all over the United States were supposed to converge in Newark to catch the same flight to Oslo, Norway.  That seemed like a fairly easy task until bad weather moved into New Jersey, flights were canceled, delayed several hours, bags were lost and David Peterson (The Ute Mountaineer, Aspen, CO) even got rerouted through Heathrow. Eventually though we all met up in Oslo and headed to Lillehammer.

    After a quick stop at our hotel, we were off to lunch at Nicker’s downtown to watch the men’s 15km classic race that was going on back down in Oslo.  After watching the race, eating and possibly enjoying a few adult beverages the group headed back to the hotel to check-in to our rooms an change up for a little ski.

    Part of the group poses for a picture along side of the final kilometers of the Norwegian Birkebeiner. From left to right; Dave Greer (Paco's), Eli Brown (Brick Wheels), Spike Clayton (Ski Rack), Bert Hinkley (WebSkis), Bob Rosso (Elephant Perch) and Matt Voisin (FasterSkier). Lillehammer, Norway.

    Where it all happened

    Birkebeineren Ski Stadium, Lillehammer, Norway. Home to most of the Nordic events at the 1994 Olympic Games.

    The afternoon ski was a treat in itself as we headed up to the Birkebeineren Ski Stadium which was home to most of the Nordic events at the 1994 olympic games in Lillehammer.  While skiing around it was hard not to imagine the same space crowded with thousands of Norwegians cheering on Bjorn Daehlie as he raced Silvio Fauner to the line only to be silenced by the Italian in the men’s 4×10 relay (YouTube video).

    The group enjoyed both the more gentle terrain that was the final kilometers of the Norwegian Birkebeiner as well as the much more challenging trails of the Olympic course, where we all tried to keep up with the surges of Eli Brown (Brick Wheels, Traverse City, MI) and Bob Rosso (Elephants Perch, Ketchum, ID).

    After skiing for an hour and a half we headed back to the hotel to freshen up and head to dinner downtown at Pepe’s Pizza.  Then most everyone headed to bed after a long day of traveling and skiing.

    Bacon Ost

    Bacon Ost, coming to friendly bets in US ski communities next week.

    In the morning we were all treated to a spread of typical Norwegian breakfast foods.  If you are friends with someone on the trip there is a good possibility that you will be presented with some Bacon Ost upon their return home.

    It is important that they are sober

    After breakfast the group headed to the Swix Factory for a tour from the legendary Harald Bjerke.  It was amazing to see how so few workers are able to run the entire wax production.  When asked about it Bjerke commented that, “it is just like cooking, you just follow the recipe, but it is important that they are sober.”

    After the tour, Bjerke gave a powerpoint presentation about the history of Swix and developments along the way, including wax and poles – all of which included anecdotes.

    The group about to head out to ski on the Birkebeiner race course lead by Swix's Eivind Opsahl.

    Hitting the Birkebeiner race course

    From there the group got changed up back at the hotel and headed up to the Birkebeiner trails.  As we worked our way backwards along the course we were treated with four classic tracks each separated by a skate lane, all of which was groomed to perfection.  Our turnaround point was about 8km out at the highpoint of the course which is 910 meters above sea level.  We skied the rolling and mostly flat terrain back to were we started, from there most of us decided it would be fun to ski the remaining fifteen kilometers to the finish of the Birkie and then drop down the hill to our hotel. Although there was a climb here and there, for the most part it was all down and at times quite so.

    Midtfjellet: Highpoint of the Norwegian Birkiebeiner at 910 meters.

    Dinner at a restaurant called The Cave was amazing and gave way to a ‘few’ hours of socializing with Eivind and some other Lillehammer locals.

    Meeting Ulf Bjerknes

    Ulf Bjerknes, President of Swix Sport.

    Let’s just say the early morning departure was hard for some who were going on little sleep, but two and a half hours later we were back in Oslo at Swix’s main office to meet the company’s president Ulf Bjerknes and pole production manager Svein Pedersen.  Bjerknes gave an interesting presentation about what the company is working on; from the production and growth of their apparel line to the challenges that exist in different countries.

    Pedersen talked about the innovations in their pole line and the difficulties of always looking for something lighter, stiffer, stronger and with an improved swing.

    Drammen Testing

    After that it was time to head to our new hotel in downtown Oslo to meet similar dealer groups from Germany and Sweden.  From there it was off to Drammen to test those ‘black’ skis that are Fischer’s new line for the 2011/12 season on the World Cup race course.  Although most of the dealers had already tested the line at the SIA show at Devil’s Thumb Ranch last month it was still a great opportunity to provide feedback to some of Fischer’s top employees.  On a whole the new skis were just what you would expect from Fischer; light, solid, stable and of course fast and the graphics look even more impressive in person than what you may have already seen on the web.

    The highlight of the ski in Drammen was that Fischer had arranged for all the dealers to get personal lessons from Jon Nordby, who is one of the top club coaches in all of Norway and his son Sindre Wiig Nordby, who is rising the ranks and is now just off the national team.  Sindre, you may recall, may be best known in the United States for showing up on JohnnyKlister doing his skier imitation.

    [A video of him doing his best Michael Jackson impersonation on skis is coming soon, so check back later today.]

    Now we head to Mecca

    All the dealers would agree that this trip has been amazing and that everyday has brought something new and better than the best from the day before, but today, today we head up the hill to the ‘Kol’, today we go to the World Championships at the Holmenkollen, it does not get any bigger.

  • Grey, Jones Win Skate Distance at Nor-Ams in Thunder Bay

    The qualifying for Canada’s World Championships team may be over, but racing continued Sunday at Lappe Nordic, in Thunder Bay, ON.

    In the men’s 15 k skate, George Grey (Black Jack/NST) snagged the men’s victory, crossing the line in 39:21.9 and beating Graham Nishikawa (Whitehorse) by just over five seconds. Michael Somppi (Lappe Nordic/Thunder Bay, Ontario) came in another seven seconds behind, clocking in at 39:34.6 for third place. Saturday’s sprint winner Brent McMurtry (Foothills) was fourth, more than 45 seconds behind Somppi (40:16.9).

    George Grey leading his teammate Ivan Babikov in the skate leg of the 30k pursuit in Vancouver, 2010.

    “My race form is coming up, and there were a lot of close finishes here as many were peaked for the trials. It made for exciting racing…and it was nice to have tight competition,” said Grey, who was content to win two out of the three races this weekend.

    But Grey also knows that the merits are just for posterity. Now starts the real work preparing for Worlds, and he knows there are still gains to be made before he reaches his own peak fitness.

    “I need to do some more good training before I get to my top race form,” Grey told FasterSkier in an e-mail after Sunday’s race. “My plans are to train hard, long, and smart until the departure date. I will also compete in the [mini-tour] in Kelowna, B.C [in early February] as a small preparation.”

    While nailing a ticket to Oslo was the focus of the weekend for Grey, he is also optimistic about his country’s potential internationally.

    “The obvious highlight for me was qualifying for the championship team, and taking two wins in two distance races. Many of the men’s positions were filled in Europe on the World Cup, and two spots were left up for grabs to be filled in Canadian races. Stefan [Kuhn] took the sprint spot and I nipped the distance spot. Both qualifying races were very tight, showing the depth of our Canadian squad. Canada is rising in its skiing ability across the board,” Grey said.

    Spread in the women’s field

    While the top three men finished within 13 seconds of each other, things were a little more spread out in the women’s 10 k skate. Perianne Jones (Foothills/NST) cruised through the course in 31:02.7 and beat Dasha Gaiazova (Rocky Mountain Racers/NST) by a solid 15-second margin. Gaiazova, who finished in 31:18.3, put more than a minute on Brooke Gosling (Foothills/CXC), who was third in 32:27.5.

    Perianne Jones (CAN) was 29th in the Canmore World Cup on Feb 5, 2010. Photo: Win Goodbody.

    “I felt really good out there, and I’ve known all year that I’ve just been feeling a lot better,” Jones told Cross Country Canada after her race on Sunday. “My body was just really tired last year, and it is nice to be building that confidence and racing professionally again here. I have been working hard on my technique and things have been going really well.”

    Important races

    Between Thursday and Sunday, a number of athletes were named to the various Canadian championship teams, as this was the final opportunity for racers to qualify. Hence, the skiers seemed to overlook the frigid temperatures that blanketed Thunder Bay this week, and were going for broke. The only evidence of the mercury plummeting to nearly -20 C were the times for the distance events. The cold snow made for draggier conditions, especially in the skate events.

    Complete men’s results.

    Complete women’s results.

  • Northug Back on the WC Circuit

    DAVOS, Switzerland – Northug appeared calm when he met the press Friday for what will be his debut on the World Cup this season.

    “Easy training days at altitude have been good for me. I’m excited to race. It’s a little strange that this will be the first World Cup races of the season, but I won’t be disappointed if I finish a little ways down on the result list,” Northug said during his 20-minute press conference in Davos, Switzerland Friday afternoon. The amount of Norwegian and Swedish press that came out for the press conference was impressive. Northug didn’t offer anything huge, but claims to be fully in control for the rest of the season.

    “I only ask advice from myself. Everything else I just shut out,” Northug explained.

    Advice from experts and former champions is not interesting to him.

    Wants to crack the code

    Northug left the FIS season opener in Beitostoelen Norway knocked out. He sat out the World Cup opener in Gällivare, Sweden, and the following World Cup round in Kuusamo, Finland. Now, Northug wants to crack the Davos code. A lot of racers run into trouble when they have to race at 1500 meters altitude. That is also true for Northug, whose 21st place here last season is his career best for Davos. Former results include a 34th and 55th place. “Bad results have nothing to do with mental strength. I just haven’t found the flow here. This time, I’ll race fast. I need a good race here. If I finish 20th, I’ll be satisfied,” Northug said. “It might have been good for me to fall down the drain a little.”

    Could have raced in Kuusamo

    “It’s not ideal, but this season, the World Championships are my main goal. If I wasn’t aiming for Oslo later this season, I might have chosen to race in Kuusamo,” Northug said.

    While the rest of the racers stay in Davos, Northug has stayed 300 meters higher. “What I need in front of the World Cup races next weekend in La Clusaz (FRA) and in the Tour de Ski after that, is some really tough training events,” he explained.

    At the press conference, Northug said he had not been following the TV coverage of the World Cup so far. “At that point, I was out training, but I’ve looked at the results. It appears that the same old racers are back to fight for the podiums this season as last,” he concluded.

    Northug will go home over Christmas to celebrate the holidays with his family. All the media coverage has not affected Petter Northug. He’s just that much more intense in chasing the points.

    From Langrenn.com, December 10, 2010. Translation by Inge Scheve

  • Elofsson: Petter Must Get Back in the Track

    Northug at the Olympics. Photo: FasterSkier

    OSLO, Norway – Petter Northug had to sit out the World Cup opener in Gällivare (SWE) Nov 20-21, and it appears that it is taking longer for him to recover than what is expected from a normal cold. That could indicate that Northug has become overtrained in his intense preparation for the season.

    Destroyed from training

    Elofsson now works as an expert commentator for the Swedish television, and experienced having his career destroyed by too much training. Elofsson won the overall World Cup in 2001-02, and is a triple World Champion. In preparation for the 2004-05 season, he was completely sidelined, which also affected his attempt to come back for the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics. Seeing what was coming, Elofsson decided to retire in the fall of 2005.

    Elofsson has no problem identifying with the issues Northug might be experiencing at this point.

    “I don’t know Petter that closely, but what I’ve heard is that he has trained very hard this fall, which is necessary in cross-country racing, and he might have crossed over that fine line,” Elofsson said. “The critical thing is how long he has felt overtrained. If it’s only been a couple of weeks it might not be that big of a deal, but if he has felt tired and low on energy since this summer, it will take longer to recover,” he said.

    Susceptible to infections

    Former Norwegian national team coach Svein Tore Samdal refuses to believe that Petter Northug could be overtrained. He has never seen an athlete that has managed to train too much. Samdal thinks the overall load has become too much.

    “Petter trains no more than six hours per day, so the problem is what he does the rest of the day,” Samdal said to NRK.

    Elofsson has experienced overtraining first hand, and explains what happens. “Even to this day, the doctors can’t tell me exactly what happened to me. What we do know is that my body was overloaded, and that I had some sort of overtraining. Additionally, something had happened to my body which made it unable to absorb and tolerate the typical stresses that cross-country skiers put on their bodies. The intense training load is extremely hard on the muscular and nervous systems,” Elofsson said. “Muscles recover pretty quickly, but when you have trained very hard, it takes longer for the other activating systems to recover from overtraining. You catch infections more easily, and you constantly have sort of cold. You’re simply physically reduced,” Elofsson explained.

    Enormous expectations

    Elofsson was considered the savior for Swedish cross-country, and has experienced much of the stress that Northug is facing outside the track. Elofsson thinks these expectations could have contributed to sideline him at the start of the season.

    “Of course, there is an extreme mental load on one individual once you have a breakthrough and succeed. You have to consider the overall stress load on these athletes, not just the physical training load. Everything contributed to the overall load on the athlete,” Elofsson said.

    – Do you think the overall load on Northug has become too much?

    “I don’t know Petter that well personally, but no matter how thick skin you have, you do absorb the outside pressures. And you have to handle it as well as possible, protect yourself from the outside stress,” he said.

    Sad if Northug misses the World Championships

    Elofsson doesn’t want to predict how long it could take for Northug to get back to his old peak, but he hope that Northug finds the groove well ahead of the 2011 World Championships in  Holmenkollen. “It would be really sad if Northug didn’t come back in time for the Worlds. Everyone wants to see the top racers, and Petter is definitely one of them” Elofsson concluded.

    From NRK.no, Nov 23, 2010. Translation by Inge Scheve

  • Chris Cook – The Lone Goat

    Chris Cook – The Lone Goat

    Photos courtesy of Chris Cook/Steinbock Racing

    Despite stellar race results for the team last season, Chris Cook is the only goat left in the Steinbock herd for the 2010-11 season, and he has moved back to his hometown of Rheinlander, Wisconsin. Two others are off the elite racing circuit: Zack Simons went back to school, and Andrew Johnson took a coaching position with the University of Vermont.

    That leaves Cook to tend to the business side of the organization as well as his race efforts, which will get underway with nothing less than World Cup level events. As the overall winner of the 2009-2010 SuperTour and the leader of the SuperTour sprint series, the 30-year-old qualified to race in Europe as a part of the U.S. Ski Team for the first World Cup races of this season.

    The team was well on its way to growing its herd last spring. They applied for funding and targeted sponsors. But with the economy still sluggish and some major grant applications falling through this year, Steinbock Racing was unable to offer the level of support that they needed to commit to the team. The result was that athletes who had showed interest in joining for 2010-2011 opted to stay with their local clubs for the season, Cook explained, adding that he is still hopeful that this will change in the future.

    However, Cook is a glass-half-full kind of guy. He sees their choice to stay with their clubs as a sign that the club structure and support for cross-country skiing in North America is improving.

    “The clubs and organizations across the United States have gotten good at raising funds and support for senior skiers, and that’s good for the sport,” Cook said, noting that when he graduated from college in 2003, there were only two or three teams nationwide. Now, they have multiplied, he added.

    Ready to race

    Being a one-goat herd is no picnic, but Cook feels confident going into the racing season. He comes off one of his best mountain biking seasons, and feels as fit as ever despite not having trained on snow during the summer. On November 15, he leaves for Sweden, where he will join the US Ski Team for the World Cup season opener in Gällivare, Sweden on November 20.

    “I’ve been training hard, and I think I’ll get dialed in quickly once I get on snow,” Cook said.

    There are no hitches in Cook’s motivation, and he has no problem getting the workouts done. With a decade of experience training and racing at the international level, including the 2006 Olympics and more than 30 World Cup starts, Cook knows the drill – and he knows how to design his own training plan.

    “When you’ve been around this level for this long, you know what works for you and what doesn’t,” Cook said, adding that he still works closely with his former coach, U.S. Ski Team Head Coach Chris Grover.

    Ambitious schedule

    With the 2011 World Championships in Oslo as his overall season goal, Cook is ready to get down to work. In order to make the Worlds team, Cook knows he’ll have to deliver solid results both at the U.S. National Championships in January, and in the early season races.

    The World Cup opener in Gällivare features a 15-kilometer skate race and a relay. Cook hopes to make the relay team, but doesn’t have great expectations for the 15 k.

    “The 15 k freestyle event is not one that has been a great success for me so far,” he said, explaining that his biggest goal for the Gällivare races is to regain the feel for the snow and just get the routine down.

    The following weekend, Cook moves on to Kuusamo, Finland, with the U.S. Ski Team. The Finland stop features events more to Cook’s taste: a 15-kilometer classic race and a classic sprint.

    But his final World Cup stop, in Davos, Switzerland, December 11 and 12, is what Cook is looking forward to the most: a 15-kilometer classic and a freestyle sprint.

    “By then, I should be fully changed over and dialed in on the snow. And I’m a fan of the 15K classic. It’s always been one of the most enjoyable races for me,” Cook said.

    He considers his former experience with World Cup racing a major advantage.

    “Especially on the sprint courses, it’s a lot different going to a venue for the first time. A huge part of the racing is getting to know the courses. When you’ve got the experience and you’re comfortable with the course, that’s one more thing you can cross off the list and not have to worry about,” Cook said.

    As for his chances to make the Worlds team, Cook said there are a lot of unknowns, but he’ll give it his best shot.

    “I’m not sure of the team selection process or how many they’ll even take. I try not to think about those things,” Cook said. “I know I have to race hard and do well. I’ll just have to let the chips fall where they may.”

    Long-term goal: growing the herd

    “I really wanted to continue the team and keep the name out there, even if it’s only me. It has been so much fun running it and being accountable for everything the team puts out there. I maintain the web site, do the Twitter and have a Facebook page,” Cook said. Over time, he said that his goal is to grow Steinbock racing back into a team. Whether that happens next season or over time is still too early to predict, Cook said.

    To attract more athletes, Cook is pursuing different avenues. This year, he is getting involved with skiers at the high school level and trying to extend an arm to juniors and younger skiers. That is exactly the kind of attitude that his sponsor Ian Harvey with Toko USA admires in Cook. He has worked with Cook as a sponsor for five years, on and off.

    “Cook is a representative for Toko, he has a good personality and we’re proud to sponsor him,” Harvey said, explaining that results are only one of the factors he looks for when deciding to sign an athlete.

    “I look for results, but more importantly, I look for a person with enthusiasm for cross-country skiing and who enjoys working with other people. Chris is that kind of guy. I think he could easily grow his team,” Harvey said.

    Cook is also doing more online community outreach, putting a lot of effort into the Steinbock Racing web site and promoting the team on social media.

    The transition to a one-man show has definitely been a learning experience, but Cook said he is enjoying the team management part of the job as well, noting that he feels like he has plenty of resources to draw on when he needs to. Time is the bigger issue, but he sees light in the end of the tunnel there too.

    “I still have Zack and Andrew to help me when I have questions about the web site. There are only so many hours in a day to take care of everything, but once we’re racing and traveling and staying in hotels, you’re searching for things to do, so I think it will be just fine,” Cook said.

  • Brooks: Aiming for Worlds, Officially Part Time

    Brooks: Aiming for Worlds, Officially Part Time

    ANCHORAGE, ALASKA – “It’s been really cold lately, which is good. We have a good amount of frost, and if it were to snow right now, it would definitely stick,” said Holly Brooks. “We’ll be skiing before we know it!”

    Holly Brooks at the 2010 Olympics in Whistler. (Photo: Kent Murdoch)

    After making the U.S. Ski Team for the 2010 Olympics in Whistler, the 28-year-old from Anchorage officially cut her work hours to part-time this summer. Brooks still coaches at Alaska Pacific University, but with hopes to make the US team for the 2011 World Championships in Oslo, her own fitness is no longer an afterthought.

    “Training is going really well. I am definitely on track now,” said Brooks, who is looking forward to the competition season.

    Packed Schedule

    On-snow time can’t come soon enough for Brooks. Her racing schedule is already set.

    “I plan on doing the domestic circuit starting with West Yellowstone, then Silverstar, the mini-tour in Rossland, B.C. – I’m really excited for that – and then head out for U.S. Nationals in January,” Brooks said.

    As of October, Brooks is ranked fourth in the U.S. While she is unsure of how many female skiers the U.S. Ski Team will field Oslo, she is hopeful that she will make the cut. “Oslo is the plan and the hope. Rebecca Dussault is pregnant and due on January 19th, so she won’t be competing in Oslo,” Brooks said. “But knowing her, I never rule it out that she’ll come out and post some amazing result even if she’s pregnant,” Brooks added with a laugh.

    Well-prepared Homebody

    Brooks explained that there really is no need to leave Alaska to get premium training, but she did change a few things after going part-time with work. This summer, for the first time, Brooks completed two on-snow camps on the Eagle Glacier in Alaska.

    “I’ve never done a training camp there myself, but it’s an amazing facility. We’ve had a lot of athletes up there, but I’ve always been the one left at home to take care of things here when everyone else left,” Brooks said.

    However, Brooks added that her part-time status is no cakewalk.

    “Since I’m not on the U.S. Ski Team, I still have to support myself. In a typical day, I will train in the morning, then coach at noon and again in the afternoon, and then I will get in another of my own workouts in the evening,” Brooks said, explaining that while she’s coaching, she might not be training and doing all the drills, but she’s still on her feet.

    Although Brooks has increased her training emphasis this summer, she is still prefers the home scene over travel camps.

    “I’m kind of lazy that way. I don’t really see a need to leave Alaska. While it would be super-fun to be in Lake Placid and train with the U.S. Ski Team, I have great training partners, a really good coach, and there will be lots of travel later,” Brooks said.

  • Cologna Checks Out the Oslo2011 Courses

    OSLO, Norway – Dario Cologna and his Swiss teammate Curdin Perl are familiarizing themselves with the terrain for February’s events and training on the courses for the Oslo 2011 World Championships. But although Cologna was in town, he sat out the uphill race called “Oslo’s Steepest” last Saturday – an event that has lactic acid gushing through every muscle fiber for about 15 brutal minutes of running.

    “Dario didn’t want to risk anything. He is suffering from a minor leg injury,” said his personal coach Fredrik Aukland, who accompanied Cologna. However, Cologna hung out at the finish to greet his teammate Curdin Perl as he hauled into a respectable fourth place.

    “Petter Northug will be the guy to watch at the Worlds. The pressure is on him after the last season and the Worlds being on home turf,” Cologna said to the Norwegian TV station TV2, and he also mentioned Marcus Hellner (SWE) as a serious contender. While Cologna admits that a gold medal at the Worlds is one of his season goals, he doesn’t want to get ahead of himself.

    Taking notes at Holmenkollen

    Cologna and Perl just finished their five-day stay in Oslo with their coach Fredrik Aukland, where the Swiss skiers spent their days studying the courses at Holmenkollen down to the smallest detail.

    Dario Cologna won the 15 k freestyle at the 2010 Olympics, the opening event for the cross-country skiers in Whistler. He was also third at the 2010 Tour de Ski last season, while he won that event the previous season. He also won the overall World Cup in 2009.

    Curdin Perl could be an outsider contender. He was second at the U-23 World Championships mass start in 2004 (behind Cologna), and he has won the massive Norwegian marathon event, the Skarverennet – a race that is capped at 12,000 participants and filled up within an hour after the online registration for the 2011 event opened last week. Perl feels particularly at home in Oslo now that he is dating the Norwegian national team racer Astrid Urenholdt Jacobsen.

    From Langd.se, October 4, 2010 By Kjell Erik Kristiansen, translation by Inge Scheve

  • Hellner will Greet the Fans at Worlds in Oslo

    Hellner will Greet the Fans at Worlds in Oslo

    Marcus Hellner was 4th in the 15K freestyle event at the 2010 Olympics. Photo: Inge Scheve

    SWEDEN – “I would not do what Petter does. I’ve never felt bothered by kids are asking for autographs,” Marcus Hellner told Norwegian newspaper VG, when they talked to the Swede in Ramsau, Austria.

    While Hellner understands that Northug wants to be shielded from the crowds in order to stay focused in his pursuit of five gold medals at the World Championships on home turf, that’s not the right approach for him. Hellner loves the limelight and would rather err on the side of overdoing it a little.

    “I don’t know how Petter thinks, but I feel that you’ve got to find a balance between focus on the competition and the relationship with the fans,” Hellner explained.

    Similar but different

    Both Hellner and Northug won two gold medals each at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, but at the last World Championships, in Liberec (CZE) 2009, Northug won three gold medals while Hellner earned none.

    “The interest in cross-country skiing is much bigger in Norway than in Sweden. I understand that there is a huge pressure on Petter. Even though we both won two gold medals at the Olympics, he won the overall World Cup and had more strong performances throughout the season. He has improved the level of international cross-country skiing,” Hellner said.

    All about Oslo 2011

    During the Swedish team camp in Austria, the skiers are working hard to prepare for the upcoming World Championship season. A typical day starts with a ski workout on the glacier, followed by a dryland workout in the afternoon.

    “I’m really excited about the World Championships in Holmenkollen, but it’s hard to predict at which event I have the best chances to medal,” said Hellner, who won the pursuit and the relay at the 2010 Olympics.

    Moving on

    Petter Northug at the 2010 Olympics. Photo: Inge Scheve

    In the pursuit, Northug was skiing with the lead group until Hellner accidentally skied over his pole and broke it, destroying Northug’s shot at a medal. According to Hellner, the two of them have talked it over and put the incident behind them.

    “I never intentionally stepped on his pole. It was an accident. Those things happen in a mass start when people jockey for positions,” Hellner told VG. The relationship between the two racers further improved during their Las Vegas poker tournament trip this summer.

    “I really like Petter. He is sympathetic and he is an amazing athlete. He is really different one-on-one than he comes across in the media, but he seems to have decided on certain image when he talks to the media,” he said.

    More than just sprints

    Hellner admits that he often thinks about Northug’s fierce finish surges during his workouts.

    “But there are several ways to win a cross-country ski race. A sprint finish is not the only option. I am focusing on determining the outcome well ahead of a sprint to the finish,” Hellner said.

    From Langd.se, September 23, 2010 By Kjell Erik Kristiansen, translation by Inge Scheve, FasterSkier

  • Kalla chooses Tour de Ski, Bjoergen skips this winter

    Kalla chooses Tour de Ski, Bjoergen skips this winter

    SWEDEN – It was exactly at the Tour de Ski that Charlotte Kalla had her career breakthrough three years ago, when she beat the overall leader Virpi Kuitunen (FIN) on the final climb up the Alpine hill in Alpe Cermis and thereby secured the overall title for the event. Last season, Kalla skipped the tour in preparation for the Olympics, where she won both gold and silver medals.

    “Now I want to race the Tour again. I think it’s a really fun competition format,” the Swedish star told Norwegian newspaper Adresseavisen.

    Charlotte Kalla (SWE) will be a favorite for the 2011 Tour de Ski. Photo, Inge Scheve

    That makes Kalla a favorite for the overall Tour de Ski title this year, especially given that her Norwegian rival, Marit Bjoergen, has opted to skip the tour.

    “I admit that I have pondered whether to race the Tour, but I think the overall program toward the World Championships is better than what we had leading up to the Olympics. The World Championships are later in the season than the Olympics were, and we also don’t have to deal with the time difference this year,” Kalla explains.

    Kalla admits it was hard not to race the Tour two years ago when she wanted to go in defending her title. Illness forced her to peak later in the season that year. Last year, Kalla planned to sit out the Tour, and opted for a training camp in Ponteresin, Switzerland, instead.

    “We only watched a few stages on TV, and I really don’t regret not racing then,” Kalla told Adresseavisen.

    No Bjoergen

    Marit Bjoergen knows what works for her. She'll skip the 2011 Tour de Ski and follow her success recipe from the 2010 Olympic season. Photo, Inge Scheve

    However, there will be no duel between Charlotte Kalla and Marit Bjoergen in the Tour de Ski this winter. Bjoergen is choosing to stick with her peak program from the Olympic season, which does not include the Tour. By sitting out, she will likely be the only Norwegian female to skip the Tour, as long as Kristin Steira (NOR) can get healthy and recover from her reccurring injuries. Even on the men’s side, Norway will field the top racers, although Eldar Roenning and Martin Johnsrud Sundby are still weighing the pros and cons of racing the Tour. The 2011 Tour de Ski event schedule feature host locations Oberhof (GER), Oberstordf (GER), Toblach (ITA) and Val di Fiemme (ITA).

    From langd.se, September 9, 2010 By Kjell-Erik Kristiansen, translation by Inge Scheve

  • Tickets now on sale for Oslo 2011

    The new Holmenkollen Arena which includes the spectacular new Holmenkollen ski jump and the naturally beautiful Midtstuen hill are just some of the reasons pointing to a huge spectator turnout during the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2011 at Oslo’s Holmenkollen this winter. Ticket sales started Wednesday, 1st September 2010.

    With 21 events over 11 days (24th February-6th March), the WSC program is tightly packed. Two evening ski jumping competitions, many attractive weekday afternoon events and reduced prices for children make tickets accessible and attractive to the public.

    “We want to create a major celebration. We also want to show the ski world that we are a winter-happy nation full of supportive spectators. There is already tremendous interest in the tickets so we think that they are going to be snapped up quickly,” says Åsne Havnelid, CEO of Oslo 2011.

    “The Holmenkollen National Arena is the world’s most modern ski facility. The short distances between the various competition sties at Holmenkollen also make the facility and our WSC event unique. We hope the public uses the opportunity to see several ski events on the same day,” concludes Havnelid.

    Tickets for the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 2011 can be purchased on-line, by telephone and at selected retail outlets in Norway (Narvesen and 7-Eleven). Visit www.oslo2011.no for more details.

    Source: FIS