Skate Races

Orli-

The morning of the sprint qualifiers the sky was blue and the sun was bright yet it was still somewhat cold. I was worried about the hills being icy, but they were fine during the race. The course was beautiful. It started downhill then circled around through the woods and back up a hill to the finish. The altitude was not very noticeable during the sprint, however afterwards it took longer to catch my breath. Sprints are not normally my strong point, so I am pleased with how I finished. After going back to the hotel to rest and eat lunch, a few of us headed back up to the venue to cheer on our teammates in the heats.

The 5k skate on Wednesday was my best race of the week. The weather was a mix between snow and rain, and the condition and speed of the course was changing rapidly. I also was able to do a skiing warm up on this day, although I mixed in a bit of running. I did not know what to expect because of the altitude, so I started out on the first lap L2-L3 because I knew the altitude would make the race more complicated and I would be more likely to bonk if I started out too hard. The first lap felt really easy though I’m glad I paced myself the way I did because the second lap felt much harder. I felt especially tired as I crested over the top of one of the last large hills. I was happy to finish in 25th, much higher than I expected.

The start of the sprint

 

 

 



 



 

Callie-

 

After some training and getting used to the altitude, came the races. It was very different racing in altitude. For me, it wasn't necessarily bad, I just had to get used to the difference. At altitude, I have realized you need to go out even slower than you think you have to because it is so much harder to catch your breath. Back home, I would usually start a race at L4, but here the first half of the race I need to do L3 to keep my breathing in check. The first race was a skate sprint qualifier. In the qualifier I went out hard because it was only 1k but I still got tired very quickly. By the last 100 meters, I didn't have much more to give and I placed 46th, not in the top 30 that move onto the heats. After this race, I was slightly disappointed I didn't qualify, but also excited because I now knew how to race at altitude better. After the race I set a personal goal to be top 30 because I knew I could do it. The second race was a 5k skate. My strategy was to feel powerful but not quick on my first lap. I needed to make sure my breathing didn't get out of check. So after completing my full running warm up due to the lack of snow, I set out on my first lap. The first lap I achieved feeling powerful but not too quick. The course had one big hill and I planned to be smooth up that hill on the first lap and I did. When I got to the second lap I sped up a little, then quickly realized I still needed to slow it down a little bit. I slowed down and reserved all the energy I had for the finishing stretch. At the end of the day I was 28th and very happy! I'm looking forward to the classic race to come!  

Training in Truckee

U16 girls in downtown Truckee 

Callie+Phoebe- The past few days in Truckee have been amazing! It's been such a great experience to meet so many other awesome athletes and become really close with our age group. It's great to finally really get to know the people we have been racing against for forever. As a team on training days we have skied very easy for no more than 45 minutes to rest our bodies and get used to the altitude. On these days the focus has been staying cool and applying plenty of sunscreen! 
Callie- For me, I have been adjusting well to the altitude, but I can definitely tell the difference in my breathing at 7000 ft. It also has been kind of hard skiing in icy conditions, I prefer skiing in slush. Hills are really my strong suit and it's hard to power up them when it's all ice! 
Phoebe- So far skiing here despite the lack of snow has been really fun!  We’ve only done easy skis, no more than 40 to 50 minutes each, sometimes with a few pickups. The elevation is a little surprising because on training days its hardly noticeable but when you are skiing hard in races, even in the sprint, your lungs burn.
 

Craftsbury girls at the opening parade

u16 girls getting ready to ski the course!

Phoebe and Callie in Truckee!

Orli-
The first two days we were here were training days. In the morning we managed to get across the busy road to the bike path to take a morning jog in the sunshine. After breakfast at the hotel we drove in vans to the venue. There we got to explore the courses and get used to the tricky conditions and altitude. On Saturday we skied for ½ hour really easy, and on Sunday we skied for about an hour, so that we could practice some starts. The venue is beautiful, and it is amazing to be able to ski with a t-shirt on. After skiing both days, we had lunch and then took a trip to the Safeway to pick up any snacks or food that we needed. In the afternoon we did school work, rested, and spent time with friends. On Sunday right before dinner we put on our New England jackets, hopped in the vans, and headed to the opening ceremony/parade. It was really hot standing out in the sun, but it was nice to see all of the teams that we would be competing against in one place. It was really hot standing out in the sun, but it was nice to see all of the teams that we would be competing against in one place. I have been having a wonderful time so far, and am really excited for the upcoming races.

Team New England in the parade

frisbee golf with Zach...

The food  is great after skiing all day 

Callie and Phoebe had to improvise without a fridge 

Mae and Phoebe 

Traveling to Truckee

Orli and Callie-

Can you spot Orli and Phoebe? 

Our journey started at 2:00 am from the Burlington airport. It was -10 degrees. We flew from Burlington to Newark, and then from Newark to San Francisco. When we got out of the plane it was 65 degrees and very sunny. It felt strange to be warm while outside, and not even need a jacket. Our last plane was tiny and the trip only took about 30 minutes. Looking out the window of the plane we saw cities change into wooded hills, and then into huge snow covered mountains and desert like areas. When we landed in Reno we were greeted by slot machines lining the halls of the airport. We were lucky to receive all of our bags except 1, which was delivered to the hotel later that evening. After sitting in the sun with our bags for a little while, we got in a van that took us to our hotel in Truckee where we met many new New England teammates! Everything is so clean and all the buildings are natural wood sided so everything blends in! At the hotel we quickly changed into our running clothes so that we could enjoy the warm sun before it set. The night to day temperature difference is crazy here! We tried to run across the road to go on a bike path, however there were so many cars that we were not able to cross. Instead we ran around the hotel building for a few minutes and played soccer with the giant pinecones that had fallen in the parking lot. After we had unpacked we were greeted by yummy take out pizza and soon after that we retired to our rooms to sleep.

Flying over New Jersey!

Phoebe-

My trip to Truckee, though it began quite similarly with waking up at two, dragging my things into the negative -16 air outside and driving through the dark to the Burlington Airport it certainly did not follow the same path from that point onwards. To begin with the flight which was supposed to bring us from Washington D.C.  to Texas was canceled and it was uncertain if it would be available even in two days. Although that was a bummer and did not bode well with our plans in the least we were at least not stuck in airport. Well, this is where things got a little more interesting. We decided to drive to Boston and spend the night so that we could catch the earliest flight out. Checking in, going through security and boarding the flight all went surprisingly smoothly considering the our luck the day before. The next two flights though both had approximately hour to an hour and a half delays but long story short I made it, albeit late, I made it. Something I noticed right off the bat is that California is so warm and clean! It’s a little hard believe that we will be racing let alone skiing here but I’m still very excited for the races.

Sunny California!

Our hotel is very nice and really close to the race venue

Our first glimpse of California snow

3am and all smiles!