Skitrax Winter 2016/17

Winter 2016/17

LOPPETS 2017 Best in Canada-USA

FIS WORLD CUP Inside Look

LAHTI 2017 PREVIEW

World’s Best Do Battle

PRESIDENTIAL TRAVERSE Backyard Challenge Official publication of

$4.95 w w w. s k i t r a x . c o m

Registration Number 9875 Agreement Number 1372521 Printed in Canada

Plus Avalanches Winter Trails Ski Callaghan Snowshoe Racing Bridger Ski Foundation k Pro Tal Newell Nishikawa

CONTENTS WINTER 2016/17 Volume 27, Issue 2

FEATURES 32 36 40 42 44 48 54 60 61

Presidential Traverse

by Thom Perkins

Lahti 2017 Preview

by Peter Graves

Avalanches: The Human Factor

by Jean Arthur

Phil Shaw: Worldloppeteer

by Ben Andrew

FIS World Cup: Inside Look

by Peter Graves

48

Get Back: World of "Descent-ture"

by Steve Threndyle

54

Loppets 2017

by Ben Andrew

Winter Trails

by Chris Redden

Snowshoe Racing

by Chris Redden

62 COMPETITION 64

SKI 24 26

66

Day Ski: Ski Callaghan

by Sandra Walter

68

68

Clubs: Bridger Ski Foundation

by Jonathan Wiesel

Comp USA

by Julie Melanson

Comp Canada

by Julie Melanson

Comp International

by Julie Melanson

PRO TALK

SKI TIPS

COLUMNS

20 22

30 31 70

8 28 29 71 72

High Voltage by Emily Nishikawa Killer Instinct by Andrew Newell Winter 2016/17

Ski Callaghan . . . where the skiing doesn't get much better (see page 24).

loppets 2017 Best in Canada-USA

FIs WoRld Cup Inside Look

lAhtI 2017 pRevIeW World’s Best Do Battle

pResIdeNtIAl tRAveRse Backyard Challenge Official publication of

Noel Hendrickson

$4.95 w w w. s k i t r a x . c o m

Registration Number 9875 Agreement Number 1372521 Printed in Canada

SkiTrax Winter 2016-Cover2.indd 1

Plus Avalanches Winter trails ski Callaghan snowshoe Racing Bridger ski Foundation

Technique by Keith Nicol Tele Technique by J. Scott McGee Waxworx by Jack Cook and Patrick Moore

Out In Front Backcountry by Steve Threndyle Masters by J.D. Downing Graves on Nordic by Peter Graves Sasseville Report by Jack Sasseville

Pro Talk Newell Nishikawa 2017-02-13 5:22 PM

SkiTrax, a division of 1198189 Ontario Inc., is published 4 times each season: Annual, December/Holiday, February/March and Spring, at 260 Spadina Ave., #200, Toronto, ON M5T 2E4. Advertising rates/data are available on request: Phone (416) 977-2100; Fax (416) 977-9200, or write to the address above.The entire contents are the property of SkiTrax Magazine and may not be reprinted or reproduced, in whole or in part, without the written permission of the publisher. Unsolicited material or contributions are welcome, but must be accompanied by return postage. SkiTrax Magazine will handle all such material with reasonable care; however, it assumes no responsibility for the safety, loss of, or damage to such photographs or manuscripts. 2nd Class Publications Mail Registration #9875, paid at 969 Eastern Ave., Toronto, ON M4L 1A5. If undeliverable or address changed, please notify: 260 Spadina Ave., #200, Toronto, ON M5T 2E4. U.S. Office of Publication: 240 Portage Road, PO Box 670-25, Lewiston, NY, 14092. Periodicals postage paid at Niagara Falls, NY. 2nd Class U.S. Publications, USPS Registration #012177. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to SkiTrax Magazine, PO Box 553, Niagara Falls, NY 14304.

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WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 1

publisher/editor Benjamin Sadavoy international correspondent Peter Graves contributors Ben Andrew, Jean Arthur, Jack Cook, Peter Graves, J. Scott McGee, Julie Melanson, Patrick Moore, Andrew Newell, Keith Nicol, Emily Nishikawa, Thom Perkins, Jack Sasseville, John Symon, Steven Threndyle, Sandra Walter, Jonathan Wiesel photographers Mallin Alto, American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation, Jean Arthur, Boreal Loppet, Bridger Ski Foundation, CCC, Angus Cockney, Trevor Cokley, Mark Duperreault, Jeff Ellis, Extremely Canadian, John Farra, Gatineau Loppet, Peter Graves, Ian Harvey/Toko, Tristan Hobson, iStock, Jackson Ski Touring Foundation, Lahti2017, Heidi Lehikoinen, Masters World Cup 2016 Vuckatti, Julie Melanson, J. Scott McGee, NNN, Heather Nicol, Nipika Loppet, Nordic Focus, ORDA/Whiteface Lake Placid, PAL Great Labrador Loppet, Pentathlon des neiges, Perkins Collection, Joan Post, Selkirk Mountain Experience, Selko Photo, Phil Shaw Collection, Steven Threndyle, Tourism Whistler/Justa Jeskova, University of Alaska Anchorage, Whistler Olympic Park/Noel Hendrickson, Matt Whitcombe, wintertrails.org, Bob Woodward graphic design Wendy Pease copy editing Claudia Brown administration & circulation Crystal Burs production CrackerJack Enterprises webmaster David Irving advertising sales Benjamin Sadavoy editorial office 260 Spadina Ave., #200, Toronto, ON M5T 2E4 Phone: (416) 977-2100; Fax: (416) 977-9200 subscriptions (2016/17) Newsstand (plus 13% HST).......................................... $4.95 Annual (plus 13% HST)................................................ $5.95 1 yr. (4 issues) Canada........................................$14.95 CDN 1 yr. (4 issues) USA...............................................$17.95 US 2 yr. (8 issues) Canada........................................$25.95 CDN 2 yr. (8 issues) USA...............................................$32.95 US International Subscribers: US$34.95 (1-yr); US$62.95 (2-yr) customer service Phone: (416) 977-2100; Fax: (416) 977-9200 info@skitrax.com subscriptions@skitrax.com official magazine of Cross  Country Canada

United States Ski Association

member of

ďŹ nnsisu.com Printed in Canada, Issued Winter 2016/17 2 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

www.skitrax.com

S/LAB FUTURE AT PLAY In order to give birth to the next generation of S/Lab gear, we need the experience of the best engineers, athletes and designers. ©SALOMON SA. All Rights Reserved. Photo: Semaphore.

Thomas and Maurice are two of them. They worked on the design of the S/LAB Classic ski. Their only goal was to design the future, that’s why they created a design that mixes pure technology and maximum playability. At the Annecy Design Centre there’s no secret, only the wish to play and experiment to come up with the best ideas.

We dream further so you can play further.

Enter the playground at salomon.com/SLAB

KICK 4 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

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the Grinning’s Just Beginning This season, the weather gods have been smiling, as reports indicate that snow blessed most places across North America for a bountiful winter before the holidays arrived. With countless loppets on the ski calendar, this is music to organizers’ ears after last year’s drought – check out our annual feature on pages 54-59 and our interview with Canadian Worldloppeteer Phil Shaw on pages 4041. For those more daring and seeking a higher office, prepare yourself for the Presidential Traverse, a challenge well worth adding to your bucket list (pages 32-35). But don’t stop there . . . backcountry lovers will find it hard to resist the destinations in our “Get Back” feature in this issue (pages 48-53).

Meanwhile, all eyes will soon focus on Lahti, Finland for the FIS Nordic World Championships, where the world’s best skiers will gather at one of the sport’s hallowed venues (pages 36-38). No matter what your skiing passion, the grinning’s just beginning. – BAS

Gatineau Loppet

the renowned Gatineau Loppet is part of the Worldloppet and welcomes approximately 3,000 skiers each year for memories that last a lifetime.

www.skitrax.com

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 5

ContriButorS

Fresh Air, Unsurpassed Views and Miles of Trail for All Abilities That Wander Deep into the High Sierra Steven threndyle

North America’s Largest Cross Country Ski Resort.

For the past 20 years, Steven Threndyle has been writing about winter recreation, with a focus on adventure and backcountry skiing. His favourite places are Whistler (slackcountry) and Rogers Pass (backcountry). Living on the often-soggy West Coast, his motto is “Never waste a sunny day.” Follow him on Instagram @sthrendyle and on Twitter @threndyleski or shoot him a Facebook request. His portfolio resides at www.sthrendyle.contently.com.

thom Perkins

royalgorge.com

GET THE SKIKE ADVANTAGE

Thom Perkins of New Hampshire spent a long career running the largest crosscountry-ski trail system in the eastern U.S. He was awarded Lifetime Achievement awards from both the North American Snowsports Journalists Association and Ski NH. A founding member and a board member emeritus of the Cross Country Ski Areas Association, Perkins was named as one of 25 Nordic Heroes in North America. He was chief of competition for international, national, regional and local cross-country-ski races. Perkins’ family philosophy was “If there was snow on the ground, there were skis on your feet.” He loves skiing down frozen rivers. Perkins is currently the executive director of Loon Echo Land Trust in Bridgton, Me., and is a professional musician who performs with his wife.

Jean Arthur

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Jean Arthur’s multi-continent travels have challenged her with parapenting in Switzerland, skijoring in North America and sailing the Pacific. She writes and photographs from Montana, covering recreation, research and travel for publications including SkiTrax, Alaska Airline’s in-flight magazine, the San Francisco Chronicle, LiveWell and Vacation Publications magazines. Her latest book, Top Trails: Glacier National Park: Must-Do Hikes for Everyone, is a trails and cultural guide to one of America’s well-loved 2.2-million acres, Montana’s Glacier National Park. She volunteers on a high-elevation species study, documenting mammals impacted by climate change in the high country of Montana and Alberta. Another current project includes creating oral histories of one of the West’s finest writers for permanent library collections. When not skiing, cycling, hiking or reading, she hangs out in front of the fireplace with her dogs, children and husband. www.skitrax.com

AGE GROUPS, TEAM RELAY, FAMILY CHALLENGE…

IT’S ALSO FOR YOU

FEBRUARY 24 TO MARCH 5, 2017 pentathlondesneiges.com

THE WORLD’S BIGGEST WINTER MULTISPORT EVENT!

out in front

Martine Zilligen/Cross Country Canada

by John Symon

Shane Pearsall Named CEO at Cross Country Canada

Pierre Lafontaine Moves to Cycling Canada

CCC

to build extensive relationships with the organization’s major government and corporate partners that continue today. He motivated a team of dedicated professionals and managed a financially sustainable budget – all of which contributed to providing a pathway for athletes to deliver countless World Championship, World Cup and a record-setting four Olympic medals for the sports of bobsleigh and skeleton in Turin, Italy.

“We were fortuitous our leadership opportunity aligned with Shane’s availability in order to move quickly and get him on board to lead our passionate staff. Shane is a proven performer in sport and business, and is driven to succeed in steering our sport’s future,” said Jamie Coatsworth, chair of CCC. In 2007, Pearsall played an instrumental role in connecting CCC with one of its long-standing corporate partners, AltaGas. “Sport has become big business, and has many synergies with the corporate sector. Success starts within our own walls. It is critical we work together as a tight-knit community that is aligned and believes in the brand, is committed to the long-term strategic goals, and is relentless in the pursuit of excellence if we truly want to create more Olympic and Paralympic champions for Canada in cross-country skiing, and, in turn, put more kids on snow. I am absolutely honoured to have the opportunity to join the Nordic community,” said Pearsall.

Lafontaine will now succeed Greg Mathieu as Cycling Canada’s CEO and secretary-general in January. “I am extremely grateful for Cross Country Ski de Fond Canada’s openness and flexibility to allow me to lead my team from afar, but I personn late November, Cross Country Canada (CCC) ally struggled with being away from both my family named Shane Pearsall its new CEO as of January, and the office in Canmore. I can’t thank the Board replacing Pierre Lafontaine, who stepped down, enough for their support of this decision – one that citing family reasons and will be returning to Otis best for me,” said Lafontaine. tawa full time. He has accepted the role as CEO/ He brings a wealth of international experience secretary-general for Cycling Canada, announced with him to the cycling community, having served on Nov. 18. as CEO and National coach of Swimming Canada Chef de mission for the 2006 Canadian Olymfrom 2005-13, followed by two years as CEO of Capic Team, Pearsall was the CEO of Bobsleigh nadian Interuniversity Sport. A medal-winning perCanada Skeleton (BCS) for three years before former, Lafontaine has achieved success working returning to his career in the oil-and-gas industry in all levels of the sport system in Canada, the U.S. in 2006. and Australia.

A member of Canada’s National John Tolkamp, president of Cycling men’s hockey team in 1980, Pearsall is Former chef de mission Canada, said that Lafontaine “will be most recognized in the sport commu- for the 2006 Canadian counted on to lead our exceptional staff Olympic Team, Shane nity for his work at BCS, where he de- Pearsall has been named towards realizing the vision of being a veloped a corporate strategy designed ad CCC's new CEO. leading cycling nation by 2020.”

I

8 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

Claude Laramée

Claude Laramée Receives Award for Gatineau Loppet, Ski Tour Canada Claude Laramée, race director at the Gatineau Loppet and president of the local organizing committee of Ski Tour Canada 2016-Gatineau, received an award in November from the Quebec government. At a ceremony in Quebec City, Stéphanie Vallée, the minister of justice and minister responsible for the Outaouais region, presented Laramée with the Dollard-Morin Sports and Leisure Volunteer Award.

“Some people stand out for their generosity, passion and know-how.

These qualities make them leaders in their community,” said Vallée.

The awards ceremony honoured 23 laureates who distinguished themselves by the quality of their commitment to recreation and sport in one of the following areas: regional, national, succession or volunteer support. (Editor’s note: The Outaouais region of Quebec is located just east of Canada’s capital city, Ottawa.)

Biathlon Canada Partners with Halti Outerwear In November 2016, a new agreement was established between Halti and Biathlon Canada. The Finland-based clothing manufacturer cemented its role as Biathlon Canada’s official outerwear and competition-clothing supplier for Canada’s National team athletes through the 2017-18 season.

“Biathletes spend countless hours outside in a variety of weather conditions, so we understand the importance of having access to hightech apparel to support our goals for delivering podium,” said Eric de Nys, high-performance director at Biathlon Canada.

A partner with many high-performance snowsport teams around the world, Halti has developed and produced high-quality outdoor outfits and equipment for more than four decades. Halti will supply all warmup gear, race suits and outerwear for the National biathlon teams. Over the term of the sponsorship, Halti will also provide tailored racing gear Continued on page 10 www.skitrax.com

th e

UNbeaten path It will find you when you’re ready.

SUN VALLEY NORDIC FESTIVAL February 2 – 5 see where the path takes you at

VISITSUNVALLEY.COM/winter

out in front

by John Symon

Russian Doping and the McLaren Report II Will Events in Russia be Cancelled?

Continued from page 8 and an assortment of product designed to ensure the Canadian team is fully prepared to win.

“The Canadian sport community and the leisure market have played an important role for Halti for many years, and it is our goal to be even more prominent with Canadian retailers in the future,” said Sami Kiiski, CEO of Halti.

Halti designs and manufactures clothing collections for various sports, including hiking, climbing, alpine and cross-country skiing and active lifestyle. It is distributed in Canada through Whistler, B.C.’s Diamond Head Sports.

R

ecent months have witnessed the anti-doping ing up to the London Olympics in 2012 and throughdrums beating louder and louder against Rusout the Sochi Games. This cocktail – dissolved in sia, accused of widespread doping in sports. On either Chivas whisky or Martini & Rossi vermouth Dec. 9, 2016, Canadian Dr. Richard McLaren, – sped up recovery times, allowing athletes to comWADA investigator, released the second volume of pete in top form over successive days. two reports on doping in Russia. The first volume The second volume implicated 1,000 athletes, had already concluded that state-sponsored dopincluding at least 12 medalists from the Sochi Olyming in Russia represents “an unprecedented attack pics in 2014. The names of 31 Russian biathletes on the integrity of sport.” and 28 cross-country skiers were provided to eiThis was precipitated in late 2014 when a Gerther the International Biathlon Union (IBU) or the man TV documentary aired allegations of systemic, International Ski Federation (FIS). Among these state-orchestrated doping in Russia, prompting the are cross-country skiers Alexander Legkov, Maxim World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to investigate.

Vylegzhanin and Nikita Kriukov. These three are not As a result, Russia athletes risk losing their right named directly in McLaren’s second volume, but to compete at international sporting events. To date, are instead listed via a numerical system identified WADA called for a ban on all Russian athletes at in an addendum (EDP1154). the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2016 Rio ParalymLegkov, who won gold (50km freestyle) and silpics. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) ver (4x10km relay) at Sochi, was also among the let the international federations decide if the Rus“protected” athletes at those Winter Games. Vylegsians could compete – leading to a partial ban at zhanin won three silvers in Sochi (50km freestyle, the 2016 Summer Games – while the International 4x10km relay, Team sprint), while Kriukov won silver Paralympic Committee heeded WADA’s call and imin the Team sprint there. posed a complete ban on all Russian athletes.

Beyond banning Russian athletes from competAs revealed in McLaren’s reports, not only was ing, other sanctions are possible. In October, Gian doping encouraged in Russia, but an elaborate Franco Kasper, FIS president, said, “It can’t be ruled system was also put in place at Sochi to “protect” out that all international events in Russia will be candoping athletes. Part of the scheme involved breakcelled next season because of the state doping.” ing into “tamper-proof” self-locking glass bottles Such events in Russia could include the 2017 made by Swiss company Berlinger for international FIS XC World Cup finals from March 9-12 in Tyumen competitions, including the Olympics. The scheme and the 2017 IBU Youth/Junior World Championwas deemed a success: at the Sochi Games, Rusships from Feb. 22-March 2 in Ostrov. Other comsian athletes won 33 medals – including 13 golds. petitions in bobsledding and speed skating could In the first volume, McLaren also cited former also be affected. head of the Russian Anti-Doping Centre, Grigory Sanctions may also be applied to individual athRodchenkov, who boasted of having Russian cross-country letes; prior to McLaren’s second volume developed a cocktail of three anabol- skiers Alexander Legkov being released, Thomas Bach, IOC presic steroids – metenolone, trenbolone (l) and Maxim Vylegzhanin ident, called for lifetime bans of Russians are among the athletes and oxandrolone – reportedly used by suspended by FIS due to convicted for their implication in such many top-level Russian athletes lead- the McLaren report. doping schemes.

10 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

The final Drive for 25 numbers are in, and as of Dec. 7, 2016, 1,000+ donations from 45 states raised more than $190,088 for cross-country, Nordic-combined and ski-jumping development.

“It’s hard to say a big enough ‘thank you’ to a community that

NNN

Nordic Focus

NNF Drive for 25 Totals $190,088

believes in skiing enough to provide such an astounding level of support.

We’ll try anyway: THANK YOU!!!” wrote the U.S. National Nordic Foundation (NNF) in a release.

“The U.S. cross-country, Nordic-combined and ski-jumping teams have been operating on a flat or diminished budget for years.

Powerhouse Nordic nations, our competitors, have budgets over 25 times that of the US Ski Team. . . .

We have stepped in to fill a part of that void; to make sure that today’s up-and-coming skiers have the high-quality racing and training opportunities required to be successful in our sport, year after year,” reads the NNF website.

Some $158,787 is earmarked for cross-country, while the remaining $31,301 is destined for Nordic-combined and for ski jumping. A map of the U.S. indicates that 154 donations were received from Utah, 108 from Alaska and 81 from Idaho.

Continued on page 12 www.skitrax.com

Big Expansion at Jackson XC

Six Kilometres and Eight New Trail Bridges

O

EXPLORE NORTH LAKE TAHOE • TRUCKEE, CA

photos: Jackson Ski Touring Foundation

n Nov. 14, 2016, the Jackson Ski Touring Center and U.S. Forest Service launched a six-kilometre (3.75-mile) trail expansion of the New Hampshire Touring Center. The $500,000 in improvements includes four new trails and eight new trail bridges. Funds for the expansion were raised during a two-year capital campaign. This makes Jackson XC, the Northeast’s largest ski-touring centre, even larger.

The newly expanded 154-kilometre (96-mile) facility now includes Ellis River Trail (0.4 kilometres/0.25 miles); Hall Trail (0.8 kilometres/0.5 miles); Keeney Trail (4 kilometres/2.5 miles); Kellogg Trail, named for Olympian Charles Kellogg (0.8 kilometres/0.5 miles); as well as two new bridges on Hall Trail; four new bridges ranging from 20- to 35-feet-long on Keeney Trail; and two replacement bridges, one being the 60-foot Meserve Brook Bridge and the other the 35foot Spruce Brook Bridge.

Presiding at the ribbon-cutting were Shelly Grail Braudis, Winter Sports team leader at the U.S. Forest Service; Kevin Killourie, president of the Jackson Ski Touring Foundation; (top) All smiles at the Breanne Torrey, Jackson cross-country exec- ribbon-cutting ceremony utive director; and Gillian Kellogg, widow of (right) The expansion former Jackson cross-country board member includes eight new trail bridges.

Charles Kellogg.

The most concentrated region of groomed cross countr y terrain in Nor th America, of fering 167 groomed XC trails, covering 457km, and spanning 11,000 acres of terrain.

gotahoenorth.com/nordic

www.skitrax.com

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 11

out in front

by John Symon

SJAM Winter Trail Launched

Ottawa's Multi-use Pathway Gains Traction

I

n November, a new winter trail was launched in Instead of renting snow-moving equipment, trail Ottawa, Ont. along the Sir John A. Macdonald organizers prefer to have volunteers do this work.

(SJAM) Parkway. This multi-use pathway provides The snow shovelling is primarily around five unaccess to the Ottawa River shoreline for those walkderpasses that the trail passes through, with large ing, on skis, snowshoes or a snow bike. The saltscoop shovels being best suited for the job. Simifree trail will respect environmental sensitivities. larly, trail organizers are looking for someone to pile The trail will connect the Canadian War Musnow in areas, where these can then be groomed to seum with parklands along the Sir John A. Macmake a fatbike park. donald Parkway to Westboro Beach, spaces that, Volunteers are also needed for data collection to until now, have been little used in the winter. Three ascertain the number of people using the trail. Such public-transit stations border the trail, and there is information is useful for fundraising and sponsorparking at Westboro Beach, Champlain Park and ships, among other purposes. the War Museum, providing ready access.

One example of advocacy work that would benTwo tracks will be set, one for snowshoers, walkefit those using the trail is working with the City ers and bikers and the other for cross-country skiof Ottawa to ensure that a particular sidewalk be ers, supporting both Classic and skate-style techplowed more frequently to facilitate trail access. Exniques. The walking track will follow the existing perienced welders and electricians are also sought pathway. Serpentine loops will add distance to the for specific tasks often pertaining to snow-groomski track for an expected distance of 16 kilometres. ing equipment.

Amenities along the trail include a tobogganing hill, The SJAM trail is, of course, named after Canrock sculptures and the cafe at the War Museum. ada’s first prime minister. Organizers of this trail Rather than being a trail for public use delivered call themselves the Dovercourt Recreation Assoby authorities, this trail is a project that involves ciation. The Association seeks sponsorships and the population. As detailed on the SJAM website, also offers tax-deductible receipts for donations volunteers are needed for such jobs received. The trail has its own webas snow shoveling, collecting usage The volunteer-operated site, Facebook page, as well as a Twit16km SJAM path runs along statistics, advocacy, and welding and the Ottawa River shoreline ter handle. For more information, visit electrical work. www.wintertrail.ca. in the heart of the city.

Continued from page 10

NBCUniversal to Launch Domestic Olympic Channel In mid-December, NBCUniversal announced a groundbreaking collaboration to connect fans to the Olympic movement. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and NBCUniversal have created a comprehensive Olympic TV channel content-and-distribution partnership for the United States to launch in 2017 prior to the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.

United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) officials anticipate the new channel will be a vital outlet for coverage of skiing and snowboarding in America and a key part of the USSA’s efforts to raise the visibility of its sports.

“We applaud NBCUniversal’s continued commitment to expanding the reach of ski and snowboard programming and the partnership with both USOC and IOC,” said Michael Jaquet, USSA Chief Marketing Officer.

According to Jaquet, the new Olympic Channel will play a key role in the evolution of the USSA’s mutual efforts with NBCUniversal, the USOC and International Ski Federation’s (FIS) World Cup rights-holders Infront and EBU to expand distribution opportunities for skiing and snowboarding in America.

“Access to our athletes as they compete around the globe has been one of the core goals of the USSA to grow the viability of our sport,” said Tiger Shaw, USSA president and CEO.

FIS Launches Official App In mid-December, the International Ski Federation (FIS) announced the launch of its new official mobile application – the FIS App. Available on Android and iOS devices, the FIS App will be a one-stop shop for all the news, information, live-timing and data for all FIS disciplines at all competition levels.

It features, in part, exclusive video content, including near-live videoclips five minutes after World Cup races; easy-to-use filtering and selection features for athletes, events and key data; the ability to favourite athletes and nations and to customize the user experience; and all historic data in a user-friendly find-and-filter for all FIS competition levels.

Joan Post

MasterPower Waxing System Becomes CCC Official Supplier

12 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

Cross Country Canada (CCC) announced in December that the MasterPower Cold Apply Ski Waxing Continued on page 14 www.skitrax.com

by John Symon

Canadian Olympian Donald Farley Passes Away Popular and Well-Respected Skier Touched Many opular Olympian and Canadian National cross-country-ski team member Donald Farley passed away in late November at age 46.

Farley competed at both the 1998 Nagano Olympic Winter Games and the 2002 Salt Lake City Games.

Farley was out cycling on Saturday, Nov. 19 on the popular P’tit train du Nord bike path when he collapsed close to Kilometre 28 near Mount Rolland. First responders tried in vain to revive him; he was pronounced dead at the hospital. Authorities suspect it was a heart attack.

Farley joined the National team in 1991, and coach Louis Bou­ chard described him as “the best skier on the Canadian team between the time of Pierre Harvey and that of Devon Kershaw.” Farley competed at 48 World Cups and five World Championships, three times breaking the top-30. In 2000, he won the 30km race at the US Nationals despite fighting mononucleosis. In 1998, Farley finished 18th in the 4x10km relay in Nagano, and in 2002, he finished 39th in the 50km Classic race.

According to reports, Farley may have ignored recent warning signs that something was amiss. One of Farley’s ski friends is quoted as saying that cardiac problems are fairly common in later years among elite athletes who have trained for many consecutive years.

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Donald Farley was best skier on the Canadian team between the time of Pierre Harvey and Devon Kershaw.

Farley was well-respected throughout the ski community, and his sudden passing has touched many who commented on social media. SkiTrax joins the ski community in sending condolences to Farley’s family and friends.

ANOTHER

BEST

DAY

www.rossignol.com www.skitrax.com ROSSIGNOL_SKI TRAX_2016.indd 1

WINTER 2016/1710/3/16 SKITRAX 9:56 AM13

out in front

Peter Graves Honoured

courtesy of Peter Graves

FIS Journalist of the Year

O

ne of the most prominent voices in ski sport, Peter Graves was honoured with the FIS Journalist Award during the Audi FIS Ski World Cup weekend in November at Killington, Vt. The award is presented annually by the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) and the International Ski Federation (FIS).

Graves is most known as the voice of ski racing, having served as a prominent sport announcer and television announcer through nine Olympics for nearly 40 years. Growing up as an Elite-level crosscountry-ski racer, he became known for both his editorial work in Nordic sport as well as being one of its leading sports announcers. His work – both commentary and editorial – has touched each of the USSA’s ski sports.

“Peter just brings so much passion to our sport,” said Tiger Shaw, USSA president and CEO. “His extensive knowledge of the sport and each of the disciplines comes across loud and clear in his commentary and reporting. Peter’s commentary is always a SkiTrax's own Peter pleasure to listen to, in adGraves has been dition to communicating named FIS Journalist well-researched facts and of the Year. figures about the competition, the course and the athletes,” said Sarah Lewis, FIS secretary-general, on hand in Killington for the presentation.

Some 17 Americans have been awarded this prize over the past 20 years, including Paul Robbins in 2010.

Norway's Johaug Awaits Doping Verdict 14-month Ban Proposed

orwegian cross-country-ski star Therese Johaug now seems to be facing a 14-month ban for her “unintentional” doping violation in August. At least this is what Anti-Doping Norway’s prosecution team is recommending. Her current two-month suspension would count toward the 14-month ban, meaning she could again compete in late December 2018, approximately two months before the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

Johaug told media that she is happy that the prosecution believes her version of events – that she “unknowingly” took the banned steroid Clostebol when using a cream for sunburn – but has trouble understanding how this can lead to a 14-month ban.

Even if she did take the steroid inadvertently, under the WADA regulations, athletes are responsible for all substances that enter their bodies. The sunburn-cream packaging carried a warning that the cream is a doping product.

Johaug, 28, is an Olympic and Nordic Worlds champion, winning gold in the 4x5km relay at the

14 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

Nordic Focus

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2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, B.C. She also has won gold seven times at World Championships and twice won the overall World Cup title.

Norwegian star Therese Johaug is currently banned due to a doping violation.

Continued from page 12 System is the exclusive cold-wax system of the Canadian National Ski Team Official Supplier Pool program.

MasterPower was the first new cold-apply wax system to be launched in the European market in 2008. It has gained popularity and is used by some of the best national ski teams. Fast, efficient and safe, the MasterPower Waxing System buffs on a specially formulated highgrade glide wax.

MasterPower approached Canadian Wintersports, one of Canada’s leading Nordic-product distributors, to tackle the North American market.

“We know that this new system will give an edge to our athletes, and we are proud to grow our support for cross-country skiing in Canada,” said Peter Rozmovits, president of Canadian Wintersports.

Canada to Host 2019 Para-Nordic Worlds in Prince George, B.C. World Para-Nordic Skiing, Cross Country Canada and the Canadian Paralympic Committee are pleased to announce that the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club in Prince George, B.C. has been chosen to host 2019 World Para-Nordic Skiing Championships.

Approximately 140 athletes from more than 20 countries will compete in Para cross-country-skiing and biathlon events.

The event will mark the first World Championship held in the city of Prince George. In 2015, the city successfully hosted the 2015 Canada Winter Games, the country’s largest domestic multisport event.

“Thank you to World Para-Nordic Skiing for recognizing that Prince George offers world-class venues, volunteers and experiences for athletes,” said Lyn Hall, mayor of Prince George.

“Less than a year after the Pyeongchang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games, the 2019 World Para-Nordic Skiing Championships in Prince George will be a fantastic opportunity to expose Canadians to world-class competition,” added Karen O’Neill, CEO of the Canadian Paralympic Committee.

Canada has a rich history in Para-Nordic skiing. Brian McKeever has won 13 Paralympic medals in three Games, including a record 10 gold.

His brother and original guide, Robin, is now a National coach in the sport.

“This is a terrific milestone for our club, our members and volunteers,” said Kevin Pettersen, chair of the Local Organizing Committee.

“Hosting this World Championship in 2019 is a natural progression from hosting the Canada Winter Games and the facility improvements at the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club.” www.skitrax.com

University of Alaska Anchorage

university of Alaska reverses Decision Ski Teams Saved for Now

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n November, the University of Alaska (UA) reversed an earlier decision to stop funding its Nordic- and alpine-ski teams at the end of the 2016-2017 academic year due to financial issues resulting from depressed oil prices. This applied to both the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) and the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF).

The welcome news followed a resounding rallying cry dubbed #SAVEAlaskaSkiing supported by the ski community at large, including the National Nordic Foundation.

“Past, present and future athletes are extremely grateful for the outpouring of support we received from ski-community members locally, across the United States and around the world. Over 5,000 people from 31 countries, 45 U.S. states and many communities all across Alaska signed the petition, which became a powerful force in convincing the Board of Regents to overturn the decision

to eliminate college skiing from Alaska. One Regent even said that this issue received far more feedback than any other that UA has faced,” commented Andrew Kastning, UAA Nordic-ski team head coach.

“We were lucky to have so many people from the local community and the larger ski community rally in our support. People realized this was not only a bad thing for Alaska, but also for NCAA [National Collegiate Athletic Association] skiing in general and the larger USSA [U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association] pipeline. It was really great to see so

A resounding rallying cry dubbed #SAVEAlaskaSkiing worked wonders.

many “rivals” turn into staunch supporters for the good of the sport," commented Sara Studebaker-Hall, UAA Nordic-ski team assistant coach.

“The UAA Ski Team felt the warmth and love of the ski community. For that, we offer sincere appreciation and a debt of gratitude for all those who came to bat for skiing in Alaska. We still have battles to win [in] garnering more private funding, but at least we have a pathway forward,” added Kastning.

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WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 15

out in front

by Ben Andrew

Para-Nordic World Cup Opener in Finland

John Farra

Canada and U.S.A. on the Podium

(above) American Oksana Masters won biathlon gold and silver. (left) The U.S.A.'s Dan Cnossen took home three medals, while teammate Oksana Masters won five. (below left) Canada's Mark Arendz raced to a bronze and two silvers. (middle top) The U.S.A.'s Andy Soule placed a strong 5th in the Biathlon sprint

John Farra

(middle bottom) Canada's Emily Young captured her first World Cup medal, winning bronze.

16 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

Heidi Lehikoinen

Heidi Lehikoinen

Heidi Lehikoinen

John Farra

(below right) Canadian legend Brian McKeever won gold in the men's visually impaired Classic sprint.

www.skitrax.com

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he Para-Nordic World Cup opener was held in Vuokatti, Finland from Dec. 9-16, 2016. Canada’s Brian McKeever kicked off the World Cup season on the opening day, taking gold in the men’s visually impaired Classic-ski sprint.

Mark Arendz and Emily Young added to Canada’s triple-medal day. Arendz took bronze in the men’s Standing sprint, while Young captured her first career World Cup medal, winning bronze in the women’s Standing classification.

McKeever is preparing to race the domestic able-bodied race series, and the season-opener win was a good test of his off-season training.

American Oksana Masters took the win in the Cross-country sprint/women’s Sitting race, while Aaron Pike kicked off the competition with a strong fifth in the Cross-country sprint/men’s Sitting race.

On Dec. 10, Arendz was on the podium again. The two-time Paralympic medalist shot clean in his two rounds of shooting on the range to post a second-place time of 19:29.4 in the men’s 7.5km Standing sprint race, trailing race winner Ihor Reptyukh of the Ukraine by eight seconds.

Americans Dan Cnossen and Andy Soule had strong performances in the Biathlon sprint/men’s Sitting race, finishing second and fifth respectively.

Masters won the Biathlon sprint/women’s Sitting race on Day Two of competition.

Brittany Hudak of Prince Albert, Sask. finished sixth in the women’s Standing race, while development athlete Derek Zaplotinsky placed 13th in the men’s 7.5km Sit-ski sprint race.

Arendz continued his medal streak on Dec. 12, taking silver in the 15km Individual biathlon race, clocking a time of 45:53.3.

One missed shot in four rounds of shooting on the range cost the 26-year-old any shot at challenging for the gold, however Arendz was happy with his early-season form.

“I felt in control on the range, and, for the most part, it went very well,” said Arendz. “Unfortunately, I had the one miss in my third bout.

It was a breathing error after a troublesome setup. But it is early in the race season. I’m ecstatic for the results I’ve been able to achieve so far. The body is not moving as fast as I would like it to, but it is going in the right direction.”

In the Biathlon Long/men’s Sitting event, the U.S.A.’s Cnossen had a strong race to secure bronze, while Masters continued her success, taking silver in the Biathlon Long/ women’s Sitting race.

Young finished just shy of the podium in the

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women’s 12km Individual Biathlon race with a time of 48:12.5, good enough for fourth.

Zaplotinsky was also back at it again, this time finishing 11th in the men’s Sitting classification with a time of 1:15:21.6.

On Dec. 15, Cnossen added to his bronze two days earlier, finishing third in the Cross-country Long/men’s Sitting race. Masters took gold in the Cross-country Long/ women’s Sitting race.

The final day of competition on Dec. 16 saw Cnossen finish just off the podium in fourth during the Cross-country Short/ men’s Sitting event, while Masters again added to her medal collection, winning the Cross-country Short-women’s Sitting race.

The next round of the Para-Nordic World Cup takes place in Western Center, Ukraine from Jan. 13-20. For more information, visit www.paralympic.org.

Master’s Ski Camps November & December at

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Jessie Diggins wins the women's 5 km event at the FIS World Cup in Lillehammer, Norway

high voltage

by Emily Nishikawa

Dealing with Injury Listen to Your Body

E

Nordic Focus

very athlete will inevitably cope with an injury at some point in their season, but in the big picture, especially for young athletes, this is only career, and I have been dealing with one this past summer, so I one season in an otherwise long and healthy ski career. thought I’d share some thoughts on dealing with injuries. I had an Modifying my training was a big part of my plan this summer. I had abdominal injury this summer that was spurred on by a running race I to make many adaptations to my training plan in order to accommodid in June. It took almost all summer to fully heal. date my injury. I was unable to use my abdominals for a long time, so It seems that injuries are a part of elite sports, and although this meant no double-poling. Instead, I discovered I could spend a lot cross-country skiing is a relatively low-injury sport compared to othof time striding uphill, both on rollerskis and on foot (ski walking). So, ers, it is still a sport that requires repetitive movements and uses the for the majority of the summer, I did uphill striding, and I would say I’m entire body. feeling stronger than ever in my Classic stride! It’s about continually I have learned a lot over the years about dealing with injuries, and finding the positives in any situation. Another modification to my trainthe most important thing I’ve learned is to listen to your body. As athing was doing no high-end intensity or speed work. But looking at the letes, we are wired to keep pushing ourselves, but when injuries arise, positive side, this meant more volume training and Zone Three work you must respect the signs your body is sending you and give yourto build up a more substantial base of fitness. self the time and rest required to heal. Often, injuries start out as small Another thing I learned when dealing with my injury is just how lucky nagging pains that we tend to ignore, and they gradually become I am to have such a great support team. I had so many people helping worse and can develop into serious injuries. me return to health, including massage therapists, a physiotherapist, an To truly heal, you have to take a step back and look at the big picture. osteopath, as well as my friends, family, teammates and coaches. They For example, missing a week of training now to rest up and encouraged me to keep looking at the big picture, see the posrecover may save you missing a month of training later on After having to itives and help me to fully recover, for which I am very grateful. down the road had you not taken the rest required. I took my modify off-season I don’t wish injuries upon anyone, but should they occur, fair share of time off this summer in order to let the injury heal, training due to injury, I hope you listen to your body, find the positives, see the big Emily Nishikawa was and not aggravate it. The same can be said in a larger time back in competition picture and heal up quickly! frame. Some injuries require you to perhaps miss an entire at Lillehammer.

Wishing you good health!

20 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

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KiLLEr inStinCt

by Andrew newell

in-season intervals

Nordic Focus

Balance Your Aerobic and Anaerobic Systems

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ere on the World Cup, we call it the mid-week interval. It Creating appropriate For example, if I had a sprint competition on the upcomderives its name from a typical racing schedule of two combination workouts ing weekend, but still wanted to prioritize building my base is the key to peaking competitions on the weekend, which leaves just enough successfully while fitness mid-week, I would combine some threshold training time for one good interval session mid-week. This type of maintaining high with some sprint intensity – perhaps 3x8-minutes L3, folschedule is replicated at the NorAm, NCAA and high-school fitness. lowed by 10x30-second fast-paced intervals at the end. level all across North America, and the goal of this mid-week This would give me the best combination to maintain fitness, session is the same – comprise the best workout to prepare the skier but also a chance to fine-tune speed in order to prepare for the upfor the upcoming weekend races while at the same time continuing to coming race. improve and maintain overall fitness.

If my goal was to work more on Vo2max building, I could start with Sounds easy right? Well, in reality, it’s not quite so simple because 5x4-minutes L4, but then incorporate some short 10- to 15-second this mid-week interval session can vary a lot depending what kind of sprints at the end of each interval, to practise changing speeds rapski races we’ve been competing in. For example, if I have been racing idly. Another example of a distance-racing-focused mid-week interval sprint after sprint each weekend, probably the last thing I need is to would be to do 3x10 minutes at L3 threshold and finish the workout do some more four-minute Vo2max intervals. This would continue to with 4x1-minutes L4. That would help build my aerobic base, but also work the same system too repetitively, and eventually lead to a plateau allow my system to touch on some L4 before the race weekend. in fitness, where I would eventually stop seeing positive fitness gains.

On the World Cup, we try to pair up with our teammates as much Athletes who compete in primarily longer distance races could find as possible during these combination workouts in order to continually themselves in the same scenario if their mid-week interval session push each other during the mid-week season. Another fun aspect of focuses too much on threshold, L4B and longer distanced-paced intraveling on the World Cup is that we are often not the only team traintervals. If we don’t continue to work our aerobic as well as anaerobic ing mid-week at the race venue. Most of the other countries’ athletes systems throughout the winter, it will be difficult to maintain top fitness. tend to do their mid-week intensity sessions on the same day as us, I know this sounds pretty simple, but it’s not. Most ski racers likely so it’s common to casually meet up with different competitors on the participate in a combination of distance and sprint races from weektrails and join each other for intervals. end to weekend, so how to determine what the best mid-week interval I have found that finding a balance between preparing for the upsession will be? Here on the World Cup, we solve this problem by coming race and continuing to keep my long-term fitness goals of the coming up with some pretty unique combination sessions. The rule I season in mind is the best way to approach these mid-week interval like to live by in creating these combination interval sessions is to first sessions. I think this is an important perspective to have, and creates prioritize any fitness gains I want to accomplish from the session, and a training atmosphere that allows me to peak successfully and mainthen follow with any race-preparation gains. tain high fitness throughout the entire race season.

22 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

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day ski

by Sandra Walter

Ski Callaghan

Nordic Winter Paradise

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Tourism Whistler/Justa Jeskova

Tourism Whistler/Justa Jeskova

Tourism Whistler/Mike Crane

ki Callaghan is the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games’ gift to the growing cross-country skiing community on B.C.’s southwest coast. Whistler Olympic Park (WOP), the Nordic-skiing venue built specifically for the Games, is located less than 30 minutes from Whistler and less than two hours from Vancouver. Conveniently combined in a joint venture between WOP and neighbouring Callaghan Country Wilderness Adventures, Ski Callaghan now offers more than 130 kilometres of cross-country ski and snowshoe trails easily accessible to communities from the Greater Vancouver area, all the way up through the Sea to Sky Corridor.

The season at Ski Callaghan typically runs from the end of November until late March or mid-April, depending on conditions. The average snow base is 191 centimetres, and WOP’s elevation ranges between 840 and 930 metres, while Callaghan Country reaches heights of up to 1,382 metres at the Journeyman Lodge, which is frequented by backcountry skiers on overnight trips.

As Ski Callaghan is located in B.C.’s Coastal Mountains, average winter temperatures are mild and rarely drop below -10°C, with an average daily high of +3.3°C and a daily low of -4.0°C. The snow temperature generally hovers around 0°C, so wax for that range is ideal.

While waxing, skiers should also bear in mind that the Pacific coastal snow usually holds much moisture.

The folks at Ski Callaghan are proud of the diverse mix of groomed and track-set ski trails on offer, with terrain for all abilities ranging from flat routes to challenging climbs. The trail network winds through old-growth forest, traverses open meadows and tops out at breathtaking viewpoints. For advanced skiers, Ski Callaghan features North America’s longest continuous Nordic ski climb with an elevation gain of a whopping 560 metres, along with some of the steepest descents.

If visitors crave a break from skiing, there is a large tobogganing hill on site, electric-assist fatbikes for rent, as well as a newly introduced activity – baseboarding. Best described as a hybrid of the sport of skeleton, bodyboarding on snow and tobogganing, riders descend

24 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

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com

Whistler Olympic Park/Noel Hendrickson

REPOUR

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(facing from top) Just a short drive or shuttle ride away, Whistler Village offers excellent dining and accommodations Electric-assist fatbikes are available for rent.

A legacy of the 2010 Winter Olympics, the Whistler Athletes Centre provides a venue for high-performance training and accommodation.

Whistler Olympic Park/Noel Hendrickson

a slope on aerodynamic boards. Ski Callaghan’s 1.5-kilometre lift-accessed course opened in December.

With the expanded Nordic terrain Ski Callaghan has had on offer since 2010, the region has experienced significant growth in Nordic ski-club membership and general participation in the sport. The extra infrastructure has helped broaden the public’s exposure to racing and development of Nordic sports through school and outdoor education programs that see 2,500 to 3,000 children and youth enrolled each season.

Ski Callaghan receives approximately 55,000 to 60,000 skier visits and another 15,000 for other activities throughout the winter season.

The facility hosts events in various winter sports, such as cross-country skiing, biathlon, Nordic-combined and ski jumping, attracting athletes of all levels with such regional, provincial and national competitions as the popular Sigge’s Payak Loppet and this season’s Haywood NorAm Western Canadian Cross-country Ski Championships, Canadian Championships Ski Jumping, and Nordic-combined Championships.

The Games infrastructure has enabled the introduction of ski jumping in the province, and the construction of junior jumps in the summer of 2014 has led to the development of a youth ski-jumping program.

The WOP facility regularly hosts training camps for all kinds of sports, such as Ski Jumping Canada, Canada Para Snowboard, Canada Snowboard and adaptive sports.

Staying true to its creation as an Olympic venue, WOP is continuing its high-performance legacy with the Whistler Nordic Development Centre, founded in 2016 by WOP/Whistler Sport Legacies. With access to the Whistler Athletes’ Centre for accommodation and the internationally sanctioned sport venues within WOP and Whistler’s varied training infrastructure, the program provides coaching and performance services to B.C. athletes who want full-time training. The Centre was first accessed by a group of promising B.C. biathletes, and will be expanded to include all Nordic-sports athletes in the future.

One of Ski Callaghan’s most popular weekly events is “$5 Wednesdays,” when on Wednesday evenings, the WOP facility opens a five-kilometre network of lit trails for a $5 trail fee. Wednesday nights regularly attract many locals and guests to the park with discounted trail passes, rentals and meal options.

(above) Callaghan offers more than 130 kilometres of crosscountry-ski and snowshoe trails. (left) Callaghan also features a large tobogganing hill for kids and adults alike.

Ski Callaghan features a full-service day lodge at WOP with a restaurant, sport school, rental and retail shop, while Callaghan Country offers its own rental and retail shop, snow school and food services at its base area.

Another unique feature of Ski Callaghan is its dog-friendliness. The area offers more than 35 kilometres of dedicated trails for snowshoeing, walking or skiing with dogs, making it one of the region’s biggest winter off-leash areas.

With a ton of activities that appeal to a wide array of users, Ski Callaghan is a true winter playground and definitely worth a visit. Although there are no accommodations on site besides the small backcountry Journeyman’s Lodge, Whistler itself has many overnight options just a short drive – or shuttle ride – away.

See www.skicallaghan.ca for more Ski Callaghan conveniently provides information, including hours, activities, a daily shuttle service from Whistler rates and snow conditions.

Village to WOP from $10 round trip.

Just the Facts

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 25

clubs

by Jonathan Wiesel

Bridger Ski Foundation

Heart of Cross-Country Skiing in Gallatin Valley, Montana

W

Photos: Bridger Ski Foundation

hether you’re a racer or a recreational skier, Montana has some of the finest cross-country destinations in North America. Bozeman, just north of Yellowstone National Park in the Gallatin Valley, is a Nordic epicenter, with a half-dozen groomed systems right in town or within a 20-minute drive, at only approximately 4,800 feet/1,465 metres, so you don’t have to manufacture excuses to catch your breath.

Not yet recognized nationally as a Nordic destination, Bozeman may become exactly that if the proposed Crosscut Mountain Sports Center, bordering Bohart Ranch, develops year-round recreation and lodging.

Over the past 40 years, thousands of youth in the Gallatin Valley and national-level events and social options – they’re all part of BSF, which generates as many as 70,000 skier visits in a good winter. Trails are free, though you’re asked to donate to help cover grooming costs.

A combination of land partnerships, gifts and grants helps make the entire effort possible.

Dragan Danevski, Nordic head coach/program director, has been one of the driving forces behind BSF’s cross-country success since he and his family arrived from Macedonia in 1996. A former a Yugoslav National Team member and World Cup racer, he has a Masters in exercise physiology and was selected as USSA Domestic Coach of the Year in 2002.

Danevski is stocky, perpetually fit, gruff-voiced, with a five-clock shadow like actor John Hamm’s. Together with his coaching team and volunteers, he’s invigorated the entire range of Nordic programs. BSF communications specialist Jenny White told me, “He changed the culture, how the community views cross-country. . . . It’s now a year-round lifestyle sport.”

At one time, 15 of his athletes had become Division 1 NCAA collegiate racers. He mentored Olympic competitor Leif Zimmerman and former Dartmouth coach Kristina Trygstad-Saari. More recently, BSF skier Jennie Bender has won multiple National Championships and competed in World Cup races. Erika Flowers, who races for the strong have participated in cross-country skiing with the guidance of the SMS T2 team out of Stratton Mountain, is another BSF success story.

Bozeman-based non-profit Bridger Ski Foundation (BSF), which also The biggest problem facing Bozeman’s Nordic future is weather. has highly successful alpine and freestyle programs.

Low-altitude trails in town are sometimes in great shape, but someBSF is kind of a hyperactive Nordic focal point for the valley. Since times unskiable.

2010, it’s had a core of paid staff working closely with Patrick Flowers, president of BSF’s board of direcprogram directors. To locals, it’s the heart of the heart (top) BSF welcomes families with tors and father of Professional cross-country skier Erilots of activities including the annual of cross-country skiing in the region. ka Flowers, says the club has been working with HKD Hyalite Tour ski event.

In addition to grooming up to 70 kilometres of Snowmakers to create a cutting-edge snowmaking (above) Instruction, year-round training, trails, BSF runs programs for anyone five years and clinics, local- and national-level events system on some of the most popular trails. He adds, older. In 2016-2017, there were almost 200 youth in are all part of BSF. “We’re still in negotiations with the city” about location the ages five-12 beginner Youth Ski League, while and water source; next comes fundraising. other groups ranged from just-learning to high-levFlowers adds that BSF’s priority isn’t to increase el competition. Recently hosts to the 2017 Para kilometres, but to “maintain in-town skiing – keep doBridger Ski Foundation (BSF), Nordic Skiing NorAm Championships, BSF has ing what we’ve been doing, but get better at it, main851 Bridger Dr. #4, begun working with the U.S. Olympic Committee taining a strong role, relationships and partnership in Bozeman, MT 59715, USA to provide coaching for some of the top U.S. parathe community.”

406-587-2445; office@bridgerskifoundaNordic athletes.

Plan, nurture and build the skier base – that’s BSF’s tion.org; www.bridgerskifoundation.org Fun, instruction, year-round training, clinics, localformula for Nordic success. It works spectacularly.

Just the Facts

26 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

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backcountry

by Steven Threndyle

New Year, New YOU!

courtesy of Steven Threndyle

Re-igniting Your Backcountry Skiing Stoke

I

turned 60 last July, which is a pretty significant milestone in a man’s life. (In fact, award-winning Globe and Mail journalist Ian Brown – himself a backcountry skier – wrote an entire book about turning 60 that made the New-York-Times-recommended list of nonfiction books for 2016.) I don’t have the most illustrious portfolio of backcountry-skiing experiences – most of them happened before my kids were born 20 years ago – but I’ve made a series of small-scale resolutions that I hope to undertake in order to ensure that I enjoy my time in the backcountry even more.

Get in shape!: Of course, what New Year’s resolution doesn’t start with this one, and you won’t enjoy backcountry skiing if you’re not in peak form. There’s hitting the gym to strengthen specific muscle groups, a yoga class for improving flexibility and balance, and stairs to climb to increase cardio. What I’ve noticed over the years, though, is that backcountry skiing is incredibly sport-specific; that is, you can be in great shape and still flail uselessly on the first days of your tour.

If you’re lucky enough to live near the mountains (West), simply going out with your skis and climbing skins and trudging for a couple of hours once a week will pay off in huge dividends. Every tour offers its own unique challenges – don’t be afraid to go out if it’s raining or if trail conditions are rock-hard (perhaps time to test ski crampons?). If you live in the East, cross-country skiing (or, even better, using your telemark or AT kit on local golf courses, etc.) is better than mindless squats at the gym.

Practice makes perfect: Get a few friends together once a month or so and practise multiple beacon-burial scenarios (because everyone can find ONE beacon; finding three is much more difficult). Don’t have any backcountry “friends”? Consider joining a local chapter of the Alpine Club of Canada, form a Meetup group (check out its app) or create a local Facebook group.

Learn new skills: The lazier among us (guilty!) will sometimes leave the trip planning to others (friends who spend their time poring over

28 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

little-noticed glades on Google Earth, for instance). The author at 60... more turns ahead.

But there’s a lot to be said for learning how to routefind. Whether it’s setting waypoints by GPS or pulling out hard-copy topography maps, going somewhere new (with only your map and compass to guide you) will be both challenging and rewarding.

Discover new ways of sliding: It’s hard to believe that any backcountry skier could actually be bored about an activity so incredibly rewarding, but there’s more than one way to get down the mountain.

Split-board snowboarding, for instance. Or telemarking. Or fatbiking.

Use your imagination to feed your passion!

Upgrade the kit: I’ve noticed over the years that backcountry skiers fall into two camps: tech weenies who weigh in on every Lou Dawson post on www.wildsnow.com, and other folks who are still pulling out baby-blue Ortovox F1 avalanche beacons from their MEC Super Microft one-piece suit (well-patched with duct tape). If you’re still poking around on ski-swap specials, perhaps it’s time to demo some rockered skis – those wide, fat skis that feature “reverse camber” for easy turn initiation and for creating that indescribable “surfy” feeling of gliding weightlessly over the snow. Rockered fat skis can be a chore when grinding uphill vert, so consider buying a simple Dynafit-style touring tech binding in order to save weight.

Introduce a friend to backcountry skiing: Do you have one of those dazzling Instagram accounts that generate a thousand hearts from people you’ve never heard of before? Have you ever had a friend, say, a downhill skier, marvel at your photos and casually mention that “I’d love to get into backcountry, but don’t know where to start?” Well, make 2017 the year to pay it forward. No need to get fancy; even a couple of hours of slackcountry skiing outside your favourite resort will be fine.

Share with your pals the beauty of the mountains, the fine pow and the camaraderie of earning your turns and your smiles. www.skitrax.com

masters

by J.D. Downing

The Pros and Cons of Fast Skis Are We Shooting Ourselves in the Foot?

here’s a not-so-secret reality in the cross-country-ski racing world that most seasoned Masters know all too well. Put simply, having good skis makes a huge difference in cross-country-ski races.

You can have the best fitness and technique in your age category on a given day, but if you have significantly slower skis than your competition, all those other advantages may not matter. Conversely, a skier with clearly the best skis in a given competition field can find themselves sticking with or beating skiers who are otherwise stronger or technically more sound.

Although I’d say the vast majority of Master racers fully understand this basic concept, and that, for certain, professionals throughout the ski industry know just how important fast skis can be, I rarely hear anyone speak of the scope of direct and indirect implications arising from our perpetual chase for fast cross-country skis.

For starters, the search for fast skis has directly fed the proliferation of increasingly expensive and environmentally toxic glide waxes over the past 30 years. Until the mid- to late-1980's when “fast skis” started becoming a sport-wide obsession, skiers even at exceptionally high levels of the sport typically glide-waxed with just three to five colours of paraffins blocks. I’m not talking about one underlayer or waxing for training. I’m talking about an entire season’s race-wax kit that you could fit in the palm of a hand.

In addition to their simplicity, the glide waxes of yesteryear were also very affordable and presented a fraction of the dangers to both skiers and the general environment that we see in today’s wax boxes.

It is no coincidence that the widespread evolution of skating in the 1980’s (along with sport-wide improvements in grooming) also marked the first appearance of fluorocarbon waxes in the consumer world. One of the big attractions of skating was the speed that could be generated, as compared to Classic skiing, particularly on flat and downhill terrain. Thus, it was natural that once the sport was hooked on speed, we’d all want as much speed as we could get.

But the non-stop parade of new waxing products with escalating price points is only part of the fast-skis equation. The industry has also been feeding our obsession with all manner of new shop toys that you pretty much never saw prior to the advent of skating. From roller corks and brushes, to specialty irons, to high-tech structure tools, to hot boxes — a gold-standard ski-service kit can now include many thousands of dollars worth of equipment.

Then there’s the growth of professional services directly linked to fast skis. Once upon a time, grinding of performance cross-country skis was limited to a few alpine shops with modest outcome objectives. Nowadays, there are multiple businesses entirely devoted to cross-country-ski grinding.

The selection of skis direct from the factory is probably the ultimate step in the fast-ski evolution to date. Short of ski companies actually making skis to order, having a pro rummage through hundreds of skis on a ski factory floor in an effort to find a near-perfect fit for your body is pretty high-zoot stuff.

Finally, the elaborate process of ski-, grind-, structure- and wax-testing has most certainly trickled down in various ways from the World Cup to real-world skiing. Although very few Masters actually go

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Masters World Cup 2016 Vuokatti

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through extensive testing for most events, we The elaborate process are certainly willing to depend on industry infor- of ski-, grind-, structureand wax-testing has mation based on extensive testing. most certainly trickled This is one area where the search for fast skis down from the World has actually been pretty efficient – at least for Cup to real-world skiing.

Masters. A handful of industry pros coming up with the best combination for their brands for many major marathons actually takes up less resources (test wax, time, effort, etc.) than hundreds of skiers doing their own mini-tests.

The bottom line in all these sport-wide evolutionary developments is a decidedly mixed bag.

Those of us who employ the full arsenal of services and stuff dedicated to fast skis unquestionably are able to enjoy better skis than in past decades. There’s also something to be said for providing the ski industry with new sources of revenue and providing jobs to professionals dedicated to helping us have fast skis.

On the other hand, our obsession with fast skis clearly makes glide waxing very intimidating to newer skiers, and is also undoubtedly playing a role in the decline of the motivated Master of the past 10 to 15 years.

Telling a new skier that glide-waxing doesn’t have to be super-complex doesn’t hold water when they open an industry catalogue or look at a glide-wax display in a retail shop and their eyes swim at the range of choices, prices, add-on tools, and so on. We don’t have a viable way to measure it, but I have a strong suspicion that we lose many potential new adult racers simply because people just don’t want to deal with all that it can take to have fast skis.

The fast-skis obsession has also undeniably been sapping some of the interest and excitement within our already established base of Master skiers. Over time, knowing that it’s going to take a significant investment to have fast skis starts to wear on many people.

I’m convinced that one reason the average Master is racing less and being more picky about which events to participate in is due in part to the fact that most folks just don’t want to make the effort or spend the money necessary to guarantee they’ll have competitive skis.

Unlike many other challenges facing cross-country skiing in coming decades, the downsides our sport has created for itself in the search for fast skis are entirely self-made problems. I believe that all of us in the sport – skiers and industry alike – should begin getting really serious about finding more ways to simplify what we are doing, to lower costs and to return the focus to skiing rather on who can win a wax-room arm’s race.

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technique

by Keith Nicol

Tips for Tuning Up Your Diagonal Stride Technique Balance is the Key to Smooth Skiing

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photos: Heather Nicol

hen new skiers ask me about learning to cross-country ski, I almost always suggest they start with Classic skiing before attempting skating on skis. The diagonal stride is generally easier to learn and it allows you to discover how to balance on one ski at a time. It is more forgiving than skate skiing, which demands higher levels of fitness and the key ability to balance on your skis while moving at speed.

Also, when you get tired on Classic skis, you can still shuffle along and make some headway, but on 1 skate skis, you need to keep your skis gliding, which can be difficult for many skiers. So let’s look at some drills to improve your diagonal stride, and that, for skaters, will improve their skate skiing.

Many skiers learning to diagonal stride maintain an upright stance and use their poles for stability rather than propulsion, as I am showing in photo 1. Compare this with an improved version, shown in photo 2. To advance your diagonal stride, it is important to not let your foot get ahead of knee. Some skiers think that to lengthen their 2 glide they need to stride the front foot forward, but this is very hard to balance on. This also puts your hips back and forces you to stand upright, as shown in photo 1. This results in a shuffling style of skiing where both skis are always on the snow. Instead, think about leaning your torso forward and balancing on your glide ski. In photo 2, I have pushed back hard enough that my rear ski lifts off the snow. I often tell beginner skiers to think about the difference between walking with an upright stance and running, where you are leaning forward and driving 3 with your arms.

I recommend practising the diagonal stride without your poles, as that will improve your ability to balance. To develop a strong push-off, I ask skiers to think about keeping their foot on the snow as long as possible. In photo 3, you can see me pushing back 30 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

strongly with my right foot. My left knee is bent slightly, keeping my left foot under my body so that I can balance on it. My torso is flexed and I am swinging my arms to help maintain my forward momentum.

Practising this without poles will do wonders for your striding and really helps to improve your overall ski technique.

To lengthen glide, I use a variety of drills to help skiers develop their balancing skills. These drills can also be used by people learning to 4 skate on skis, and a favourite is the “looking for your friend” drill (see photo 4). In this case, I ask skiers to imagine that they are looking for a friend in a crowd. To be able to see over top of the crowd, you need to stand tall – note how my glide leg is almost straight in photo 4. This tall position helps you glide longer, and bringing your hand up over your eyes helps you to get your weight over the glide ski.

Another drill I like is practising gliding downhill, as shown in photo 5. In this case, you need to find a trail that slopes slightly downhill.

5 Then simply stride downhill, feeling a longer glide in the process.

The final exercise is more difficult, but one that I like to use with more advanced skiers – the “skipping stride” drill. In this case, imagine that you are skipping on skis, as shown in photo 6. You can only skip when your weight is centred over your feet, and it helps get you forward to the balls of your feet. Overall, it is a great balance drill.

For help with any aspect of your Nordic skiing, seek out the assistance of a certified CANSI or PSIA instructor.

6 Contributor Keith Nicol has been on four Canadian INTERSKI demonstration teams for Nordic skiing. He holds CANSI’s highest instructor ranking in both track and telemark skiing. www.skitrax.com

tele technique

by J. Scott McGee

Parallel to Improve Your Tele’ing

Move Across your Skis to Enter the Next Turn

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Try this: At the end of the turn, feel the forces building up under your feet. Instead of resisting, release the pressure and decrease the edge angle to float across your skis to enter the new turn.

Dialing in your parallel turns can not only allow you to keep skiing when you’re tired, it’s also a great way to improve your telemark turns as well. Seek the feeling of “crossing over” into the new turn, and then apply it in your telemark sking. And yes, those are tele boots.

J. Scott McGee served on and then coached the PSIA Nordic Team (USA) 2000-2016 and works as Snow King Mountain Sports School’s director. A former telemark competitor, he now dreams of perfect corn on spring backcountry skate-ski tours. McGee spends his summers guiding climbs in the Tetons for Exum Mountain Guides.

Selko Photo/Montage: J. Scott McGee

here’s more to tele’ing than telemarking. Some days, parallel accounts for more than half of my turns. For many, tele is about the gear – how comfortable it is to slide into your boots and walk around, and how easy it is to skate or traverse. For others, it’s the tele turn.

I groove on both. There are many parallels between telemark and alpine skiing, among them how we move across our skis to enter a new turn.

In the first frame below (right), you can see the skis on a pretty high edge angle, which decreases in the middle frame. The skis are arcing and finishing the turn. In the final frame, my skis have tipped downhill, and my center of mass is downhill of my new outside ski (my left, the one on your right). Although slightly easier in parallel turns, this same move in a tele turn is the easiest way to enter the new turn.

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WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 31

PrESiDEntiAL trAVErSE Adventure is Where You find it by thom Perkins

A cross-country-ski outing is the act of stepping out into a winter adventure. The scale of your trek is pretty much a matter of perception and choice. For some, an outing to a local touring centre or park for an hour’s worth of exercise is suffice. For others, the vision includes heavy gear, maps, compass and preparation. You don’t have to go to the ends of the earth to find a personal adventure. It can be found in your neighbourhood or fairly close by. Set a goal and go exploring!

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WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 33

iStock

the Presidential range in White Mountains of new Hampshire features an eight-mountain 33km traverse with more than 7,000 feet of vertical climbing.

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n the early 1980’s, I decided to attempt a traverse of the Presidential Range of White Mountains of New Hampshire. I had been looking at the Presi-Range from all angles for years. It’s big mountain, above treeline skiing. Weather on the Range is notorious for its sudden changes and many have perished there, even in the summer. One must prepare well for this trip. To enter this realm unprepared one would be foolhardy.

Over the years, skiers have done routes all over the Presidential Range.

However, research showed that no one had ever skied the entire Range from end to end. That was the adventure. That became the goal. The plan was to do the entire Range and do it in one day.

This mountain range is only a few miles from my home, and so this was truly a backyard adventure for me. I had skied all over Mount Washington – Tuckerman Ravine, Gulf of Slides, Great Gulf, the “Alpine Garden” and the summit cone. I had winter-climbing experience on Lafayette, Adams and Jefferson. I had hiked the entire Range in the summer and had built up a knowledge base of what to expect.

I invited a strong team of friends to accompany me on the attempt.

Joining me was world adventurer and Olympic skier Ned Gillette, Olympic Nordic-combined skier Teyck Weed, veteran AMC Lakes of the Cloud hutmaster Sam Osborne and John Halupowski, a founding member of the “Pigs on the Hill” backcountry skiers.

Mount Washington has a reputation for severe weather. A good-weather window is the first priority. Considerable planning was involved, including route selection, safety escape routes, gear selection, food and logistics of staging transportation. The route is 33 kilometres long with more than 7,000 feet of vertical climbing beginning with a 3,500-foot ascent from the Appalachia parking lot to Madison Springs and ending with a 2,400-foot descent off Mount Pierce. We planned on doing this eight-mountain traverse in one day. We packed light, with only emer-

Perkins Collection

inaugural Presidential traverse team circa 1980s (from top): John Halupowski, Sam osborne, ned Gillette, and thom Perkins with John Halupowski

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gency overnight gear. Packing more would have slowed us down to the point that we would have to spend a night out. We waited for weeks for the right weather/snowpack window. A combination of light wind, fair weather, longer days and a snowpack sufficient to allow staying on skis for the entire trip were the requirements for success. Ideally, we would go two days after a high-pressure front had passed through, which would give us a day of settled weather.

The weather was studied closely day after day. Finally, in early April, the weather forecast and snow conditions gave us a chance. The team spent the night at my house so that we could get an o’early hundred start. The perfect day had arrived. As dawn broke, we were already on the trail, having started in the pre-dawn twilight from the Appalachia parking lot on Route 2 in Jefferson. Condensing super-light frost made very fine snowflakes that blended silently with the stars lingering in the calm early-morning air. As we ascended Mount Madison, the snowpack was deep and steep. We crested Thunderstorm Junction and dropped down into Edmunds Col on a route that ended with a dicey combination of extremely narrow snow-covered rocky shelves and blind turns. With the speed that we were making, I was glad that the shelves didn’t end with a cliff.

At the bottom of the Col between Mount Adams and Mount Jefferson, the hiking trail that we had planned to use to ascend Jefferson had been blown clear of snow. We spied a snow-gully to the east that looked promising. We made a traverse to our left and entered the gully 1,000 feet above the floor of the Great Gulf Wilderness. Too steep to herringbone, continuing meant carefully sidestepping up 500 vertical feet, mindful of the consequences of an unstoppable fall into the Great Gulf. The snow that I kicked out with each step landed on the heads of my two friends below me.

Once over the top of this headwall, the snowfields turned to glorious corn snow in the sunlight. We spent way too much time playing on the sloping snowfield and taking photos. As we started up again toward Mount Clay (also known now as Mount Reagan) and Mount Washington, a brown storm cloud approached rapidly. Within moments, we were hit by a substantial snowstorm, dimming the spring sunlight and dropping several inches of snow in a very short burst.

In 50-foot visibility, we followed the cairn line across the west side of Washington. One skier followed another, always staying in sight as the group moved across the western cone, cairn to cairn. The snowfall finally abated and the visibility improved. While unobstructed by fog, the visibility nonetheless became as strange as I have ever experienced. There was absolutely no depth perception. Snow surface became sky, with no line of demarcation. It was like skiing inside a milk bottle. There was no sense of space. One could feel the texture of the snow beneath skis, but we couldn’t tell if we were slipping sideways, going backwards or moving forwards. Our pole-plants gave us the directional information we needed.

If the pole-plant went back, we were going forward; if it went off to the side, we were going sideways. Lake of the Clouds hut came into view below us and we just kept aiming at it, absorbing unseen bumps and holes during the descent. As tempting as it was, there was no time to explore the incredible snowfields that dropped away to the west into Ammonoosuc Ravine.

We finally arrived at Lakes of the Clouds hut where Sam had spent three summers as hutmaster. A late lunch was enjoyed while sitting on the roof peak. It was the only time during the day that we took off our skis. After an all-too-brief break, we mounted our skis again and traversed the east side of Mount Monroe, the most challenging part of trip for me. It was blue ice, so hard and so cold that a mark from the edges of the skis from the others in front didn’t even show. With the possibility of a 1,000-foot unstoppable plunge into Oakes Gulf if one slipped, we trawww.skitrax.com

versed this tilted ice rink very, very carefully. After crossing, there was no evidence in the ice that anyone had passed.

The group scrambled over Eisenhower and Pierce. Even though the summit of Eisenhower had been blown clear of snow, we kept our skis on, too tired to bother with the extra effort of dismounting and remounting our skis. We lost our way as we descended into the scrub pines. Every­ thing looked like a trail. A number of dead-end openings were tried. After approximately 45 minutes, the route was found and our band of merry sportsmen descended in thigh-deep dry-powder snow, carving separate lines through a magnificent wide-open pine forest. Lower down, the undergrowth closed in tight, forcing us back onto the narrow Crawford Path hiking trail to follow its narrow zigzag route to Crawford Notch. We descended past the very last of twilight. When I broke out of the forest onto the roadside at the trailhead, a car passed with its headlights on.

Our night vision was gone. None of us could see in the blackness of night as we felt our way to our awaiting parked car. Thirteen hours had elapsed since getting on skis at the north end of the range. We were five happy but exhausted skiers, thrilled to have pulled off a first. Ned commented, “That was as adventurous as many of my expeditions. Sometimes adventure is right in your own backyard.”

The Presidential Range New Hampshire’s Presidential Range is made up of peaks named after notables such as former presidents of the United States, and also including Franklin and Clay, named after high-ranking statesman in the region who earned the honour of sharing peaks in the Range by virtue of their lofty accomplishments. n Mount Franklin - 5,001 feet/1,524 metres

Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the U.S. n Mount Sam Adams - 5,489 feet/1,673 metres (subpeak of Mount Adams)

Samuel Adams, one of the Founding Fathers of the U.S. n Mount Washington - 6,288 feet/1,917 metres

George Washington - first President 1789-1797 n Mount Adams - 5,793 feet/1,766 metres

John Adams - second President 1797-1801 n Mount Jefferson - 5,712 feet/1,741 metres

Thomas Jefferson - third President 1801-1809 n Mount Madison - 5,367 feet/1,636 metres

James Madison - fourth President 1809-1817 n Mount Monroe - 5,372 feet/1,637 metres

James Monroe - fifth President 1817-1825 n Mount Quincy Adams - 5,394 feet/1,644 metres (subpeak of Mount Adams)

John Quincy Adams - sixth President 1825-1829 n Mount Jackson - 4,052 feet/1,235 metres

Andrew Jackson – seventh President 1829-1837 n Mount Pierce - 4,310 feet/1,314 metres

Franklin Pierce - 14th President 1853-1857 n Mount Eisenhower - 4,780 feet/1,457 metres

Dwight D. Eisenhower - 34th President 1953-1961 n Mount Clay (Mount Reagan) - 5,533 feet/1,686 metres

Originally named after Statesman Henry Clay, then changed to Mount Reagan in

New Hampshire after Ronald Reagan - 40th President 1981-1989

Just the Facts The Appalachian Mountain Club: www.outdoors.org Great Glen Trails: www.greatglentrails.com Mount Washington Observatory: www.mountwashington.org U.S. Forest Service’s Hayes Copp Ski Trail system: 603-466-2713, www.fs.usda.gov/whitemountain WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 35

Lahti2017

Hannu Vallas/Lahti2017

Visions of Perfection and History

As everyone who has travelled to Lahti, Finland knows, it is a very special place. Steeped in both Nordic-skiing tradition and great beauty, it is the capital of the Paijanne Tavastia region, which is approximately 100 kilometres northeast of the capital, Helsinki. Lahti is an old city as well, first mentioned in documents dating back to 1445.

by Peter Graves

36 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

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Jussi Nahkuri/Lahti2017 Taika Oja/LAMK/Lahti2017

Sara Hornig/Lahti2017

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ast tracks of forests surround the area, along with many lakes, a veritable outdoor playground for Finland’s eighth-largest city with its population of 118,885, according to the latest census.

Winter-sport legends such as ski jumpers Toni Nieminen and Janne Ahonen call the Lahti-area home. NHL stars are also among them.

The annual Salpausselka, widely known as the Lahti Ski Games, have endured for years, a proud partner in the fabled trio of Holmenkollen in Norway and Falun in Sweden. Racing or jumping in Lahti offers a glimpse into Finnish sports culture. Gleaming stadiums, cheering crowds, blueand-white flags everywhere and knowledgeable ski fans. Salpausselka has a nearly 90-year tradition.

The Ski Games were the brainchild of the late Finnish sports legend Lauri Pihkala, a two-time Olympian and the inventor of the game of pesapallo (a Finnish version of baseball). The Ski Games debuted on Feb. 3-4, 1923, with the first international athletes taking part in 1926. It’s a treasured legacy in Finland.

Lahti is the only place to hold the FIS World Nordic Championships

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(facing) An aerial view of the Lahti2017 venue. (top) Lahti Ski Games: Maurice Manificat leads Martin Johnsrud Sundby, Niklas Dyrhaug and Hans Christer Holund in the men's Miesten 30km Skiathlon (15k C+15k F). (above left) Knowledgeable Finnish fans sport blue-and-white everywhere. (above right) They love their jumping in Finland – the Normal Hill at HS 100 and the Large Hill at HS 130.

six times, and 2017 will be its seventh. The trails for cross-country have been updated, and according to Chris Grover, U.S. head coach, they’re great. “The last time we were on them was at last year’s pre-World-Championship events, and then, we only skied part of the courses. Those were very similar to the courses that we have skied on at every World Cup in Lahti, but now with some new configurations, which make for even more climbing perhaps than some of their traditional courses. But also with some ‘roll-y’ terrain with steep climbs and some fast, fun descents,” said Grover.

At last count this time around, the World Championships will see WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 37

250,000+ spectators, more than 2,000 volunteers, 1,500 media personnel and more than 700 athletes from more than 60 nations. Count on huge crowds, with ticket sales already above the 100,000 mark. The global television audience is expected to reach more than 600 million fans, which speaks to the incredible growth of the sport.

There will be 12 days of ski-jumping, Nordic-combined and cross-country competitions. According to Grover, the U.S. World Team will prepare a bit differently for the Championships this time around. In a recent conversation, he said, “We will not have an official pre-camp before the Worlds. This year, we are trying something new. Athletes are selecting the altitude and the training locale best for them. Some athletes will be in Sweden, others in France and Italy, and still others will come back to the U.S. After many months on the road continuously in the Team environment, we wanted athletes to have a chance for a small break from the Team, to possibly reconnect with friends and family, and come into Otepaa and Lahti recharged.”

The jumps will be on a pair of hills – the Normal Hill at HS 100 and the Large Hill at HS 130. And they love their jumping there. The jumping 38 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

Leevi Vähälä/Lahti2017

Iida Hollmén/LAMK/Lahti2017

Ossi Saarinen/Lahti2017

REPOUR

(top) With the stadium within walking distance from the center of town, Lahti is a marvelous site steeped in sports and culture. (above left) The paddock area will see more than 700 athletes from more than 60 nations during the Worlds. (above right) Posters for the Worlds have already attracted ticket sales above the 100,000 mark.

complex is one of the best in the sport, and Sweden’s long-time ski-jumping journalist Marit Stub Nybelius recently said that one unique factor in Lahti is a “sensitivity for the wind there. Therefore they have some huge windnets.” In the summer months, the outrun becomes a swimming pool.

What’s more, the stadium is walking distance from the center of Lahti.

Lahti is not only a marvelous locale for sports, but also for culture, of which the Finns are justifiably proud. Lahti has a wonderful music scene and a new concert centre known as Sibelius Hall, along with an ultra-modern new train hub to assist in enjoying such.

This, while Finland’s 100 years of independence is celebrated, makes these historic Championships too good to miss. For more information, visit www.lahti2017.fi/en. www.skitrax.com

AVALANCHES The Human Factor:

Larger Groups in the Backcountry Make Riskier Decisions

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o help understand the role that human decision-making plays in avalanches, researchers from Montana State University (MSU) in Bozeman, Mont. studied group dynamics and avalanche safety through their terrain choices. Their results show that larger groups make riskier decisions – and groups of young men make the riskiest of choices.

Jordy Hendrikx, an earth sciences professor and director of MSU’s Snow and Avalanche Laboratory, and Jerry Johnson, political science professor, began their Tracks Project in 2013. They crowd-sourced the research participants by inviting backcountry skiers and snowmobilers to use smartphones or separate GPS devices to record skiing and snowmobiling routes in the mountains. Post-adventure, the backcountry users answered survey questions to help the researchers better understand the decisions that people make in the mountains.

“What we can see, and again based on the subset of data we have worked up, larger groups tended to be on steeper terrain as part of their trip – and thereby are more exposed to the hazard,”

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by Jean Arthur

says Hendrikx. “The larger groups also tended to be more males, and fewer females, but we don’t have enough large groups to tease out any statistically meaningful difference as a function of gender. Certainly prior work by Ian McCammon (who considered only fatalities) showed an impact where groups had one female.”

Adventurers purchased a $0.99 [US] app called Ski Tracks – no relation to SkiTrax – and take their phone or device on the ski or snowmobile trip. Once a user turns on the app, the routes for the day are recorded. The user later emails the tracked mountain itinerary to the researchers who reply with a demographic and participant survey, which is how the researchers discover group size, participant ages and experience.

While most backcountry users take steps to prevent becoming entrapped in roiling snow, Hendrikx and Johnson found that when “recreating” in a group, decision-making is different and potentially more dangerous.

Preliminary findings make sense: under the same avalanche conditions, older recreationalists make more conservative www.skitrax.com

MSU's Jerry Johnson (l) and Jordy Hendrikx started their Tracks Project in 2013 to study the human factor in avalanches. www.skitrax.com

iStock Jean Arthur

Approximately 140 people die each year in avalanches in North America and Europe – in most cases, the people trigger it themselves.

choices, especially if the snowsports lovers have children. A group of young men takes risks.

Hendrikx recognizes that understanding the decision-making matrix and how group dynamics affect it could impact the backcountry community positively, potentially saving lives. He has lost several friends and one student to avalanches.

Approximately 140 people die each year in avalanches in North America and Europe. According to Hendrikx, nearly all of those victims triggered the avalanches that engulfed them.

“We generally see that 90% of avalanche victims trigger the avalanche themselves – i.e., they were the additional load that caused the avalanche to occur,” says Hendrikx. “Few avalanches are ever random acts of nature – and in most cases, the person triggers it themselves. While this is obviously tragic for the person involved, it also means that we can do something about it. Avalanches are not just random acts of nature.”

Johnson himself was caught in an avalanche, “up to my neck trapped, but not completely buried.” Much of his research regards public-lands issues, including tourism in the “New West” economy. His own backcountry experience and interest in avalanche research are paired with “organization theory and the work that avalanche professionals are doing.”

Johnson says that more than 1,000 people from 17 countries are participating in the study: Canada, New Zealand, South America, the Alps, Scandinavia and the U.S., locally in Montana and Wyoming’s Teton Mountains, where Johnson triggered his slide a couple decades ago. “Even being in a small avalanche is eye-opening.

“We have a group in Norway that really gets after it,” says Johnson. “The interesting thing about the Norwegians is that when you look at their Tracks, it’s clear that they skied a lot of kilometres to get to a lot of terrain. They are doing long ski tours in the dark.

That’s really interesting.”

Their research also shows that people are adjusting backcountry behaviour.

“We have enough information to show that avalanche education works,” says Johnson. “Forecast centers are important to safety, and people are paying attention. They are learning from the avalanche courses. It’s the big reason that incidents are going down. We know the population of backcountry skiers is going up at a high rate. If we plot accidents on yearly basis, it’s true for Canada and the U.S. for skiers and snowmobilers that accident rates are flat. Rapid growth, but flat accident incidents.”

Snowsports Industries of America’s most recent statistics indicate that in 2015 sales of alpine/AT boots increased 27% percent from 2014 in units sold and an increase of roughly 360,000 pairs.

Accessory sales of beacons, probes and shovels increased 12%. Inbounds resort-skier and -boarder visits total more than 56 million visits, according to the National Ski Area Association.

“We’d like to increase the number of snowmobilers participating in the Tracks Project,” says Johnson, who is currently fine-tuning riding skills to meet more of the two-stroke-engine crowd. “We see a lot of Midwestern U.S. snowmobilers coming to Cooke City, Mont. (just outside the northeast corner of Yellowstone National Park).

They are not complacent in their avalanche education. It would be great to track them – I’m trying to crack into the culture to acquire more data.”

Hendrikx and Johnson currently have approximately 5,000 tracked trips, and hope to secure funding for deeper interpretation and a longterm project. While some of their data has been analyzed, there is a wealth of data to be uncovered and examined further.

“Despite these successes, research into terrain use and decision-making could help us to reduce the fatalities further,” says Hendrikx.

For more information: www.montana.edu/snowscience/tracks.

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 41

Phil Shaw

Phil Shaw has an ambitious goal of competing in four Worldloppets in three weeks for a total of 255 kilometres.

Worldloppeteer Phil Shaw has been racing Worldloppets for 30 years, and is no stranger to being at the front of the pack. He has won the Gatineau Worldloppet 50km Classic on three occasions as an Elite racer. With a long-term goal of participating in Worldloppets for at least another 30 years, Shaw has set an ambitious goal this season: four Worldloppets in three weeks.

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www.skitrax.com

by Ben Andrew

T

www.skitrax.com

photos: courtesy of Phil Shaw Collection

Thirty years of Worldloppet competition with approximately 100 events completed. What drives you to compete?

PS: The thrill of pushing myself to the maximum. Seeing the European elite racers.

Observing how the winners win. The social interaction before and after the race also motivates me. I am presently learning German as a fourth language. I am also a big fan of the ever-changing scenery and weather. I love the incredibly well-groomed trails at the different Worldloppets. I love seeing thousands of others pushing as hard as they can.

To me, it’s more expended energy than all the fans watching a particular hockey game.

How did you get involved in the sport (i.e., clubs, And every single person who manages to Shaw has won the Gatineau Worldloppet three times, but can he ski 255km in 15 days and survive? early racing)? cross the finish line is a winner. A healthy Phil Shaw: My parents were the first people way to travel in winter. A nice way to see the to teach me cross-country skiing. My father was a good skier and my countryside. And a good excuse to learn a foreign language. mom too. We would cross-country ski around Shawbridge back in the 1970’s, when cross-country skiing was the new sport to do. Jack Rabbit Why this new challenge – four Worldloppets in three weeks?

Johannsen (JRJ) was 100 years old and influencing people as young as me PS: I have never achieved skiing four Worldloppets in three weeks. I feel to cross-country ski.

I have the strength and endurance to do it. I also have experience and, My parents and I took a special ski train in February 1975 to celebrate more importantly, the desire to attempt this feat!

JRJ’s 100th birthday. I remember listening to JRJ’s speech and observing his youthful demeanor. I was inspired!

Have you competed at the events in Estonia and Sweden before? Do you know I had gym teachers in primary, elementary and high school who taught what to expect from those events? cross-country skiing as a compulsory sport. Fortunately for me, they were PS: I have never competed in Estonia before, but I have raced Vasaloppet gifted teachers and passionate skiers. I was one of their best students. four times in the past, finishing between 100th and 200th. I expect the Not so much because I was a good skier, but because I tried and practised competition to be stronger than in the past. More Pro race teams and whatever they instructed. And I always had the energy and or courage to higher-calibre racers. I expect to have to fight tooth and nail every inch do what they said. of the way. Scandinavians take the Tartu Ski Marathon and Vasaloppet My love for cross-country skiing wasn’t just about executing the invery seriously. structed technique or trying to ski fast. My love also evolved from travelWhich Worldloppet is going to be the biggest challenge? ling to school on my cross-country skis. Instead of taking a 15-minute bus PS: The Gatineau 51km skate will be the hardest challenge because I will ride with multiple stops, I would often ski to school. And in the fall and have raced the 51km Classic the day prior. spring, I would often walk to school. At a young age, I realized the confidence-building of going to and fro in an autonomous way.

You have a goal of placing well in each event. Are you focusing on racing one And of the satisfaction of doing it with my own energy. I remember my event at a time, or trying to moderate your effort a bit since you are undertakfirst cross-country-ski race in Grade Four. We had to ski around a one-kilometre course. I remember that some of my classmates were crying. I ing such a large volume of racing? also remember flying around the course and being the first child to cross PS: I will focus on skiing as best I can one event at a time. I won’t be holdthe finish line. I don’t remember having felt any pain. I only remember the ing back at any race. rush and thrill of skiing as fast as I could. It was a bright sunny day at the Alpine Inn Golf Course in Ste-Marguerite in February 1977.

With just under a month to go before the Gatineau Worldloppet kicks off, how I began to be serious about cross-country-ski training in the late 1980’s is your preparation going? when I attended McGill University. In late September 1986, I tried roller­ PS: My preparation is going extremely well. I have achieved all my trainskiing for the first time. I didn’t like the fact that they were unstable and ing objectives, and I had good results at cross-country-ski races on Jan. had no brakes. Not surprisingly, we had our official rollerski training 21-22, 2017 with Skinouk in the Gatineau Park. I am focused, motivataround Molson Stadium on the deco-turf. To this day, I find rollerskiing ed and excited about Worldloppet racing again soon. I am also grateful around a stadium way cooler than running around a stadium. about my past good influences. I am grateful for my health, and I am After McGill, I joined ‘Les Fondeurs Laurentides,’ presently one of the bigespecially grateful to be living in Rosemere, Que., Canada – a bilingual community that welcomes rollerskiers on its bike paths and residential gest cross-country-ski teams in Canada. Gérald Guay, the coach, is the reason streets!

I went from being a mediocre ski racer to a good ski racer. The seven or eight years that he coached me were the best for my future success as a WorldlopStay tuned as SkiTrax will catch up with Shaw after his Loppet adventure to see pet racer. His coaching was professional. I learned many cross-country-ski how things worked out. racing secrets from Gérald. I learned patience and having lifelong objectives. o complete this challenge, Shaw will have to ski 255 kilometres in 15 days. He will kick off his Worldloppet campaign with the Gatineau Worldloppet 51km Classic on Feb. 18. This will be followed closely by the 51km Freestyle the following day at the Gatineau event. Shaw will then travel to Estonia, where he will race the Tartu Marathon 63km Classic on Feb. 26, before finishing up at the Vasaloppet 90km Classic in Sweden on March 5.

SkiTrax chatted with Shaw to find out more about what drives him to keep competing and pushing himself.

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 43

DAY TO DAY

Nordic Focus

ON THE FIS WORLD CUP

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www.skitrax.com

courtesy of Jeff Ellis

by Peter Graves

Ah, yes, the wondrous world of the FIS World Cup. Globetrotting at it’s finest. International travel to the sport’s greatest venues, credentials that will get you access to anywhere, mingling and getting acquainted with the world’s greatest cross-country-ski athletes, what could be better?

(above) fiS World Cup team and associates (l-r): Jeff Ellis (fiS Communications), Jakob tejchman (fiS technical Delegate), Sandra Spitz (Cross-Country Event Coordinator), Pierre Mignerey (race Director Cross-Country), Michal Lamplot (Media & Project Coordinator Cross-Country), Enzo Macor (fiS technical Delegate). (facing) Emil iversen (nor) in the men's 15km at fiS World Cup 2016/17 season-opener in ruka, finland www.skitrax.com

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 45

S

ounds like a life that puts one in a flashy, exclusive club, but if you think it’s like life on the beach, you’re dead wrong. This life comes complete with jet lag and time-zone changes, including stressful days and late nights. And all the while, one must maintain a diplomatic perspective when it comes to problem-solving.

After last season’s successful Ski Tour Canada 2016, SkiTrax examined the lives and work of a trio of International Ski Federation (FIS) staff on the World Cup Tour. Sandra Spitz, Michal Lamplot and Canadian Jeff Ellis are hardworking and dedicated, and together with Pierre Mignerey, the Tour director who oversees this group, they make the magic happen.

Though the staff is not without their well-earned opinions, they often hold a mostly egalitarian point of view on matters. And while they have very specific job descriptions, they all pitch in together to make the complexities of the World Cup happen.

Thirty-seven-year-old Sandra Spitz was originally from Schonach, Germany, but now works out of the FIS office in Switzerland. She first began as a member of the Schonach Operating Committee for the 2002 FIS World Junior Championships, and then moved to Oberstdorf, where she worked on the FIS World Nordic Championships. Following that, she turned to work at the FIS, first as the media coordinator for cross-country, and, since 2011, as the FIS event coordinator and the Tour de Ski coordinator. When asked why she loves her job, she commented, “I have the pleasure to work together with three great teammates and with motivated people from all different national ski associations, the organizing committees, TV-production companies and all the other stakeholders from all over the world who share the passion for skiing.”

Spitz’s job has many functional areas on the Tour, including being the link to the host broadcaster at each venue and to the FIS Marketing AG group. Her position also calls for her to oversee such logistics as team travel and transportation, accreditation and a host of other matters.

Michal Lamplot, 33, who lives in Ricany, near Prague, Czech Republic, works closely with the media in his post as the media and project coordi-

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nator for cross-country. His love and motivation for the sport come from his deep family ties and the good fortune of being brought up in a skiing family in Nove Mesto na Morave.

He has been involved in the sport since childhood, where, in Nove Mesto na Morave, his grandfather was the chief of course of the World Cups hosted there in the 1980’s and 1990’s. His father was also deeply involved in the sport as well. You can feel the passion when Lamplot speaks about his job, noting, “I think I love every aspect of my job. I love the sport. I love the chance to travel and see the world and be in some of the most beautiful resorts. But, most importantly, what makes my job so special is the really great team we have. Every season is the best ever with Pierre, Jeff and Sandra. It’s great fun and amazing to work together.”

Lamplot knows that coordinating so many vast moving parts is no easy task. “The World Cup is a very complex event, with thousands of things that need to work together. When you watch a race on TV, you don’t realize the amount of work that has to be done before,” Lamplot says. “We are very lucky to work with very motivated and enthusiastic organizers who often do almost impossible things to secure a World Cup. We have very strong marketing partners, TV producers, and there is a very professional and perfectly working data and timing team. It is a really unique experience working with such a big group of professionals.” Lamplot gained much valuable experience when he served as a sport manager for the FIS Nordic World Championships in 2009 in Liberec, Czech Republic.

In his job as the media coordinator for the World Cup, he serves as a liaison between the athletes and the media, and he helps organizers prepare for their events by casting an eye toward locating the best working conditions for the photographers, TV, print and online journalists alike. He wants to make them happy. Lamplot offered that the famed mixed-zone area where finishing athletes meet journalists immediately following a race requires a good deal of planning: “Jeff and I work a lot in the finish area, and the mixed zone is where we are helping athletes with after-therace procedures like interviews. Last but not least, I go to the press room, where I conduct the press conferences after every World Cup competition.”

The third member of the team is Canadian-born Jeff Ellis, 37, who lives

www.skitrax.com

photos: courtesy of Jeff Ellis

in Anchorage, Alaska and is the husband of US Ski Team star Kikkan Randall.

Before joining the World Cup Tour, Ellis worked as a physiotherapy technician at Anchorage Fracture and Orthopedic Clinic and did a stint as a journalist for SkiTrax. Now, his specialty on the Tour is serving as FIS cross-country media coordinator assistant, a job that he not only loves, but also one at which he is brilliant.

His primary role is to create and manage content on FIS’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts, as well as FIS’s website during the season. Currently, he is on contract for a five-month period in season.

His role has evolved over the past four years to include the widely interesting and entertaining video packages dubbed Inside the Fence. The programs feature a different story and are well produced, sometimes serious, and at times, witty.

Ellis has scored a home run with these features, and so has the FIS. It’s a near-ideal situation for Ellis and Randall, who not long ago welcomed their first child. “I love the position,” Ellis noted. “It’s so great to see my wife in the winter, as she is often gone from November to the end of March. With this job, I get to follow the same Tour that she is on for that time period. Also, it’s been just great to work with my fellow FIS colleagues and all of our partners, organizers, TV producers, production teams and many others.”

Week after week, this group is behind the scenes ensuring that blockbuster races happen and are shown to the world. They don’t do it for glory; they do it for the love of the sport and their fans around the world. Bravo. www.skitrax.com

(above l-r) Who's on first? Sandra Spitz, Michal Lamplot and Pierre Mignerey on the case at the inaugural Ski Tour Canada. (facing) Jeff Ellis (l) and Michal Lamplot all smiles and ready for action.

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 47

GET BACK

A Whole World of “Descent-ture”

From polar explorers to Red-Bull-sponsored athletes, skiers have always pushed the Earth’s geographical boundaries. Some ski to see what’s beyond the next horizon, while others pursue that perfectly unspoiled place that has the deepest, driest snow, the most jaw-dropping mountain scenery and that ideal village at the end of the road where wine flows freely and every meal is a gourmet feast.

Japan, Argentina, Switzerland and France all offer outstanding adventure possibilities; but truthfully, wherever there’s a slope, there’s a skier – either metaphorically or in reality. We look at mountains differently – mentally descending the mountains of our dreams in bold, flawless style. The following four ski-adventure operators can take you to the world’s top backcountry-/adventure-skiing destinations.

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www.skitrax.com

Accessing treeless alpine terrain near Bariloche, Argentina by snowmobile. www.skitrax.com

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Mallin Alto

by Steve Threndyle

Selkirk Mountain Experience

(photos this page) Ski touring in Switzerland's spectacular Glarnerland region of the Swiss Alps, home of guide Ruedi Beglinger

As anyone who has skied with him knows that Canada-based mountain-guide Ruedi Beglinger is a man in motion. Each April, he leaves his Durrand Glacier Lodge in the powdery Selkirk Mountain range and leads his clients to discover the mountains where he grew up in the Glarnerland region of eastern Switzerland.

This annual 10-day expedition is broken into two parts: five days spent in this comparatively unknown (to North Americans) ski-touring region, with five more days in the popular Berner Oberland, with its well-known 4,000-metre peaks.

One of the ski ascents on the first part of the tour is “the Tödi,” which Beglinger explains “is not just the highest peak in the valley where I grew up, but is also the grand peak that I used to see from the writing table in my school class – where I was forced to sit still every day for eight hours! This incredible peak was right there, high up in the jagged horizon of a very narrow mountain valley, 3,000 vertical metres higher than the valley floor of Linthal in the valley of Glarus. It is the peak where I became a mountaineer, ski-mountaineer and Todi/Berner Oberlander 2017 Trip mountain guide.”

April 27-May 7, 2017, $3,950 [CDN] The locals of Glarnerland decided 250-837-2381 decades ago not to develop their mouninfo@selkirkexperience.com tains with lift systems and ski resorts, www.selkirkexperience.com making it one of the most unspoiled

Just the Facts

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photos: Selkirk Mountain Experience

Switzerland and the Berner Oberland with Ruedi Beglinger

areas in Switzerland for ski mountaineering and touring, especially in the Schilt, Elm, Kärpf and the Tödi massif.

For the second part of the Tour of Switzerland, Beglinger’s group stays in some of the world-famous huts in the Berner Oberland. These are some of the loftiest, most gorgeous mountain accommodations in the world.

Along the way, ascents of the Fiescherhorn (4,025 metres), Gross Wannenhorn (3,706 metres), Louwihorn (3,777 metres) and Äbeni Flue (3,962 metres) are possible. www.skitrax.com

A huge part of the Millan Alto experience is staying at the rustic ranch-style homestead, where hearty South American steaks and wines await after a hard-charging day on the slopes.

Skiing in the wild fjords of Patagonia is about as adventurous as skiing gets. Near the colonial mountain/lake resort of Bariloche, Argentina, a relatively new backcountry operation at Millan Alto transports skiers and riders into the southern Andes using a Canadian invention – the snowmobile. A private four-wheel-drive vehicle takes you from the cozy confines of Bariloche and up into the Millan Alto ranch, with panoramic views of the Andes Mountains in every direction. Only 23 kilometres south from San Carlos de Bariloche and just 20 minutes from the International Airport, it is strategically set at 1,000 metres where the Patagonian Steppe blends in with the Andean Mountain Range and is surrounded by imposing 2,200-metre mountains dressed in forests of lenga and ñire tree species.

This is a South American adventure unlike any other, as all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles are used to shuttle guests up into an alpine playground of wide-open bowls. With 3,500-5,000 vertical metres

Backcountry adventures like no other, including endless open bowls and hearty South American steaks and wines after a hard-charging day www.skitrax.com

of skiing possible, depending upon weather conditions, skiers and snowboarders can experience variable, ungroomed snow conditions that can vary widely from one run to the next, depending on wind direction.

A huge part of the Millan Alto experience is staying at the rustic ranch-style homestead, where hearty South American steaks and wines await after a hard-charging day on the slopes. Depending upon weather conditions, guests may also Powderhounds/Mallinalto bunk at one of two alpine cabins (inSled Access Backcountry cluding the futuristic geodesic-dome Skiing and Riding structures), located at either 1,100 or Four-day/four-night tours from $2,7501,700 metres in elevation. The high$3,000 [CDN], (season runs from June 1-Oct. 30, inclusive) est hut accesses the best backcouninfo@powderhounds.com try terrain in this region of the Andes www.mallinalto.com – endless open bowls where you can www.powderhounds.com just “let ‘em run.”

Just the Facts

Mallin Alto

South America: Land of Gauchos, Malbec and . . . Snowmobiles?

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 51

REPOUR

Welcome to La Grave where skiing is wild, unpatrolled, steep and very demanding of commitment

La Grave: Ski It Now, Before It Closes Perhaps befitting its name, Whistler’s Extremely Canadian tours offer a handful of trips each winter to more far-flung destinations, where “extreme” can have serious consequences if you don’t have a trustworthy guide.

One outpost is the French village of La Grave, perhaps the best example of lift-serviced backcountry skiing anywhere in the world. However, that title comes with several caveats – one being that the skiing at La Grave is wild, unpatrolled, steep and very demanding of commitment – if you’re always the slowpoke in your posse, you might want to look elsewhere. There is no lift network per se; similar to Japan’s Asahidake or Squamish’s Sea to Sky Gondola, there is only a lift (400-skiers-per-hour capacity) and an enormous variety of gnarly, untamed terrain where you must hire a mountain guide or you could meet a sad fate (note that La Grave employs the second-largest number of guides in France, next to Chamonix). Extremely Canadian’s tours partner with legendary Pelle Lang, mountain guide and owner of the aptly-named Skier’s Lodge, located in the center of this 12th-century town.

As incredible as the skiing on the 3,894-metre La Meijie is, the aerial tram – owned by the citizens of the tiny 12th-century town – might close permanently this May if a new buyer is not found. While the guiding service can be profitable, La Grave is located in a national park and is a four-hour drive from the nearest city of any size. There are still late-February dates available (conditions are generally better in late winter when the snowpack is settled and the avalanche conditions are stable).

Canadian trivia: La Grave is the home of former Extremely Canadian World Tour Feb. 25-March 4, 2017, $4,250 [CDN] Bolton, Ont. resident Ptor Spricenieks, who is ski cul1-800-938-9656 or 604-938-9656 ture’s unofficial “ski shaman.” Canadian big-mountain ski@extremelycanadian.com skier Chad Sayers has also been featured in several www.extremelycanadian.com magazine stories and is a frequent visitor to the valley.

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photos: Extremely Canadian

Just the Facts

If you like extreme skiing, then La Grave, France, must be on your list. www.skitrax.com

La Grave is wild, unpatrolled, steep and very demanding of commitment . . . an enormous variety of gnarly, untamed terrain where you must hire a mountain guide or you could meet a sad fate.

Black Diamond JaPOW Adventure skiing in Japan is all about the chase for the legendary “JaPOW” – waist-deep snow that is so incredibly light that it billows over your head and shoulders, even on lower angled intermediate terrain.

Japanese resorts vary widely when it comes to open-boundary policies – some resorts, in fact, don’t even allow cutting under the lift or skiing in

tree islands. All of which makes hiring a guide pretty much mandatory.

Black Diamond Tours’ base is Niseko’s legendary Black Diamond Lodge, a Westernized accommodation that is the perfect spot for Japanese newbies. They offer a wide range of tours, from simple day trips to 10-day powder-assault expeditions that comb obscure resorts in lesser-known parts of central Hokkaido. The daily itinerary is kept open and flexible in order to maximize local snow conditions.

While most of the trips take advantage of lift-serviced slackcountry, touring skis, avalanche safety gear (beacon, probe and shovel) and skins are often required. The two-day “starter trip” serves as the perfect introduction to the Niseko region’s vast cornucopia of powdery glades, steep trees and pillow lines. These trips extend the comfort zone further into steeper, adBlack Diamond Tours Niseko, vanced terrain that might even include Japan 24-3 Niseko-cho, Abuta-gun, the ascent of a volcanic peak nearby, Hokkaido, Japan weather permitting. You’ll return to the 090-2054-8687 or 0136-44-1144 comfort zone at the end of the day, with info@blackdiamondtours.com a soak (and a Sapporo beer) at a tradiwww.blackdiamondtours.com tional hot-spring-fed onsen.

(photos this page) Seeking shelter in the trees: Off piste skiing on Japan's Hokkaido should definitely be on your bucket list. www.skitrax.com

photos: Tristan Hobson

Just the Facts

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LoPPEtS 2017 Welcome to our annual round-up of loppets and marathons across North America with an emphasis on participation and fun.

by Ben Andrew

CAnADA 1. reino Keski-Salmi Loppet Jan. 14, Salmon Arm, B.C. This Classic-only loppet in eastern B.C. marks its 33rd anniversary in 2017. Beginning in 1985 as the Larch Hills Marathon, it was re-named in 1987 to honour Reino Keski-Salmi, a Canadian of Finnish descent who excelled in cross-country races, but died tragically in a 1985 helicopter crash. Both competitive and recreational skiers are welcome to this event, which has been affiliated with the Heart & Stroke Foundation since its inception.

Distances vary from 1km for participants under age of four to 34km for seniors, while para-Nordic entrants can choose their distance. 250-832-8676; info@skilarchhills.ca.

2. nipika/toby Creek nordic Loppet Weekend Jan. 28-29, Nipika Day Lodge, Invermere, B.C. Renamed the Nordic Loppet Weekend, these two back-to-back loppets, co-hosted by Nipika Mountain Resort and Toby Creek Nordic Ski Club, are now part of the Kootenay Cup. It features a 30km Classic loppet on the Saturday, followed by a 20km freestyle loppet on Sunday. These family-friendly events also feature recreational distances of 15km on Saturday and 10km on Sunday, as well as youth and children’s distances. Trails follow the Kootenay and Cross rivers; expect some challenging climbs and technical descents interspersed with nice flats and beautiful views. Awards and a post-race barbecue are featured on both days. 877-647-4525/250-342-6516; info@nipika.com; http://nipika.com/ nipika-mountain-resort-loppet/.

3. Canadian Birkebeiner Feb. 10-11, Blackfoot Recreation Area, near Edmonton, Alta.

Billed as the greatest adventure on snow, the Canadian Birkie honours the spirit of the Norwegian Birkebeiner legend. The Birkie features superb events and ski distances for all ages and abilities: 55km Birkie with pack, 55km Birkie Lite, 31km Tour, 13km Mini Birkie and un-timed 2.5km or 4km Ole’s Tour. New this year is a 40km skate event. Also enjoy the ever-popular Nordic Fair, Festival Tent and Vikings’ Feast. Canadian Birkebeiner Society: 780-430-7153; info@canadianbirkie.com; canadianbirkie.com. www.skitrax.com

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Nipika Loppet

Nipika/Toby Creek Nordic Loppet Weekend

Feb. 10-12, Gatineau, Que. (near Ottawa, Ont.) to Lachute, Que. Founded in 1967, the Canadian Ski Marathon (CSM) will celebrate its 51th anniversary in 2017. North America’s longest and oldest Nordic ski festival, the CSM hosts approximately 2,000 skiers each year for a two-day, 160km Classic-only event through the Laurentian Mountains of western Quebec. It is not a race, and skiers can choose to ski from 12km to 160km over the weekend. Skiers of all ages and abilities are welcome, with events ranging from the CSM Taster, designed for loppet beginners, right up to the Coureur des Bois Gold category that requires participants to ski the entire 160km while carrying a 5kg pack and sleep outdoors on the Saturday night. CSM: 1-877-770-6556; ski@csm-mcs.com; csm-mcs.com.

5. Boreal Loppet Feb. 18, Forestville, Que. (325km NE of Quebec City) Featuring distances of 4km, 7km, 11km, 13km, 27km and 60km for both Classic and freestyle events, the Boreal’s signature 103km event – billed as “the longest one-day Nordic race worldwide” – will again not be held in 2017. This year features two fatbike races, 16km and 32km, to be held following the departure of the last skiers. 418-587-4160; info@borealloppet. ca; borealloppet.ca.

6. Gatineau Loppet Feb. 17-19, Gatineau, Que. (near Ottawa, Ont.) Founded in 1977, the Gatineau Loppet is billed as “Canada’s biggest international cross-country skiing event”; it is also Canada’s most prestigious loppet. Held in Gatineau Park, approximately 3,000 skiers will participate over three days of racing that feature Classic (5km, 15km, 27km and 51km) and freestyle (10km, 27km and 51km) courses, as well as a Mini 2km race for children. Sunday, Feb. 19 sees snowshoe races (2.5km, 5km and 10km).

Both of the Gatineau Loppet’s Classic and freestyle 51km courses are part of the Worldloppet Series and are sanctioned by Cross Country Canada for the Canadian Points List. The Gatineau Loppet also serves as the Canadian Long Distance Loppet Championship. Register online or onsite that weekend: 819-778-5014, ext. 232; info@gatineauloppet.com; gatineauloppet.com.

7. Sigge’s P’ayakentsut Feb. 25, Callaghan Valley (near Squamish, B.C.) Organized by the Callaghan Valley Cross Country Ski Club, the Sigge’s “P'ayak” events feature the Classic or freestyle (15km, 30km and 50km), 56 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

the Classic sit-ski 10km and the Classic or freestyle youth 15km. There are also activities for children 4-14. P’ayakentsut means “a place to train oneself physically” in the local Squamish language, and is the inspiration behind this event, now in its fifth annual edition. Main loppet events remain on the Saturday, with the children’s events on the Sunday. The race courses begin in the same stadium used for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics and follow trails used for the Olympic biathlon competition.

Sigge’s P'ayak is proud to be a qualifier for the prestigious American Birkebeiner. 604-962-1290; info@payak.ca; payak.ca.

8. Don Allen Saskaloppet March 3-4, La Ronge, Sask.

This year marks the 34rd annual Don Allen Saskaloppet, Saskatchewan’s premier loppet. In 1970, Don Allen and his friends had a dream, so they formed the La Ronge Ski Club, started a racing team and founded the Saskaloppet. Allen’s ski spirit lives on with loppet participants returning annually, while community groups dress up in outlandish costumes or offer original snacks. The tour and/or race categories range from 5km, 8km, 13km, 20km, 35km and 45km up to 75km for the Kupesewin Marathon and Sasquatch (completed over two days with overnight camping). Saskaloppet Committee: 306-425-2807; register at zone4.ca; larongeskiclub.ca.

Boreal Loppet

Boreal Loppet

4. Canadian Ski Marathon

www.skitrax.com

9. Sleeping Giant Loppet

12. PAL Great Labrador Loppet

March 4, Sleeping Giant Provincial Park (Thunder Bay, Ont.) Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the Sleeping Giant Loppet at Kamview Nordic Centre offers recreational and competitive skiers a variety of distances, including the family-friendly 8km mini-loppet, a 20km scenic ski route circling Marie Louise Lake, a 35km course that is both scenic and challenging, as well as the 50km Classic or freestyle events. For 2017, cash prizes are back and will awarded in the 50km freestyle event. Also the first female and male in five-year age categories will receive a unique 2017 Loppet toque. All this is followed by a pancake-breakfast awards ceremony on Sunday. The park is named after a large rock formation that resembles a sleeping giant. 807-629-0649; info@sleepinggiantloppet.ca; sleepinggiantloppet.ca.

April 1, Labrador City, Nfld.

A prestigious and popular community event, the PAL Great Labrador Loppet is hosted by the Menihek Nordic Ski Club in the beautiful Labrador wilderness. This year will be the 42nd edition. Skiers and snowshoers, young and old, can participate in one of three events – 10km, 28km or 50 km, whatever your pleasure. The Loppet kicks off in Fermont, Que. and finishes in Labrador City, Newfoundland and Labrador. The trail is

Gatineau Loppet

PAL Great Labrador Loppet

March 4, Wabos, Ont. (near Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.) The Wabos Loppet begins in the lumber town of Wabos. There, skiers begin an uninterrupted 27km course that leads through the woods over two lakes and several beaver ponds to Sheppard Lake, where tea and oranges are served. The rest of the course is on groomed cross-country trails leading to Norm’s Cabin at the edge of Bone Lake, where skiers enjoy refreshments of tea and cookies. The last part of the trip takes participants to Stokely Creek Lodge for a festive celebratory barbecue and live entertain-

Gatineau Loppet

10. Wabos Loppet

PAL Great Labrador Loppet

ment. Please note that participants will no longer be picked up by bus from Sault Ste. Marie and must continue to Stokely, where ample parking is available. 866-786-5359 or 705-649-3421; info@stokelycreek.com; www. stokelycreek.com.

11. Fischer Loppet Festival March 4, Barrie, Ont. The annual Hardwood Fischer Loppet features courses for the 15km and 30km freestyle and Classic events rolled into one amazing day of racing, with children’s races in the afternoon. This loppet is a favourite of racers of all ages to work toward all winter. The new course features a mix of gentle rolling and challenging terrain through the forests of Oro Medonte and is suited to skiers of all levels and abilities. There will also be Fischer ski-tuning, waxing and equipment demos. After the races, participants are treated to a huge spread of food during the prize ceremony. Hardwood receives more than 300cm of snow each season and features trails with great grooming. 800-387-3775; info@hardwoodskiandbike.ca; hardwoodskiandbike.ca. www.skitrax.com

groomed for both Classic and free techniques with refreshment stations positioned along the way. A 5km trail will be introduced to participants for the 2017 edition. A post-race banquet features award presentations, a delicious steak supper and the opportunity to dance the night away. 709944-5842 or 709-944-1802; menihek@nf.aibn.com.

13. Vancouver Island Loppet April 1, Mount Washington (near Courtenay, B.C.) This event features fabulous scenery on the trails at the Mount Washington Nordic Centre, a ski destination with unique attractions that include deep snowpacks, ocean views and old-growth forest in picturesque Strathcona Park. In 2017, more than 200 participants are expected to attend the 35th annual Loppet. Featured distances include 2km Cookie, 5km youth, 15km recreational or 30km freestyle events. This year will also introduce a 5km and 10km snowshoe event and a ski playground with organized activities that will keep the kids busy while parents are out skiing the Loppet. Registration opens on Feb. 20 on webscorer.com. info@ strathconanordics.com; strathconanordics.com.

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 57

14. UP Health System Noquemanon Ski Marathon Jan. 28-29, Marquette, Mich.

The UP Health System Noquemanon Ski Marathon is a 50km Classic, freestyle and relay ski race, taking skiers from Ishpeming to Marquette on Jan. 28. The same day, there are 24km and 12km Classic, freestyle and snowshoe races using part of the Noquemanon course. The course is spectacular, with granite outcroppings, Lake Superior vistas, plentiful snow, a waterfall, a 1,000-foot descent over the last 25 kilometres and friendly volunteers. There are children’s races on Friday, while Sunday (Jan. 29) sees fatbike, skijor (one or two dogs) and snowshoe races. 866-370-RACE; info@noquemanon.com; noquemanon.com.

15. Craftsbury Marathon Jan. 28, Craftsbury Common, Vt. Now in its 36th year, the Craftsbury Marathon is the premier ski event of

and under, the Finn Sisu Sprints, Junior Loppet, Minne-Loppet, Luminary Loppet, Snowshoe Loppet, Speed-skating Loppet, Fat Tire Loppet, an expo, awards, a beer garden and much more. 800-830-9441; info@loppet.org; cityoflakesloppet.com.

17. Boulder Mountain Tour Feb. 4, Sun Valley (near Ketchum, Idaho) Starting at Idaho’s rustic Galena Lodge, the popular 34.3km Zion’s Bank Boulder Mountain Tour (BMT), one of the shortest American Ski Marathon Series events, parallels Highway 75 as it flows steadily down to the finish. Now in its 42nd year, the BMT’s course is gently rolling and has an elevation drop of 1,100 feet over its 21-mile length; spectacular views of the surrounding mountains unfold continuously with each and every turn. It is the jewel of the annual Sun Valley Nordic Festival that runs from Jan. 29-Feb. 7. Cash prizes are awarded to the top finishers in the men’s and women’s races. The 15km “Half-Boulder” event begins at Baker Creek and finishes with the rest of the field. Half-BMT participants will have the option to be timed. Sunday sees a demo day from the

Courtesy of ©American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation/Netz Photography

USA

American Birkebeiner David Norris (USA) 2016 winner

the East, featuring 16.5km, 33km and 50km Classic-only races and a 33km touring division. For 2017, the marathon course is a 16.5km loop starting and finishing at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center Ski Stadium. Extensive trail work has been done over the past several seasons to upgrade the entire course so that it can be groomed by a PistenBully. There are feed stations every four to seven kilometres, and after the finish, all participants are treated to a hearty post-race meal and awards. This event is part of the prestigious American Ski Marathon Series and the New England Marathon Series. For many years, it has been proclaimed by the State Chamber of Commerce as one of the top-10 winter events in Vermont. 802-5867677; stay@craftsbury.com;craftsbury.com/skiing/marathon/home.htm.

16. City of Lakes Loppet Feb. 3-5, Minneapolis, Minn.

An urban cross-country-ski festival, the City of Lakes Loppet is a winter event for the entire family that features the beautiful trails and lakes of the Twin Cities. This celebration of winter includes the 42km freestyle and Hoigaard’s Classic 42km Marathon, the 21km Puoli Classic, 10km Classic Loppet Tour and the Penn Ice-Cycle Loppet on Saturday. Sunday sees the Columbia Sportswear 42km skate, skijoring and dog-sled races, etc. Other events feature snow sculptures, ski games for children 12 58 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

BMT sponsors. New for 2017, all registered BMT racers will receive the Boulder Pass, giving free access to more than 200 kilometres of groomed trails from Feb. 2-5. bouldermountaintour@gmail.com; bouldermountaintour.com.

18. North American Vasa Feb. 11-12, Traverse City, Mich.

The 41st annual North American Vasa presented by Short’s Brewing Company has made some changes for the 2017 event, with “Freestyle Saturday” and “Classic Sunday.” All freestyle and fatbike races will be held Saturday, while all Classic races will be held on the Sunday. Racing will also take place in the reverse direction of the traditional course, and include new trails. Michigan’s premier cross-country-ski event offers athletes of all abilities the opportunity to experience a wonderful day of skiing on ultimate groomed trails among towering white pines through the pristine serenity of the Pere Marquette State Forest. Saturday’s events feature 11km, 28km and 48km freestyle races, as well as Junior Vasa events and 10km and 42km fatbike races. Sunday sees the 6km Classic tour, along with 6km, 16km and 34km Classic races, with the latter two events counting toward the Michigan Cup. 231-633-1054; vasainfo@vasa.org; vasa.org. www.skitrax.com

fier for the American Birkebeiner and a member of the NENSA Marathon Series. info@orda.com; http://www.lakeplacid.com/events/34th-annuallake-placid-loppet-and-kort-loppet.

23. Pepsi Challenge

Mora Vasaloppet

19. Mora Vasaloppet Feb. 11-12, Mora, Minn.

The signature race day is Saturday (Feb. 11), featuring the 58km freestyle, 42km Classic, 35km freestyle, 13km TeamLoppet and the 13km freestyle races. The first North American male and female finishers in the 58km race can win a free trip to Sweden’s Vasaloppet or $1,000.

The race finishes in downtown Mora, where snow is dumped onto the town’s main street. The event is the largest in Minnesota and features gently rolling wooded countryside without steep hills. For 2017, new trails and snowmaking equipment have been added in the event of low snow. There are also 38km and 10km fat-tire bike races on Sunday (Feb. 12). Returning again is the skijoring race, as well as the children’s Minnloppet. There’s also a Friendship Tour and Mini-loppet, which are all part of one of the biggest winter athletic events in the U.S.A. 800-368-6672; information@vasaloppet.org; vasaloppet.us.

Trevor Cokley

March 4, Biwabik, Minn.

The 33rd annual Pepsi Challenge Cup Race at Giants Ridge Golf and Ski Resort has a reputation for world-class race trails and snow-grooming.

The Ridge has held the World Cup, Olympic Trials, National Collegiate Finals and USA National Championships. The Pepsi Challenge Cup is a 48km freestyle race with companion events to accommodate skiers at every level, including a 48km Classic, 24km Classic, 24km freestyle and Giants Ridge 10km. Part of the American Ski Marathon Series, the event serves as a Birkie qualifier. 800-688-7669 ext. 8072; pepsichallenge@giantsridge.com; pepsichallengeskirace.com/pepsi.php.

24. Yellowstone Rendezvous Race March 4, West Yellowstone, Mont.

Montana’s Yellowstone Rendezvous Race is held on the beautifully groomed, rolling terrain of the Rendezvous Ski Trails offering fantastic scenery and snow conditions. There are six different races to choose from depending on your age and ability: 2km, 5km, 10km, 25km Classic, 25km and 50km, all of which run concurrently – skiers of all ages and abilities participate every year. The course features a 25km loop starting at the

Feb. 18, Bemidji, Minn.

Starting near the headwaters of the Mississippi River, the 35th annual Finlandia Ski Marathon offers the beautiful old-growth woods of northern Minnesota, passing several frozen lakes along the way. Events include the Minnesota Finlandia 50km, Classic 25km, Bemidjithon 25km, 25km Pursuit and the First National Bank Northwoods 10km Tour. 218-751-0041; minfin@paulbunyan.net; minnesotafinlandia.com.

21. American Birkebeiner Feb. 23-26, Cable/Hayward, Wis. The Slumberland American Birkebeiner is the longest, most prestigious cross-country-ski race in North America and a member of the 13-nation Worldloppet League. The two premier events are the Swix Birkie 50km skate and 55km Classic races from Telemark Resort in Cable to downtown Hayward, Wis. Other events include the 23km Kortelopet for skiers aged 13 and older, the 12km Prince Haakon, 5km family ski, snowshoe and adaptive (para-Nordic) races, etc. Some 13,000 participants are expected over the weekend. 800-872-2753;birkie@birkie.com; birkie.com.

22. Lake Placid Loppet Feb. 25, Lake Placid, N.Y. Since 1982, the Lake Placid Loppet (LPL) has established itself as one of the premier events of its kind in the country, featuring the challenging Mount Van Hoevenberg trails at the Olympic Sports Complex. The 34th edition includes 25km and 50km races for both Classic and freestyle skiers, which are run on a slightly modified version of the 50km course constructed for the 1980 Winter Olympics. The three-day festival includes waxing and ski clinics, orienteering, a cocktail party and Saturday dinner. LPL is a qualiwww.skitrax.com

ORDA/ Whiteface Lake Placid

20. Minnesota Finlandia

Lake Placid Loppet

Povah Community Center (500 yards from the west entrance to Yellowstone National Park) and running through the Galatin National Forest on the Continental Divide; with an average visibility of 160 kilometres, the terrain is not considered difficult. An awards ceremony will be held at the Holiday Inn West Yellowstone. 406-646-7265; info@skirunbikemt.com; skirunbikemt.com.

25. Tour of Anchorage March 5, Anchorage, Alaska Billed as a premier ski marathon, the Tour of Anchorage (Alaska) is part of the American Ski Marathon Series, North America’s longest-running and largest Citizens’ racing and touring series. The Tour is a point-to-point cross-country-ski marathon that is at sea level. There are four events: a 25km Classic race and 25km, 40km and 50km freestyle races – you are also able to Classic ski the 40km or 50km races. In each event, abilities range from top National ski racers to recreational skiers challenging themselves with just going the distance. The 40km and 50km start on the east side of Anchorage and go through the middle of town along its bike trails. The 25km race starts in the middle of town and uses the same course. All the races finish at Kincaid Park. Nordic Ski Association of Anchorage, 907-2767609; director@anchoragenordicski.com; tourofanchorage.com.

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 59

Winter Trails

by Chris Redden

Expanded Format for 2017

I

nstead of being just a one-day event for children and adults new to snowsports to try snowshoeing and cross-country skiing for free, it has now become a month-long series of events. January 2017 is now Winter Trail’s month, which provides a chance to discover the great fitness and social benefits of these easy-to-learn winter sports. There are no trail or equipment fees for participants of Winter Trails Days.

Winter Trails is a collection of events at more than 100 locations

around the country that promotes snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. It draws more than 11,000 children and adults to try these activities every year. The events are broken down into two categories: Anchor Sites and Affiliate Sites.

The Anchor Sites generally host larger events that take place at select locations around the country. They are supported by many of the equipment suppliers who bring demo equipment for attendees to try during the course of the day. The event staff will help you put on the gear and give you a few tips to help you on your way to discovering the fitness and social benefits of this easy-to-learn winter sport.

If you already know how to snowshoe or cross-country ski, Winter Trails events are great opportunities to test the different models of snowshoes and skis with knowledgeable reps and staff who can help you to make sound buying decisions at your local retailer.

The 2017 Anchor Sites are at the following locations: n ADK Winterfest, Lake Placid, N.Y. - Jan. 7, 2017 n Estes Park, Colo. - Jan. 14, 2017 n Fort Snelling State Park, Minn. - Jan. 21, 2017 n Weston, Mass. - Jan. 7, 2017

Winter Trails programs and activities vary in size and scope, as each venue chooses a program that will introduce these sports to its community. Affiliate Sites have smaller events run entirely by the local resort or event host. These are generally more intimate events. There are approximately 100 of these events across the country.

Just the Facts

photos: wintertrails.org

www.wintertrails.org

(far left) Winter Trails offer a great opportunity to try out new equipment and perhaps a new sport. (above) Discover a few tips to help you on your way to discovering the fitness and social benefits of winter sports. (left) More than 11,000 children and adults try these activities each year.

60 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

www.skitrax.com

Snowshoe Racing

by Chris Redden

Pentathlon des neiges

Great Year for Competition in North America

F

or snowshoers in Eastern Canada, the Atlas Mad Touted as the world's Trapper Snowshoe Series is back to satisfy racers largest, Pentathlon des neiges offers multiple for another season with the region’s oldest, big- skiing, skating and gest and best snowshoe events. Taking place at the snowshoeing events, including an internaArk Conference and Outdoor Education Centre lo- tionally-sanctioned cated near Wakefield, Que., all events feature a 5km world-class winter or 10km option, as racers accumulate points in the triathlon. competitions for the overall series title. New for this year is a 3km option as well. For the 2017 season, there will be three races that will make up the series. Racing will begin on Jan. 7 on a hilly course and Jan. 28 in a night race. The series finale takes place on March 4.

Dion Snowshoes is sponsoring a seven-race series in Eastern Ontario beginning on Jan. 14 at the Frontenac event, before it heads to the Ignite the Night, a night race that takes place on Jan 21. The Brighton Race is up next on Jan. 29, which is followed by the Winter Goose Chase Race on Feb. 4. The Summertown Forest Race is the next event on Feb. 11, followed up by the Ganaraska Forest event on Feb 19. The Series final is the Red Barn Snowshoe Race on March 4.

The World Championships comes to North America to Saranc Lake, N.Y. in the Adirondacks on Feb. 25. This will be the first time that the World Championships will be contested in the U.S. There will be a 5km junior race, while the seniors will do the 10km. Competitors from around the world will be coming to race for the World title.

On March 3, amateurs and elites will gather on the Pentathlon site in

www.skitrax.com

historic Quebec City to participate in the WSSF North-American Snowshoe Championships. Catch the spirit and snowshoe under the stars on the historic Plains of Abraham, where racers will compete in either 5km or 10km races.

There is a new O Cup race series in Ontario this year that culminates in O Cup #3, which is the National Championships in Craigleith on Feb. 19 with races in 5km and 10km. O Cup #1 takes place at Fenlon Falls in the Kawarthas on Feb 5. O Cup #2 is at Albion Hills on Feb. 12 and includes fatbike races as well. The final event in the series, O Cup #4, takes place at Hardwood Hills in Orillia on March 5. All events feature both 5km and 10km race distances.

Touted as the world's largest, the Pentathlon des neiges events run from Feb. 24 to March 4, and its Quebec Winter Triathlon continues to be part of the International Triathlon Union (ITU) Winter Triathlon World Cup for the second year in a row. Starting off with an ITU 10km sprint on Feb. 26, then the Elite races go off after that. The Elite race is a 25km event that includes 5km snowshoe, 11km speed-skating and 9km cross-country-ski races. There is also a long-distance race as well as a school-challenge race.

The Gatineau Loppet, one of the largest cross-country-ski races in Canada, is also putting on the Quebec Provincial Snowshoe Championships.

The event takes place on Feb. 19 and is known as the Barbegazi Challenge.

There are two courses of five and 10 kilometres in the Gatineau Park, and the snowshoe races are part of the weekend of cross-country skiing.

Feb. 4 sees the Mammouth Race bringing the Abominable Marathon and Half-Marathon snowshoe races to Quebec City. There are also 5km, 10km and 15km races, along with fatbike races and trail-running events as well.

March 11 is the date for the Defi Mammouth Winter Challenge at Parc de la Chute in Montmorency, Que. There will be 5km and 10km races.

Western Canada sees the addition of racing at beautiful Lake Louise, Alta. on March 11. There will be both 5km and 10km races taking place right on Lake Louise. The 5km course is a scenic, flat, packed route across the lake, then back along the shoreline trail. The 10km course offers more of a challenge and veers off and up into the trees on deep snow and packed trail sections with an elevation gain of 295 metres.

There is also the Silver Skate snowshoe races on Feb. 11 in Edmonton.

This new event takes place at William Hawrelak Park and will have a 1km fun walk, along with a 5km race.

The U.S. will play host to the Dion National Championships that will be heading to Bend, Ore. for March 24-25. The 17th edition of the United States National Snowshoe Championship program will culminate in the National Snowshoe Championships. For 2017, there will also be the National Marathon Championship at 26.2 miles and the Half-Marathon Championships. Other National titles will be challenged over either 5km or 10km distances. Athletes of all ages may qualify for the event by becoming a USSSA member.

Just the Facts

www.snowshoeracing.com www.craigleith.com www.snowshoewc.com www.themadtrapper.ca www.snowshoecanada.com www.synergyark.com www.coursesmammouth.com www.gatineauloppet.com www.pentathlondesneiges.com www.saranaclake.com/world-snowshoe-championships/race-info WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 61

rACinG COMPETITION

Nordic Focus

American Jessie Diggins claimed her second-ever individual World Cup victory, winning the 5km fr individual Start on Stage two of the Lillehammer mini-tour in norway, the heart of the sport's homeland and site of the 1994 olympics.

62 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

www.skitrax.com

www.skitrax.com

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 63

COMP USA

SuperTour Battles Underway Gelso and Guiney in Charge

photos: Ian Harvey/Toko

by Julie Melanson

K

atharine Ogden (Stratton Mountain School [SMS]) topped the women’s field in the U.S. season-opener 5km FR contest, while Patrick Caldwell (SMS T2) ruled in the men’s 10km race. It was a decisive 26.7-second margin for Caldwell at the line as the season got underway in the U.S. on Nov. 25 at the West Yellowstone Festival following Thanksgiving celebrations.

Czech skier Petra Hyncicova (University of Colorado) battled for second behind Ogden at 11.8 seconds back, with Erika Flowers (SMS) just 1.5 seconds behind in third.

The men’s race was a battle for the two podium spots behind Caldwell, as Rogan Brown (Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation Sun Valley [SVSEF]) claimed second, with Mads Stroem (University of Colorado) in third.

The following day, Elizabeth Guiney (Craftsbury Green Racing Project [CGRP]) pipped Merete Myrseth (University of Utah) at the line by a mere 0.3 seconds to take the women’s 5km CL. Ogden was third at 11.1 seconds behind.

Scott Patterson (APU) was unstoppable in the men’s 10km race with a 20-second margin over Matt Gelso (SVSEF) in second, with Benjamin Lustgarten (CGRP) on the podium in third. According to Ian Harvey (Toko), “The snow was quite fast, although not at all icy. The tracks had some dirt, rocks and sand in them in some places, but overall conditions were good. Weather was gorgeous and the skating track was almost perfect.”

The first SuperTour weekend of racing and Round One of the 2016/17 USSA Cross Country SuperTour saw Gelso win a double-header. It took place Dec. 3-4 in West Yellowstone, Mont., as lack of snow at the original site in Bozeman, Mont. forced organizers to relocate the event.

Gelso took his first SuperTour win in the men’s 1.3km FR sprints, for a strong kick-off to the season, beating out Tyler Kornfield (Alaska Pacific University [APU]) in second and Reese Hanneman (APU) in third.

Gelso maintained a lead he established halfway through the final, crossing the line almost two seconds ahead of Kornfield, with Hanneman another 2.27 seconds back. Ben Saxton (SMS Elite Team), Cole Morgan (SVSEF) and Dakota Blackhorse-von Jess (Bend Endurance Academy) rounded out the heat.

In the women’s 1.3km FR, Jennie Bender (Bridger Ski Foundation) won over SMS’s Flowers and Annie Hart. Bender, the top qualifier, dominated, with Hannah Halvorsen (Sugar Bowl) claiming fourth, Chelsea Holmes (APU) fifth

64 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

and Hyncicova (University of (top) Matt Gelso (SVSEV) won his first SuperTour is the men's series overall leader.

Colorado) in sixth.

Day Two of the SuperTour (above left) Junior Katharine Ogden (SMS) had a strong start to her season with several podiums opener saw Gelso (SVSEF) top (above) Jennie Bender (Bridger Ski Foundation) of the podium again, winning took the opening women's freestyle sprint. the men’s 15km Classic Individual Start with a hefty 32.2-second margin over Lustgarten (CGRP), followed by Patterson (APU) in third.

In the women’s 10km Classic Individual Start, Guiney (CGRP) stopped the clock with a time of 33:52.8, securing her the win over Ogden (SMS) in second at 7.7 seconds back. Kaitlynn Miller (CGRP) rounded out the podium in third at 28.4 seconds back.

U.S. skiers dominated the Opening Round of the Haywood NorAm Buff Sprints, which also doubled as Round Two of the USSA SuperTour on Dec. 10 in Vernon, B.C. Held at Sovereign Lake, the 1.2km CL sprint saw Julia Kern (SMS T2) win the Open Women’s race, while Hanneman (APU) cruised to victory in the Open Men’s race.

Guiney and Miller rounded out the U.S. podium, barely edging out top Canada’s Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt (Alberta World Cup Academy), who was the top qualifier by more than two seconds. In the final, Bouffard-Nesbitt had a large lead at the top of the saddle climb, and maintained that to the finishing straight, where the three American skiers overpowered her in the double-pole dash to the finish.

Hanneman led a U.S. podium sweep in the men’s race after qualifying 15th. Morgan (SVSEF) and Saxton (SMS Elite Team) rounded out the podium.

Denver University’s resident German Moritz Madlener was fourth ahead of Gelso (SVSEF), who precipitated a big semifinal crash that left Antoine Briand (CNEPH/Skibec) as the only Canadian in the A Final, ending up sixth.

In the junior women’s race, Hannah Mehain (Sovereign Lake) dominated the qualifier by 6.3 seconds and comfortably won all three heats to take her first win of the season. Claire Grall-Johnson (Nakkertok) finished second ahead of Katie Weaver (National Junior/Hollyburn). Taeler McCrerey (Denver University) was to top U.S. skier in fifth.

Gareth Williams (Telemark) was in dominant form in the junior men’s race, winning the qualifier and all three heats to easily own the day. Graham Ritchie www.skitrax.com

(Team Ontario/Big Thunder) and Levi Nadlersmith (NDC Training Centre) filled out the podium, with Canyon Tobin (APU) the only American in the A Final.

Day Two at Sovereign Lake was a wintry day, -10°C. with light falling snow, for the Interval-Start skate races. For the women’s 10km, Holmes (APU) came away with the win, 36 seconds ahead of Flowers (SMS), who was followed four seconds later by Caitlin Gregg (Team Gregg) in third.

The U.S. dominated the podium in the senior races as Patterson gave APU another win in the men’s 15km skate event, powered by a blazing-fast opening lap. He finished 13 seconds ahead of Gelso (SVSEF). Third was Tad Elliott (Vail), another 13 seconds later.

For the juniors, U.S. sensation Ogden (SMS) won the race in a time that would have placed her second in Open Women’s race, 13 seconds from the lead. Annika Richardson (Hollyburn) was the top Canadian in second at 2:20 behind Ogden. Halvorsen (Sugar Bowl) was third just behind Richardson, and fourth and fifth, (second and third of the Canadians) were

Mehain (Sovereign Lake) and India McIssac (Rocky Mountain Racers).

Philippe Boucher (Skibec) was the top junior man in a time that made him the third-fastest Canadian in the Open Class. Ty Godfrey (Canmore) was 46 seconds back, followed by Williams (Telemark) eight seconds later.

2017 USSA SuperTour Standings as of Dec. 11, 2016 Overall Men 1. Matt Gelso (SVSEF) 101; 2. Ben Saxton (Stratton Mountain School) 52; 3. Scott Patterson (APU) 52; Women 1. Elizabeth Guiney (Craftsbury Nordic Ski Club) 82; 2. Jennie Bender (Bridger Ski Foundation) 74; 3. Erika Flowers (Stratton Mountain School) 71.

Distance Leader Men 1. Matt Gelso (SVSEF) 55; 2. Scott Patterson (APU) 51; 3.

Benjamin Lustgarden (Craftsbury Nordic Ski Club) 40; Women 1. Katharine Ogden (Stratton Mountain School) 50; 2. Elizabeth Guiney (Craftsbury Nordic Ski Club) 43; 3.

Chelsea Holmes (APU) 40.

Sprint Leader Men 1. Reese Hanneman (APU) 51; 2. Matt Gelso (SVSEF) 46; 3. Cole Morgan (SVSEF) 41; Women 1. Jennie Bender (Bridger Ski Foundation) 46; 2. Julia Kern (Stratton Mountain School) 41; 3. Elizabeth Guiney (Craftsbury Nordic Ski Club) 39.

CXC News Getting Kids Outside The original idea for the CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools program was developed by the late John Hugus, an avid cross-country skier and the founder of the Knicker Nordic Ski Club in Wausau, Wis. His goal was to introduce a new generation of children, Kindergarten through Grade Six, to the excitement found in the sport of cross-country skiing. Hugus stated, “By providing elementary- and middle-school students an opportunity to experience Nordic skiing during the school day, with their teachers and classmates, they will quickly learn health and lifestyle benefits associated with exercise and outdoor winter fun.”

The CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools program is a three-way partnership between selected schools, community organizations and Central Cross Country Skiing (CXC). This unique partnership creates an opportunity to teach skiing during the school day: at physical-education class, recess and after-school programs. Students are able to ski right behind their school on any surface covered with a minimum of two inches of snow.

During the inaugural season (20132014), the National Winter Sports Education Foundation (NWSEF) awarded CXC a grant to initiate the CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools program in 15 schools throughout Wisconsin and Minnesota.

During the second season of programming, the NWSEF awarded another grant to further expand the CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools program throughout the Midwest.

Other organizations have pledged their support for future expansions of the CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools program, including the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation, Sawyer County Outdoor Programs and Education, Madison Sports Commission and the Aspirus Foundation, along with many www.skitrax.com

community ski clubs and school programs.

Now in its fourth season, the CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools program has made an impact on thousands of new skiers and has enrolled more than 125 schools across the

country from California to Vermont. Each program provides a clear pathway for families and communities to further advance in the sport of cross-country skiing. Besides skiing, these programs aim to connect students with history and science by teaching them about Midwestern Scandinavian heritage and sports.

The future looks bright for creating a culture of skiing in every community across the country. If you would like the CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools program in your hometown school, please send your tax-deductible contributions to the address below.

CXC Nordic Rocks for Schools P.O. Box 930443 Verona, WI 53593 WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 65

COMP CANADA

Haywood NorAm Buff Sprints 2016/17

U.S. Skiers Invade Canada as Season Gets Underway

Mark Duperreault

by Julie Melanson

Dec. 10-11 - Sovereign Lake, B.C. The Haywood NorAm Buff Sprints started off the Canadian competitions at Sovereign Lake Nordic Centre, which also doubled as Round Two of the USSA SuperTour. The strong American contingency led on Day One, with Julia Kern (Stratton Mountain School [SMS] T2) winning the Open Women’s 1.2 CL sprint and Reese Hanneman (APU) taking the victory in the Open Men’s race.

In the women’s sprints, Elizabeth Guiney and Kaitlynn Miller, both of Craftsbury Green Racing Project (CGRP), rounded out the U.S. podium, edging out Canadian Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt (Alberta World Cup Academy [AWCA]), who was the top qualifier by more than two seconds. In the final, Bouffard-Nesbitt had a large lead at the top of the saddle climb and maintained that to the finishing straight, where the three American skiers overpowered her in the double-pole dash to the finish.

Hanneman saved his sprint legs for the final round. After qualifying 15th, he raced his way back to the top, leading a U.S. podium sweep in the men’s race, followed by Cole Morgan (Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation Sun Valley [SVSEF]) and Ben Saxton (SMS Elite Team). A big semifinal crash left Antoine Briand (CNEPH/Skibec) as the only Canadian in the A Final, ending up sixth.

In the junior women’s race, Hannah Mehain (Sovereign Lake) dominated the qualifier by 6.3 seconds and comfortably won all three heats to take her first win of the season. Gareth Williams (Telemark) followed suit in the junior men’s race, winning the qualifier and all three heats.

On Day Two at Sovereign Lake at -10°C with light falling snow, the women’s Interval-Start 10km skate saw Chelsea Holmes (APU) coming away with the win, 36 seconds ahead of Erika Flowers (SMS), who was followed four seconds later by Caitlin Gregg (Team Gregg) in third.

The U.S. dominated the podium in the senior men’s races as Scott Patterson gave APU another win in the men’s 15km skate event, powered by a blaz66 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

ing-fast opening lap. He finished 13 seconds ahead of Matt Gelso (SVSEF).

In third place, Tad Elliott (Vail) crossed the line 13 seconds later. The top Canadian was Russell Kennedy (Canmore Nordic) in ninth.

In the juniors, U.S. sensation Katharine Ogden (SMS) won the race in a time that placed her second in Open Women’s. Philippe Boucher (Skibec) was the top junior man.

Dec. 16-18 - Rossland, B.C. It was a chilly day of approximately -15°C in Rossland, B.C. as the athletes headed out on Day One of the Haywood NorAm mini-tour. With a 10/15km Interval-Start skate race on the program, it was a good test to see who could push themselves against the clock, in what could be quite slow conditions.

While the U.S. contingent was sparse compared to the previous weekend at Sovereign Lake, it still set the standard in the women’s race as Holmes skied to a 50-second lead in the first 5km, to win by 1 minute, 49 seconds over Flowers.

Bouffard-Nesbitt retained her position as the top Canadian on the Continental Cup leader board, with a bronze. Coming in as the second and third Canadians were junior Annika Richardson (Hollyburn) and Katherine Stewart-Jones (Nakkertok).

In the junior women’s race, Richardson was the top skier, with a 39-second lead over Mehain. Natalie Hynes (Whitehorse) was third.

In the men’s 15km FR race, Kennedy had a fast opening lap, but it was Evan Palmer-Charette (Lappe Nordic-NTDC TBay) who skied away to a 31-second win on the final 10km. In third was Erik Carleton (Rocky Mountain Racers).

Williams was the top junior man once again, 13 seconds ahead of Boucher and 22 seconds ahead of Reed Godfrey (Canmore Nordic). www.skitrax.com

Julie Melanson

REPOUR

Another chilly day of -15°C greeted skiers for the next round of the Haywood NorAm Buff skate sprints that took place at Black Jack Ski Club. In the morning qualifiers, Bouffard-Nesbitt and U.S. sprint star Andy Newell (SMS) set the performance standard. Newell, one of the top World Cup sprinters, was more than five seconds ahead of Simon Lapointe (Skinouk).

In the heats and semis, Bouffard-Nesbitt and Flowers battled, with Flowers coming out on top by half a second in the finals. Stewart-Jones edged Holmes for third.

The men’s semis saw some great competition as both top three’s were separated by less than a second. The final looked to be a close contest, but the veteran World Cup skier Newell came through with a one-second win over Julien Locke (Black Jack) and Palmer-Charette who were separated by 5/100ths of a second. Third was Kennedy.

In the junior women’s class, it was Bend, Ore.’s Maya Seckinger (Bend Endurance Academy) who claimed the win, while Godfrey dominated the junior men’s race, a second ahead of Williams.

The final day of the Haywood NorAm featured a Pursuit-Start Classic race determining the mini-tour champion. On the women’s side, Holmes led 1.37 seconds over Flowers and Bouffard-Nesbitt was another 43 seconds back.

In the men’s race, Palmer-Charette showed his strength with a comfortable 40-second lead over Kennedy, and finished ahead of Newell almost another 30 seconds back.

The U.S. skiers dominated the podium over the first two days, but on the final day, it was Stewart-Jones who climbed to the top of the podium for Canada with a six-second victory over Holmes in the 10km Pursuit race. Flowers was 48 seconds back, less than a second ahead of Richardson, who was the second-best Canuck. www.skitrax.com

(facing top) Women's CL sprint podium at Round One in Sovereign Lake, B.C. (l-r): Elizabeth Guiney, Julia Kern, Kaitlynn Miller, Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt, Jennie Bender. (above) APU's Reese Hanneman cruised to victory in the Open Men's CL sprint race at Sovereign Lake, B.C., with Cole Morgan (SVSEF) in second and Ben Saxton (SMS) in third.

The senior men’s 15km Pursuit race was won by Alexis Dumas (Skibec), followed by Jack Carlyle (Soo Finnish) and Carleton.

Hynes won the junior women’s category and Williams won the junior men’s race.

In the final Haywood NorAm mini-tour standings, it was Holmes winning for the women’s overall and Palmer-Charette taking the men’s title. In the overall series standings, Stewart-Jones leads the women, while Palmer-Charette is the frontrunner for the men.

2016/17 Haywood NorAm Buff Sprints Overall Standings after Rossland, B.C. Distance Men 1. Evan Palmer-Charette (Lappe Nordic-NTDC TBay) 200; 2. Alexis Dumas (Skibec-CNEPH-NST) 180; 3. Jack Carlyle (Soo Finnish-AWCA) 140; 4. Russell Kennedy (Canmore Nordic-Team R.A.D.) 130; 5. Erik Carleton (Rocky Mountain Racers-PNST) 120; Women 1. Katherine Stewart-Jones (Nakkertok Nordique (QC)-NTDC TBay) 160; 2. Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt (Fondeurs-Laurentides-AWCA) 140; 3. Annika Richardson (Hollyburn Ski Club-NTDC TBay) 100; 4. Hannah Mehain (Sovereign Lake Nordic-NJrST) 80; 5. Jennifer Jackson (Lappe Nordic-Team Hardwood) 76.

Sprint Men 1. Evan Palmer-Charette (Lappe Nordic-NTDC TBay) 92; 2. Simon Lapointe (Skinouk-CNEPH) 81; 3. Julien Locke (Black Jack Ski Club-NST) 80; 4. Antoine Briand (Skibec-CNEPH) 72; 5. Angus Foster (Big Thunder Nordic-NTDC TBay) 66; Women 1. Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt (Fondeurs-Laurentides-AWCA) 130; 2. Katherine Stewart-Jones (Nakkertok Nordique (QC)-NTDC TBay) 75; 3. Andrea Dupont (Rocky Mountain Racers) 56; 4. Maya MacIsaac-Jones (Rocky Mountain Racers-AWCA) 54; 5. Annika Richardson (Hollyburn Ski Club-NTDC TBay) 40.

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 67

COMP INTERNATIONAL

USA's Diggins Wins Gold FIS XC Ski World Cup Underway

by Julie Melanson

T

(clockwise from top) Jessie Diggins (USA) claimed her second-ever individual World Cup victory in Lillehammer, Norway; Sadie Bjornsen (USA) topped the women's qualifications in the CL sprint in Lillehammer, Norway; Alex Harvey (CAN) had one of his strongest starts to the season with two top-10 results.

Nov. 26-27 - Ruka, Finland Snow fell throughout the competition of the opening round of the Viessmann FIS XC Ski World Cup in Ruka, Finland, as Sadie Bjornsen (USA) led the North American women of the four who qualified, ending up 17th in the women’s 1.4km CL sprint. Stina Nilsson (SWE) took her first-ever win in Classic technique.

Jessie Diggins (13th), Ida Sargent (23rd) and Sophie Caldwell (30th) also advanced, along with Sadie Bjornsen (seventh), while Kikkan Randall, who was off last year giving birth to new son, Breck, settled for 52nd in a tie with teammate Caitlin Patterson. Both were just behind Dahria Beatty (CAN) in 50th and Rosie Brennan (USA) in 44th.

In the men’s race, Paal Golberg (NOR) took the men’s first win of the season, as Alex Harvey (CAN) was the lone North American to make the heats, ending up 25th on the day, just missing out on a Lucky Loser spot to advance to the semifinals. Calle Halfvarsson (SWE) was second, grabbing his first-ever World Cup podium in a Classic sprint. Meanwhile, rising young star Johannes Klaebo (NOR) captured his first-ever World Cup podium.

Speed king Andy Newell (USA) was a surprise miss, qualifying 40th. Fellow American Erik Bjornsen was just behind in 42nd, while Len Valjas (CAN) was 54th.

Marit Bjoergen (NOR) was in charge of the women’s 10km CL Interval Start on Day Two in Ruka. Missing last season’s World Cup with the birth of her first child, she clearly did not forget how to win. In just her second competition of this new FIS cross-country season, she was back again on top of the World Cup podium.

Close behind her was Krista Parmakoski (FIN) at 4.6 seconds back, and

in third for the second day in a row was Heidi Weng (NOR) at 12.7 seconds off the lead. Diggins had a strong showing, finishing 13th as the top North American. Following in 17th was her teammate Sadie Bjornsen, who had the best result in Saturday’s CL sprint and was looking for a bigger hit in the 10km.

Cendrine Browne, 21, from St-Jérôme, Que., led the way for the Canucks in 58th. Emily Nishikawa of Whitehorse finished 59th, while Beatty, also of Whitehorse, was 74th.

Harvey put in a solid day at the office, claiming 11th in the men’s 15km CL Individual Start, as Iivo Niskanen (FIN) proved he is in top form in taking a thrilling victory at home. Emil Iversen (NOR) was second at 10.2 seconds behind, while teammate Martin Johnsrud Sundby finished in third at 11 seconds off the lead pace.

Canada’s Devon Kershaw, who has been showing strong form in his World Cup tune-up races, also put down a solid performance on Sunday, finishing just outside the points in 33rd place. The U.S.A.’s Erik Bjornsen finished in 41st, but was not expecting great results at Ruka, having suffered a bad rollerski crash at Soldier Hollow.

he World Cup is underway, and North American skiers have come out of the gate with strong early results that could foretell their fortunes at the Tour de Ski and Lahti 2017, the biggest events this season.

68 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

(facing from top left) Canada's Emily Nishikawa and Cendrine Browne in the mix; Marit Bjoergen (NOR) was in charge again at only her second competition after taking a year off to give birth to her son; Martin Johnsrud Sundby (NOR) won the mini-tour at Round Two in Lillehammer, Norway.

Dec. 2-4 - Lillehammer, Norway Sadie Bjornsen lit up the scoreboard, topping the women’s qualifications in the CL sprint in Lillehammer, Norway in Round Two of the FIS World Cup. www.skitrax.com

low-carded. Harvey’s momentum was effectively killed at that moment, and he fell to the back of the pack.

Valjas was the top North American qualifier in 19th; after battling a sore knee following surgery nearly three years ago, it was one of his best results in two years.

The U.S.A.’s Erik Bjornsen qualified in 30th, also advancing to the heats, but his day ended with a fifth place in his quarterfinal heat. Canada’s Kershaw was 42nd, the U.S.A.’s Newell was 47th, with teammate Simi Hamilton in 48th.

Harvey delivered another strong result the following day, finishing 10th in the men’s 10km FR Interval Start, as Halfvarsson made it two for two. Teammate Marcus Hellner was second, with Russia’s Sergey Ustiugov in third. Surprisingly, Norway was shut out at home.

Noah Hoffman was the top American in 33rd. Canucks Kershaw skied to 40th and Valjas was 42nd.

On the women’s side, Diggins claimed her second-ever Individual World Cup victory, winning the 5km FR Individual Start in Stage Two of the mini-tour.

photos: Nordic Focus

When the dust settled, it was Weng of Norway taking her first-ever World Cup victory in a sprint competition after recording 10 sprint podiums in previous World Cups. In second place for the second weekend in a row was teammate Maiken Caspersen Falla, with Hanna Falk of Sweden in third.

Diggins and Sadie Bjornsen drew the same quarterfinal and were eliminated, finishing third and fourth respectively and ending up 14th and 17th on the day. Caldwell was fifth in her heat, while Sargent did not advance either.

None of the Canadian women advanced, as Nishikawa was the top Canuck in 62nd.

Harvey placed a strong 10th in the men’s 1.6km CL sprint, with teammate Valjas in 13th as the three-day mini-tour got underway. Halfvarsson claimed the win, extending his overall series lead, Norway’s Iversen was second, while Sweden’s Teodor Peterson captured the final podium spot.

Harvey qualified 23rd and went on to win his quarterfinal heat, but in his semifinal, he was cut off by Halfvarsson, for which the Swede was yel-

Diggins put 4.8 seconds on second-place finisher and tour leader Weng of Norway, while legendary Bjoergen finished third.

American Sadie Bjornsen continued her strong early season, finishing 14th – her fourth-straight top-20 finish. The top Canadian finisher was Browne.

Finishing 50th, she was at 24 seconds of the top 30.

The next day, Diggins led the North American women, finishing eighth in the women’s 10km Classic Pursuit finale. Weng (NOR) won the Pursuit and her first FIS World Cup mini-tour, with teammate Ingvild Flugstad Oestberg in second and Parmakoski (FIN), who started the day in fifth, taking the final podium spot.

Sadie Bjornsen was 11th, while the top Canadian was Emily Nishikawa in 46th, with Browne finishing 52nd and Beatty in 59th.

Wrapping up the three-day mini-tour in the men’s 15km CL Pursuit, it was another solid day for Canada’s Harvey, who continued to impress by finishing ninth overall with the sixth-fastest time of the day.

The pace was driven by Johnsrud Sundby (NOR) as a group of 12 chasers caught lead skier Halfvarsson, with approximately five kilometres to go. Johns­ rud Sundby made his move on the last lap on the longest climb of the course and scattered the lead pack to cruise home for the win by 2.3 seconds.

2017 FIS XC Ski World Cup Overall Standings after Round Two in Lillehammer, Norway Women 1. Heidi Weng (NOR) 459; 2. Ingvild Flugstad Oestberg (NOR) 369; 3. Krista Parmakoski (FIN) 357; 4. Marit Bjoergen (NOR) 333; 5. Stina Nilsson (SWE) 286; CAN/ US 9. Jessie Diggins (USA) 168; 10. Sadie Bjornsen (USA) 130; 37. Sophie Caldwell (USA) 21; 47. Ida Sargent (USA) 11; 53. Liz Stephen (USA) 5; 56. Caitlin Patterson (USA) 3; Men 1. Martin Johnsrud Sundby (NOR) 350; 2. Calle Halfvarsson (SWE) 316; 3. Johannes Klaebo (NOR) 304; 4. Emil Iversen (NOR) 281; 5. Paal Golberg (NOR) 260; CAN/US 10. Alex Harvey (CAN) 174; 47. Len Valjas (CAN) 20; 52. Devon Kershaw (CAN) 16; 64. Erik Bjornsen (USA) 7; 73. Noah Hoffman (USA) 2. www.skitrax.com

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 69

WAXWorX

by Jack Cook and Patrick Moore

Waxing Protocols

Benefits and Consequences

F

or most coaches, the alarm clock rings Cross Country Alberta and Cross Country early on race days. A tour of almost any Ontario, have instituted bans on high-fluoro race venue will present a flurry of activity waxes and products for the current season. that begins hours before the race and conEnsuring a fair competition between athtinues until the start time. Coaches, staff and letes is often cited as a main reason for the athletes are busy testing skis, waxes and wax protocols. Anyone who has waxed skis various other treatments in order to gain an at a high level knows that the wax matters a advantage over the competition. But, inlot, but the Hippocratic Oath – “Do no harm” creasingly, some North American federations – is the most significant target. Mandating a areST moving to reduce or eliminate11/30/15 glide wax c wax HPeaks 8th Ann 2013_Pedal Template 11:55specifi AM Page 1 ensures that no athletes are takas a variable in races through the creation of en out of the race on the basis of wax alone, waxing protocols. While these protocols have eliminating that variable as a stressor for athclear benefits, there may also be unintended letes, coaches and selection committees. consequences that should be considered.

The question of health impacts of waxWax protocols have long been associated ing products is also noteworthy. There can with qualifying races in biathlon. Both the US be no doubt that high-fluoro products can Biathlon Association and Biathlon Canada be dangerous if applied without the propuse a pool system where coaches from all er safety equipment. While seeing waxers clubs come together to wax all the race skis and coaches with respirators is becoming a with identical wax. Cross Country Canada more common sight, athletes still inevitably employed a similar system at the November walk into the wax cabin unprotected at in2016 World Cup selection races in Canmore, opportune times. Banning these products, Alta. Other local governing bodies, such as and allowing only low-fluoro waxes, limits

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the exposure of both athletes and staff.

Lastly, there is the cost of waxing, both in terms of money and time. High-fluoro products are expensive and may keep some families away from the sport. But as coaches spend increasing amounts of time selecting the wax for race skis, that perfection may come at the cost of actually spending time with the athletes. This is especially true in the case of small clubs and teams that do not have a dedicated waxing staff. Requiring all athletes to race on the same wax certainly eliminates this concern. And banning high-fluoro products, and therefore eliminating many of the variables for coaches to test, may also aid in redirecting the attention of coaches.

However, the success of these waxing protocols depends on the ultimate goals.

While having all athletes race on the same wax certainly eliminates one variable, the bigger variables of ski selection and grinds are still left in play. Most waxers agree that it is these two variables that have by far the biggest impact on ski speed.

The elimination of high-fluoro waxes may help to redirect the attention of coaches away from testing by removing powders, blocks and liquids as ski-preparation possibilities. But coaches may still look for advantages in finding the optimal low-fluoro wax for the day. In that way, testing may still occur, but just with respect to different products.

Enforcement of this protocol also becomes a question on the minds of many coaches.

Finally, anyone who has ever competed in a Classic race knows that the grip products, both their selection and application, often have a more dramatic impact than the glide products. Therefore, waxing protocols that simply address glide wax are likely missing the most important variable, at least with respect to Nordic skiing.

The spirit of waxing protocols is noble, as it makes ski racing more inclusive and more athlete-focused. However, to ensure success, it appears that these rules require ongoing refinement based on the feedback of the beneficiaries – the athletes and coaches. It is this ongoing communication that will ultimately determine the success of waxing protocols, as they are implemented by more and more federations. www.skitrax.com

Graves on nordic

by Peter Graves

The Joy of Announcing

See You at the Start Line This Winters

www.skitrax.com

courtesy Peter Graves

N

Placid.” It took me about a nanosecond to reply “Yes, of course.” Following an interview in the Big Apple, I was on my way to Lake Placid and the 1980 Olympic Winter (left) Graves outside the Games.

International Broadcast Compound with ABC's Monday Thrilled, ebullient and very much on top Night Football commentator of the world, I went into the tiny village in Don Meredith. the Adirondacks. I quickly discovered how tough network television sports really were and how many announcers would fight and claw their way for more face time on the tube during an Olympic Games. I wasn’t cut out for that kind of “behind-the-scenes action,” but I did my thing and it went okay. That led to a longtime gig with the upstart ESPN in Bristol, Conn., not many hours south of my home.

The building was not even finished when I went on the air with the late Jim Simpson, a talented and kindly gentleman in the latter stages of his career. We were doing voiceovers of ski events from Holmenkollen to Lake Placid. Our monitors were placed high on cardboard boxes. There were no working toilets yet either; we had to use the porta potty out front.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Now having wrapped up my 10th Olympic Games PA assignment in Rio, Brazil, I can look back with a sweet sense of joy and humbleness on just what a ride it’s been.

With a bad knee now, I can’t cross-country ski much anymore, but I can alpine ski and I love it. Being outdoors, with the smell of fresh air and the sun on the face imparts to me a truly timeless quality.

I love announcing and being around athletes and coaches. I don’t care if it’s an Olympic announcer’s suite or if I’m out on the porch. I don’t care if it’s an Olympic trial or a NENSA qualifier. I love being at the start of the Birkie and helping encourage, inspire and prepare racers for their own personal challenge. I am so impressed and deeply moved by the efforts of athletes, athletes of any age. I thank you – you give me a reason to be, and I love you for that.

Maybe it’s a feeling you could spend your life looking for. For me, I’ve found it at ski races, with a chair and holding a wireless mic.

And it’s all because of you! What a gift. I’ll see you at the start line this winter. (above) Graves with Cross Country Canada's Dave Dyer in Canmore, Alta. during the 1988 Olympic Winter Games.

Bob Woodward

ot long ago, a young ski racer came up to me at a Holiday race and waited politely for me to stop talking into the mic. Then, without a hint of mean-spiritedness, he looked me in the eye and said, “Hey, why do you do this – really, what is this announcing at a ski race all about?”

It was a good, fair and well-timed question, given that I was out in the middle of a snowstorm and was more than a little cold. I tried to give a thoughtful answer in the time allotted. I said that an announcer helps get people to the start line on time, calls off the finish times, does a bit of play-by-play and, oh yes, and tells the people gathered about the great sponsors of the event. He seemed satisfied with my answer, and went on his way to race in the Bill Koch League category.

The one thing I wished I had added for the lad, who was, maybe, 10 years of age, was “And by the way, it really helps if you love it. That it moves you is an important thing.”

The truth is, this goes back to my early days on skis, falling in love with the sport and surrounding myself with both a loving family and also incredible role models such as Mike Elliott, Bob Gray, Mike Gallagher, Jimmy and Pat Miller, and many more.

My first Nordic-skiing public-announcing (PA) gig, was, as best as I can recall, in Durango, Colo. around 1973 doing the Fort Lewis College (FLC) Rocky Mountain College Carnival’s ski-jumping meet at Purgatory.

Dolph Kuss, my FLC coach, had always supported and encouraged me, and he gave the go-ahead for me to handle the PA duties. It was cool, it was fun and it gave me a purpose beyond my own racing.

From those most humble days, I worked in radio in Durango, in TV in New Mexico, and finally was offered a job in Wisconsin’s Northwoods at the famed Telemark Lodge in Cable by Tony Wise. He was a bundle of energy, creativity and kinetic pacing, the likes of which, to this day, I have never witnessed in anyone else. One of a kind, he was.

One of Wise’s greatest gifts was that he was a dreamer; he simply saw things others didn’t. Along the way, he made so many of us, touched by him, dreamers too.

First hired as the Telemark public-relations director, Wise let me announce pretty much every event he had: from the early days of the Birkie, to Hayward’s Lumberjack World Championships, to the first World Cup at Telemark and, yes, even Fourth of July fireworks. It was a wonderful training ground and I just learned by doing, and by enjoying. When I left Telemark to go to NorTur, Inc. in Minneapolis, Minn., my dear friend Tom Kelly took my position, while Wise and I maintained a warm friendship that still included my announcing his events.

It was in November 1979 that in my Minneapolis office I got an unexpected phone call from legendary ABC Sports producer Chuck Howard. “Might you be interested,” he said, “in working for us in Lake

WINTER 2016/17 SKITRAX 71

sasseville report

by Jack Sasseville

Doping, New CEO, Results Making Headlines

Angus Cockney

most definitely have a problem with using the medication if you are not asthmatic. To me, using too much is taking advantage of an existing situation to get an unnatural performance enhancement, and using it if you don’t need it is downright cheating. Many doctors and researchers in Scandinavia are quoted as saying that using these medications will not help someone who does not have asthma. If this is the case, then why are the coaches and doctors on the Norwegian team telling their athletes to use it?

Doping in Norway – Over the fall, this Theresa Johaug claims it was has been the No. 1 topic in the sport of an innocent mistake despite the labelling on the package. cross-country skiing, and involves two separate doping cases and two suspensions of the best male and female skiers in the world.

Does this mean there is something rotten in cross-country skiing in Norway? Maybe. According to Theresa Johaug, she is innocent of doping, but guilty of ignoring the package labelling and of trusting her team doctor. It is hard to believe, however, that neither of them saw the huge NO DOPING label on the box and tube of lip cream. Whatever she is guilty of, it is the athlete’s responsibility to make sure that a doping product is not used. It has been recommended that she receive a 14-month suspension, which is the shortest ever given for the use of this product. To her supporters, her tears are real, and they believe she shouldn’t be punished so heavily. To her detractors, they are “crocodile tears,” and that they are masking something. I am on the fence here – she has been too good for too long for me to believe that she is using steroids for performance, however, this is a banned substance and she should have been more attentive. What do you think?

The other major doping story in Norway involves asthma medication. Actually, it is three stories. One story is about Martin Johnsrud Sundby using too much before races. The second revolves around the number of asthmatics on the Norwegian team. The third concerns Norwegian coaches’ and doctors’ recommendation that skiers who do not have asthma use the medication “for preventative measures.”

As a lifelong asthmatic, I have no problem with skiers diagnosed with asthma by a reputable independent doctor using asthma medication. It certainly helps me to breathe “normally” at high intensities.

I do have a problem with using higher-than-correct dosages, as did Johnsrud Sundby. I also have a problem with using the nebulizers in the waxing trailer between qualifying and heats on sprint days. And I 72 SKITRAX WINTER 2016/17

New CEO for Cross Country Canada – After less than a year in the position, Pierre Lafontaine has left CCC for Cycling Canada. This was bound to happen, given his living situation. His family remained in the Ottawa, Ont. area while he was resided alone in a rental suite in Canmore, Alta. This may work for a young athlete, but not for him. While in Canmore, he missed his family, and while at home in Chelsea, Que., he was not able to perform his job nearly as well.

It didn’t take long for CCC to announce his replacement. Shane Pearsall is a former Olympic chef de mission and athlete, a former CEO at Bobsleigh and Luge and, even more importantly, an executive in the “oil patch” in the past decade. With CCC’s biggest challenge being a lack of funds, he appears to be the right person for the job.

Early-season Results – As I write this column, it seems to be business as usual on both the Canadian and American teams as the season gets underway. Alex Harvey is consistently near the top of the results for Canada and Jessie Diggins continues to shine for the U.S. Her win in Lillehammer demonstrated that she continues to improve, and she is now one of the top-three non-Norwegian skiers in the world. With Charlotte Kalla currently diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, Diggins may move up even more.

The rest of the Canadian team, with the exception of a 13th place

by Len Valjas, has not done all that well. This is the start of the qualifying period for Canada for the 2018 Olympics, and, so far, Harvey has made the required two results to be nominated and Valjas has done it once. Devon Kershaw has been close, but the rest of the men and women skiers are a long way off individually. It looks as if they may have to make the standard in the relays or Team sprints in order to qualify. There are still many races left this year and into the start of next year, so no need to panic just yet. It would be better though to qualify this season and plan to be at one’s best in February 2018 and not have to be concerned with peaking early in the Olympic season.

The American women’s team continues to be strong, with great depth. It seems that every race there are at least three women in the top 30 collecting points. The men continue to be in the middle of the pack and, to me, do not seem to be moving forward.

Norway continues to dominate the men’s and women’s result lists, with incredible depth in both teams. Cross-country skiing in Norway is like hockey in Canada. Kids grow up wanting to be skiers. They see skiers on TV every day, the top skiers are superstars in the country and there are great ski facilities in every small town and city. Nowhere else in the world is the sport of cross-country skiing as important as it is in Norway. It really is a nation “Born on Skis.” www.skitrax.com

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