Every spring, the MNC Board meets to reflect on the past season in order to make adjustments and set objectives for the next year. As part of this reflection, we value member feedback and would appreciate you taking at moment to complete a brief program survey. To do so please click here.
Updated: BKL Practice Week of 3/14
Update 3/13– Because of the predicted blizzard of Tuesday/Wed., we are moving our End-of-Season awards to Thursday. We will still practice on Tuesday for everyone who can make it. We will still Skate on Tuesday and Classic on Thursday.
This week marks the official end to our program, however, we will keep skiing through March, as long as the snow holds out. We realize that some kids are starting other sports, but for kids who still want to ski, we’ll keep posting practice on the blog through March.
Tuesday 3/14: Skate Technique. Game Day
Thursday 3/15: Classic Technique. Don’t forget to take any klister off your skis because we’ll be using hardwax!
1) BKL End of Season Party & Awards!
2) Parents should bring snacks.
3) I will also have program surveys for parents to fill out. Please help us improve our program by filling out a survey!
Lessons from Junior Nationals
I’ve just returned from a week in Lake Placid, where I coached the U16 Boys component of the New England team. This was a stressful and busy week, but an extremely rewarding one as well. The U16 boys (“Da Boiz” as they became known) were a great group that raced fast, got along really well, and truly worked together and supported one another: exactly what you’d expect from a group of athletes at this level!
I’d like to share a few lessons that I thought about during the week, mainly brought on by carefully watching and contemplating what the top athletes and teams in the country were doing and how they were conducting themselves. Of course, not everything about this week is serious business, as you’ll probably see. That being said, here are a few takeaways!
1. Fast classic skis win classic races
From the U16 girls to the U20 men, the classic sprint day was the “tale of fast skis”. The course climbed straight up, then ripped straight down to the finish. It was untechnical to say the least. The long downhill meant plenty of opportunity to make time and moves with fast skis: almost universally, strong athletes in the heats were ones that chose minimal klister and ended up running or herringboning furiously on the uphill section in order to rocket down the ensuing descent and into the stadium. There was a marked line of “too much kick” and if that line was crossed, you could kiss your chances of advancing goodbye! It takes guts, a bit of technical skill, and a lot of faith in yourself and your training to purposefully err on the side of faster, slippier classic skis…but as strength training continues to evolve and equipment keeps getting better, this idea won’t go away anytime soon.
2. Fitness gets you in the top 20. Technique gets you from 20th to 10th. Build the first, then hone the second
At the Junior National level, it’s hard to pick out athletes who are just plain unfit: nearly every competitor is a stellar athlete psychically. Although there are a few exceptions, the large majority of the top 10 racers in each age group displayed great technique and balance. Much like World Cup racers, they “made it look easy” and weren’t necessarily the ones gritting their teeth or smashing away at their poles. Instead, they were the ones skiing smoothly with poker faces and minimal wasted effort. Knowing what they’ve been doing all summer from social media posts, every time I saw an Alaskan suit ski by I couldn’t help but start laying out trail running and rollerski routes in my head as I ponder the summer of training ahead and the increased amount of work our group will put in.
3. Independence goes a long way on race day
This was something that really stood out from one age group to another. The New England team tries to take a modern, World Cup-style approach to these races: that means there is a group of coaches whose job is almost entirely to be with the athletes, and there is a group of wax techs whose job is almost entirely to prepare skis. Some wax techs did not leave the cabin all day and their only race information and excitement came from the crackle of the radio. Some age group coaches did not touch race wax all week, as skis were simply handed to athletes and coaches ready to race from the smoking powdery trailer.
So this gives age group coaches flexibility to be with their athletes on race day, but there are other duties too. Taking splits for another age group, carrying skis from part of the stadium to another, shuttling athletes to and from the hotel…for athletes themselves, there is not a lot of hand-holding, even at the U16 level. The onus is on the athlete to test skis, report feedback, know when to get the timing chip on the leg, remember where they left their warmup skis, know the time-of-day in order to get to their start, etc. This is something that has to be practiced routinely at all times of the year: the most successful athletes have their own plans and follow them.
4. Discipline and consistency eliminate wasted time
When MNC athletes arrive at training, there is customarily a social timeframe for casually putting on boots and skis, chatting about class that day, deciding what to wear for the ski, etc. On our first training day, every single one of the U16 boys walked up to the van with their boots and ski clothes already on…and this was before we even started driving to the venue. This time, I was the one left inside as the skiers began their workout. In this case it was because I didn’t want to drive with my ski boots on, but you get the point. For most MNC practices, I can think of about 20-25 minutes of lost time spent getting ready to ski, coming in to change clothes or get a snack, and more. 20 minutes per workout, times 6 workouts a week, times 52 weeks per year…you can see where this idea is headed…
5. The higher the level of competition, the more each second counts
In the U16 men’s skate race, 8th place and 17th place were 9.9 seconds apart. That’s about the time it took you to read these two sentences.
Every transition, every low tuck, or every extra push out of a downhill or into an uphill, affects the shape of the race. At the highest levels of competition you need to be on your game even more.
13th place, 2.2 seconds from the top ten! Tim worked every part of the course for a great result on Monday
6. Every new event is a learning experience
Not anything new here, but something worth repeating. Ski racing is full of amazing opportunities, and each new step to a higher level brings athletes AND coaches up. On the car ride home Tim, Brandon and I talked a bit about the states of Championship level racing available for Vermonters. The U16 festival is a super fun event that is the first taste of an “Championship” travel weekend. Easterns is a step up in terms of serious focus and competitiveness going down the results sheet. Junior Nationals is on a whole different level, with “even the organizers and the town just doing everything right” so said Timmy. As another coach put it, the next level up, at World Juniors, is just intense focus and preparedness on all fronts.
So, make the most of each experience, and embrace the stepping stones of the ski world! With that, here are a few more fun random photos from the week:
Da Boiz getting ready for a pre-race speed at the base of the jumps. Weather early in the week was sunny and nice! Then things got cold…L-R Timmy, Zander, Josh, Will, Matt, Griffin
Getting in the team spirit with a little van decorating of our U16 Boiz minivan
A customary move is for your age group to bring gifts to the wax techs as thanks for great skis. Since the U16 boys knew they would not win on baking or cooking skill, we got a bunch of tasty chips and salsa and really tried to win on presentation with wrapping paper, a classy bow, and a some beautiful artwork
In case you hadn’t heard…New England once again claimed honors as top region in the country by a HEALTHY margin, winning the team score in EVERY race of the week en route to the overall victory (photo: NENSA)
All results via Superior Timing
2017 BKL Festival Recap
Results: Bullet Timing
More Photos: 2017 BKL Fest
Twenty-two MNC skiers skied in the New England Bill Koch Festival at Gould Academy in Bethel, Maine this past weekend. This year’s festival had a “Protect Our Winters” super-hero theme. The idea was that you could come, park your car for the weekend at your hotel and ski or walk to all the venue events on Bethels’ interconnected trail system. Unfortunately, with Saturday’s forecasted temps in the single digits and high winds, the event organizers made the wise choice to move the race venue from the open stadium & fields behind the Gould Field House to the more wooded & protected trails at Pine Hill, which is a short ski up the road. In addition, to limit cold exposure to skin, they shortened the races and had the older kids go first when it was coldest.
Saturday dawned on a cold morning as predicted for the skate relays. Skiers and parents bundled up for the cold. The day started with the girls’ 7/8 relays featuring Quincy Massey-Beirman tagging off to Camille Bolduc and Hattie Barker tagging off to Ava Thurston.
Here’s Massey-Beirman-Bolduc tag-off. Notice the matching leg tights! That’s Ava in the background soon to be tagged by Hattie.
Quincy & Camille put on quite a big lead over everyone and finished first! Hattie and Ava did an awesome job too and finished fourth in a very fast field of skiers!
Next came the 7/8 boys in which Aiden Burt was paired with Frost Mountain’s Neil Guy and Jack Christner.
That’s Neil out front in the orange FMN suit just after the start.
Aiden skiing his team into first place!
MNC had seven 5/6 girls racing in the relay and they all proved themselves quite fast!
Virginia scrambled and tagged off to Esther in third place, not far behind the Ford Sayer team. Esther put the pedal to the metal and quickly passed Ford Sayer’s Sarah Gluek and the Cobb-Cuneo duo brought home second, finishing only about 1o seconds behind the EMBK team. Great work girls!
Greta Kilburn teamed up with Carly Trapeni and these 5/6 girls meant business (notice the focus in Carly’s face here). They pulled in an excellent sixth place in the competitive 5/6 field.
Finley Barker has worked hard on her skiing this year (look at that well balanced skate stride!). She anchored to Julia Thurston’s scramble leg and they finished eleventh. Mia Diller teamed up with Frost Mountains’ Marjorie Christner and Mad River’s Caroline Purcell. All skied well and finished in 19th. What an awesome group of 5/6 girls!
Next was the very competitive 5/6 boys race where we had the three-some of Taylor Carlson, Carl Priganc and Jordon Shullenburger. Taylor scrambled and here you see him tagging off to Carl and Jordon who skied like the wind and finished eleventh.
Pippa Diller teamed up with Frost Mountain’s Violet Anderson for the girls’ 3/4 race and pulled in a seventh. I think Pippa’s face paint certainly helped!
The boys’ 3/4 race went very well for MNC. Niko Cuneo tagged off to Brady Morgeau and Cole Shullenberger who came in one behind the other and clinched it for a first place podium finish! All the Festival medals were made of sustainable wood by Gould students- a nice touch!
The 1/2 relay was a mixed gender event and Kate Carlson and Ryley Migeau skied really well and finished third behind two all-boy teams. Although they were first for the girls, they weren’t too happy to be beaten by a couple of boy teams. You’ll get them next time girls! Tessa Diller did well with her team-mate from Frost Mountain, June Yates-Rusch and ended up on the podium with a seventh place (that’s her on the far left). Great skiing girls!
Because of the cold, the parade and the awards were held inside at the end of the day. We all wore capes and paraded around the field house with the rest of the districts. The field house had an expo feel to it with District food tables set up, info tables, lots of people and of course, the kids playing basket ball in their socks. There was also an indoor skate park which was great fun in socks! After the parade and awards, it was on to dinner and a well-earned rest!
Sunday was the individual classic race. A glorious sun beamed down on a cold and breezy morning. Coaches & Wax Techs Rosemary, Tom Thurston, Eric Barker & Damien Bolduc were on site early, testing the klister and trying to figure which was fastest with the best kick! Because the temps were forecasted to rise considerably, we elected to set up the food tent at the race venue so we could have some hot food for everyone on-site.
Thanks to Eric Barker, we used the MMU wax trailer to haul lots of gear and as a base for waxing. We parked it in a perfect spot- warmed by the sun, close to the race trail, easy to test skis and a little bit out of the hullabaloo of the start/finish area.
For the classic races, skiers were started in waves of six every minute. MNC skiers skied well and proved once again that they are a force to be reckoned with!
The day started with the girls’ 7/8 race. Quincy, Ava & Camille have been skiing together and trading first place finishes for many years now and this year continued the saga. Today was Quincy’s day- she got Ava by half of a second! Camille finished in a strong fifth. Hattie Barker (MMU suit, above right), a seventh grader, skied very well and came in 27th. Camille and Quincy are graduating from BKL and will move on to Eastern Cups next year. Ava & Hattie have one more year in BKL. If these gals keep skiing together, they all are going to get faster and faster! Watch out world!
In the boys 7/8 race, eighth grader Aiden Burt double poled the entire 3.7 km course to a first place finish. He graduates from BKL this year as well and is pumped to move on to Eastern Cups next year!
As mentioned earlier, we had seven girls in the 5/6 race and they all skied really well!
Esther Cuneo used her upper body strength and double poled the 2.7km course to a first place finish! Virginia Cobb had another stellar performance and beat out some of her New England rivals from Ford Sayer and Putney to finish fourth!
Carly Trapeni had her best race of the season with a fourteenth place! Finley Barker kicked and glided her way to a 28th. Greta Kilburn also had a great race and finished 19th!
Julia with her quick technique skied into 16th and Mia Diller rounded it out for the girls, coming in 39th.
In the boy’s 5/6 race, Taylor’s excellent classic technique put him in 21st and Carl’s strong double poling resulted in a 29th (below: Carl on the left, Taylor on the right).
Jordon Shullenberger, who only comes to practice about once per week because he’s usually playing soccer, finished 11th in the boys 5/6 race! What a performance!
After the morning races, it was back to the wax bench because things had warmed up considerably, calling for a change in the wax of the day for the younger kids. Eighth grade graduation and the lollipop race followed, giving us a nice break before the younger kids’ races.
In the 3/4 boys, race, Niko Cuneo decided to double pole it, put in a fantastic effort and came in second! Brady Morigeau skied really fast as well and finished fourth, one second out of third! Cole Shullenberger (above on the left), also had a great race and finished 15th! In the girl’s 3/4 race, Pippa Diller skied very well and finished 17th!
Bundled Relay partners!
Last but not least, was the 1/2 boys & girls race. Kate Carlson handily won the girls race with her relay buddy, Ryley, coming in fifth and Tessa Diller not far behind in tenth. Unfortunately, our team photographer had to leave and could not get photos of all the younger kids racing. If anyone has some good pics of these young skiers, please send them to me and I will add them to our Flikr album.
Kate after the classic race.
All in all, another great Festival for MNC! It’s impressive that most of our kids finished in the top 20 of their age groups! So many thanks to everyone who helped make the Festival fun and successful for the kids: Victoria Priganc for organizing the food, Dave Priganc who took all these pictures, Eric Barker, Tom Thurston & Damian Bolduc for helping with the wax, Heidi Hill and Brad Carlson who helped our kids in the relay tag zone, and all the coaches and parents who brought food, made sure kids were keeping warm, and got kids to the start on time. It certainly takes a village, or rather, a Club, to pull all this off! Driving home from the Festival, I felt exhausted but exhilarated and so proud of all our kids! They are totally awesome!
Masters Making Maple Syrup out of Lemons
The recent thaw has not deterred many of our Masters from continuing to train and search for snow.
Last Tuesday Masters made the best of the warm temps with some dry land training at Sleepy Hollow. In addition to the usual fare of running and bounding drills, was a tour of Sleepy Hollow’s Sugar Shack by Eli Enman. Athletes were also rewarded with a taste of some warm maple syrup!
Photo Courtesy of Steve’s Strava.
Dave Johnston, Steve Messier and Ellie Bouffard went in search of snow and were rewarded with some great conditions and great results at the Rangley Loppet.
Image courtesy of Nick Persampieri
For those not willing to travel so far, conditions at Crafstbury were still quite nice. So let’s hope the next thaw doesn’t hit us too badly.
Finally, Jim Fredericks and Joanna Hanowski have taken the travel to the extreme and can now be found in Switzerland at the World Masters.
