For the first time in a long time there were no big races this weekend. Everyone has stepped back to catch their breath after a rapid-fire January and start to February. For some Juniors this meant resting, and for others it meant putting in some volume in order to stay fast at the end-of-season championship races.
We got in some doublepole work on Thursday with the Devo Group, many of whom are looking ahead to next year when they’ll be full-fledged Juniors!
Everyone made some rapid progress on their double-pole, as we worked with both hills and flats. Before we started the video and speeds, we watched this clip of the racers who double poled the 10km classic Eastern Cup last weekend:
A key thing to watch for? Some MNC skiers tried a little too hard to “force” certain body positions these older skiers demonstrated…namely, the feet falling behind the body with each cycle (observe Henry Harmyer at :20 sec in, for example). It’s important to understand that this motion/position is a result of other strong technical elements like forward hips and powerful core engagement, and not an element of technique in itself but part of the bigger picture.
This is not dissimilar from “standing up on the toes” during a flat double pole. Many young racers see Andy Newell or Petter Northug in this position and immediately emulate it while double poling at any speed or intensity. In reality, strong skiers are not just standing on their toes but pulling their heels up from the momentum and force of their whole body surging forward. Always important to understand and play with the cause/effect of every aspect of technique!
The big story this week was the COLD. The wind chill was -41 Saturday night! It was a quick trip back to the chilly days of last season I was reminded the value of three key parts to warm skiing:
- a buff
- a vest
- overboots
Take note! Just those three items make a BIG difference when the wind and cold strike fierce. The toughest of the tough were out to put in the work, though, like Chloe and Peter who saddled up for a pre-qualifiers TT to get ready for Easterns Qualifiers next weekend:
The only photo I got before the camera froze! Negative temps doesn’t mean negative training
Those qualifiers will be the big target for many MNC Pugs after a few local HS races midweek. The championship season is surprisingly right around the corner! We will be heading all over the region and the country, reresenting the club with fast skiing! At the Junior National level, Greg has recently set up a crowdfunding campaign for his trip to Wisconsin…This season Greg has taken a big step forward in his racing and, more importantly, his quality and serious approach to training. If you are interested in helping him fund his trip to Junior Nationals please click THIS LINK.
Stay warm everyone!
