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Masters Training 12/15 – 12/17

By on 13 December, 2015 in Masters Blog, Masters Training Schedule

Congrats to all the Masters who competed in the inaugural MNC SkiErg 500m Challenge! Times are posted right next to the Ergs and remember…if you arrive early there’s no hard in putting in some double poling time!

Beer and ski ties...for an event as brutal as a SkiErg race you just need some extrinsic motivation!

Beer and ski ties…for an event as brutal as a SkiErg race you just need some extrinsic motivation!

When the prizes are beers wrapped in Toko ski ties, you are sure to get a fierce competition!

World Cup-worthy podium shot!

Masters and Juniors training together at Dee PT: Karen and Sharon work on balance while Will and Eliza hit the SkiErg! It's not too late to join us Wednesday nights!

Masters and Juniors training together at Dee PT: Karen and Sharon work on balance while Will and Eliza hit the SkiErg! It’s not too late to join us Wednesday nights!

Training this week

12/15 – Dynamic warmup followed by continuous bounding intervals, choice of shorter course or longer course! Ending with balance drills and group core exercises.

12/17 – Alternating group skiwalking/running with poles and group circuits. This week we will change up circuits and structure them so that each exercise is done together by the group at the same time! There will also hopefully be some music!

12/19-20 – NENSA Eastern Cup Openers! Racing Masters might want to get some racing in with this high-level event…a chance to go head-to-head with Junior, Collegiate and other Masters racers!

Juniors seeking snow and racing fast

By on 13 December, 2015 in Junior Blog

The snow dances continue as we await some real snowfall here…it has been a trying time to be a skier, but thanks to great efforts by Craftsbury, Rikert and Sleepy Hollow there has been skiable terrain if you know where to look!

Craftsbury hosted the first HS race of the season. It was a highly-anticipated event after a summer of great training, big improvements and more than a little trash-talking. When the dust settled, MNC-affiliated skiers took top honors in each event.

Aside from winning the short prologue stage of the Tour De Chittenden last season, Greg Burt spent much of last season duking it out with MNC senior athletes Ethan John and Charlie Maitland. On Saturday, Greg asserted himself with a strong win in the men’s Varsity event, while joining him in the top ten were Peter Unger, Baxter Bishop and Tim Cobb.

Towering equally high over her competitors (literally), Marika Massey-Bierman skied an incredibly smooth and quick race to take the victory in the women’s event. With slow and slushly snow, skiers that kept a good rhythm and rode flat skis really maintained their momentum and it was clear without looking at results that both Marika and Greg had very good control over their technique and power. Congrats!

Winning ran in the family this day, as Aidan Burt and Quincy Massey-Bierman surged to wins in their respective races, as well. Could we be looking at the next Northug or Bjornsen siblings? Only time will tell!

RESULTS

In search of a different slim patch of snow to cruise around on today, a few of us ventured to Rikert where we heard tales of a different strip of skiing! It is so sad to think that as of December 13th we’ve skied on a total of 2 different kilometers of snow (if you don’t count that alpine slope at Stowe). The Rikert loop was particularly thin, narrow and dirty after a bout of racing and warm weather the previous day, but it was incredible to see what they pulled off at all! Many thanks to everyone at these ski centers who have pushed the boundaries of what snowmaking can do. Winter is still on!

Getting ready to apply some klister this morning at Rikert. The snow patch can be seen in the background!

Getting ready to apply some klister this morning at Rikert. The snow patch can be seen in the background! Got to see some skiers from Clarkson, Bowdoin, HURT Nordic and Dublin today. 

MNC Masters Remind App!

By on 8 December, 2015 in Masters Blog, Masters Training Schedule

Masters,

For up-to-the-minute changes and notifications, MNC will be starting to implement a tool called “Remind” this season.

This service allows teachers (or in this case coaches!) to send group messages to a class (or in this case a team!). Within our club framework, the “Remind” service will often be used for last-minute changes or updates to practice…think icy roads or changes in technique due to grooming difficulties.

Signing up is simple: you can visit THIS PAGE to see how to sign up for MNC “Remind” notifications.

If you have already signed up for our Masters programs, you should have just received an email detailing how to sign up directly. 

We hope this allows smoother, more direct and more hassle-free communication about practices!

BKL Training – 12/8 – 12/12

By on 6 December, 2015 in BKL Jackrabbits, BKL Race Blog, BKL Training Schedule

BK Race, Jackrabbits & Penguins

It looks like we are not going to get snow this week, but it should be a great week for dryland training- dry and highs in the 40’s.

Tuesday 12/8

– Dryland Training at the Range! Wear your running sneakers and bring your classic poles.

Thursday 12/10

– More Fun Dryland! Wear your running sneakers and bring classic and skate poles.

– Classic Wax Pocket Marking:  If your child will be skiing on Classic WAXABLE skis this year and he/she has not had their wax pocket measured and marked, bring your CLEANED & SCRAPED skis to practice and we will do it. This is very important to do every year, especially for growing kids. If you have any questions, email Coach Rosemary: sheacobb19@gmail.com.

BK RACERS 12/12:

-Saturday, on snow at Craftsbury. There is a high school race scheduled at 10 AM, so we will tentatively plan to practice in the afternoon from 1:30- 3 pm. Middle school skiers who are in touch with  their future high school coach may be able to do the HS race- check with your high school coach. Everyone, CHECK THE BLOG FRIDAY NIGHT for updates & technique.

Coach Rosemary’s Tip of the Week: A great way to dry out really wet sneakers or ski boots:  1) Take out the insoles  2) Stuff the shoe/boot with  as much crumpled up newspaper as you can fit 3) leave them overnight by the bottom of your refrigerator where the heat vent is (or by another source of heat).  4) Change the newspaper after it gets saturated (after a couple of hours)- this will help them dry out faster.

Friday Foxes

Friday 12/11

We are on this Friday Dec. 11, for Day 1 at our new location!  Danny Clayton  and Eric Barker and the MMU nordic team have been working hard to get our new trails cleared and set for the Friday Foxes to hit the trails.  Meet us by the baseball dugout behind the school at 3:40 so we can explore the new trails, play lots of games and choreograph a snow dance. 
 
 Please come prepared with appropriate shoes to run and play, warm clothes, rain jackets,  and/or hats & mittens,  we will not let a little rain and cold weather scare us away.   Please keep an eye on your email for possible cancellations. (You may send direct email inquiries to eden_shullenberg@hotmail.com)

Lapsbury 2015

By on 6 December, 2015 in Junior Blog

Back during the pitiful winter weather of the 2011/2012 season I spent every day of my winter break driving to Craftsbury to ski on snow. It was a simple life: wake up, drive 1.5 hours to the loop, ski a bunch, take a nap in the touring center (back when it was just the small building by the pond), eat some lunch and ski again.

I referred to the place as “Lapsbury” and I was dizzy from a 1.5k loop that wound through the woods.

This year, we’ve so far been on a .5 out-and-back that has expanded to a 1k loop pretty much all in a field. And nobody is complaining! When the rest of the ground is mud and grass and we can still pop on our race skis and bang out a solid 2hr session we have many smart minds, a lot of research  and long nights by the snowfarming crew to thank.

Chlolo Jones enjoying some sunshine in her new boss shades

Chlolo Jones enjoying some sunshine in her new boss shades. In her words, “I like my body position in this shot”. Coach agrees.

Although we are hungry for more kilometers to explore, this small loop format does offer some benefits for athletes and coaches.

-Nobody gets lost

-It is easy to watch skiers and see what they’re up to (filming video is easy…just stand in one place and wait 1-2 minutes and an athlete is sure to go by!)

-Waxing is simple, and even if it gets complicated the wax room is never more than a few strides away

-You get to see anyone and everyone! This one can be a blessing or a curse depending on just how many people are crammed into the same small loop and you’re trying to do skate speeds…

We’ve mixed dryland training with skiing this week, and we’ll continue to do so. It can be great to jump back and forth to measure just how accurate your bounding is compared to the real thing, and just how short and agile those rollerskis are…on Friday we did short skate speeds on the paved loop at WCS with rollerskis, and Saturday we did the exact same workout on the Lapsbury loop with real skis and soft mushy snow…that was quite a difference!

The first High School race is next Saturday, and the Eastern Cup Opener a week after that. Let’s hope for some flakes before then!

Speeding through the slush

Speeding through the slush, chasing down a crowd

Greg and Adam may or may not be sponsored...no big deal

Greg and Adam may or may not be sponsored…no big deal

Until we get on the real stuff….THANKS CRAFTSBURY!

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