Archive | Junior Blog

Online school is winding down, and you can tell the hunger for summer is here when morning sessions are just as well-attended as afternoon ones. Luckily I think this is one of the most comprehensive and available (for obvious reasons) coaching staffs we have ever been working with! Our crew of leaders is able to spread-out and cover a wide range of abilities, with the added benefit of keeping group sizes down.

Although VT guidelines permit outdoor recreation in groups of 25 we are generally sticking to the 10-12 range as our group is mostly split among age group every session.

Last week we got out for some really cool workouts, and I’m excited to report that whether it’s running, biking, or rollerskiing, we’re really reaching levels of fitness and preparedness to take on most any challenge this summer.

Finnegan’s first time at the prayer flags in Richmond. It was a little drizzly on this day but that’s actually a great type of weather for trail running

We switched-up the usual track/trail running intervals on Tues/Wed and opted instead for a longer continuous effort on the Cochrans trails. Since we were planning some rollerski intensity Thursday and the Bolton Test on Saturday we took it a bit easier to start the week. The parking lot at Cochrans was PACKED on Tuesday afternoon though. We counted 95 cars in the lot. Hopefully nobody beats my friend Ben and I to our idea of starting a food truck there for weekday after-work hours…

Rose, Isabelle and Lily finish up the run on the River Trail (Tuesday’s group had a bit more sun than the Wednesday group)

Thursday and Friday were back to the sunny, humid stuff we’ve seen a lot of this spring. We had some double pole intervals where the U16 group stuck to one side of the Southridge Neighborhood while the older crew had a set loop in the other side of the development. However, both Perry and I got some bike-cam footage and I was able to compile it together so it at least feels a little bit more like a big, usual summer group!

Saturday was the one-and-only Bolton Uphill Run Test! We usually do this in early may but thanks to the virus (and some late snowfall) we held off for a bit. It was also divided into groups rather than the big mass start we have typically held. Oh, and some lingering fog made it all the more distant-seeming! Our work to run more consistently this spring has definitely paid dividends already…we had a lot of boys doing the test for the first time and we had a girls conglomerate that absolutely demolished the clock! Congrats to Ava on a new athlete record and to everyone who got their first test under them. Personal-bests were set by Julia Oliver, Virginia, Silas, Lydia, and Niko!

Julia en route to a new PR

Ava receives her pint of Ben and Jerry’s for breaking the current-athlete record…oh, and Julia gets a bag of chips too by request

We finished the Saturday off with a mountain bike ride at Saxon Hill. Now, I used to have the hardest time convincing anyone on this team to come out for a second training session in a single day, let alone after the uphill run test. But how the times have changed! We had 12 kids out on bikes and a great time was had. The U16s rode one section while the U18+ rode another, and then we swapped places. Fun times and a great way to get in some active recovery. This group is ready for some bigger riding for sure.

Some very capable U16 riders

In addition to getting acclimated to a new training environment in the COVID-19 world, we also had to acclimate to some serious heat this week. With temps in the mid-90s, and not a cloud in sight, it was time to bust out the sunscreen as well as the hand sanitizer. When it comes to ski racing though, we are pretty used to extremes. We didn’t have any truly brutal cold race days this past season, but we know they will happen! Likewise, we’ve got to be ready to handle some heat now and then so long as we stay hydrated and prepared.

Some 30/30 speeds on Thursday, in our favorite Southridge neighborhood. While some of the roads here are getting old in terms of skiing them again and again, the location is great because we can have 2 separate arrival/parking areas (U16 at Allen Brook, U18+ at WCS) to not have too much congregating, and easy access to both hillier and flat routes.

After getting some skiing under our belts in the past couple weeks it was time to speed it up for some work where we could challenge balance and timing. Cool to see how far many of us have come, and identify new goals for the summer technique work.

Water break sponsored by TOKO

U16 squad in Jericho

So far, we’ve done a good job of adhering to a spring/summer goal of incorporating some more dirt road running to build up running economy as well as bring in consistent aerobic work that you can get on dirt roads but not always on steep, grind-heavy trails. On this day (Saturday) we divided up and I led the U16s on a 7-mile run on Old Pump Road while Perry led the older group on the 9-mile Cilley Hill loop. Both classic Jericho roads that many might be familiar with!

With a split between morning and afternoon groups, we had a crew of one (Silas) and the two of us had a nice sunny run followed-up with some creemee takeout at Palmers. Remember to support those local businesses!

Broken-down ski fence in Jericho…maybe you will spot this on a run of your own sometime! 

Going into next week and the month of June, with regards to COVID-19

We have done an ok job maintaining good practices, but there is more we can do. A few reminders going forward:

• A big “congregation” point is the beginning and end of practice. The start of practice, as skiers arrive, is harder to maintain. Please try to be on time for practice, dressed in training clothes before arrival, and minimize gathering.
• Last week it was pretty tough to wear a buff (even around the neck) in the hot and humid temps. But this is something a lot of us (including me) can make a better effort at. Being a little uncomfortably hot is just going to be the norm for the time being. We will continue to have individual ziplocked bags of washed buffs for distribution at practice for those who don’t have them on-hand on a given day.

We were due to receive a bit of sun and heat after a typically-grim Vermont April and start to May. And we were delivered an amazing week to start pushing into some of the tougher and more challenging workouts now that we have our feet under us! It has been a while since our last 3k/3000m running test…so long in fact that I couldn’t find the times I had written down. No matter, we have a new archive and one that will probably be updated a lot more as we continue to refine how we approach and incorporate good testing into our groups.

The 3km was held over 2 days with 4 separate “races” in order to keep numbers low. It took place over two of the hotter days of the year, which gave way to some serious sweat and sunburn. Thankfully we have a new after-practice staple that I picked up from Coach Sara…POPSICLES. Usually I am a big watermellon guy for warm training…bring a big melon, split it up after training, and everyone digs in. Though these days, all that shared touching of food is off the table (pun intended) so the hot temps, combined with single-serve nature of popsicles, is just so simple it makes you wonder why we DIDN’T do it sooner!

Anyway, enough about popsicles and more about training…the 3km was a good baseline test which we will use not only for a pure test of fitness, but almost more importantly to correctly pace other track and running workouts whether they’re distance or intervals. From the soon-to-graduate 8th-graders to the soon-to-graduate-high-schoolers we had some speedy times and some great efforts in the race: it’s always great to see how people respond to a race situation and what steps can be taken to improve the mental side of things too.

Kai is spent. It’s popsicle time.

With a sweaty rollerski on Thursday and Friday, including some of the first double-pole specific work of the year, the legs got a bit of a break. But only until Saturday, when we had our first day at Cochran’s for a run group and a bike group. The sun was shining bright and families, riders and runners were out in force. With a new pumptrack and beginner loop right at the main base area, my theory of Cochran’s/Richmond becoming the next Kingdom Trails/East Burke is unfolding right before our Bliz-covered eyes.

A squad of MNC bikers reaching the top of the ski hill

Hanna reaches liftoff!

And to cap it all off, here is a special shot for all the OG fans out there…Greg, Conor and Kai out for a ski. Greg and Conor are headed to Bozeman, MT now where they’ll link up with Meredith and Will along with many other college folk in preparation for next season.

#throwback

Juniors and parents:

With the Spring program underway successfully we have gone ahead and opened up the payment option, with pro-rated pricing for missing the very beginning of the “season” with State regulations. There are now 2 Spring Registration forms on the website.

Fill out the Original, full form if you have not yet put in all your information (like health insurance, waiver signatures, etc) which can now accept payment

Fill out the new, shorter form if you have already completed the longer form and just need to submit payment.

Both of these forms can also be found as links on the MNC Registration homepage

It has been a very different week of training in comparison to years past…with COVID-19 always on the mind we approach training differently every day, and with a careful eye for safety in areas we used to take for granted.

Hand sanitizer is omnipresent

Getting creative has always been a ski coach job requirement, but this Spring has been a whole new level. Not only in terms of how to effectively meet as a group

while adhering to many safety guidelines, but in terms of how to have fun as a group and spend quality time together with an invisible 6-foot barrier between everyone. Skiing is not a contact sport BUT…team games, most teambuilding activities, snacks and food, fitness challenges…so much of what we often do does involve closer proximity than we can have right now. We don’t realize it until we’re restricted as we are now. So the creativity has to fill the gap.

We split training into blocks. Usually the Spring program is Tues/Thurs/Sat. This spring, two back-to-back days are scheduled as identical in time, location,and session. Athletes sign up ahead of time to indicate which they’ll attend, which takes a larger group and splits it across multiple days. Saturdays are divided into morning and afternoon.

I was worried I’d lose my mind because I’d be doing (or at least present for) everything twice in a row. But in fact it has been great! The first day of a given session gives me a chance to see how things play and I can make adjustments if needed for the following day.

But nobody wants to read more recaps and responses about Coronavirus at this point in the news cycle: so here are some photos showing what positive and cool things we HAVE been able to do!

Registrations are now live with programming fees available! We had held off until knowing that the first week could be done successfully and safely. We continue to forge ahead in this brave new world of spring training, so if you have not signed-up yet, OR have signed up previously and would like to go ahead and submit payment, please see the MNC Registration page.

For info about Mountain Camp, please see this recent post. If you had signed-up for Mountain Camp before the location change, your spot is still in place!

Coach Perry brings it home as his group completes their 10-mile run along the Winooski River in Richmond. We split into 2 groups, one running a loop clockwise while the other ran it counter-clockwise, swooping past each other in the middle

Warmup run with some foam pipe insulation…”if you’re close enough to hit someone, you’re too close”

Ali and Sammie spotted at Saxon Hill

These guys have graduated BKL and are headed to the world of Junior racing now! Watch out world.