​Six races in nine days. There were good moments and not so great moments. We were treated to just about every type of weather possible, with it changing every ten minutes. We walked away tired, but also a little bit tougher.
 
After a hard weekend of racing in Falun, Sweden, the US team made its way to Ostersund, Sweden. We spent four days previewing the courses for the first two races of the ski tour, a 10k skate race followed by a 10k classic pursuit race. We explored the town that is home to many of the Swedish National Team and rested up for a crazy week.

​I loved racing the 10k skate; we were on a twisting course that offered steep uphills, grinding false-flats and fun downhills. It was energizing to ski with my fellow Americans during the race, seeing Hailey Swirbul on my first lap of two, and then catching a bit of a ride from Sadie Bjornsen when she caught me from 30 seconds back. With encouragement from the coaches and exciting crowds, I was able to ski my way to a career best, 43rd place. I rode this high for about 24 hours until we started the pursuit style 10k classic race in some gnarly, wet, snowy conditions. Being the type of athlete that prefers to build into a race, I found myself kicked out the back of our wave start of 30 skiers, as the women tried to chase down THE Therese Johaug.

​Although I was bummed about this race, I couldn’t help but be happy and proud of my teammate, Julia Kern, who skied the 6th fastest time of day! Her best ever distance result on the World Cup by a landslide! We had little time to reflect on this though, because the very next day we traveled to the next location, Are, Sweden. Switching up disciplines, the Ski Tour challenged us all with a skate sprint race directly up an alpine mountain! This was without a doubt the most bizarre ski race I have ever done and without having much of a chance to ski the course ahead of time I had no idea how to pace it. So, I just went for it! My legs were shaking at the finish line and it took me about 15 minutes to walk the 700 meters back down the mountain, but this ended up being a sprint best for me in 42nd place! I went straight back to our hotel to rest up for a 34k race we had coming up two days later. 

​We skied very little on our rest days during the tour, but still enjoyed getting out to move the body a bit. Finally, we reached the day that I was looking forward to the most out of the whole week: a long-distance skate mass start race that went out into the backwoods of Norway. Despite my enthusiasm going into the race, things didn’t quite click for me that day. After 8 kilometers of straight uphill and a pack of women chasing down Johaug (again), I thought it was about time I took a feed so I could avoid bonking later in the race. However, it turns out that this 8k of working hard meant that my stomach was already in knots and as soon as I took a feed, I knew something bad was about to happen. I had been hanging on to the back of a large pack of skiers up until this point, but when that sugar-water hit my stomach, my gut said, “no thank you,” and I found it coming right back up. Dealing with this hiccup I lost the draft of my pack and found myself alone out in the fields of Norway fighting against 35 mph winds for another 24k... You live and you learn. 

​The final stages of the tour went by in a bit of a blur and I couldn’t quite find the physical or mental racing gear that I needed in order to finish it off on a high note. I felt defeated and tired, and although part of me wanted to keep pushing and grinding through another two weeks of European World Cups, I knew I needed a break. On the evening of the last tour stage, I booked a flight back to the US for the very next morning and packed my bags. Sitting on the plane I felt disappointed in this outcome, but I quickly realized that it was okay to feel this way. It means that I care and that I want to do better next time. Also, as soon as I landed in Minneapolis and made it back to my own bed, I knew I had made the right decision.

Despite tricky conditions and missing some of our goals throughout the week, the team found one thing we could always count on to make us smile. Throughout the stadium at each race venue the announcer's voice shouted through the microphone, “Welcome to the Ski Tour 2020!!” However, they pronounced this in Norwegian every time and it turns out that the translation of “2020” is pronounced “shoogie shoogie.” Whether the US team was out testing skis, running to the start line, or collapsed at the finish line, we would hear this over the intercom and get a good giggle out of it. :) Sometimes, it’s the little things.

​I have now been traveling on the World Cup circuit for five weeks and have finished nine races. I am currently in the middle of the 2020 Scandinavian Ski Tour which consists of six races in nine days throughout Sweden and Norway. So far, I have faced a lot of ups and downs while racing my first European World Cups. Seriously though, there are a lot of hills over here. We just go up-down, up-down, up-down, cross the finish line. It’s quite exhausting! There’s even been a sprint race where we just climbed straight up an alpine mountain! It has been intimidating, humbling and inspiring to witness the next level of ski racing, and I have already learned quite a few lessons…

1. Don’t forget your athlete bib. Ever. We typically ski around race venues during the early parts of the week when anyone is free to access the trails. However, as we get closer to race day there are more restrictions enforced in hopes of preserving the highest quality of race conditions. Racers are given “Athlete Bibs” so we can walk to wax trucks, changing rooms and onto the race course. However, if you forget this bib and try to enter a restricted area at a World Cup, good luck!

2. Always carry your own instant oats with you. We’ve been traveling to some strange places in Europe. Nove Mesto, Czech Republic didn’t quite have the breakfast that most endurance athletes would look for on race morning. Most hotels are confused when you ask them for sloppy, plain, boring breakfast porridge. Sometimes it’s necessary to avoid this confrontation and mix up some yummy oatmeal in your hotel room.

3. Be prepared to just completely unpack at every stop on the World Cup. Sometimes we stay in one place for seven nights and sometimes we only stop for two nights. However, in just 48 hours you can pretty much count on using every article of clothing in your duffel bag and you always need the one item that’s buried at the bottom. For a few weeks, I tried the “digging” method; I wait until I need something and then I prowl through my bag to hunt it down. This method saves time when initially moving into a new hotel but really catches up with you in the long run. It’s easier to admit defeat as soon as possible and unpack the bag in an organized fashion to save time later in the trip.  

4. Push the boundaries, but don’t push them too far or you’ll end up with a yellow card. I learned this lesson in Falun, Sweden during a classic sprint qualifier. It was a hilly and twisty 1.6 kilometer course with a lot of “cornering technique." Previewing the course, I was intimidated by all of the twists. I wanted to have a good qualifier, but I knew that a lot of time could be gained or lost going up and over hills and around corners. My teammate, Simi Hamilton (a sprint specialist), encouraged me to push myself out of my comfort zone and ski the transitions as aggressively as possible. So that’s exactly what I did. Unfortunately, I still didn’t ski fast enough to qualify and my “cornering technique” was proven to be “skating.” So, something I know I can work on for the future!

5. Don’t expect anything, anticipate EVERYTHING! You want to be prepared for every possible scenario to happen in your race. Also, for every possible course to be ready for you. Previewing a course the day before a race could show fast and icy conditions, only for it to rain all night and you end up with a slushy/snowy mix that is slow and grinding. Another example is the uphill skate sprint we just finished. We started at the base of an alpine mountain in Are, Sweden (home of the 2019 Alpine World Championship races), and we climbed straight up the mountain for two and a half minutes. I was not anticipating that back in July when I was training for the season!

6. Don’t be intimidated by athletes from other countries. We are more similar than we are different. No matter what their FIS points are or how many World Cup podiums they have, we ALL eat, sleep and poop. 

7. Flexibility is key. Sometimes travel is delayed, and you don’t get to go for that afternoon ski you were looking forward to. Or, lunch is served late and you have to rely on a few snacks to hold you over until the food is ready. Whatever the issue is, usually everyone else is facing the same problem and you just have to put your heads together to make the most of the situation!

8. Nothing is perfect. Even though we are racing on a “professional circuit” there is still some sense of inorganization and unknown. Typically, World Cup races only have snow on the race course which means we might not be able to warm up on snow at all. Sometimes, we have 5 minutes on course to test skis before we race, but then we have to switch into running shoes and start jogging.  

The most important lesson that I've been able to take away is to stop and smell the roses. No matter what the results on paper show, I've been taking time at each stop to enjoy the moment, take in the scenery, and appreciate what I'm doing and who I'm with. I am so grateful to have this experience and the opportunity to learn everyday about how to be a better skier, teammate and person.

​It’s a whole different ball game over here folks!
 
Last Monday, I flew through the night, over the ocean and across seven time zones, to arrive in Nove Mesto, Czech Republic. I was greeted with brown grass, a gray sky and ice fog. I was also greeted by a group of smiling US Ski Team members and staff, including my SMS T2 teammate, Julia Kern.

​Along with the rest of central Europe, Nove Mesto has been having a tough winter with warm temperatures and very little snowfall. They were able to make enough snow to provide a 3.75 kilometer ribbon of snow for skiers to race on over the weekend, so I spent a few days getting to know the course.

​I took the first few days to try some new foods including fried cheese, fried cauliflower and goulash. I also did my best to adjust to the new time zone by waking up early, going for afternoon jogs and taking melatonin before bed so I could fall asleep a little faster. By Friday morning, athletes from all over the world had arrived at the venue. I was working with one of the USST techs, Tim Baucom, for the week. Together, we tested skis and kick wax to make sure I would be set up for great races over the weekend. Thanks for the help Tim!

​Soon enough, it was race morning and the weekend schedule consisted of a 10k individual skate race on Saturday and pursuit style 10k classic on Sunday. A pursuit means that you take your time back from the winner on Saturday and then start the same time back from them on Sunday. For example, I finished about 2.5 minutes back from the winner during the skate race so I started 2.5 minutes after her on Sunday. 

​Looking back on the last few weeks, I think I really emptied my tank during my races at US Nationals. I had to do so in order to qualify for these World Cup races and it felt amazing to do it, so I have no regrets. It’s just taking me a little bit longer than I’d like to fully recharge my body and my head. Over the course of 48 hours while racing in Nove Mesto, I realized a few things. On the World Cup, you can NOT fake it 'til you make it. If you aren’t ready to give it 110% from the gun then you will get eaten alive by your competitors. Even if you’re feeling “pretty good” or if you’re thinking you could “work into the race,” then it’s already too late and you’ve been dropped.

​This is something that I’m still working on. At US Nationals, I was ready to give it 110%, not only physically but mentally too. I was ready to send it from the start and be fierce. But I’m still learning how to do that in every single race within a season. And I recognize that if I can only give it 90% on a given day at the World Cup, then it’s not going to be a phenomenal day. And that’s okay! I am honored and grateful to have these World Cup starts and I am ready to learn something from each race. For now, that means training in Oberstdorf, Germany in preparation for a 15k skiathlon this Saturday and a classic sprint on Sunday! So far, I've been enjoying the snow and sunshine! :)

​What. A. Week! The US National Championships took place last week in Houghton, MI and although I had high hopes for the series of races, I by far exceeded my expectations. I walked away with three podiums, a little bit of wind burn, and a full heart. 

​After one of the many races during the week, I decided to cool down with my brother, Anders (who CRUSHED the Junior sprint heats on the first day getting third place)! One of our long-time family friends, James Schneider, joined us for this cool down and the boys asked me about the 20k that I had just completed. I gave them the run down and James quickly asked if this would be a blog topic. Realizing that James is a Midwest Junior skier and still very much in the “know” of what is cool and what isn’t, I asked him, “What do you want to read about on my blog?” To which James rapidly responded, “I wanna hear about the grind!”

​US Nationals consisted of four races: a skate sprint, 10k individual skate, 20k mass start classic and a classic sprint. We completed these four races in six days. Looking back on the first two days of racing, I really surprised myself. I was confident going into the skate sprint because I had previewed the course during a local race the week before. However, sprinting is not my strength and there is always a bit of unknown in the chaotic scramble of a 1.5k course, with lots of twists, climbs and descents. I knew I had to play the day smart and draft off of other people through the quarterfinal and semifinal if I wanted to have any energy left for the final, and that was assuming I would make the final! Up until this year, I had never even qualified for a final sprint heat at US Nationals! 

​Nonetheless, I made it through and knew I would already be happy with the day for reaching the final no matter what the outcome. The final heat went out hot and I was unprepared for the fast pace. On a two-lap course, I tried to focus on holding my own ground, staying out of trouble (like breaking a pole) and knew that an uphill finish would suit to my strengths. At the bottom of the last climb, the leader had gapped us and I was in the front of the chase group. I knew I could easily get swallowed up by these other speedy skiers so in my head I told myself, “Alayna, it’s go time!” And without further ado I sprinted as hard as I could up that last hill and surged forward, just trying to keep the other racers from catching me. I collapsed at the finish line without realizing that I had almost completely closed the gap to the winner and found myself placing second for my first podium ever at US Nationals!

​I was giddy with excitement the rest of the day and found myself shaking after the award ceremony as I was whisked away to drug testing. This was another new act to me. At US National races the US Anti-Doping Association picks four of the top five finishers to complete drug tests to ensure that we are all competing clean. Hours later, I finally sat down at our host family’s house and had to actively tell myself to take deep breaths. I was still on cloud nine! All I wanted to do was celebrate, but we had another race the very next day that I had to get ready for.

​I woke up feeling tired for a 10k skate, but the excitement from the day before allowed me to run off of adrenaline. I knew that there were about 12 women who could easily be on the podium that day and that I was going to have to work every single transition on the course. I was lucky enough to start toward the end of the A seed of the women so I was able to get splits off of the racers in front of me. I found this super advantageous because within the first two kilometers of the race I knew that I was in the running for the podium, but that it was super close between me and a few other women. At this point, I was so thankful to have the Midwest crowd there because I had someone cheering for me on every single hill! The motivation to keep pushing was almost constant and I kept receiving more splits that I was still in the mix with the leaders. 

​With about two kilometers to go, everything was hurting and I pretty much had to climb all the way to the finish line. My sister yelled out to me, “you’re in fourth place but only a second behind the next two girls!” For one second I thought to myself, “well fourth is fine, I could be content with that.” Instantaneously though, I told myself, “No Alayna! You’ve worked so freaking hard for this moment, you are not just going to let up now. This is the time that you have to go. You CAN do this!” So, I grit my teeth and I climbed and climbed and climbed, hearing cheers from every last corner. In the last 200 meters I started seeing stars and I think everyone along the course could hear my heavy, raspy breathing. But I kept telling myself, “You CAN do this!” When I finally crossed that finish line, I sat down, took a deep breath, and knew that no matter what the result was, I had done it again. I had left every ounce of energy out there on that course.

I received a pat on the back from a volunteer and he mumbled something to me. In a very delirious state, I just looked at him confused. Then I processed it. “You just finished in third, but the second American. Congratulations!” A rush of emotions overwhelmed me, but mostly I was in awe and just kept sitting there, staring at the volunteer. Still delirious… :)

​I had dug extremely deep to find the energy and power during that 10k to make it on the podium. I was still feeling this fatigue two days later when we began the 20k mass start race. This was the race that I was most looking forward to all week. I absolutely love the energy in a mass start and have really improved my distance classic skiing so I was optimistic about the day. However, just before our race began a snow storm rolled into Houghton and brought with it slow, tough, grinding conditions. I hung onto the leaders for a lap and a half (of a four-lap race), but after a feed at about 6k I started feeling sick to my stomach. As someone who has experienced a boot and rally in a race, this was not something I wanted to go through at US Nationals. The leaders slowly pulled away from me and I couldn’t quite hang. I had burned a lot of matches earlier in the week and was left with a bit of an empty tank. I kept fighting by myself through the snow storm, not knowing where the women were behind me. In any race, you have no idea what is going on up ahead of you or behind you and when you’re out there all alone all you can do is put your head down and take on one hill at a time. That’s exactly what I did. 

​It was a grind of a race and my muscles in my arms and back started having spasms in the last two kilometers. I skied 12k in “no man’s land” and crossed the finish line in 6th place feeling oddly disappointed. Up until this year, 6th place at US Nationals had been my best result, ever! I put this into perspective as the day went on and decided to still be proud of how hard I fought by myself in the woods and recognized that you need to have “bad days” to make the “good days” feel so good.

​By the last day of racing I was completely exhausted. I didn’t know if I could make it through an entire set of sprint heats and, of course, another snow storm decided to blow in after the qualifier. Through 35 mph gusts, nonexistent classic tracks, thick, fresh snow, we went out there round after round, when all anyone wanted to do that day was curl up into a ball and take a nap. Everyone who raced that classic sprint dug up the last bit of energy they could find and the races went by in a blur of white snow. The only thing that really stuck with me after the race was that the last 100 meters of the final heat felt more like a mile. Somehow, we did it though. In one of the closest sprint finals I have ever been in, three of us lunged for the line and completed the final podium of the week.

​I was pretty fortunate all week to have everything come together for me on (almost) every race day. Sometimes, that’s truly what it takes! You can only control so much; your breakfast, warm up, ski selection, ski wax, mental preparation. This is a lot to get right on one day and sometimes mother nature likes to throw you curve balls with a few snow and wind storms. I was lucky to have these details fall into place for me on the right day and I recognize that this doesn’t always happen. However, I also recognize my attitude and my teammates/coaches attitude all week. I’m not sure what overcame me, but I went into the week feeling extremely calm and at peace with whatever the races were going to bring. My entire family was supporting me at these races, I was seeing Midwest friends, college friends, ski friends from all over the country, and this made me happy. My coaches, Pat O’Brien, and his wax helper for the week, Tad Elliot, only added to this peacefulness. They were so organized, prepared and relaxed that it wore off on me. We were cracking jokes to each other between sprint heats and laughing with each other in the wax trailer all week long. I was the only female racer from our team that week, but my SMS T2 male teammates were so supportive of each other and of me. We kept each other confident and having fun! I truly believe that I owe my race success to my family, friends, teammates and coaches. I couldn’t have accomplished “the grind” without any of them.

​And just like that, we’re off to the races! Literally, off to seven races in 16 days. Now that’s one way to start the engine! It’s been a whirlwind for the last few weeks as I traveled from Minneapolis, to Canmore, CAN, to Sun Valley, ID, back to Minneapolis for a few days and then up to Houghton, MI. But I can honestly say that through all of this I had a lot of fun! Unfortunately, I can also say that it wasn’t all just a glorious ski vacation. Just like any other job, there are good days and there are bad days. Projects that you might love working on and then tasks that you aren’t as psyched about.

​I started this trip in Canmore, Canada with a three-day race weekend. I had never been to Canmore before, so I was in awe of the beauty that surrounded us in such a cute mountain town. Most mountain towns show off their views from afar as just something pretty to look at while walking outside. Canmore shares her mountains right, smack, in your face! The skiing was GORGEOUS, and it was a challenge not to get distracted by the views while in competition. 

​The first day of racing was a skate sprint that included quite a few tactics. I was proud that I played these tactics pretty well in my quarterfinal but was not so lucky in my semifinal and I was bummed not to qualify for the final heat. I felt like I had really improved my sprinting over the summer and fall and believed that I deserved to be in that final, but alas, that’s ski racing for ya! And there were two more races that weekend that I needed to get ready for.

​The next day was a 5k classic and boy did I have a hard time figuring out how to pace that. Typically, I treat a 5k like a long sprint and just tell myself, “go, go, GO!” At altitude though, this could be a recipe for disaster, and I knew I could blow up early in that 5k if I went out too hard. Well, it turns out I still went out too hard and still blew up even knowing all of that. Oops! Another day where I felt like I wasn’t able to appropriately show where my fitness was at or what I am capable of this season. 

​Finally, we concluded the weekend with a 10k skate race, and I was hopeful that with the longer distance I’d be able to figure out the altitude pacing a bit more. I started the race around “threshold” pace and tried building into the race from there. This tactic proved slightly more advantageous and I was able to pull off one of my best altitude races ever! I left Canmore feeling disappointed, yet somehow proud of my races. It was a state of total confusion. I wanted more, but I was still happy with my accomplishments. These feelings lurked around the following week as we prepared for another Supertour weekend in Sun Valley. I tried enjoying the moment with my teammates and soaking up all of the December Vitamin D that I could, but when it came to race day again, I faced some major mental demons.

​Our first race in Sun Valley was a classic sprint and I practiced conserving as much energy as I could in the qualifier and quarterfinal so I could hopefully make it into the final. I ended up 3rd in my semifinal which left me in a spot to potentially be “lucky loser.” In sprinting, the first two finishers from each semifinal automatically qualify for the final. Then, the race officials take the next two fastest times from the semifinals to move on as well (for a total of six in the final). So, if my semifinal time was fast enough, I would be in the final. While I was waiting around at the finish line to hear from the race officials, I was thinking to myself, “I really want this. I want to be in the final. I just gave it everything I had to make it into this final.” However, my body did not feel the same way. It was TIRED! The altitude racing had exhausted my body and the last thing it wanted to do was go out and race another time. This collision of thoughts vs physical ability left me confused and emotional. “Racing is fun! I love racing!” I thought to myself, “so why am I having such a horrible time right now?”

​After what felt like an eternity, the race officials wrote on the bracket board that I was one of the lucky losers and had qualified for the final round. I was excited and I was miserable at the same time. I turned to my teammate, Kelsey Phinney, and I wanted to cry. She gave me a big smile, a hug and she said, “you can do this!” And without further ado, I found myself giving it every last ounce of energy I had in that final. It was by no means spectacular and I still ended up last in the heat, but I had made it into the final and I had accomplished one of my goals for the weekend. I had taken a baby step in the right direction.

​These altitude races were without a doubt the hardest races I will go through all season both mentally and physically. They had been staring me down since last May and had been haunting me during my workouts all fall. I don’t know if I will ever be a great altitude racer, but after the past few weeks I have confidence that I am becoming a better altitude racer. And isn’t that what it’s all about? Getting BETTER?

​Last week I had the privilege to be at home for Thanksgiving for the first time in THIRTEEN YEARS! Since middle school, my parents would pack us kids into our minivan and travel west to the West Yellowstone Ski Festival that happens over Thanksgiving week. We would ski as a family, check out the Grizzly and Wolf Center, see an IMAX movie and enjoy the peaceful nature of skiing through the woods with thousands of other skiers! My parents continued this tradition even as us kids left home for college and were unable to make the trip with them, but this year they decided not to go. Instead, they are celebrating my dad’s 60th birthday in British Columbia, Canada for a week of skiing and watching my first races!

Being home for Thanksgiving was a great way for me to see lots of friends and family, visit a few high school team practices and prepare for the racing season. It was also a perfect opportunity for my sister, Marit, and I to plan a surprise birthday party for my dad! 30 years ago, my mom threw him a surprise party and I am told it was quite the evening… She repeated this again for his 40th birthday and my dad started to notice the trend. While he appreciated the love and thoughtfulness behind these parties, I think they were also a lot to recover from ;) My dad made my mom promise to never again throw him a surprise party, however, Marit and I never agreed to this!

​We wanted to keep the evening fairly relaxed as we knew everyone was coming off a busy Thanksgiving week. The suspense was building for us all day, I was in charge of getting him to the brewery where the party was at and I was feeling the pressure. I decided to treat this like a ski race and told myself to stay calm, act like everything is totally normal, and tell myself that I can only control the factors that I can control, the rest is fate. The evening was a huge success and I think my dad really enjoyed the party we threw him. It was great to see so many people come out to celebrate!

​Throughout this week though, I’ve been dealing with some pretty crazy pre-race jitters. My first races of the season are this weekend and will be at the Supertour in Canmore, B.C. This time of year is tough for me as I haven’t done any races yet, but I’m sick and tired of just training and doing workouts. My training volume decreases as I prepare for the season and with it, I think to myself, “am I even doing enough?” or on the flip side, “am I doing too much?” It’s hard to know at this point without races to test myself or get a feel for where I’m at. I just have to trust the process. I wouldn’t say I’m usually someone who gets super nervous about ski races. That being said, most of my life there wasn’t much riding on my races or results. I have some pretty big goals for this season and beyond and a lot of that does ride on how I do in the first few races of the season. Without good results in the next few weeks, I won’t be able to qualify to race on the World Cup later in the season and that’s pretty much everything I’ve been working toward. So, this year I’m feeling a bit more nervous about all of it.

​Last week I was talking to my future brother-in-law, Nick, (yay!) about some of my nerves going into the season. As a marathon runner looking to qualify for the Olympic Trials, Nick understands the mental stress behind racing. He is also a psychologist and had some pretty insightful things to say. Nick explained to me that the emotions fear and excitement are caused by the same hormones in your body. Cortisol and adrenaline are both in affect and it’s up to your brain to determine whether you perceive these hormonal signals as fear or excitement. In addition, there is sympathetic nervous system arousal which causes the “fight or flight” mode. Nick used an example of being on a roller coaster. Half of the people on the roller coaster are thinking about how fun it is to go up and down and all around and perceive the experience as excitement. Meanwhile, the other half of the people on the roller coaster are thinking about how the cart could go flying off the track at any second and everyone could plummet to their deaths. These people are obviously taking the cortisol and adrenaline and turning them into fear. 

Nick then explained to me that if you take the anchor, which in this case is the image of riding on a roller coaster, and you picture it going well, then you can switch the way your brain perceives the cortisol and adrenaline. For example, if the people fearing the roller coaster were to imagine themselves ahead of time on the ride and say out loud, “I’m excited. I’m excited. I’m excited!” Then, they can actually change the feeling of fear into excitement. He claims I can do the same thing for my racing!

​I’m not saying that I’m afraid to race, or that I am not excited about the season. But I think my body is taking on both of these emotions right now and it’s causing a little bit of craziness inside my brain. So, I decided to take Nick’s advice and have been picturing myself in my first race this weekend. I’ve been imagining myself skiing really hard up and over the top of the hill and have been saying OUT LOUD, “I’m excited, I’m excited, I’m excited!” The first time I did this and actually said these words out loud, I got this tingly feeling all over my body! Nick told me that I can build this image each time I think about it by adding more details. My parents are on the side of the hill cheering, I’m catching the girl in front of me, my fingers are really cold, but I ignore that feeling and keep on going… all of a sudden my sympathetic nervous system is ready to switch from flight mode and into fight mode!

​I’m not sure how I will race this coming weekend, but I do know that no matter what happens it is not the end of the world or the end of my season. There is ALWAYS more to come, and I know that I’ve enjoyed the process in getting here. I already feel way more excited than nervous or fearful about my races and I can’t wait to get to Canmore to charge into the season!

Last week I was humbled by the kindness, love and generosity I received from the ski community. My fundraiser at Gear West ski shop was more than I could have ever anticipated! I want to THANK YOU, to everyone who showed up to bid on auction items, win free raffle prizes, listen to me chat, enjoy good food and beverages, and celebrate the kick-off to a new ski season. The staff at Gear West Ski Shop showed incredible support and the evening would not have been successful without them. They dedicated so much time and energy leading up to the event, setting it up, and making sure everything ran smoothly during the silent auction - I owe them a lot! Feeling this kind of love and support has motivated me and inspired me to continue working hard and chasing my dreams. It makes me jittery in anticipation for my first races in just 10 DAYS!

​Before I get too excited for races to start though, there is a lot to DO in November in preparation for a long season. There is also a lot that I have learned I DO NOT want to do this time of year… 

​Socialize: 
Thanksgiving is coming up and it tends to be a holiday that very few skiers have the chance to celebrate. Often times, we are already on the road, racing or in search of snow for high quality training. Growing up, I was fortunate enough to spend Thanksgiving with my family and ski on snow because we took family vacations to West Yellowstone for the annual ski festival. However, my four years in college kept me away from any family celebration. Now that I have more flexibility in my training, etc. I think it’s important to make the effort to spend this time of year with the those I love. It’s one last chance to be together before the days of FaceTime calls and text updates in the Winter. I have found that spending this time with my family makes me the happiest going into a new ski season. 

However, this time of year is NOT the time to socialize like a young adult in her mid-twenties. The old high school and college friends are set aside (sorry guys!) and the brewery tours come to a stop. No longer can I meet up with a friend at a bar or restaurant or accept an invitation to a party. Tis the season of staying in and watching movies at night so that I can be well rested for important training and  sharpening sessions the following morning. Goodbye social life! Hello ski season!

​Research: 
The season can get long on the road so I want to have a stockpile of books that I can turn to for entertainment while resting before races or after hard training sessions. November is a great time of year to DO RESEARCH on the best novels, biographies, sports stories, etc. that will keep me hooked all season long. My go-to book trader is my mom, who reads about a book a day so I’m always falling behind. I also like to trade with some of my teammates, my sister, or other friends! Anyone have a good suggestion?
DO NOT do research on your competitors. Skiers start to get antsy in November in anticipation of the race season. Frequently, athletes will post on social media about their grueling workouts or first time trials of the season. Personally, I can quickly get sucked down the rabbit hole of what my competitors are doing to prep for the season. This can escalate into totally psyching me out and making me think that I am not doing enough. In reality, I can only control my own training and how I approach the season so there isn’t really any point in comparing myself to other skiers. I put my head down and do my own work. (This is obviously much easier said than done).

Packing: 
Do pack your Aeropress espresso maker. When you’re on the road, you never know when you’re going to get a good cup of coffee. When it comes to race morning for me, this is a NECESSITY! Rather than depending on my lodging arrangement to provide quality coffee, which it often does not, I like to come with it myself and make as much of it as I want! And then some more! ;) An Aeropress is small and packs well in a duffel bag, making it the perfect solution.

Do NOT pack your coffee grinder. Unfortunately, I have developed into somewhat of a coffee snob. Can you tell? My favorite part of the morning is taking that first sip of freshly ground coffee. Sadly, a coffee grinder can take up quite a bit of space in a duffel bag and doesn’t make the cut when packing a bag that I am supposed to live out of for 4-5 months. ☹

Do pack your slippers for hotels. Slippers are a great way to stay cozy while on the road and also keep your feet from getting dirty or spreading germs. Hotel hallways and lounges can be filled with germs and you don’t want to walk around barefoot. However, always putting on your snow boots just to grab some ice or to quickly ask your teammate in another room a question can get pretty annoying.
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Do NOT pack your fashion shoes. These days, I rarely wear jeans. Let alone a nice pair of shoes! When I have to fit 2-3 pairs of ski boots, running shoes and snow boots into a bag, there is no longer room for any sense of fashion. Occasionally, I attend an event or outing during the season and show up slightly underdressed. But this is just one of the consequences I have to face, and I am okay with that!

DO get excited for the season!! It's a long one, but it's what I've been training for the past seven months. I can't wait to get it started!

​A few weeks ago, my teammates and I traveled over to Lake Placid, NY for one final training camp with the US Ski Team before getting our respective seasons started. Lake Placid is a beautiful town located in the middle of the Adirondack mountains which provides access to some pretty sweet training right out the door. It’s really awesome that our SMS team can join the national team for training camps like this because it keeps things consistent for us. I’m already training with Jessie and Sophie for most of the year in Stratton, VT so it's great to continue workouts with them. The only change for us was location and housing. The national team stayed together in a house outside of town while I stayed with my non-national, Stratton teammates right downtown. As a result, I ended up living with six boys in a three-bedroom apartment for two weeks! I love my teammates, but this was A LOT to handle…

​Luckily, we were training so much that it didn’t leave us much down time to be crowded in our small apartment. For me, this time of year offers some of the most fun training because we get a little bit of everything; we do anything from threshold to anaerobic intervals along with speed sets and time trials. Hitting one of these systems pretty much every other day really keeps things interesting and all of the athletes on our toes. 

​Unfortunately, after a few days at camp I came down with the slightest bit of a cold - hardly noticeable. I pulled back from a few of the easy distance workouts in hope of jumping in on the intensity days; but alas, this girl never seems to learn her lessons. Hindsight is always 20-20 and looking back on this I know that I should have taken a few days completely off in order to fully recover. Of course, I didn’t do this and I paid for it in the end by feeling pretty mediocre the rest of the two-week camp. You would think that by now in my ski career I would know how to handle these situations but I was afraid I was going to miss out on all of the fun!

​Needless to say, it was still a fantastic camp that left me feeling tired, ready for a rest week and motivated for the final block of training to put all of the finishing touches on my fitness before the season begins. After traveling back to Stratton Mountain, the team prepared for our annual send-off dinner, a fundraiser that we host at the school every year for local friends and family to gather, mingle, say good-byes and bid on some exciting auction items before we start jet-setting off all over the world! This year the live auction was extremely successful and it was really humbling to see the community get behind our cause and show their excitement for our passions, dreams and goals! Thank you to everyone who attended such a fun, heartwarming event!

​The money that we raised last weekend will go toward covering our team expenses including wax, travel arrangements for Coach Pat, van and tech support, and much more throughout the season! Unfortunately, this doesn't completely cover all of the expenses that a skier faces when first turning “pro.” There are still expensive international flights, hotel rooms, race entry fees, food, etc. that can really add up over a four to five month season. Luckily, I have some pretty amazing supporters back home in the Midwest who want to help see me succeed this winter. I am happy to announce that I have partnered with Gear West Ski and Bike shop again to host a fundraiser to help offset some of these expenses! The event will take place at the ski shop in Long Lake, MN on Thursday, November 21st 6-8pm and will include a silent auction, food/beverages provided by GORE Wear and Barley John’s Brewery and a presentation, “Birkie and Beyond” (all about my experience at the Birkie last year and how I’ve used that to make changes and motivate me for the upcoming season). Gear West and GORE Wear are both willing to match up to $1,000 in donations and we have some pretty sweet auction items this year: Birkie Weekend cabin, Birkie wave boost, Rossignol S2 Skis (fitted to the winner), a wine cork pull and so much more! The event is for all ages and even if you aren’t able to make a financial contribution it would be wonderful to see you there!

My teammates and I have been hitting the training pretty hard the past few weeks in preparation for a big US Ski Team camp in Lake Placid. We finished a two week intensity block, took a few days to recover from it and then scheduled another 10 days of hard work. We'll then get to spend some relaxing time celebrating Simi and Sophie's wedding this weekend. We are all so excited for Simi and Sophie to get married and for the gathering of so many friends!

In our 10 day Stratton-based training camp, we have planned 5-6 days of intensity along with a fair amount of volume filled in on the off days. The intervals are getting harder, but also more fun because it means we get to start moving faster!

My teammates and I balance our training lives in different ways. For example, Ian and Kyle have stocked up for the apocalypse and have since entered "hermit mode." It is my understanding that they have purchased 7 gallons of milk, 20 pounds of pasta, 60 bagels and 100 bananas. The science behind this is that they never have to leave Stratton Mountain except for training when we drive to find different roads to roller ski on or trails to run on. No grocery runs, few gas refills, just eat, sleep, breathe skiing!

As for my roommate Jessie and me, we've taken a slightly different approach. Although we have been prioritizing our recovery between hard training sessions, we're also okay with driving into town every once and a while. During the afternoons, we do work from our computers while sitting in a pair of Normatec pants (super fancy pants that squeeze your legs making them feel "refreshed") and planning our meals. Jessie and I have been CRUSHING the dinner scene on Stratton Mountain. So, I decided to give you a little look into what we've been cooking to help with recovery and to stay fueled through this intensity block.

I think the biggest takeaway from all of this, is realizing how delicious and nutritious a well-balanced meal can be. Jessie and I try to make sure that we include lots of fruits and veggies, carbohydrates and protein in all of our meals. We try to mix up the type of protein between red meat, seafood, and "boring" chicken. I'm no nutrition expert, but I think this insures that we get plenty of iron, omega-3 fatty acids, and protein to help our muscles recover from all of the training we've been doing.

Whether it's lunch or dinner, we make sure that each of our meals helps us recover and refuel. Also, that it tastes delicious! Some of our meals we just make up as we go along; a salad is pretty hard to screw up, throw some greens in a bowl and add whatever leftovers you've got in the fridge on top! Other meals, we find inspiration from yummy cookbooks or food blogs. Some of our favorite cookbooks are Run Fast Eat Slow and Run Fast Cook Fast Eat Slow (both written by runners Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky). We also have two books by Chrissy Teigen that include some pretty rich goodies. Our latest addition to this collection is The Birchwood Cafe cookbook. The Birchwood Cafe is a fun little joint in St. Paul, MN that always serves seasonal, farm-fresh food. I think that following the seasons and cooking with produce that is fresh helps add a lot of flavor, keeps the cost of buying food down and gets us excited about each new season.

Some days we really like to switch things up and get creative. One of Jessie's mottos is, "if we can make it at home, then why bother going out to dinner." So we've had a few pizza nights! These leftovers also make the BEST snack during a long run the next day ;) 

When we're stuck between meals and afternoon training sessions, sometimes all we want is a little snack. Jessie and I take turns making fresh granola that we eat with yogurt and fresh fruit. I've also added a new hobby to my daily routine this year and have been taking care of a little sourdough baby. This starter has traveled all over the country with me the last few months and has caused some stress, but mostly it provides the best fresh sourdough loaves that make great breakfast or snack food.

Finally, the moment I look forward to all day... Dessert! I have quite the sweet tooth and strongly believe that everyone works hard enough during the day that they deserve to treat themselves. Whether it's a post-ski cookie to quickly refuel your glycogen stores or an evening crisp made with seasonal fruit, a little bit of sweetness is not going to hurt our athleticism but it can help with happiness :)

I hope this finds you feeling inspired to make some delicious fall meals that can help you stay fueled during training. In the meantime, I'll be eating wedding cake :)

​​After almost five weeks of being away from Southern Vermont, I am happy to finally be back with my SMS T2 Teammates and excited to get into some hard fall training! In early August I took a trip home to the Midwest to spend some quality time with my family at our cabin and visit friends from home in the Twin Cities.

While at home, I hosted a clinic with Gear West Ski and Bike Shop at the Theodore Wirth Trailhead. I also visited a few club practices including the NordicWerks SkiKlubb in St. Paul. My goal for these events was to connect with junior athletes in the Twin Cities area and to chat with them about staying in sport, setting goals and challenging themselves. It was really awesome to spend time with the ski community that I grew up in and work with high schoolers that are in the same position that I was in just a few years ago!

Before I could leave The Cities I really wanted to see my sister, Marit. She and her boyfriend, Nick, had just flown back from a vacation they took in Oregon and I was excited to hear all about the trip. We headed to their place for one last dinner as a family and Nick's family came along too. We ate and laughed and heard all about their special trip together and were about ready to go home for the night when Marit started talking about a hike that they did in Bend, OR. They climbed up one of the more challenging mountains called Middle Sister and Marit told us about how hard they worked to get to the top. They were determined to summit and once they did, they enjoyed the view at the top and felt very accomplished. Marit then casually pulled her hand out of her pocket and stated, "and then Nick asked me to marry him," while showing us a gorgeous ring! Woah! I could not be happier for these two! This was a moment that every family member had been waiting for and we are all so excited for them! Marit and Nick are two of my best friends and some of the hardest working people I know. They are so loving and supportive of each other and of the people around them. I love both so much and can't wait to have an older brother! :) 

​Although it was fun to travel and see family for so long, I am happy to be back with my teammates for training and adventuring throughout Vermont! Ski training in the summer is a lot of hours and volume but it's pretty easy to do from almost anywhere. However, the fall is when we really crack down on hard workouts and it is so valuable to be with speedy teammates that I can learn from every single day in a place with such phenomenal ski training terrain. It's time to sit still in Vermont and grind through tough workouts that will make us stronger and fitter for the winter racing season!