Ski Racing in May: Ski to Sea 2009

Ski to Ski 2009- the most scenic venue that I have ever raced. This year it took a bit of work to make it to the 8km ski race that takes advantage of the heavy snowfall on Mt. Baker. At 10am on Saturday I finished my training ski at Mt. Bachelor, OR and before dinner I was previewing the course on Mt Baker, WA. Thanks to Jack Hart for the ride to the airport and Mom, Dad and Chad for picking me up in Bellingham. The 8km ski race is the first leg of the multi-sport race from the Volcano to Bellingham Bay. XC-Ski, Downhill Ski, Run, Road Bike, Canoe, Mountain Bike, Sea Kayak.

Previewing the Course: Chad, Mom, Brian, Dad

The race starts off with a blast from the avalanche gun

1.5km to go

Ski Leg Results Here. Times seem to be a bit off because I know that Jesse and Martin came in within a few meters.

I had good skis and a great race. The course is very challenging with a lot of climbing so I was happy to have fast skis. This was one of the first races I have been able to use my warm flex/base Salomon's and they climbed really well. I ran on a Nordic Ultratune 615b grind modified with some linear riling. The snow in western Washington is so wet that it is really nice to have fast skis. My mom had the same set up on her skis and had a great performance.

Dave Christopherson and Chad. Dave's 'Veterans' Team of old guys (Team Win or Die) did really well finishing an impressive top 10 in the overall classification

Chad and Mom Post Race

Cooling Down with Mt. Baker in the background

Chad Enjoying Nature's Playground. Martin Rosvall, Dave Christopherson, Chad and I had a great time cooling down.

Katy Barnes from the Bellingham Herald took some great photos (above). Check more of them out here.

Brian

Team ISLAGITT (It Sounded Like a Good Idea at the Time): Sergei-Downhill Ski, Eric-Kayak, Brian-Canoe Captain, Graham-Mtn Bike, Pat-run, Les-Canoe Engine, Greg-Road Bike, Brian-XC Ski

Bend On-Snow Camp

Bend, Oregon is the place to be right now. The weather is beautiful, the snow is plentiful and the training has been fantastic. I am taking advantage of the USST organizing grooming and training with the Methow Olympic Development (MOD) Team. This is one of the most valuable camps that I have been a part of and I am very thankful to be a guest of my hometown team. The last month has been a busy one and I regret that I have not posted and photos or updates of my adventures. More on that later. Today I enjoyed a fun crust ski with the Wenatchee girls.

Kristina and Laura scouting out a good route

The USST had a rest day today so the trails weren't groomed, but the crust was great.

Laura, Brian, and Kristina: We have been skiing in Bend together since we were J3s

I must admit that this was the first ski I have been on where we had to stop so that members of the party could gather moss so they could be 'Trolls' as we skied back to the car. The entire week has been very focused so it was fun to take the morning and enjoy skiing on the crust. It is hard to beat flying down a natural half pipe on a beautiful spring day.

Spring Cleaning

I really like snow. Obviously, as a skier I enjoy snow's slippery properties which allow me to glide around the woods. Beyond skiing I like that everything looks good covered in a fresh blanket of snow.

Spring has arrived and we have been doing our part at 'The Club' to keep our environment looking good." A ton of trash has accumulated on the playground, the Pow Wow grounds and the trails, so on Monday we took a trip to 'The Store' for a treat with a little trash pick-up on the way.

A Beautiful Spring Day in Hayward

Tamiqua, Trinity and Shanna were the top Trash Collectors

A Clean Forest is a Happy Forest

Can you Hula? Get outside and try it