Adventure Camp

One of the highlights of my summer has been taking a van full of kids from the Boys and Girls Club to Wirth Park for Loppet Adventure Camp.  The City of Lakes Nordic Ski Foundation made this partnership possible.  The logistics weren't easy but with a bike, running shoes, and one van we were able to make it all happen.

Adventure Camp is a full and active day.  With temperatures in the 90s we enjoyed visiting the well for a nice cold drink.

Eric and Kendal visiting Nesse the (friendly) monster in Wirth Lake.

Working on the basics on Day 1 of roller skiing.

It is incredible to watch how fast these young athletes learn.  The first day was pretty ugly and frustrating for most, but by the end of the week the kids were full on skiing.  Fun to watch the struggle and triumph.  At the end of the week we held a roller ski race and some impressive times were posted. Competition is even more fun when we can compare ourselves to the best athletes in the world contesting in London.

The Concept 2 Ski Erg turned a rainy day into a fun day.  Plus it was fun to see how much power your arms can generate, yes they aren't just for balance.

Getting the hang of things and able to ski down the big hill, but taking a quick break before heading back up.

LCO Club Reunion

With the CXC Team training camps based out of Telemark Lodge in northern Wisconsin it makes it pretty convenient to catch up with my Hayward family and friends while in town.  Hayward was home for a good six years and although I live in Minneapolis it still feels like I am home.  In many ways things are the same, but the most fun change to see is with the kids.  The last time I saw the LCO Boys and Girls Crew was February for the Birkie.

Snack time at The Club, Enjoying milk, apples and PBnJ in the shade.

 I had a very proud moment when I drove up to the Club and climbed out of the car.  A young boy wearing a Boys and Girls Club t-shirt sat at the picnic tables watching me.  As I approached he yelled out 'Hey Brian, How's it going?'  He then came up to me and shook my hand.  'I have a summer job now, I work at The Club'.  TJ told me about how he know works with the younger kids at the Club.  I met TJ my first day at the Club when he was a wild little 10 year old. It is really great to see him grow up and mature and be a responsible teen.  His ride pulled up and he said goodbye.

I came in to the Club and to my surprise found all of the kids watching one of two movies.  In all my time at the Club I had never seen the kids not moving around, but with no A/C and warm weather on a Friday I could understand.

I sort of snuck in to the dark teen center and it didn't take long for the kids to start whispering and word to spread that 'Brian is here.'  Some of the kids I did not recognize but over half of them I knew well.

Who want's to go to the Park?

Lava Tag, our favorite game.

Climbing and Team Work to get to the top. Jasper, Savannah, Aaron, Kiara, and Indanis.

One of my favorite activities growing up was climbing and I encourage the kids to climb as well. There is always a risk of falling and getting hurt, but I think it is important for the kids to learn to climb and fall when they are young so that they are able to do so safely when they are older.  The group loves the Giant Spinning Tree that the park added two years ago.  My only rule is that if you want to ride on top you have to be able to climb up there on your own or with the assistance of a friend.  Not only does this save me from the constant task of lifting up kids, it is great to watch them learn to work together to accomplish a common goal.  The best life lessons can come through the simplest of tasks.

Summertime

I have had an extended Spring this year enjoying cool weather for my training camp out in Washington State.  The thermometer read 38F when I woke up to head to the airport, with 104F outside in Denver during my layover it became obvious that the heat of summer is now on.

Enjoying a final run in the Mountains before coming home to Minnesota.

 Minneapolis welcomed me back with some wonderful 80F days.  After so many cool days I enjoyed the heat of the sun and we spent most of the day outside at the Boys and Girls Club.

Staying cool in the Gym at the Boys and Girls Club.

 We had a great game of basketball at the Club this week.  With the warm temperatures we had an unusually small group.  We played 5 on 5 with ten year olds, tweens (11-12), and teens.  Often times it is hard for the younger players to get much ball time.  Xavier impressed us all by sinking all most ever three he shot.  Pretty cool for a kid who is less than four feet tall.

Guest Coaching with the advanced crew of the City of Lakes Loppett Nordic Ski  Club.

Muscular Endurance Intervals with 15lbs extra weight

The Plan for 2012

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results" -Albert Einstein

In order to continue to improve it is important to make changes.  I am really excited about my training and preparation for the 2012/2013 season.  The last two seasons were good, but my goals in skiing are still much higher and I have several steps to climb. After a lot of thinking, planning and coordinating this year with Caitlin, myself and my coaches we have developed a plan I am really excited about.

I will continue racing with CXC.  Additionally I will be coordinating my individual training and technique with my former high school coach Scott Johnston.  My CXC teammates, coaches, administration and I have worked out the details and are being supportive and understanding in coordinating this partnership.

Our wonderful little house in Minneapolis is all fixed up (for the most part) and will continue to be our home base.  Caitlin and I had a great time working on the house and enjoying a stable schedule throughout the spring.  Last year I felt that i was constantly on the road and on the move, in a new location every 10 days.  I enjoy traveling but the stress this added to my body and training was counter-productive.  This year I will continue to make training camps part of my schedule however the blocks of training will be longer in order to limit travel days.  

For most of the early summer I have returned to my hometown of Winthrop, WA to work with Scott.   I have watched Scott work with a number of athletes over the past few years and am very impressed by their improvements technically and on the result sheet.  

Sam and I working on coordination and power  Photo: Scott Johnston

Scott takes a very scientific approach to training and we have been monitoring our speed and intensity closely through GPS pace, heart rate and lactate.  I am training nearly every day with Scott and Sam Naney (MOD Squad).  With just Sam and I training together our coach to athlete ratio is fantastic and we both get a lot of individual attention.  Scott's coaching style is very hands on and individual and requires a small group.  For Sam and me, our individual strengths complement well with opportunities for the other to improve.  We are able to push each other and are making notable improvements.  Sam and I grew up together in the Methow Valley and it is great to be training together again.  Although similar the training is different for me and I think today is the first time in four weeks that I have not been sore.  My past training has been good but my body has been getting used to it.  It is fun to be doing something different and shocking the body a bit.

Thankfully I have the best wife in the world who is understanding of me being away for such a long period of time.  She is a smart girl and signed up for a 5 week intensive Human Anatomy course at Normandale College to keep her occupied for the summer.  Regardless I am super excited for Caitlin to come out to WA for our friends Sam and Alison's wedding next weekend.  

We will return to the Midwest together for a week at home before heading to CXC Training camp at Telemark Resort, WI.  The CXC team is in June Training Camp at Telemark right now and this year marks the first time I have missed a camp since joining the team seven years ago.  I am excited to see my CXC teammates in July.   

Heading West for Snow

It has been a long time since Minneapolis felt like winter, but believe it or no there is plenty of snow still around out West.  After enjoying a wonderful warm spring, I returned to my home state of Washington to find some late season snow and skiing.  Washington holds the record for the largest snow pack in the United States with over 1100 inches recorded on Mt. Baker.

6,5000' of elevation and there is still plenty of snow

Although I am excited to be back in the mountains and training on snow I really miss everyone back at the Boys and Girls Club.  I do have some great memories from the week leading up to my trip out west.  

Taji getting a little air on the pump track.  The regular mountain bike trails were closed all week because of the rain so we went to the 'secret' Wirth extension trails and played around on the jumps.  

Getting ready to divide into teams for two-hand touch football

Two Hand Touch

Final ski race of the season: May 27th, 2012

I am working with my my high school coach, Scott Johnston this year as part of a more hands on individual approach to training.  Training is going really well and I am really excited for this season.  We are monitoring speed, heart rate, lactates and distances in almost every workout and the progress has been fun to experience.  It is a big sacrifice on my part since I am away from Caitlin and our home in Minneapolis.  Life is good, but it will be fun to be back at the Club in late June.

Sunflower Relay

My favorite mug growing up was a small hand made one with 'Sun Flower Iron 1st Place' painted on it.  The Sun Flower Relay and Iron event is a running race from Mazama to Twisp through the front country during the peak of the arrowleaf balsamroot or 'sunflowers'.  This is one of the first races I ever entered.  The race used to have two classifications iron and team.  Traditional teams were required to have at least one runner under 14 and one runner over 50.  This means you are a pretty hot commodity if you are either younger or older and are fast.

Catching up with friends before the race start Photo: Stephen Mitchelle

Planning out my ski training and travel for this summer I realized that logisitically everything would work out to do the Sunflower Relay this year.  The event has grown to a full marathon distance and to include open teams of any age and makeup.  My friends Sam and Alison were kind enough to add me on to their team.  Thank you to the new outdoor store in Mazama, The Goats Beard for sponsoring us.

Photo: Stephen Mitchelle

Saturday's race is the first time I have alllowed myself to go hard since the end of ski season and it felt great.  

Going fast feels so much better than going slow and I have been doing a lot of easy training to build up my base.

Photo: Stephen Mitchelle

Alison flew out on the course and we did way better than I anticipated.  Unfortunatly Sam had some back issues and decbe smartt and sit out the race so as not to hinder our ski training.  Alison (his Fiance) picked up the slack and ran well over half of the race.   

Photo: Chad Gregg

We set a new course record (albeit only the second year on the longer course)

More importantly I got a mug to match my dad's.  Although one of these years I will have to race the event as an iron competitor.

Early season running races can make you pretty sore. Not to mention multiple leg relay races.  Getting right iin the car after racing had me pretty worried but amazingly I felt great.  I had no cramping and felt that my final leg was better than my first.  When I got in the car I hooked up my Contour machine.  This is an electronic stimulation machine that has been proven to help increase blood flow and recovery.  I have been using it the second half of the winter between races and am a real fan.  QBP is the wholesaler for them, ask your local shop if they carry them.  I know Gear West has a few.

Thank you to Stephen Mitchelle for the fantastic photos.  Capturing how beautiful of a day it was on Saturday is no small feat.  

Will you take us outside?

"Will you take us outside?" is my favorite question to hear when I walk in the door at the Boys and Girls Club. 

 Freeze Tag

The Club didn't receive some of the funding we were expecting so we have been short staffed this week as the regular staff is taking turns with unpaid days off. Thankfully the weather has been nice and we have been able to get outside and organize some great games.

Spring time also means dinner outside on the patio.  

Mr Greene makes the best grilled chicken I have ever had in my life.

Kickball: I think this photo demonstrates the importance of having good mentors as you are growing up.  Remember that you are always making an impression on others even if you can't see it.

After several 'classroom' sessions of talking about goals and healthy lifestyle the teens and I were able to get out and enjoy some Mountain Biking.

Jasmine on a mountain bike for the first time

A perfect day

Thanks to Trips for Kids and the City of Lakes Nordic Ski Foundation for providing the bikes and the experience.  Tomorrow we are going mountain biking again and everyone is fired up.