Rochester Nordic Racing

Ready set GO !

2012-01-17T06:54:00.000-08:00

Well I'm glad to say that we finally got some snow here in central NY. It was the first weekend of the winter that our local multi-use facilities had enough snow to ski on !

(First classic ski of the season, I mean race!)

As with everyone else we have been dealing with Mother Nature being a real B*(&% this winter! But that's how it goes, you have to make the best with what you have and move on.

We had a great trip to U.S Nationals in Rumford, the results were not what we were hoping for but it was great to live the life for a week and to see everyone and everything that makes skiing so much more than just sport !

(Our sweet cabin kitchen set up in Andover)

(The living room)

(Wax room entry way. TOKO and Madshus the only way to GO) !

The Highschool scene here is in full swing and the kids have been killing it ! Due to the lack of snow we have been racing on a 1k man made loop atop the local alpine area. It's great to have a place to race but the lack of terrain is going to make it interesting when the kids get on a real course ! I'm not sure which will be worse for them going up hill or down hill !

(G-Man having nightmares of coaches corner after racing on the pancake)

On the girls side Alyssa has been in a league of her own winning the 1st three races of the season ! Eric would of had the same outcome except for a miscount on his laps during the first race of the year. Now that he has gotten a counting lesson from his brother and many others he has been leading the way with big wins in the last two races !

(E-Money leading the way thus far !)

It's always exciting to see how the kids are going to improve from one year to the next and I could not be happier with how EVERYONE is doing this year. The best result so far this year was an astounding 9 of the top 13 places for the guys ! and 5 in the top 10 on the girls side ! That's a high percentage of RNR'ers a top the varsity results! !

(We are not roller-skiing but it feels like it sometimes!)

The Young Gun himself has also been knocking on the door of the JV races just missing the top spot in his first 3 races ! All in all everyone has been doing a great job !

As always it's not only a testament to the athletes but also to their parents, friends and coaches ! I still scratch my head each time the HF-L and Pittsford buses roll up to the races each sporting 2 buses full of kids something like 70 kids on each high school team and you see 2 coaches get out ! ! WTF ! 35-40 athletes per coach?? It's amazing that they even get the kids to the race much less everything else they are doing on a day to day, year to year basis. The ability of the high school coaches is amazing and without them everyone would be in big trouble !

Next Stop LAKE PLACID for our first JNQ of the season. Due to the for-mentioned lack of snow we have had to cancel the first 3 races so things are going to kick of in a big way in LP !

We will have a full crew headed to LP and I can't wait to see what happens !

(Pack up the skis, we are on the road again)

West Yellowstone Recap

2011-11-30T04:56:00.000-08:00

Well we all made it back to NY safe and Sound. After an amazing week in West the depression has now fully set in as I look at the 10 day weather forecast and realize that the chance of snow any time soon is slim to none.

( The Demo Tents Set Up In West, I'm Pretty Sure Mike Won The Most Products Demo'ed In A Week Contest, A Three Year Veteran Of West He Knew How To Do It)

(Making it up Telle Hill)

After getting such a boost in motivation at West it's going to be a challenge keeping the momentum rolling until the snow falls, or at least until they start making snow. Hopefully it will not be as long as they are saying but we will have to wait and see.

(Blue Bird Skis Mid 30's Temps and LOTS of SNOW and Lots of good times )

As for a recap of West I can make it pretty short and sweet. It was amazing. The snow, the skiers, the friends, everything ! I'm already looking forward to next year !

(Marty and Stefan went out early Saturday morning to get one last ski in before heading out and got to experience the real West ! )

Here are a few pictures from our last days in West which included the 15k Freestyle race for some of the team and lots of skiing for everyone else. Enjoy !

(Telle Hill Suffer Fest)

(You will be able to locate this guy when he is wearing that hat)

(Bib ON Suffer ON Ski Season ON)

(Be Dynamic Be Powerful Be Fast Be YOU)

(Past success is in the PAST ! New season NEW GOALS Get YOUR game TIGHT!)

(Until Next Year !)

www.rochesternordicracing.com

Happy Westgiving !

2011-11-24T12:28:00.000-08:00

Since arriving in West Yellowstone we have a lot to give thanks for ! The weather has been unbelievable with over 20 inches of snow on the ground and seasonable temperatures we have been really lucky.

(The Gates To Heaven?)

The goal and reasoning on our decision to come to West was to get some quality early season hours on snow ! I'm pretty sure we have accomplished that with 4+ hours each day. West is more than just training though. It is an opportunity to be a part of the sport. If you have been around Nordic skiing long enough you have heard about "West" and I'm lucky to have been able to experience it. I know why people come and I know why they come back.

(The Crew)

RD,JH,LD,MW,GH,MM,JUOM,

It's an opportunity to see old friends, meet new ones, and enjoy everything that our sport has to offer. The expo is an amazing opportunity to not only see all of the new products from every major player in the Nordic industry but also to talk to someone who knows what they are talking about. You can walk in to any ski shop in the country and look at skis but the knowledge that is in West Yellowstone is amazing. Each major ski and wax company as well as most apparel companies have there heads of state here in West.

(WEST FEST)

I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the TOKO University for my first three days here in west. The job that Ian Harvey does with TOKO here in the U.S is amazing and put together a schedule that included everything from wax formulations to having guest speakers. It was an amazing opportunity that was only made better by those who were involved.

Alright that's it for now, it's time to ski AGAIN ! Yeaaaaa Buddy !

ROCHESTER NORDIC RACING !

Snow in NY !

2011-10-27T14:17:00.001-07:00

Well its official! The first snow of the season is hitting Western New York. I have been keeping up to date with all of the recent updates around the country and it’s hard not to be jealous of some of the clubs that have a geographical advantage over the rest of us (APU). But we have been making it here with what we have to work with.

(This is a webcam shot from the top of the local alpine resort)

Most of the juniors are wrapping up fall sports and making the transition back to skiing. However some of them have a long ways to go. Some of the kids running cross country will be racing at least until Federations November 19^th and then some of them continuing on until the 26^th at the Nike Team Nationals qualifier. If they are fast enough the will go on to race December 3^rd at Nike Team Nationals. We have had quite a few kids from the area make it all the way to the big show including our summer development coach Steve Mangan. It makes for a tough transition to the ski season as some athletes will have competed in counties, sectionals, states, federations, NXN regional’s, and NXN to end the cross season. That’s 5 weeks of championship racing in a row!

We also have some juniors that have been ski training through the fall period and they have been doing some great work. With the snow in the forecast everyone’s enthusiasm is high not only here but around the country so there is no time to rest.

Two weeks ago I ran G-man through his first lactate test. He did really well and I was pleased with the results and his effort. Having lactate to back up HR data is nice just to make sure everyone is on the right page.

Here is a little video from his final Max effort for the day. I had a sweet little set up on my road bike with his HR monitor and a video camera as well as my HR monitor on my bars.

For a big recap of the test visit the MF Uni blog as the kids have been updating. Checking out the kids blog has made me really miss those that have left this last year for college as some of them were with me when I started R.N.R 4 summers ago. It’s great to see them doing what they do and especially when that is skiing at the next level. I hope to see the trend continue!

The next big thing on the calendar is West Yellowstone! This will be our first trip to west as a group. For the past couple of years athletes have been heading out and joining the GMVS crew for the week. It was awesome to have Justin and Tim open athletes with open arms and it was great experience. If you are considering heading out to west and need some support or a group to travel with get a hold of Justin at GMVS or myself and we will take care of you no matter where home is!

Well enough for now hope to see you on the trails !

Inside the National J2 Camp

2011-09-07T05:59:00.000-07:00

Mid-Atlantic alumni Audrey Mangan swung by practice on a recent trip back home to visit her family. As you know her brother and current Dartmouth skier Steve has been helping out this year so she stopped in to see what all the hype was about and also to get the inside scoop on the USSA National J2 Camp which R.N.R skier Gavin Hess took part in.

View the entire article here :

http://fasterskier.com/2011/08/inside-the-national-j2-talent-id-camp/

USST J2 Camp Recap by Gavin Hess

2011-08-14T09:56:00.000-07:00

Gavin was an automatic qualifier to the camp by competing at Junior Nationals and finishing the week being ranked in the top 20 in the country. Opportunities such as qualification to the USST J2 camp is yet another reason competing at Junior Nationals is such a significant part of an athletes development. Below is his recap of his week at camp.

Day 1. Monday, 8/1 As many of you know, I qualified this winter at Junior Nationals for the National J2 Talent ID Camp, which was held last week in Sun Valley, Idaho. It was one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had. It all started Monday August 1st in the Rochester airport at about 5:30 am. Said goodbye to my parents and headed into a long day of travel, alone. Flying alone was an interesting experience that took a ton of independence, but it was a lot more fun once I met up with a few friends from New England in Chicago. Anyways, once we arrived in Boise, we met up with one of our coaches, Eric Pepper, who drove our group, about 8 of us up to Sun Valley, a long yet beautiful drive. Now I've never been out west before, and the mountains are absolutely massive compared to anything back here. Once we arrived in Sun Valley we got the chance to set down our carry-ons in our rooms and change into running clothes to head up the ski mountain for an "easy 30 minute jog to loosen up the legs". This turned into a 1:05 run/walk with about 2,500 ft elevation gain. Ouch.... It was however a ton of fun, we made it about 3/4 of the way up Bald Mtn, which is the ski area we were staying at the base of. Anyways once we got back both my roommates had arrived, Logan, a High Plains skier, and Pete, a Great Lakes kid who was a blistering fast Mountain biker. We divided the 3 beds in our room, I ended up on a pullout couch but with my own separate room and got myself unpacked. We went to dinner and little did I know, but I was in for some slave labor afterwards. They had hired and flown in a chef for this camp who has worked with alot of ski clubs and cooks at West Yellowstone in the fall every year (Stay at the Days Inn!!!). He was awesome, best camp food I could imagine, however it meant the athletes were on clean up duty and I was the only person in my group who they caught to work that night. Anyways, that was miserable. We had a presentation later that night with some basic camp overviews and a very basic classic technique.

Day 2 Tuesday, 8/2 Ill try and keep today a little shorter. Anyways, we started off bright and early with a 2 hr distance classic session, we did some technique drills and really emphasized getting our hips and whole bodies up and forward in the double pole motion. Even so far as adding a jump at the top of the motion. Then we headed out on the beautiful bike paths of Sun Valley and skied for another 1.5 hrs. Although the pace wasn't high (Hint: These kids know how to ski in Zone 1) it put me into a ton of trouble. I figured out later what the issue really was, altitude, and i suffered with it until like Thursday/Friday. In the afternoon we did the obligatory Canadian Strength assessment. Which went miserably once again. Nothing too interesting today though as everyone was still kinda settling in and getting to know eachother. This test was performed in the SVSEF (Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation) training facility, one of the most cobbled together, yet well thought out and comprehensive facilities I have ever seen. It was pretty awesome. Now is the time to ask Jason why RNR cant have one of those... :). Our nightly presentation was done by SVSEF head coach, Rick Kapala and was on the topic of "learning to learn" he gave us some really great insights and a good base of literally how to go about the process of learning and achieving greatness. It was really cool.

Day 3 Wednesday, 8/3 Today we headed out even earlier to the SVSEF Training facility which was on a beautiful trail head to do the Harper's Hill Climb uphill TT. Went into this with lowered expectation after my strength test failure, but also looking to redeem myself and as Reed told me, all of Mid-a. No pressure though... Anyways, got a time of 15:21, not too bad, however I later found out I was beat by a few kids who I dominated at the Eastern REG back in June. Still wondering whats wrong with me. That afternoon we had another tough workout with a skate distance session that had 3 repeats of 15 minutes just skiing then 15 minutes in the agility course they had set up. The agility was a ton of fun, it started with a sprint then went into circles and slalom and some of road skiing (Swayze?). The skiing was still rough due to the altitude, however the agility was great fun! Tonight we had a presentation by Janice from NENSA on nutrition, she stresses the importance of whole foods in the diet and gave us a good overview of our nutritional needs as skiers.

Day 4 Thursday, 8/4 Today we started the morning off with a 2 hr classic session on "Something" Cloud. An empty housing development, except this one was on the side of a "small" mountain. We did lots of those chalk like run-bound on ski's drills, and had tons of coaches analyzing technique from the side of the road and also singling us out from the group to give us some individual work. I made huge improvements in my double pole today thanks mostly to one of the coaches, a Middlebury skier named Chase. This was a great workout and I was starting to feel a lot better and my heart rates were finally normalizing. That afternoon I made my first journey into Ketchum, the town in Sun Valley, what a cool place, I swear every block had at least one bike/ski/outdoor store. It was amazing, along with the all organic, crazy expensive Atkinson's Market!!! My new favorite grocery store. That night, we went to the Ketchum Community School, a pretty cool school as far as they go, and did some plyometric activities in their athletic fields. Arguably the hardest workout of the camp, we had some warm up activities for 15 min, then 15 minutes of absolutely grueling, leg busting plyo's that had us jumping and squating and bounding all over the place. Then we played flag tag and stretched out, which was loads of fun, for 30 minutes after. Words cannot describe the pain of those middle 15 minutes. Tonight Brian Fish did a presentation building off of REG that was kind of a closure to goal setting and the mental aspects of not only skiing, but life in general, just applied to skiing specifically. We also were graced by the presence of Chris Grover who talked after the presentation and also, anonymously watched our agility session yesterday, that was really awesome.

Day 5 Friday, 8/5 This morning we went to a smaller local ski area, Dollar Mountain (I don't think passes cost a dollar, it looked very nice) to do some moosehuffs bounding intervals. For those that dont know, moosehuffs are a Norwegian style interval in which the terrain dictates the interval, best done on a hilly rolling trail, you do the uphills in zone 3, and recover SLIGHTLY when the road turns down. The coaches had set us up a course zig-zagging the side of the hill with one long climb at the end before looping back around. I ended up feeling great and doing the max amount of time, 25 minutes of "on time" before finishing my workout. Brian Fish, the USST development coach really helped me with my bounding today. Really awesome intervals, Peter's favorites! Again I went into town to explore a little today, then headed off to the SVSEF "hut" for some yoga with the women of the camp, and me. The yoga was as always really great as I was starting to fatigue a bunch and that along with later events really gave me a second wind to finish the camp off strong. These later events were the hot springs. aka the grossest smelling, dirtiest water I've ever been in, but dear god was it hot. And just next to it was a river of freshly melted snow coming down the mountains, some of the clearest crispest, also coldest water Ive ever been in. A newly acquired friend that week Tyler, from SMS (check out his videos at http://www.revivedfilms.com/) and I decided to do some ice bathing. I must say my legs have never felt quite so refreshed after some time in both the hot and cold.

Day 6 Saturday, 8/6 We started the morning with a Skate session in the same "Something" Cloud development (White Cloud?) again, 2 hrs, and again, lots of technique work. Janice Sibilia, the head NENSA coordinator spent a ton of time working with my V1 technique, which little did I know was pretty horrible by their standards. Again it was a good ski and I was able to stay in zone 1 without much of an issue while keeping up with the fastest kids in the country. Later that day we did a 1:10 strength session, with 4x15 minute circuits up in that awesome training facility I was talking about earlier. Put out 309 watts on the erg! As a cyclist I always find interesting. On a humbling note, Simi Hamilton (USST b-team) has the record on that specific machine at 700 and something crazy that could probably power all of Ketchum... I was surprisingly un-sore after this workout and everyone else confirmed the same feelings although I know for sure we worked realllyy hard throughout the session. Tonight we had another presentation by Brian Fish of the USST about the development pipeline and kind of where our paths could lead us in this sport if that's what we choose to set our goals to.

Day 7 Sunday, 8/7 Last day of training, which was pretty sad. But also something to look forward to because it was EPIC. 3 hour, 11 mile, 3,500+ ft of vertical on the mountain trails through the area. We set a very easy pace and walked most of the uphill sections, then the last half hour or so some of the faster kids dropped the hammer which led to my demise. I was happy with that however as that was the longest run I'd ever done and it was down to about 10 kids ahead of me, many of which were top High School runners in their areas (the other 30 had shortened their journeys at various cutoff points throughout the course. No shame in that, this was TOUGH! We ice bathed again in the creek at the trail head (We finished at SVSEF, did i mention trails will take you EVERYWHERE in this place?) then we headed home for the day. A few kids headed to the skate park, on rollerskis. That was pretty spectacular, they got those things rolling around and up in the air like you wouldnt believe, I think Tyler has some videos of that up too. We finished the evening with one last presentation by Brian Fish and Rick Kapala, then got on to the moment I had been waiting for, the NCCSEF contest winners! I won a Bjorn Dahlie USST Jacket, which is admitedly a little big, however I discovered it fits perfect if i wear 2-3 jackets under it. Along with a nice box of Toko waxes. That was pretty awesome! Thanks again to everyone who voted I really appreciate the help. Reed Deserves an especially big shout out for all his help, he had people legitimately angry for his persistant bothering about the voting (No Marty, an intervention was not necessary), also Jason did a ton of spamming and emailing around to help get the word out, along with lots of others, the list would be too long, but thanks to everyone!

Day 8 We woke up really early, spent a few hours in the Boise airport, flights got delayed in Chicago, arrived home at 1:30 am. 5 hours of sleep later, 3 hour ski. Life is great.

Two things I think deserve mentioning- Altitude, Hopefully everyone in this program will be racing at altitude in 2012, JN's will be held at Soldier Hollow which is about 5,000 ft. Sun Valley I was living at about 6,000 ft. So the altitude is definitely going to play a huge role in your success at JN's this year. A few hot points, first, drink tons, I was on the bottle of water an hour plan the first 4 days and even after that still drank a lot more than usual. Second, recover right and come into it well rested, the first few days are hell. Another thing that was somewhat subtle due to the buffet like nature of the week was that the body is burning a ton more that usual just laying around, so eating more food can be super beneficial. It was good to get some experience and I kept a detailed account of how i felt so I can formulate a plan for Soldier Hollow (ill be there a ton in the next few years; JN's 2012 then Nationals 2013 and 2014). It takes experience and that's one reason the camp was held at altitude this year was to help gain that experience. Also I feel like superman now that I'm home! Coaching, Can you imagine having 20-30 coaches like Jason watching your every move during every workout you did for a week? That is a good comparison to what this camp was like, the coaches were just assigned a point in the loop we were training on and would constantly be watching, taking notes, and stopping people to have them work at their technique. I made the biggest technique gains I have made since last October when Reed and Dylan first took me out rollerskiing. It was amazing the attention to detail and how much care every one of these coaches put into their work. Remember though, we have that two days a week here, Jason and Roger are on the same level as many of these coaches and everything they have told me is consistent with what I heard at camp so just remember to continue to use that resource to your advantage as much as possible because its a privilege not many clubs have. -Gavin

Motivation !

2011-07-12T09:24:00.001-07:00

Just encase you have been lacking in motivation here is a video from this winter Junior Nationals.

Skiers are not made in October or November or even December they are made in June, July and August and guess what June is long gone so if you have not been training guess what!?!?!

Yea you got it your chances of accomplishing your goals are quickly fading away with the summer sun, oh you don't have any goals?? You are in rough shape ! ! ! !

But don't worry you still have some time to kick it in to high gear but not much, so get out the door and get training ! Run, Bike, Swim, Ride, Row, anything you want just get off Facebook and your butt and get going.

Because guess what!?!?! WE ARE ! ! Game On !

Full Speed Ahead

2011-06-29T10:07:00.000-07:00

School is out for Summer ! Now that everyone is officially done with school we have been focusing on getting some quality work done. The first couple of weeks we spent a lot of time getting use to being back on roller skis and doing a lot of ski specific strength to enable us to do some actual workouts.

( Agility, Balance, Confidence, FUN )

The problem with skiing is that it is such a difficult sport that you need to be pretty fit before you can even start to think about training. As with everything we are working on it is an on going process with each and every athlete.

(The Man, The Mith, The Legend Getting Tough! )

I still can't get over how awesome the group is this summer, no matter what I have thrown at them they have been able to tackle, we will see if that's still true when we really get in to it, but so far so good.

(Functional Strength, Make It Happen)

Back to Work !

2011-06-13T07:35:00.000-07:00

June 1st was the official start date for the summer program. With each new "season" athletes, coaches, friends, and family have expectations, goals, dreams, and among a long list of other things a lot of work to get done before the snow is on the ground. To get everyone in the correct frame of mind and to remind them of just how it feels to hurt we don't waste any time.

For the past three years we have been using the first week of practice to complete our baseline fitness test. It is a modification of the Canadian Baseline Test Model with a couple of variations to better suite and accommodate our athletes. For many it was the first time completing the test so it truly was being used as a "Baseline" a starting point for their own development. For others that have completed the test it is used as a "Benchmark" to see how they compared to previous years. It does not matter how many times you have completed the test it is still super hard and never gets any easier.

Here are a few pictures from the test. As you can see a lot of the athletes are venturing in to that special place that we like to refer to as the "Pain Cave". Here is to a great summer and a many more visits in to the "Cave"

(Some of the guys getting to work)

(Mr.Synergy working on the future but

has been building the foundation since R.N.R was formed)

( Safe to say these two know they way)

(Coordination? Yea you need that ! Strength, determination yea you need that and a whole lot more to accomplish your goals)

( The best way to learn is to follow, and do your best to learn from the best, there will be a lot of following the middle man around this summer)

( Strait up strength ! You need a lot of that! )

( You have to have a passion and there is no lack of it within Coach Weston)

Gavin ends the season ranked # 15 J2 in the Country !

2011-04-26T10:31:00.000-07:00

USSA has been doing a great job increasing the development pipeline within in the country. One of the major focuses has been identifying and supporting skiers at a younger age. Last year they started a National J2 Camp. Skiers qualify for the camp based on results at Junior Nationals. The top 20 boys and girls are invited to the camp.

(Link to the press release)

http://www.nensa.net/docs/2010/Nat%20J2Camp%20Press%20release.pdf

The purpose of the camp is not only to identify talent but also the get that talent together to push each other to become better, become smarter, and also to have fun.

I have been preaching that skiers from the Mid Atlantic division must attend JO's at an early age. So may athletes wait until their senior year to make the trip. For some it may be the only time they meet the qualifying standards for others its the only time they decide to go. Like any major event it's an eye opening experience. It's also an important step in an athletes development. For athletes like Gavin he is being "identified" as a skier and will be on the "radar" for future camps and opportunities. It is an honor for no only himself to be nominated but to all of Mid-A.

Mid-A has long and deep tradition of producing world class athletes and I believe that we can produce more !!!

Get out the door and Train, Train, Train and Train some more because once the Train pulls out of the station it's not stopping again !! Get on Board !

All American x 2

2011-03-14T09:31:00.000-07:00

This season has been a season of first. Alyssa started it off by being the 1st member of R.N.R to win a state championship. Now we have our first ALL AMERICAN !

Congratulations to Gavin Hess as he became a TWO TIME ALL AMERICAN this past week at Junior Nationals finishing in 10th place in the Freestyle Sprint as well as the Classic Mass Start. More updates from Junior Nationals to come !

Yea Buddy !

State Champion !

2011-03-02T16:57:00.001-08:00

Yahtzee !

Congratulations to Aylssa the NY state champ! Alyssa left no doubt to who the best female skier was this weekend. She won the classic distance race by 19 seconds and followed that up by having the fastest relay split and anchoring the section five team including Margot to the relay state championship!

All in all it was a great weekend for all of the R.N.R athletes they not only represented their high school teams but section 5 in astonishing fashion.

On Tuesday the highlight of the day was Alyssa win! Hanna also had a great race finishing 4th ! Margot backed up her outstanding effort at sectionals to finish 12th ! Emmy also had a good race finishing 20th and rounding out the girls performances. For the boys Reed led the way finishing 4th with Eric continuing his excellent season finishing 5th. Adam just missed the top ten and finished 11th. Langton also had a great race finishing 19th. Gavin was on a way to a great race but was DQ'ed.

This is Gavin's first year ski racing so many athletes would be happy just making it to states, but not Gavin. He is continually pushing his limits and I would of loved to see where he would of finished if he had not been DQ'ed but as we all know their is a learning curve when it comes to Nordic. The most impressive thing about the entire situation is that he did not get down on himself about the situation but only used it as motivation and layed the smack down on Wednesday posting the 2nd fastest relay split !

BOOOOOYAAAAA!

Gavin was not the only one doing work in the relay. Alyssa again posted the fastest time of the day on her section 5 team and led them to victory. Margot was also on the section 5 relay team and skied a great leg to help Alyssa grab the victory for the section 5 team. Hanna and Emmy raced on the HF-L relay team and had great races with Hanna posting the 9th fastest relay split and helping the HF-L team earn a third place finish in the Relay and securing the team state championship. Congratulations the the HF-L girls team on winning the state title!

The Boys were all on the same relay team with the exception of Langton who raced on the HF-L relay. I knew the boys had a chance to win the whole darn shooting match and when Gavin came in with a lead and tagged of to Eric things were looking good. Eric backed up his 5th place from the distance race with the 4th fastest relay split. Eric tagged off to Adam who hung on for as long as he could but tagged off to Reed in second place. Reed was unable to take over the lead and brought the R.N.R relay team home in 2nd. It was pretty cool to have all the boys race on the same relay team as they have put in a lot of hard work together over the summer and fall.

All in all it was a great state meet and congratulations to everyone who worked hard this winter!!!

Next stop Minneapolis for JO's !!!!

Sectionals 2011

2011-02-15T07:34:00.001-08:00

(Congratulations to 2011 Sectional Champion Alyssa !)

February is the start of the Championship push here in NY. It started last weekend with Sectionals. For those of you unaware with the term ‘Sectionals” it is the title given to the championship used to name the best team within a predetermined area of the state. The race is also used to qualify individual athletes to the state championship with a finish in the top 12 in the distance race getting you a seat on the bus. The state is divided in to 11 different sections with our section being numbered number 5. Section 5 has a deep tradition in Nordic skiing and also has a great depth of talent, so making the state team is no small feat.

We were blessed to have great conditions for the race and the Rochester Nordic Racing summer athletes showed up in a big way. At this point in the season it has been pretty evident that those athletes who were working hard this summer have been reaping the benefits. Saturday was no different. Leading the way and winner her first Sectional Championship was Alyssa ! She skied a great race and came away with a 42 second victory over Hanna who skied a great race to finish second! The biggest story of the day might have been Margot who finished 3^rd only 22 seconds behind Hanna, coming in 4^th was Emmy to give R.N.R summer athletes places 1-4 ! Kate had a great race as well but was the last one out and finished 13^th missing qualifying for states. She worked hard all summer and my heart goes out to her as I know she was aiming to qualify, I’m sure that she will not forget the result though and will be back at it this coming summer. All in all it was a great day for the girls, going 1-4 at sectional is a pretty impressive result.

(Congratulations to 2011 Sectional Runner-Up Hanna)

On the boys side the summer athletes also had a great day. Leading the way was Reed, finishing behind the strong duo of Kevin and Brad and finishing on the podium in 3^rd. Reed was only 5 seconds out of 2^nd place and 23 seconds out of the win so he had a good race, hot on his heals and challenging Margot for the most impressive race of the day was Gavin. In only his first year of skiing he finished an amazing 4^th place and had many asking who is “Gavin” and where did he come from, right behind Gavin in 5^th place was Langton. Langton is skiing better and better as the season progresses and could really surprise some people at states. Next was Eric in 7^th place and Adam in 8^th giving R.N.R athletes 5 of the top 8 places. As in the girls race we also had another 13^th place finish in Dylan who just missed out on qualifying for states by a mere 4 seconds! As with Kate I know he had worked hard this summer and season and I feel for him as he missed out on qualifying for states. Marco also had a great race finishing in 21^st, right behind him was Emmet in 22^nd, Mike finished 27^th, and Ben was 39^th.

(Eric Shredding the dreaded Little Whiteface)

All in all it was a great day for the summer athletes and most of them will continue racing in two weeks at States. Those who did not qualify for states will continue training for JO’s, Eastern High School Championships and the J2 festival.

As with anything it is not a one way street when it comes to an athletes development, and I want to congratulate and thank their respective high school coaches first for letting their athletes work with me over the summer, and secondly for all of the hard work they have put in throughout the winter. Coaching at the high school level is a very difficult task and especially in the public high school system as athletes abilities range from learning to ski to trying to win a state championship. It is not easy and I commend them all at the job they have done this winter with all of their athletes! I can’t wait to see what happens at states and good luck to all of the athletes representing section 5 !!

(Congratulations to Reed on his 3rd place at Sectionals)

Lake Placid Loppet and JOQ

2011-02-08T08:21:00.001-08:00

(Start of the 50k Free at the Lake Placid Loppet)

It was a epic weekend for all of the members of R.N.R. The senior team made the trip north to Lake Placid to take part in the Lake Placid Loppet. The junior team headed east to take part in the final Junior Olympic qualifier in Old Forge. After breaking out the new suits at the Super Tour two weeks ago the rest of the state is fully aware of who is hunting them down !

For the senior team Lake Placid has become a second home this winter as we have been in Lake Placid three out of the last four weekends, and are starting to contemplating buying a house to set up winter residency, well maybe not a house but at least a snow fort! Until that happens we have found a home away from home at the High Peaks Guide House ! Brian Delaney the owner of High Peaks is a vital part of the Nordic community not only in Lake Placid but across the state as he has dedicated his shop to being one of the best in the country offering a world class selection of equipment, stone grinds, and information. He also goes out of his way to sponsor all events in the area and now offers lodging at the guide house. Click here to see some pictures and details on the property. http://highpeakscyclery.com/articles/high-peaks-vacation-house-pg101.htm

Having a home away from home helped the senior team gather some impressive results at the Loppet. I was lucky enough to get off to a good start and led the race through about the first 5k I knew that the jacked up old man was behind me as well as last years winner Jake Hollenbach so after getting out to a good position slowed a little to try to get them to take a little pull, as anyone who knows Duncan well knows he is at home out on Porter Mnt and letting him get to the front was probably not the best idea as he took off as if he was shot out of a cannon, I was able to hang on to him and Jake for a little while but they ended up skiing away leaving myself and fellow New Yorker Mike Wynn skiing together for the next 20k, it was nice to have someone to ski with as we had a gap over the rest of the field after the first lap I was able to ski away from Mike and hold on to 3rd place. Chad and Marty were in the chase pack for the entire race with a bunch of other guys and both had strong races. Marty was able to rally over the last 5k to move up a few spots. Chad and Marty went 1,2 in the 25-29 age group and finished 12th, and 13th overall. Derrick decided to skip the 50k and race the 25k race. He was able to hang on to 4th place in his 18-24 year age group which was won by Olympian Wynn Roberts. Congratulations to everyone who raced the 25k and 50k races this weekend. The Lake Placid Loppet course is no joke and anyone who competes is pretty freaking tough! In saying that the toughest man out their had to be 81 year young Lenord Robinson who did the 50k classic, he competed in the 1st loppet 29 years ago and gid willing will compete in the 30th anniversary race next year!

(Jason Getting a feed)

(Chad and Libby with a clean hand-off)

(Marty not looking like he wants a drink this time around)

While the Loppet was taking place the junior team headed to Old Forge to race in the last JOQ of the year. Coratulations to Reed for winning the J1 boys race and having the fastest time of the day! The rest of the crew also had great results with Alyssa and Margot taking 3rd and 4th in the J1 girls race ! Katie and Keena also had good races competing in the J2 race and taking 5th and 8th ! Dylan, Mike and Eric also where in the J1 race and skied to 5th, 12th, and 14th respectively. Dylan had a great race finishing 4th and securing a spot on this years Junior Olympic team. Gavin and Marco were in the J2 race and skied to 4th and 7th place. Gavin and Eric are in a tight fight for most improved skiers this year. Eric has established himself as one of the top skiers in the state while Gavin has come strait of the Alpine hill to be a force not only in the J2 ranks but across all age groups ! It's pretty impressive to have someone skiing so well his first year competing in nordic and with some hard work could become a real forge within the next two years!

(Alyssa striding out of the start)

(Marco getting after it)

(Eric)

(Mike getting ready to unleash some power on those poles)

Not to be forgotten Steve decided to head south to the Art Roscoe Loppet and try to get the elusive victory that has escaped him the last two years. He was closer this year than ever but fell victim to the finishing sprint and finished in 3rd. It's always a hard game to play in a mass start of when to make your move but I think he has learned to drop the hammer a little earlier and lay it on the line instead of leaving it up for a spring. I'm already looking forward to seeing what happens next year as I know he is going to be looking for the win again!

Next up for the juniors is the Section Five race this weekend ! I wish them all the best of luck and can't wait to see what happens!

(Some of the Junior Team all smiles after the race!)

Super Tour Weekend Recap

2011-01-19T07:21:00.000-08:00

Thanks to the efforts of NYSEF and ORDA New York ski racers were offered the opportunity to race the nations best skiers in a very familiar setting. To say that NY'ers had an unfair advantage may be true but with the level of talent in Lake Placid any advantage was welcome.

(Reed getting after it!)

Their were 4 athletes racing this weekend that will be representing the U.S.A at the World Championships. The opportunity for our juniors to see these athletes up close and personal is priceless.

(Waxing up our boards for the classic race! Toko Green Binder with some White over it worked all day for most of us some liked a little Mint mixed in)

All of the our athletes experienced the high's and low's of racing this weekend. There was not time to waste though as all of the juniors had a high school race back in Rochester Monday morning! The results this winter have proved one thing that many already know. If you want to become a better skier you better be doing something over the summer!

(Happy to be racing)

In the high school race on Monday the boys took 6 of the top 10 spots! The girls were not to be outdone and took 5 of the top 7 sports including going 1st-4th !! Congratulations to all of the R.N.R Juniors this weekend ! One thing about NY is that it is dominated by high school skiing, without the cooperation of the local high school coached the junior program would not exist! To become a better ski nation we need cooperation and I'm glad to know that the Rochester area can see past the lines that divide most and move forward in developing the best student athletes possible

(The old man of the group)

The senior team stuck around Saturday and went out Sunday morning to preview to Loppet course. The skiing was great and we were all sad to leave. I don't think you can beat the Porter Mnt Loop to East Mnt and High Notch anywhere in the country, lots of climbing and absolutely beautiful scenery.

(at the top of high notch)

We revealed our new suits this weekend, so the secret is out now who is racing for R.N.R ! After a great weekend of racing we are happy to welcome our newest member! We are not in to signing out of area skiers in hopes to win point races, as we are more interested in winning THE RACE! But we decided to make an exception for the G.O.A.T !!

(The G.O.A.T)

Great racing by everyone this weekend a big shout out to all of the skiers and clubs from NY who took advantage of the SUPER TOUR on our home turf! As I have always believed if you want to be the best you need to race the best because you will have a choice to make when you are done.

Are you in or are you out ?

U.S XC Nationals Recap

2011-01-10T08:11:00.000-08:00

When it comes to skiing, there's a difference between what you think it's going to be like, what it's really like, and what you tell your friends it was like.

When Reed, Adam, and I headed off to Rumford I think we all had different expectations, thoughts, and ideas of what it was going to be like when we arrived. When we returned to Rochester the three of us knew what it WAS like to race against past and future Olympians, Junior National Champions, and if for only one week we were ski racers at the biggest show on snow and dirt !

Adam, and Reed raced in the classic sprint, 15k classic, and 10k skate races while I raced in the 15k classic, and 30k skate. As many of you already know the heat wave that hit New Years weekend greatly effected the courses in Rumford, but like any championship event it did not effect the competition. The negative of the lack of snow was that the volunteers, athletes, and coaches all had to do some shoveling, the positive about skiing 15k, or 30k on a 2.5k loop was that you had a lot of fast skiers to ski behind, ski past, and watch ski away! The opportunity to ski a lap or two or three behind a national champion gives you hope and knowledge that you can do it if only for a minute, you know if you work hard enough you can do it for 1 min, then 2min, 3min, 4min, and then hopefully for 30 minuets.

Here are some pictures and video from the past week. Enjoy and hope to see you all at the Super Tour this weekend in Lake Placid !!

To watch the video in a full size window click here: Nationals Skate Race

Ready to race !

2011-01-04T13:29:00.000-08:00

After waiting around for another day the boys and I are ready to race. It looks as though postponing the classic race for a day will enable the organizers to patch together a 2.5k loop for tomorrows 15k. Hopefully I will be able to draw on my past experience running indoor track while at Virginia Tech so that I do not lose track of what lap i'm on. It will be a hamster wheel with skiers going round and round and with somewhere around 120 races it should prove interesting. It should also be a great opportunity to jump on the tails of some world class skiers and hitch a ride for a lap or two!

Yesterday we went to Great Glen trails in New Hampshire to seek out some snow. The trails were in great shape despite the recent thaw. Thanks to Eli Walker and the rest of the staff at Great Glen for getting the trails in shape for everyone. It was also great to see that they only charged each skier $5.oo to ski when they could of charged whatever they wanted ! You don't often see that kind of inhospitality or common sense when it comes to things of that nature and it was a huge relief for many! Thanks Again

Here a some pictures from yesterday and today. Enjoy !

(Waxing the boards up for tomorrow)

(Hanging out at the races)

(Adam racing in the qualification)

(Reed racing in his qualification)

(Our home for the week)

Nor-Am Biathlon

2011-01-03T13:30:00.000-08:00

Last week Marty and I left Rochester and headed to our home away from home the Bradley's in Barrie Vermont. The Bradley's have been awesome letting us stay at their home for many different reasons the last few years. It makes everything a lot easier having a place to stay where you can get a good home cooked meal, enjoy great accommodations and most importantly great conversation.

(Our waxing facility at the Bradleys ! World Class)

The reason for our trip last week was to race in the Nor-Am Cup Biathlon races in Jericho Vermont. Well the report from home was that the temps were rising and the snow melting we were greeted with -6 deg on the first morning of competition. The sun came out and all three days of competition were as good as it gets with nice firm tracks and lots of snow. These races also acted as the world junior trials so their were a lot of teams, parents, and coaches making the atmosphere at the range pretty electric.

(Standing Shotting at Jericho)

It was great to see all of the New York juniors at the races. NY has a long tradition of producing some of the top biathletes in the country and it looks like we have a few more on the way!!!! The races went well for both Marty and I as we were able to go 1-2 in all 3 races. Since just about everyone who is front of us on the national rankings list is in Europe racing the podium was left wide open for the taking, and neither of us were complaining. The juniors also had a great week with Carly Wynn leading the way and qualifying for World Juniors !! Also qualifying for World Juniors was Silky Hynes a transplanted NY'er. Also competing and doing very well were NY'ers Alex Goff, Patrick Detraglia, Brian Halligan, Will Fieroh, Elizabeth Izzo, Hilary Saucy, and Maddie Phanuef

(My helpers for the week, Toko Cold Powder mixed with HF Blue says the kitten)

I would also like to thank Art Stegen, and Sean Halligan for all of their help on the range. Sean also had a great race on Thursday, showing his son that he still has it!

Results are posted here. http://www.eabiathlon.org/

All in all it was a great week. I'm now in Rumford Maine for U.S Nationals with Reed and Adam ! Update to be posted SOON

(Also my entertainment)

It's all about the PIE !!

2010-12-28T14:00:00.001-08:00

For most NY skiers the Osceola Christmas race is the unofficial kickoff to the ski season. It's not called the "World Famous Osceola Christmas Race" for nothing ! With over 240 races it is one of the largest races in NY.

Not only are early season bragging rights on the line but so are delicious pies for the winners of each age group! In addition to earning respect and pies race organizer Julie makes custom pottery awards for the top3 in each age group. Check out all of her beautiful and unique products at http://www.earthandironstudio.com/ So needless to say their is a lot on the line for this early season race to make it even more interesting the race was classic technique this year. Thankfully Hugh came through laying down some sweet tracks with his new grooming set up and the snow gods came through and blessed the tug will with plenty of the early season white stuff.

With all that was on the line R.N.R decided to come out with the guns blazing and blazing they were. With both overall winners and 4 of the top 6 overall having ties to the summer program things could not of been much better. Congratulations to Chad Day and Amanda Moreland on the overall win and to Jason Hettenbaugh, and Hanna Barnes on their top 3 overall performances. In addition to being in the top 3 overall we also had some great junior performances from Eric and Reed going 2 and 3 in the J1 boys and Adam winning the OJ boys race. Steve also had a good race finishing 2nd in the M4 race. All in all it was a great day to be a part of R.N.R !!

Currently R.N.R is training hard for some big time races coming up. Marty and Jason are in Vermont racing the Nor-Am Biathlon races in Jericho. So far they are off to a great start with Marty taking the victory in the Sr mens category and Jason placing second!! Next week Jason, Reed, and Adam are headed to Rumford Maine for U.S Nationals, and then most of the team will be back together for the Queensbury JOQ followed by the Super Tour in Lake Placid. We are also going to have a surprise for all of you soon so keep your eye open!!

Our day in Pictures

2010-08-10T14:48:00.000-07:00

Recently our weekend practices have been at our local alpine hill. No matter what you call it moose-hoofing, ski-walking, it's a great workout!

Since we have been doing this workout for a couple of months the number of repeats is getting pretty high and starting to create a serious "SITUATION" for my legs!

So to give them a little more this week we decided to keep the number of repeats the same but to add a little spin session at the end.

The data was good and the attitudes even better!

After all the hard work it was time for a treat.

The kids seemed fine but the workout almost killed one of us!

Even after and Epic workout you still have to get up the next day and get after it, no matter how you feel, how the weather is, or what your friends are doing ! It's all on YOU !!

Get out there and get after it!

Keep On Rollin'

2010-08-05T07:04:00.000-07:00

(Amy headed to St.Lawrence to ski next year, headed to the bottom to ski to the top today)

We are going full speed ahead here in Rochester. Most of the athletes are now done traveling for the summer and are focused on getting the job done ! We are still missing a few that are finishing up there last week at various summer camps and family vacations, but we had a good solid group last night to get after it, and that they did!

(The ladies headed out)

When we fist started coming to this hill the everyone was doing between 4-6 repeats. Last night everyone did between 8-10 repeats. Not only has the number gone up but the avg time has gone down !! It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that the kids are getting fit!

(The one thing that about roller skiing is that when you fall it is going to leave a mark, the questions is how fast do you get back up?)

Last night I took some video so that they could review there technique. I waited to take the video on the last two sets so that we could see what was going on when they started to get a little fatigued. We still have a lot of work to get done but things are looking good!

(If you ski up a big hill you gotta go back down! Coach Weston running the lift service)

New Paltz Camp

2010-07-27T12:18:00.000-07:00

Another week another camp! This week we packed up the car and headed to New Paltz for the second consecutive year. Last year was so much fun the word seemed to spread within the group and this year 5 athletes and I made the journey East.

(My car has looked like this for 75% of the summer! Sweet!)

First off I want to thank the entire Mancuso family for hosting this camp at there home. Without them stepping up and providing accommodations, food, coaching, and support this camp would not take place. I would also like to thank Art Stegen, and Greg Malia for helping out as well.

(Adam and Reed with our host and athlete Gabby Mancuso)

The New Paltz area is a really special place. Being only an hour outside of NY City you would assume that there would be no place to roller ski and limited places to even train. Well you would be wrong because this place is awesome! In the heart of the Gunks there are miles and miles of carriage trails to run on, as well as some sweet roads to roller ski on. There are also some huge climbs around with the Catskills being so close.

With so much to do, the time and the camp really flies by. We arrived on Thursday and got right in to it heading out for a skate technique session, followed by a trail run up to the Mohonk Mountain House. This place is sick ! It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Once up to the grounds we went through a rock scramble and then climbed up to the fire tower. We even poached a swim in the lake, though somehow I think the lifeguards knew we were not guest they let us sneak in and out!

(The Mountain House from the fire tower)

On Friday we got in a skate OD in the morning and then a classic technique session in the afternoon. Saturday the group headed out for a classic roller ski and then in the afternoon we went for a sweet mountain bike ride up in the Gunks! It was refreshing to be able to ride a few miles and then jump in a mountain lake, ride a few more miles and then jump in another lake. Pretty spectacular training. Sunday morning we headed south to West Point for a time trail. Last year we classic skied the TT so this year we switched it up and went with skate. Now we have a baseline for both techniques. The TT is primarily uphill for 5 or 10k depending on age and ability and has a huge shoulder so it is also safe.

(All these camps are hard work for the coaches as well but hey I cant think of a better way to spend the summer!)

The kids all were hurting and put in some good efforts. This time of year it is good to remind the body what it takes to put in that kind of effort. Though for some of them it was there third TT in as many weeks. Luckily there are no camps this week, other than vacation so we are working hard back in Rochester with the rest of the crew!

(Reed's new profile picture, I'm sure this will be on Facebook very soon!)

(The R.N.R Boy's Minus Dylan who forgot his sneakers and rocked the five fingers on the run and rock scramble! Needless to say his feet were hurting at this point)

(The crew back to work on Monday)

(Get after it ! )

Busy Time Of Year.

2010-07-12T11:59:00.000-07:00

To put it mildly the summer is super busy. It seems as though there are commitments everyday of the week, this week, next week, last week, every week. It sounds funny and maybe crazy but to be good really good you have to make a commitment a commitment to get better each and everyday!

(Warm-Up obstacle course)

The summer though seems to try to add other commitments vacations, weddings, late nights, and all the things that seem to happen over the summer. I guess it is a good thing in some ways since we compete over the winter when everyone else seems to go in to hibernation. For the most part everyone has been dealing well with all of the commitments and some even seeming to excel. For some the commitment may be only 3 days a week when we meet as a group for others it might be 7 days a week. It seems as though the entire U.S is stepping up it's game and in by doing so there are a lot of opportunities to share your commitment with others.

(Dinner at Charlie's on our way to Craftsbury Salmon, Venison, and Caribou!!)

Most recently I had the opportunity to attend the NENSA REG Camp in Craftsbury Vermont. It was an amazing opportunity, and i'm glad that they extended it to include some of us from Mid-A. Not only was I able to be a part of the camp but so were three athletes Reed Likly, Elizabeth Izzo, and Charlie Bencze. Everything at the camp was amazing the coaches, the athletes, the accomidations, the weather, I mean everything. I have been to a lot of camps as both a coach and and as an athlete and this was without a doubt the best. It is not a surprise that New England has brought home the Alaskan Cup the last couple of years and that they are also well represented on the USST. There is a level that has been set in New England and everyone is trying to get to that level. Pretty sick stuff !! A big thank you to NENSA for letting us take part. For more on the camp check out http://www.nensa.net/index.html For more info on Craftsbury and the Green Racing Team check out http://www.craftsbury.com/skiing/nordic_center/home.htm

(The NENSA REG CAMP)

This week some of the R.N.R gang has invaded the OTC in Lake Placid for the NYSEF camp. They will be home next weekend and on Thursday a bunch of will be leaving for New Paltz for another camp! Three Camps in less than a month! Commitment!!

On a side note I recently drove out to Oklahoma City with my dad to pick up his new Stratos Bass Boat. It was a 20hr trip one way from the HF. We left Friday morning at 9am and I was back here Sunday at 1:00pm. We even stopped at my Grandmothers for breakfast Sunday Morning! I got to see some cool things along the way. The St. Louis Arch, Busch Stadium, Lucas Oil Stadium, and above all other the World Headquarters for Bass Pro in Springfield Missouri. Most of you know how much of a country guy I am and it was like heaven on earth. We only got to stop for about an hour so I need to go back for sure. You could spend a week in that place and not get see everything. Pretty sweet place.

Keep it real and keep the commitment going! I'm off the practice !

(It's hot here in NY as well)

School's out for SUMMER!

2010-06-26T10:12:00.000-07:00

Well we got no choice, All the girls and boys, Makin all that noise, 'Cause they found new toys, Well we can't salute ya, Can't find a flag, If that don't suit ya, Thats a drag. School's out for summer, School's out forever, Schools been blown to pieces!

Just like the great Alice Cooper song "School is out for Summer". Everyone is finally done with school even our youngsters who just finished 8th grade! Practice has been going great and we have been able to get some great work done. Even though school just finished Stefan already had

to leave for Colorado and the Air Force Academy. He will be greatly missed and was an important part of the foundation that has helped shape the program in to what it is today. We all wish him the best of luck and look forward to skiing with him when he comes home on break this winter.

Last week we got through our first real interval sessions of the summer. We spent the first three weeks getting use to being back on our skis, and focusing on technique and base fitness. The weather has been great and the kids have really been getting after it.

This summer is already been amazing! Just seeing over 20 kids on roller-skis all working together in Rochester is awesome and is still just the tip of the iceberg! In addition to roller-skiing we have been making our way to the local alpine resort for some ski walking sessions. We have also found time to play as well. There is nothing better than a cold swim after a hot hard workout.

Don't forget to enjoy it and get your Twerk ON !!

Back To Work

2010-06-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

We got back to work last week with our first official practice of the summer. Everyone was ready to rock so we wasted no time and got down to business with our baseline test. It was good to see the returning athletes trying to better there previous results and it was awesome seeing all the new comers riding the “Pain Train”.

(It's all about setting goals and working hard to achieve them! Most of our athletes goals are to make it to JO's next year in Minneapolis.

I have to say that I’m really excited about this summer. We have a great group of kids and I can tell already they are ready to work. We started roller skiing this week and everyone is looking great! Here are the results from the baseline test. We had a couple of conflicts since school is still in session but almost everyone was able to make it. We should have anther solid group taking the test soon including the Senior Team!

Athlete Name	Run	Sit-Ups	Push-Ups	Dips	Step-Ups	Pull-Ups
E.M.	6:28	42/41	55/32	36/35	40/42	11
S.R.	7:23	52/53	50/27	21/25	33/24	8.75
R.H.	5:46	50/48	60/30	19/25	43/50	9.0
M.N.	6:44	40/30	26/20	19/18	48/45	.1
K.S.	8:10	46/46	32/17	24/20	37/39	.7
A.S.	5:57	60/33	42/17	30/15	57/56	3
R.L.	5:43	52/31	47/17	42/36	52/47	8.69
A.L.	7:34	32/29	22/31	17/18	40/45	.1
D.H.	6:33	50/42	50/22	20/31	35/45	11
A.C.
S.Z.		55/41	66/35	45/38	42/58	15
E.H.	6:56	46/32	41/29	17/7	36/37	.72
M.W.	7:21	51/44	35/10	30/26	44/43	12.9
H.B.	7:09	49/37	61/57	30/33	38/43	3.0
V. A.
M.H.	6:40	54/53	46/15	45/16	41/45	5
M.J.	8:54	38/30	35/26	20/24	30/34	2.0
B.G.	8:03	27/32	30/22	17/14	33/35	.3
E.H.	6:49	40/30	35/23	21/18	40/42	8.9

(Pain Train! All Aboard!!)

Season Recap

2010-04-06T18:01:00.000-07:00

I don’t know where to start. The season has come and gone in what seemed like a number of day’s not months. That’s how it always seems to happen. You have a huge build up of training, preparation, equipment, goals, excitement and then before you know it has all past and instead of reflecting on what has happened you start to plan on making it happen next year.

For me and the team it was an exciting and emotional season with exceptional results, great trips, and memories that will last a life time. I don’t want to spend a lot of time going over all of the results that we were able to achieve but a few stick out in my mind.

For starters the junior team had a great season. All of the juniors that were part of the summer program raced in Sectionals and of those all of them but one represented Section Five at the state meet. At the state meet Reed had a great race and was 4^th, Stefan had one of the best races of his young career and finished 6^th, Adam also had a great race and proved that he continues his rise to the top finishing in 9^th. Not to be out done the girls had great races as well. Alyssa was on the Podium finishing 3^rd as a J2!!! Amy also had a great race showing that her results this season were no fluke following Alyssa on the results sheet in 4^th, Katie also had a great race showing that her hard work and dedication the last four years was worth it finishing 6^th, Kathryn also had a great race finishing 26^th keep an eye out for her in the years to come as she will be moving up the results sheet!

To say it was an impressive day for the kids was a massive understatement. It yet again proves the point that to be a successful skier you have to have a year round training plan.

After states the juniors and I headed to Presque Isle for JN’s. It ended up being a great trip. The kids really got after it and had some great results. I know they are already chomping at the bit to get going this summer with there eyes set on JN’s next year in Minneapolis. I have to give a big thanks to everyone involved with JN’s from the organizers at the Maine Winter Sports Center to all the volunteers from around the “county” it was a world class event!

The senior team also had a great year representing R.N.R from local NYSSRA races to World Team Trails in Minnesota. We were able to represent our club well at the NYSSRA Championships winning the men’s biathlon Sprint, Pursuit, and Club Relay. We were also able to take 1^st and 2^nd in the NYSSRA club championship 3x3 relay.

I can’t recap the season without mentioning the loss of Peter Cannon. As many of you know all ski communities are small and tight niche. There are none tighter than that of the HoneoyeFalls-Lima High school program, Section Five Nordic, and New York State Skiing. When a tragedy occurs it affects everyone. The way the “community” came together to support the Cannon family was unbelievable and only reinstated what an unbelievable individual Peter was and what an amazing family he has. Peter will be missed but never forgotten.

The Peter J. Cannon Memorial Scholarship is still accepting donations; send checks to

HF-L Business Office, 20 Church St., Honeoye Falls, NY14472

Some of my favorite shots from the season!

R.N.R Takes 1st and 2nd in the club relay!

The Mid-A Crew in Presque Isle

Swayze working it.

Opening Ceremonies at JN's

The kids were fried after a week of racing!

Frenchski was fried after a day of racing!

Our home!

NYSSRA Biathlon Champs

Takin home some serious hardware after day 1

Epic Weekend of Results

2010-02-08T17:01:00.000-08:00

(Chad and Marty holding Jason up after the Loppet)

Some teams believe that they were the big winners this weekend but don’t let the hype fool you there was only one team throwing it down in NY this weekend!! You guessed it R.N.R!

I will start of with the most impressive result of the weekend and that had to be the 3^rd place that Adam scored at the Section 5 meet. Just last year Adam was 20^th at sectionals yea you read that correctly 20^th. This year 3^rd you better check yourself if you think hard work, dedication, and a good attitude are over-rated! It did not stop there either as the rest of the boys were on it as well with Reed 4^th, Stefan 7^th, and Dylan in 15^th. Adam, Reed, and Stefan will all represent Section 5 at this year’s state meet.

Not to be out done the girls had spectacular races as well. Katie led the way in 2^nd, Alyssa 3^rd, Amy 4^th and Katie 10^th. It’s pretty impressive that all of the girls that participated in the summer program are now headed to states; it speaks volumes about how important it is to get some ski specific training in over the summer.

It’s hard not to be excited about how well the kids are skiing this winter. It is not only a testament to how hard they work but also to how hard there high school coaches work. I don’t know anyone who is as dedicated to the coaching and education of young athletes as Mr. Gardner at HF-L and I would not be where I am in my own life if it were not for him. The same goes for Mrs. Gorbold at Pittsford she puts in many more hours than she will ever be given credit for! Without them NY skiing would not be the same and I have to give them a big shout out !!!

The senior team made the trip north to contest the Lake Placid Loppet. It was the first 50k skate race for all of us and we were able to be the first 3 New Yorkers across the line. Leading the way was Jason 4^th, Marty 6^th and Chad 10^th Overall. As always we go to win the race not our age group so I would be lying if I said we were not a little disappointed with our performances. But we went for it! We did not sign up for the hurt a little 25k or the ski and not destroy our self classic race we went for the big daddy and that’s what it all about! Go big or go home! Kinda like Shawn Payton in the Super Bowl you either have a set or you don’t!

We even sent our senior leader all the way down to the Art Roscoe Loppet. Steve was sent on a mission to avenge his loss from last year but was unable to come through in the clutch. By his own omission he was a “Big Baby” and is already looking forward to next year. He was 3^rd overall and 2nd in his age group but as stated before we are not interested in winning the age class we want the whole dam thing!

As you can see R.N.R was all over the state this past weekend and will be back at it this weekend. Before you even think about leaving a comment I will let you all know that Marty and Jason are headed to Lake Placid for the Nor-Am Biathlon races and they will have there rifles!

We are all looking forward to the NYSSRA Championship weekend in two weeks!! You can bet we will be there for one reason and one reason only!

Placid Post

2010-01-25T16:58:00.001-08:00

(Alyssa Leading The Way!)

It was a big weekend of racing for the R.N.R gang as we made the trip north to the Olympic village of Lake Placid. The senior team set up base camp at the “JR” where we were joined by Amy, Stefan and Rob. We kicked off the weekend with the infamous coin game. I thought I was in prime position to secure one of the double beds as I won the preliminary round securing my position as the last one to throw in the money round, but as luck would have it the last two qualifiers came up big when the pressure was on and ended up with the two bigger beds!! Marty and I were relegated to the two single beds for the weekend while Steve and Chad got to enjoy the luxury that the queen beds provided!

The morning of the Skate race we should have known we were in for it as we pulled out of the driveway headed for the venue and got a classic North Country welcome from one of the locals. Marty may have taken his time as he pulled out of the driveway but we had plenty of time to get in to our lane and get on our way, apparently the guy in the pickup coming the other way did not think so and made sure to roll down the window and get his hand out to throw us the bird!!

As we arrived at the venue the A1 cluster F%$#@ was already in full swing! The cold temps overnight had everyone running around switching wax and trying to find more clothes. By the time the first starter was off the sun was out and it was a picture perfect day. The juniors had a big day as they looked to lock of there position on this years JO team. Reed led the way for the boy’s while Alyssa and Amy threw it down in the girl’s races! The senior team did not ski up to expectation and it was decided that to make up for it we would ski the first ½ of the Loppet course in preparation for the upcoming race. Since we really had no idea where we were headed we recruited Jacked Up to give us a tour of his stomping ground. It seemed like we went up a lot of big hills so I’m not really sure if he took us on the real loppet course or his own loppet course! It was a good ski and we even found a few surprises out on the trail. Jacked Up was getting hungry and as usual decided to prey upon the weak!! Law of the jungle baby!

(Only the strong survive)

When we returned to the "JR" we were treated to a first class meal prepared by Amy, Stefan, and Rob. After dinner we had a bunch of visitors stop over and it was great to catch up with everyone. I caught a little grief for not keeping up with the blog but i'm not going to mention any names (Gabby)!

Sunday was the 15k mass start classic race. It was a quality suffer-fest for most. There was an early move by the boys from Craftsbury and the rest of us were forced to give chase. We had a good chase pack of 8-10 unfortunately Chad and I fell of the back on the second lap. I’m not exactly sure how everyone ended up overall as the results have not been posted on-line. Post race reports were mostly positive except for Adam who decided he would try out his wax-less skis. Needless to say it was not a good day for that!

As usual the NYSEF crew put on a great event and it was hard to leave and make the trip south. What was even worse than leaving Lake Placid was what I awoke to this morning 55 degrees and pouring rain, needless to say the skiing in Rochester at the moment is questionable at best. Not good.

(Some were more tired than others on the trip home "Big Baby a.k.a Coin Game Winner")

The Mark of The Beast !?!?

2010-01-12T18:00:00.000-08:00

The snow has finally arrived here in Western NY and as usual the race season has arrived with it. This past weekend most of the crew made the trip to Glens Falls for the second JO Qualifier of the year. There were over 500 racers that took part in the festivities. Yea you read that correctly over 500!! That is a big race in any neck of the woods but for NY thats HUGE!!

I could not think of a better place for this race to be either! With that many racers you really want to be sure to have narrow trails, and one big steep hill !!!! It adds to the excitement and to the memories for sure! I do have to give to the entire Underwood family and all of the volunteers big props for pulling the race off and to Reliable Racing who supplied some great gifts to the winners!!

As for the race it went well for everyone. We really had some good results. In the J2 girls race Alyssa continued her excellent season with a solid 2nd place finish just 8 seconds back. In the J1 girls race Amy also had an excellent race finishing 5th. Not to be out done the boy's went off in the J1 race and all finished in the top 10 with Reed leading the way in 4th, Adam in 5th, and Stefan in 10th.

With all the talking that has been taking place on the NYSSRA Blog I decided it was time for Chad, Marty and I to strap on the skis and get after it as well. I'm not going to lie we had one mission and that was to go 1,2,3 and sweep the podium. The plan did not play out as I had hoped but we were able to go 2,3,6 so it was not a total loss. Thankfully we brought along Steve as he provided our only victory on the day winning the M5 race!!!

Congratulations to Charlie Bencze and Carly Wynn for taking home the J1/OJ boys and girls races!!

On a interesting side note R.N.R is now in 3rd place in the 2009-2010 NYSSRA Club Championship Series. I'm not exactly sure how this whole point thing works but it seems as though it is based on participants not actual results. Meaning if your team has 100 skiers and mine has 10 even if we go 1-10 we still lose?!?! Interesting? Even more interesting is that face that R.N.R current point total is 666.

Beware of the BEAST!!! We are after you all!!!!!

Minnesota: Tickets, Racing, Beer and More!

2009-12-23T10:58:00.000-08:00

Currently sitting in the Milwaukee Airport. Hoping to make my way back east after being in Minnesota for the last week racing in the world team trials for biathlon. The races went as well as they probably should have for me. With the lack of snow in NY I raced on my 5^th, 6^th, and 8^th day on snow. As one might have guessed I got faster and faster but poor shooting kept me from having any respectful results. It was a great experience and it was good to knock heads with the best in the country.

With Tim Burke taking over the yellow bib this past weekend as overall leader on the world cup it is truly a special time to be part of biathlon here in the U.S. We have some of the best biathletes in the world racing on the world cup and a bunch of guys waiting to break on to the scene. Can’t wait to see what happens

In other news the trip to Minnesota was eventful to say the least. We got pulled over on the first and second day we were in Grand Rapids. I have to say the event organizers and volunteers were very welcoming the local law enforcement not so much! The first time we got pulled over Marty was dropping the hammer on the rental to get us to our hotel when we came up fast on a car; unfortunately the car we were chasing down was the local state trooper. Thankfully since we came up behind him he had no idea how fast we were going other than too fast and could only give us a written warning. The very next day on our way to the venue to wax up the boards we got jacked up by the local cop. He said we were going 45 in a 30?!?! Not sure about that but he did not give us a warning he gave us a summons to appear in court sometime in January. Not sure we will back for that one!!

I also lost my Black Berry only to find it later that same day in the parking lot at the venue. As I pulled up I could see that it had been run over a couple of times and figured it was junk. Miraculously it still works! I’m not sure if it is that tough or if it was just frozen solid from the cold temps!!!

Last night we made out way back to the twin cities so that we would not have to make the drive this morning. We stopped at local hot spot Finsisu and I left a couple pairs of Madhsus for Tom to grind for me. I know a lot of people swear by the UNI grind he pumps out so I thought I would give it a try. Can’t wait to get them back and try them!

I also got a six’er of Summit’s Extra IPA. It’s a local brewery located in the twin cities. I have to say after a long week tipping back a couple with Marty was the perfect way to end the trip. I know Marty has posted a couple first hand accounts of our run in with the law and other activities while in MN. Check it out at his blog! Marty's Blog

Thanks again to everyone at Mnt. Itasca who made the races possible!

It's On Like Donkey Kong!!

2009-12-18T14:15:00.001-08:00

It’s on like Donkey Kong!

From Urban Dictionary:

A phrase to denote that it's time to throw down or compete at a high level; something is about to go down; a phrase used to incite fear in an opponent, so much more than simply 'it's on', the inclusion of primate legend Donkey Kong stems from DK's penchant for victory.

So yea it’s on tomorrow! Most of the team is ready to throw down at the World Famous Oceola Christmas Race. This is the first Junior Olympic Qualifier for Mid-A and also the first race of the season for most skiers in NY. Alyssa Likly will look to increase her overall lead in the NYSSRA points race and also have a good points race to start of her bid for a spot on this years Junior Olympic Team!! The rest of the juniors will also be looking for a strong start to the qualifying procedure. Look out for them as they are on a mission!!

Even though Adam, and Reed were able to foil the attempts of P.N.M and H.U.R.T last weekend we have decided to send the big guns in this weekend and blow those guys clean in to next year! Chad will be in the hunt for the overall win as well as solidifying himself as the best senior racer in NY. Steve will be in there mixing it up with the masters as well and will continue his rise to the top!

Marty and I are currently in Minnesota ready to kick of the Biathlon season tomorrow at the World Team Trials. Everyone who is not on the world cup is here so it will be a great test to see where we stack up. It’s will be interesting since we have only been on snow 4 times this year but everyone has excuses!!!

Good luck to everyone who is racing tomorrow and be sure to Get it On!!!!

Big Weekend for R.N.R

2009-12-17T05:57:00.000-08:00

New York has finally received some snow and everyone has been making the most of it. Last weekend a couple of the Juniors headed north to Lake Placid. Without any time on snow except for a tour of the course on Saturday they had some exceptional results.

Alyssa Likly started the season off with a bang winning the J2's girls race!!! Her brother Reed has moved up from the J2's to join the big guns this year in the J1 age group. Reed had a great debut placing 4ht in the J1 category. Adam Swayze also had a great start to the season now in his second year as a J1 placing second in his age group and proving that all his hard work this summer is sure to pay off this winter. The winner of the J1 race was Charlie Bencze (NYSEF) this was also Charlie's first race as a J1. On a side note both of the boys took care of business on a club level beating all of the big guns from Peru and putting the H.U.R.T on a couple of other local

NY Clubs

The senior team headed to Byrncliff on Saturday and Sunday. With lake effect snow hitting the Buffalo area hard on Thursday the best skiing around was found on the Piston Bully groomed trails. Often forgot about Byrncliff offers 5k of lit trails and about 20k of total trails and often has snow due to it's close proximity to the lake effect snow bands of Lake Erie. If you live in the Rochester area you gotta make it out there. There ability to groom with a Piston Bully make for some of the best skiing in the state.

That's it for now. I'm currently in Hartford airport waiting for my flight to Minneapolis. A preview of the weekends plans will follow!! Get out and enjoy the snow!!

It's gotta be FUN!!!!

2009-11-23T07:48:00.000-08:00

I spend every day working with kids of all ages. From the 2yr olds in the infant program all the way up through my college age staff some of who are 21yrs old. It does not matter what sport, activity or job they are doing they do the best when they are having fun!

As coaches as well as athletes it is imperative to incorporate fun in to instruction, workouts, and racing. It’s not hard or complicated to do but it’s something that has to be well thought out and implemented. It does take some time or at least some creativity to make a level 4 interval session fun but it can be done.

For Coaches: Think of ways to incorporate fun in to each and every workout. Think outside of the box and use creative ideas to incorporate fundamental skills. You can play just about any sport with your skis on. Just because its ski practice does not mean you can’t play a game of ultimate Frisbee, or Soccer, and in my opinion ads a whole new dimension to the sport when you have the boards strapped on! Don’t forget to mix it up as well, if you want to work on speed and agility why not set up an obstacle course. I also feel strongly about coaches jumping in and giving it a go once and a while with your athletes. It makes it fun for you as a coach and it also gets the kids going!

Here is a couple of great example from GMVS. Consequently they have some of the best young skiers and coaches in the country!

For Athletes: Don’t be scared to mix it up once and awhile. If you’re going for a 2 hr OD take a new route or run off the trail and create your own adventure. Also try to find someone to go with you. Time seems to go much faster when you are able to carry on a conversation. You also have to be in to it. If you’re not stoked to get out the door and go train then don’t do it! It’s not going to be that productive and it’s only going to make it that much harder to get out the door and do it tomorrow. One last thing that works even on the hardest days is to reward your self. If you have been looking at those Girl Scout cookies all week have a couple after you get in your OD session!

Racing is also a great reward you get to see all of your hard work come to fruition!

It’s not all about winning but it’s a lot of fun when you do!

Bill Koch Biathlon Clinic

2009-11-03T09:45:00.000-08:00

On Sunday I had the wonderful opportunity to work with the local Bill Koch Ski Club. The local club is run by the Rochester XC Ski Foundation and under the guidance of Bob Witkowski. The ski foundation as well as the BK club is one of the major driving forces in the area to develop not only youth skiers but the sport of Nordic Skiing!!

Working in conjunction with the BK Club was Western New York Biathlon. Together the two clubs were able to introduce parents and athletes to the wonderful sport of biathlon. The WNY Biathlon club has a bunch of air rifles and pellet traps that are perfect for the little ones to use. Marty Maynard the WNY club president went over general rifle safety and range procedure. Together with Steve French, Marty and I were able to let each one of the kids shoot 5 shots in the prone position. It was amazing to see some of the kids lay down as many as 4 targets on there very first try!!!

After everyone was able to get some practice in we split the kids in to two 8 person relay teams for a little racing action! The protocol for the race was that each kid had to run a short loop, come in and shoot 2 shots (5 jumping jacks for each miss) and then tag off to the next person in line until the winner was decided. As many of us know it is one thing to hit the targets during zero but another story after skiing/running a loop and having the pressure of friends, family, and self!!!

The kids were doings so well and having so much fun that about ¾ of the way through the line they decided that they wanted to extend the race so that each person shot twice! The race was down to the wire and added to the excitement of the day.

After the race we presented WNY Biathlon patches to all of the kids and our gracious host Kim Douglas (Wife of local Olympian Duncan Douglas) provided everyone with a great snack. Duncan was not able to make it to the event because had left on his own mission to find snow on Saturday. Even without Duncan around we had an eventful day and hopefully did our part to continue New York Sates presence on the Biathlon scene!

I want to thank Rochester XC ski foundation BK ski League, Western New York Biathlon, Kim Douglas and all of the parents and athletes that made this a successful event!!!

Be sure to check out each one of these wonderful organizations website to see what they are up to this winter!

Rochester XC ski foundation BK ski League

http://www.xcrochester.com/new/GVBKYS/GVBKYS.htm

Western New York Biathlon

http://www.westernnybiathlon.com/

Duncan Douglas

http://www.jackedupoldman.com/

Oberhof Ski Tunnel

2009-09-25T11:17:00.000-07:00

Today was a great day I was able to get on to snow for the first time this year and I was able to do it in an amazing ski tunnel located here in Oberhof.

Oberhof is an athletes dream; you realize immediately why some of the best Nordic athletes in the world call this place home. There are miles and miles of trails to run on. There is one trail that is nearly 100k long, with numerous trails splitting off in to the near by towns. I wish I had my mnt bike here as well!

Besides the trails Oberhof features one of if not the nicest biathlon stadiums in the world equipped with a 30 point range and a pathed rollerski loop. In addition to the roller loop and range there is also an additional manual target range also on a roller loop as well as an indoor range that has the capability to be open to the roller loop so that you can ski in and ski out! I stopped at the indoor range yesterday and there were a group of juniors doing intervals and shooting air rifles at the biathlon targets. (Here in Germany the juniors have to use air rifles)

Besides all of that there is also a bobsled run, ski jump, and other amenities that make this a winter sports wonderland!!!!

Tomorrow is the biathlon rollerski sprint race. It should be an awesome atmosphere and the top US guys will be on the start line, should be awesome.

Here is a little video and a few pictures I took today in the ski tunnel. I was able to get in 2 hrs of easy over distance mixed with some no pole, double pole. It took a little bit of time to get use to being on skis again but it was defiantly worth the effort!

(Video Link)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxzr6bp1_dA

Races

2009-09-24T12:12:00.001-07:00

Well the running races are over. For me the races went alright, and I learned a lot so they were successful in that respect. I did not do as well as I would of liked but keeping everything in perspective they were good. My teammate Sam Morse had a couple of great results. I have known Sam for a long time so it was good to see him do well, and it's always great to have a fellow New Yorker out there getting after it. Sam is originally from Camden NY and now splits his time in Camden and Jericho VT as he is in the Vermont National Guard. Doug, and Danny also did very well and were great leaders on this trip, they are veterans of the sport and made things a lot easier for Sam and I as they knew the routine. Steph was running well but here shooting fell apart and she was not able to get the results that everyone knows she is capable of achieving. She will be back though!!!!

Results can be found here:http://www.biathlonworld2.de/en/

After the final race we traveled to a near by town for the pursuit awards presentation. It is amazing at how much Biathlon means to the people of Germany. They know how to make it a truly special occasion. I took a couple of pictures of the stadium here in Oberhof and a little video of the awards presentation.

Tomorrow is the mixed relay roller ski race in which the US has no one entered. It should be fun races to watch though as most of the major contenders are here in Oberhof.

Pea Soup

2009-09-21T09:56:00.001-07:00

Can you see the targets? Because I know I was having a hard time!

Today was the first day of official practice or at least it was suppose to be. One look outside the hotels window and I knew it was going to be pretty sketchy at the venue. I have heard the term “Pea Soup” and today I got my first taste. The fog rolled in over night and it was THICK!!

The team made the short trip over to the venue to see what was going on. They pushed the initial range opening time back from 10 to 10:30 but I think everyone knew that would not change anything. Sam and I decided to walk the course to make up for the change in time. After a preview of the course we returned to the range only to see the same thing. NOTHING!

You could barely make out the targets through the fog with the naked eye. They decided to open the range anyway and then after a couple people fired off some shots the closed the range and the decision was made to combine the men’s and women’s training later in the afternoon in hopes that the fog would burn off.

Needless to say when we returned to the range 4 hours later nothing changed. I ended up running the course a few times and then doing some drills. We ended up having the paper targets taken down and Sam and I took 10 shoots at the metal targets. A lot of the nations where also shooting on metal without to much luck, but it was not surprising because I don’t think anyone could see to zero and most athletes have traveled her from far way places and most likely had there rifles out of the stock as well so it was kind of a crap shoot.

Opening ceremonies tonight and the first race tomorrow morning.

Ski Flex Tester!!!!!!!

2009-09-20T11:27:00.000-07:00

Not much is new here in Oberhof. Tommorrow is the first official training day so it will be good to be able to send some lead down range and get dialed in for the first race on Tuesday.

On another note of of my buddies dad has been hard at work developing a new flex tester. The things is unreal with the data it is able to give back about a ski. It's actualy kinda scary how much info you can get from this thing. I'm going to cut and paste the info in about the new flex tester and if you have any questions feel free to shoot him and e-mail he is a great guy and will be happy to answer any questions.

I'm going to apologize now for the format but for some reason the Euro Net does not like this certian functions like spell check or cut and paste.!!

DS Nordic Ski Flex Tester II
Overview:
This snow ski flex tester provides an accurate measurement of total deflection at over 100 points tip to tail. Deflection is directly proportional to the spring compression forces. Of course, the center camber will only show deflection after the ski is compressed to the point it can be measured with the LVDT. The symmetry and balance of the force distribution is influenced by whether the force is applied at the balance point, or behind the balance point where a skier’s weight is located.
Think about measuring the pressure-distribution along the length of a 2x4 [or a steel I Beam]. You certainly would not use a bunch of fixed load cells on a flat surface and press down in the middle. The entire length needs to be allowed to flex and its profile measured. This allows you to see the effect of knots and other irregularities. We are doing exactly this in order to provide an accurate and repeatable test to allow flex comparisons of skis.
We selected a spring rate that is stiff enough to give good resistance and soft enough to give us enough travel to measure. Our force-factor is 0.131 Kg per cm2 per cm of displacement. High Peaks preferred to have the y-Axis read out in cm of displacement [the software allows either].
Note that we are not trying to simulate snow conditions. We are testing skis. As this system is used to test “Favorite/Fast” skis or skis that perform like a skier wants, the Flex Tester curves will identify certain particular characteristics that make the ski perform for the skier in certain specific snow conditions. This becomes obvious with several iterations of testing and reviewing the data on the “Favorite/Fast” skis. The ski technician operating the machine will quickly be able to match a skiers favorite/fast ski curves to a new pair of skis to be sure they are going getting the same performance out of the new skis. This is assuming that we are talking about like snow conditions.
Please keep in mind we are providing a tool to advance the Sport and we leave determinations as to what is a fast ski to you ski experts and skiers as you correlate flex profile data with what works best for each skier for specific conditions.
FYI: The software provides the graphical data in Excel® so it is easy to add comments to each sheet and include Ski Brand and Model numbers in the File Name for easy sorting and retrieval.
We intend the DS Nordic Ski Flex Tester II to become the worldwide benchmark for all ski flex measurements. Please contact us to ask questions or discuss any details. We welcome your feedback.
DS Flex Testing Systems
715 Mendon Center Road Pittsford, New York 14534 585-750-8746 SkiFlexTester@gmail.com http://www.skiflextester.com/

SkiFlexTester@gmail.com
http://www.skiflextester.com/

World Championships

2009-09-19T02:04:00.000-07:00

I'm in Oberhof Germany for Summer Biathlon World Championships. The flight over went off without any problems other than a couple tight connections. All of my luggage and most importantly my rifle was waiting for me when I arrived. It was about a 3 hr ride to Oberhof from Frankfurt. It is interesting to see all of the different models of vehichles that are avaliable over here and not in the states. Makes me wonder how much vehicle manufactures in the states really want to push more effeicant vehicles because they are obviously avaliabe in other parts of the world!!

Yesterday we ran from our hotel to the Biathlon venue (3k via a interlinking trail system). The venue is absolutly amazing! I will get some pictures tommorrow because it is one of those things that words can not do justice! The entire town of Oberhof seems to have one thing on it's mind and that is winter sports, the place is just set up to help athletes succeed. There are tons of Juniors at the hotel and each morning they roll out with there skis to take advantage of the new ski tunnel they opened here last month. Hopefully by weeks end I will be able to make my way over to the ski tunnel and get a few K's in.

Thats it for now, Hopefully I will be able to get some pictures tommorrow and let you see what i'm talking about.

NP to NYC !!!

2009-07-26T17:41:00.000-07:00

On Saturday the group hit the roads early and got in some agility and speed work. It was a short and sweet workout to allow some extra time for the real business of the day. A trip to NY City!

New Paltz is only about an hour and half outside of the city. So we took advantage of the proximity and hit the road after lunch. I have a love hate relationship with the city. I love the atmosphere, people, shops, and entertainment, but hate the over indulgence, waste, and pollution that the city produces.

Sorry to go all Al Gore on everyone but was blown away by the fact that all of these huge stores have the AC blasting and the doors wide open!?!?!? No wonder the weather is whacked out Up State!

The trip was great and well worth it. I have attached a few pictures of our day!

Group Shot in Times Square

I have heard of the Naked Cowboy. But the Naked Cowgirl?

You always gotta pay attention to what's going on in the city. I would not want to step on this thing!!

I’m a big fan of DMB and the bands new song “The Way it is” about sums up the City in my mind.

We all made it back to NP safe and Sound and have a time trial to get after next!!

New Paltz Day 1

2009-07-24T04:17:00.000-07:00

I arrived in New Paltz yesterday with Adam and Amy. We made the journey east to attend a camp being put on by Nick Mancuso. Other coaches at the camp include myself, Janice Sabila , Art Stegan, and Jon Stern. I was a little hesitant as I got off 87 and was instantly stuck in the New Paltz traffic but to my surprise as soon as we turned off the main drag we were smack-dab in the middle of the picturesque Hudson Valley. The Mancuso’s have a sweet set up right on the banks of the river and it provides an excellent base camp!

After arriving and a short camp meeting it was time to get down to business. We broke the athletes up in to small groups and focused on technique. We utilized the coaches and set up three separate stations with each station focusing on specific technique V1, V2, and Alt. We were also able to have a coach drive around to each group and video the athletes. Things were off to a great start!!

When we had finished the ski we jumped in to the cars and headed up the road a mile or so and swapped our boots for the sneakers and started out on our run/hike/rock scramble/bad ass workout!!!!! We ran from the cars up to Mohonk Mnt House!

This place is for strait up balers!!! With rooms in the $300-600 range!! But we were able to take advantage of the great views and the rock scramble they have set up to make our way up to the fire tower! It was an epic adventure and the entire way up all I could think about was how awesome NY really is!! This state has is all and though I often find myself bitching about lack of snow, the size of the state and the fact it takes 5 hours to drive to a local race this state is truly amazing and impresses me more and more with all it has to offer. I wish I had my camera but the threatening skies forced me to leave it at the car. I will link in some photos from the Mnt Houses website but they don’t even do the place justice! Not to mention that during the winter there are over 50k of groomed trails at this joint!!!!!!!! I gotta make a trip out here when the white stuff is flying!

That’s it for now I gotta get out of Starbuck and back to the ranch to wake the kids up!!! More to come from New Paltz…

*Images from the Mohonk Mnt House Website!! Check it out at www.mohonk.com

Work and Play !!

2009-07-06T18:15:00.000-07:00

There is no doubt that to become faster you need to work hard, but you also need to know how to have fun! Today we did 90min of specific strength on skis. (45 min no pole skate/45 min double pole) We had a great break in the middle in the form of a couch and love seat found on the side of the road! Who ever dumped this thing off should be beaten with it for in proper disposal but none the less we decided to have a little fun. Here are a couple of pictures of the foolishness!!

Have Fun!

But don't forget about the work!!

We finished off the the day with some sprint work. It always fun to line it up against the youngsters and test not only your own speed but also to judge the improvement that is being made by the kids. Tonight a couple of the boys and I were bum pin heads with a little best 2 out of 3. My man Sway-Easy took the first one with a nice move from the start line. On the second one he also got a good start and was leading right up until the last second when I was able to sneak past him. To my amazement he decided to bypass the boot throw and just strait up dive for the finish line! I was psyched to see how bad he wanted it but a bit worried to see what he looked like after I turned around. As usually he was a little bloody but he's tough and was pissed when I decided to leave it at a 1-1 tie!!! Gotta love effort!!!

Now that's what I call

ALL-IN!!!!!!

Get Back Up!!!

2009-06-29T18:41:00.000-07:00

The summer is absolutely flying. In and earlier post I mentioned that the most important months for a skiers training is June, July, and August. Well Guess what?? June is GONE!!! It's hard to believe but it's NOW or NEVER! If you have not been training you better get your butt out the door and get something done or you will be toast!!! The R.N.R crew has been hard at work for the past month and I'm starting to noticeevery ones fitness and confidence gaining on the skis. It’s not always easy to tell if the athletes are REALLY pushing themselves or just working hard. There is a big difference!!! But sometimes it is easy, Last week at the end of a hard OD session the kids where doing some uphill sprints working on there speed. I was at the top of the hill watching them come up and giving them some technique advice and some encouragement to keep the peddle down on each one. On the last one I hear a crash and look down to the bottom of the hill just in time to see reed eat it as well!!!! I love/hate to see kids or anyone eat the pavement. On one hand it means they werepushin hard and trying to make the gains necessary to improve there skiing. They were bothOK, and surprisingly psyched about the blood!!! The moral of the story!?!? Push your limits everyday and if you happen to fall get back up and do it again!!!

Busy Busy Busy!!

2009-06-27T14:02:00.001-07:00

A lot has happened since the last post, and I apologize for not posting sooner but as the title states I have been super busy racing, training, and coaching. Last weekend the senior team was in race mode !! Marty, Chad, and I raced in the Thursday night GVCC bike race. Since Chad and I knew we were racing the next two days we talked about sitting in the pack and then trying to make something happen in the uphill sprint finish. But as usual we were not able to sit in the pack and worked to push the pace the entire race. A three man break got away and chad and I lead the group to try to catch them. We were unable to catch them but were able to put the pack in a world of hurt that lead to me being able to win the field sprint and taking 4th overall. Chad got a calf cramp on the last lap and was relegated to soft peddle to the finish. On Friday night we all raced in the festival on the green 5k in Honeoye Falls. I really wanted to do this race because I had won it last year and it would be a good benchmark to measure my fitness. The raced started out slowly and at 2 miles I was with the leaders I did not catch the mile mark on the way out but at 2 miles I was at 11:35 and knew I needed to make a move because if it came down to a sprint I would be toast. I was able to step on it pretty good and ended up winning by about 20 seconds (17:18) . I was happy with my time after doing the bike race the night before. Marty was next 5th overall (18:34) Chad 6th (18:52) Steve 19th (21:56). results are posted here.

http://www.yellowjacketracing.com/FestivallontheGreenOverallResults2009.htm

After the race everyone was tired but looking forward to the biathlon race the next day! The biathlon race also went well despite the fact that Marty and I were both DQ'ed for a closed bolt infraction. Chad ended up 3rd overall and Steve also had a great race. Adam came out to race and was able to take home the lone victory for RNR in his age group!! For race results visit.

http://www.westernnybiathlon.com/

Overall it was a great weekend of racing! Only two more weeks until summer biathlon nationals so it's time to keep the peddle down and get to work!!!

Race Weekend !!!

2009-06-09T06:37:00.001-07:00

Race Weekend !!!

It was a big weekend for most of the crew as the team spread out across the state to contest several different races and to show everyone why Nordic skiers are considered some of the best athletes in the world.

Chad and I stayed local and raced the Power Bar 9 mile trail race on the familiar trails of Mendon Ponds Park. This is the second time I have done this race. The last time I raced it was in 2005!! In 05’ I was just getting back in to training after returning home from college and taking a year off to student teach and coach in Virginia. In 05’ on the same course I ran 1:02:01 this year I ran 57:35 I’m pleased to see that I was able to run faster especially considering that racing 9 miles doubled my avg weekly mileage! Chad also was able to step it up in a big way over his 2005 result. In 05’ Chad ran the 4.5 mile course in 33:40 this year he ran the 9 mile course in 59:11. Chad is also running around 10-15 miles per week so I would say our 2^nd, and 3^rd place overall result was a good effort!!! My avg HR was 183 with a max of 192 and if I remember correctly Chad had an avg of 178 and a max of 191 !!!

Adam and Reed also stayed local and mixed it up jumping in the Pittsford Triathlon. Reed was 3^rd in his age group and Adam was 4^th. Looking at the ages Reed was a man amongst boys considering he is only 13 yrs old and competing in the 19 and under age group!?!?! MAN-CHILD !!!!

Amanda also was able to “Throw Down” at the state qualifier in the 3000 meters. She came in to the meet with a seed time of 10:38 and was able to rally and run 10:14 taking the win in Division I . Amanda has been dealing with some injuries so I know it was a big win for her!!! We will all be cheering for her this weekend as she travels to Syracuse to compete at the State Meet!!

Steve also was in action this weekend at the Keuka Lake Triathlon. He was able to take the win in his age group and finished 15^th overall. Not to bad for the old guy!!!!

Marty tried to bring the wrath of R.N.R to New England but was un-able to locate the 5k in downtown Boston and missed the race. (They were Lucky)!!!

Overall it was a great weekend for R.N.R proving that we not only know how to ski but we are can run, swim, bike and even get lost!!!

Here is a picture of Steve on top of the podium!!!

Where are YOU at ???

2009-06-05T10:59:00.001-07:00

We did our first baseline test of the year on Wednesday. It was not only a chance to get some information on everyone but it was also a chance to remind ourselves what it feels like to hurt. The test also provided the opportunity to fight those mental battles that are so common in Nordic Skiing providing that line that needs to be crossed to be good, to be great, to be a skier!!!

The test consisted of a mile run on rolling terrain (give or take a few meters) followed shortly after by the following strength test Dips, Sit-Ups, Push-Ups, Step-Ups, and Pull Ups in that order. The protocol for the test was that each athlete would do as many repetitions as they could in 1-min get a 1-min rest and then as many repetitions as they could in 1-min again! This not only test overall strength but muscle recovery and muscle endurance. The title of the post is Where are you at?? Well here are the results so you know where your at!

Name Mile Time Dips Sit-Ups Push-Ups Step-Ups Pull-Ups
A.S 5:56 31/15 30/32 29/16 63/40 7
R.L 5:36 49/35 43/40 30/15 48/52 6
D.H 6:27 50/30 40/40 38/17 44/48 8
S.Z 6:22 57/32 50/33 40/25 45/48 15
J.H 5:20 52/35 49/43 36/19 38/42 13
C.D 5:46 88/62 70/58 60/35 49/52 18
D.D 6:08 67/36 55/36 41/17 52/44 9
M.M 5:39 61/40 68/49 42/25 34/39 9

K.D 7:02 34/24 49/46 35/24 42/41 6
A.C 6:42 26/8 53/50 27/25 46/50 5

Here is a picture of Chad, He posted some of the top performances during the test! He was not kidding about using his Iron Gym!! As you can tell we are all about getting back to the basics. You don't need a gym membership to do pull-ups all you need is a branch, swing-set or in our case a 2x6 beam! Don't make excuses!

Get Out and Get After It!!!

June, July and August

2009-05-21T11:22:00.000-07:00

The summer is the most important time of year for a Nordic skier. I’m going to quote my high school coach and in my opinion one of the very best coaches in the country HF-L’s Bernie Gardner.

“There are three things that determine how successful a high school athlete will be the following year June, July and August!!!”

I cannot agree more with Bernie. June, July and August is when the biggest gains are to be made for the high school athlete and in most cases elite athletes as well. The day’s are long, energy is high and it seems a lot easier to get out of bed and go train. It is also the only time of year that the high school athlete is actually able to train!! They are not running four events twice a week at a track meet or playing three games a week (A major problem with our development in the US in my opinion!!) The athletes are able to get some quality hours under there belt and build a base that will hopefully be able to carry them through the intervals and races that the season will bring.

With that being said I’m excited to say that the R.N.R summer program is filling up fast!! I think there are 2-3 spots left!! This summer’s group will feature familiar faces and some exciting new additions! Only 10 day’s until we get going! I’m ready to rock and roll and I think the athletes are as well. Some of them won’t be able to start on June 1^st but that’s not a bad thing because a delayed start means that they are killing it on the track and advancing through the gauntlet of championship races that make up the road to the NY State meet at CNS! Good Luck to them!

Another bit of information that I would like to pass along to you is the opportunity to join two former New York State Skiers at there camp in Vermont. Tim Weston (Fairport) and Justin Beckwith are the coaches at GMVS and are heading up a couple of camps this year on campus. Justin and Tim are both great guys and are exceptional coaches! Both coach for the New England JO team and Justin was the head coach for this years US Ski Team J1 Scando Trip!! You can see a brochure at:

http://www.gmvs.org/gmvs/pdf/nordic_summer_brochure2.pdf

If you have any questions about the camp you can visit the GMVS blog or e-mail me and I can help you out.

Get out the door and MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!!!!!!

2009 Summer Program!!!!!

2009-05-13T06:26:00.000-07:00

I want to take this opportunity to introduce you and invite you to become a part of Rochester Nordic Racing. Rochester Nordic Racing is committed to improving the state of cross-country ski racing in the Mid-Atlantic Division amongst J2-U23 athletes. Cross-country ski racing is no longer a winter-only sport. Consistent, year-round training is a major step towards reaching our goal of developing the best junior racers in the country. Rochester Nordic Racing will work in conjunction with local and regional programs to help support the aspirations of junior skiers in the Mid-Atlantic Division.

This year the summer program will be open to 12 athletes. Selection will be based on 2008-09 results. Due to the nature of the program prior roller-skiing experience is a must!! Their will be other options throughout the summer for beginners level skiers! Stay tuned!

E-mail or phone contact must be made with me prior to Sunday May 31^st for those who wish to be a part of the program.

For more information, and registration documents please visit.