Counting my blessings!

Happy Holidays & New Years from rainy Oberhof, Germany! Five of us from the team are already here in place, prepping for the Tour while the rest of the USA contingent arrives this afternoon.  This will be my second attempt at the Tour de Ski and my first try at it with a clean bill of health.  Some of you may remember last Christmas that I fell on an icy road and fractured my radius Christmas night/Four days before the Tour - although I didn't realize it was broken until x-rays and an MRI half way through the tour in Oberstdorf revealed it. But, stubborn as I am, I popped a few more pain pills, gritted my teeth and reached the top of the Alps Cermis. 

 

Canmore was festive and a great "home away from home" 

The World Cup racing schedule this year was tough. The last World Cups before Christmas were in Canmore, Alberta - SO CLOSE TO HOME. I'll be honest, it was difficult to be that close to home without actually going.  ("Close" is a relative term and in this scenario, means a couple thousand miles.)  Many times this summer and fall I would simply stare at the World Cup schedule, looking for answers as to what I should do for a racing schedule. Last season I learned that at some point in the five months (of racing) I need a break; for both training but mentally & emotionally as well.  One logical move would have been to go home straight from Canmore for Christmas and then travel with the APU team down to Nationals at Soldier Hollow before returning to Europe and the World Cup.  That was certainly an option. However, most of my goals lie with International results, ie Overall World Cup ranking & (hopefully) earning an elusive "red group" spot which would subsidize my exorbitant World Cup fees.  Plus, I figure that at this point in my career, I want to amass as much World Cup experience as possible.  This year the Tour de Ski is 7 races in 9 days; 6 of them being of the distance variety.  If you do the math, participating in the Tour equates to almost 1 month of World Cup race starts.  I see this as "budget World Cup" and an opportunity to race day in and day out without the long week in between waiting to race again.  If you aren't happy with your race performance one day you don't have to wait an entire week to try it again - just one sleep away is a brand new opportunity! 

Unfortunately racing the Tour means skipping Nationals and this really bums me out on a number of levels.  As an elite skier in the US I would love the opportunity to go after more National Titles.  It's fun racing to win or podium and let's be honest - on the World Cup level I'm not quite there yet.  Plus, shouldn't the "National Champion" be the Nation's best?  Unfortunately the schedule conflict with the Tour doesn't allow for participation in both.  I see the other side too... before I was on the national team I wanted the opportunity to race against the National team members.  It's a chance to prove yourself, earn good points if you race well, and make a case for yourself.  Unfortunately this year only one of six girls on the US Ski Team will be racing. Personally I think this is unfortunate but I know there are lots of variables that go into the race calendar and scheduling.  

 Rob came to visit me in Canmore!  Spending weeks and sometimes months on end away from your husband can be a bit rough but Rob is always incredibly supportive and it was awesome to see him! 

 The Norwegian Girls treated every hallway in the hotel to a St. Lucia night complete with singing and sweet bread 

 Reese Hanneman, my teammate at APU helped the women's national team create an awesome poster. All six of us hand-signed each of the 500 or so copies!

 The races in Canmore didn't go nearly as well as I'd hoped..... turns out I was really tired and running on low... sometimes that's racing

 Women's 10k Mass start (Thanks to Rob by the way for taking great pictures all week!)

 With the Canmore kids who were specifically cheering for team USA!

Women's Team Race Prep 

 My parents came to Canmore to celebrate an early Christmas and see me race!  Here we are during a walk at Lake Louise

 With Rob :) 

 The best solution to transporting ski bags across town in a tiny rental car :) 

 After the races in Canmore I spent some time with my friend Dasha Gaizova of the Canadian National Team. Dash was a fabulous host and here she is having dinner at the Banff Brewing Company - shown with her favorite "Double Duck" salad! 

A bene of being in North America - Egg Nog Chai post ski... 

 What a day! We were pumped! 

This is a picture from LAST YEAR's Tour.... wrist braces, massive tapping jobs, pain meds, ice and recovery food.... this year is already better! (Hence, "counting my blessings!") 

And here is the Oberhof crew post Christmas Dinner. 

The Tour is only two days away... stay tuned & thanks for all the kind word and support. Happy New Years everyone! 

Cheers, 

Holly :) 

The American Revolution... + photos

Seeing Rob for the first time in a month is great! 

As I write this, I'm sitting in my hotel room in Canmore, waiting for morning training. It feels GREAT to be planted here, in North America and I can't wait for this weekend's upcoming races. Although I'm still thousands of miles away from home (AK) I feel relaxed & settled. This might be the closest I get to my bed, my kitty, my friends for the entire winter but it's great to be here. People speak English, I don't have to use converters to charge my electronics, I can "star-fish" sleep in my big bed, I can read labels in the grocery stores, the coffee isn't bitter. Most importantly, my husband is here to visit and my parents are arriving tomorrow!!!! World Cups in North America are the best. 

Last weekend we raced in Quebec City. I teamed up with Ida for the team sprint and we made it to the finals. Unfortunately we faced a bit of bad luck with some crashes but it was an awesome experience and I've never seen so many American flags or heard my first name so much while racing. Peter Graves, "the Voice" was the announcer and it was awesome to understand ENTIRELY what was going on.  I hate to think about how much is missed in translation between stadium announcers, local newspapers and the television. Anyhow, here are a couple of recent photos (in no particular order) with captions followed by an article I wrote a while back for the NNF website. Enjoy! 

 Quebec! 

 The start arch for the sprints - picturesque, right? 

 APU Crew - Becca had an awesome day

 A fun place to spectate! 

 Kikkan on the "victory lap" with the American flag after dominating the individual sprint 

 Erik & Kikkan - fun for Erik to see the success after working tirelessly, year after year.  Too bad coaches can't stand on podiums too. 

 The American flag and the Star Spangled Banner 

 This semi drove 48 hours, non-stop with all the World Cups skis - Quebec City to Canmore! 

 Canada - home of the Inukshuk & 2010 Winter Olympic Games 

 Reunited with my teammate Sadie - and sharing Starbucks Lattes! 

 The poster for the QC event 

 At night, overlooking the sprint course in front of the Parliament Building. The venue was obviously, beautiful! 

 The Canadians got a lot of ink in the locals papers and on TV. 

 The APU crew prior to Saturday's race. We get to have a "Nations Group" for any World Cups in North America meaning that we get extra start rights. It's fun to have a big group here - many from my home club! 

 Fitz & Fritz are pumped for their first World Cup! 

Apparently Reese has been training too hard seeing that his muscles are too big for the WC race bib! 

USST Girls on the travel day from QC to Canmore. Going to Tim Hortons, per Canadian tradition! 

(This is an article that I wrote previously for the NNF website, re-posted here, on my blog) 

The first four weeks of the 2012-2013 World Cup season are in the bag - and they (FIS, the rest of the World) are calling our start to the winter the "American Revolution."  No, they are not referring to the historical event where the Colonies joined together to break free from the British Empire. Instead, they are talking about the American women's ability to turn heads and turn heads we are.....  So far this season we have five medals including the first 4x5 relay performance, the first (and second) US women's distance skiing podium, the first team sprint win and many "best ever" moments. While the lack of daylight in Lapland may have been tough for some of my teammates that can come sunnier locales it sure didn't stop us from skiing fast!  So far we’ve raced in Muonio Finland, Gallivare Sweden, Kuusamo Finland & most recently in downtown Quebec City. I am currently on cloud nine sitting 8th overall in the distance World Cup standings. In the first race alone I accomplished one of my most ambitious goals that I thought would take an entire season to tackle. In a 10k skate race I finished 5^th overall, less than three seconds from the podium and in the company of World and Olympic Champions. I suppose it’s time to revisit the drawing board.

For me, this season represents an entirely different world. I have one full season of World Cup racing under my belt and another season of quality Alaska dry land training in my bones. I'm familiar with the scene, the travel, I know other people on the circuit….  I'm racing World Cup venues having "been there before." The heightened level of confidence is palpable on our team. When we walk into the dining room we do so with our head's held high.... we look people square in the eyes, we’re having fun! Media from other countries are requesting interviews and photos.  Everyone wants to know what our “secret” is, what we did over the summer to improve so much.  Funny enough, there is no secret - just hard work, dedication and a little bit of belief.

Personally, I believe that success is like the flu; it’s contagious. Once you get a small dose of it, it's much easier to believe in yourself, your abilities and your performance. When you see one of your teammates doing well you think, "Hey, I can keep up with them in double pole roller ski intervals" or I can do "just as many pull ups as them" therefore, if they can pull a top ten result in the World Cup, maybe I can too?!?!  This is where American skiing stands right now - this is the essence of the Revolution. As a ski nation, we are starting to believe in our talents and our abilities.  We see our competitors as friends, rather than superior, European athletes. 

The rest of the world is noticing that we're on a roll.  As far as I can tell, there is nothing in the way to slow us down. Go Alaska! Go Team USA!!!! 

 Thanks for reading and thanks so much for the continued support - CHEERS! 

Holly :) 

A bit of International Media....

So, historically our sport has been, and continues to be a bigger deal overseas. Case in point, yesterday I was looking over someone's shoulder on the Finn Air flight and there were huge pictures of the Finnish skiers in the newspaper. I was dying to know what the article said.... we certainly miss out on a lot not being able to speak German, Swedish or Norwegian. But, we are starting to turn a couple heads and have done a handful of Interviews with the International Media.  The women's team strong start to the season has gotten a lot of attention and everyone is trying to figure out what our secret is! 

Take this cartoon - on the FIS website this morning! 

We also had an interview in the Swedish media.... 

http://blogs.fasterskier.com/worldcup/2012/12/03/u-s-women-featured-in-swedish-newspaper/

It's hard to see on the Fasterskier site but here in the hilarious "google translated" version with some PRICELESS quotes!  Now.... about that "Obese Sponsorship!" 

They belong to one of the world's best

national team.

But at home in the U.S., they are totally

unknown.

Now working Kikkan Randall, Liz

Stephen and the other American women

very hard to spread

skiing in North America.

At the same suit that

Norrbotten thanks for all the help on

road.

- Charlotte Kalla is absolutely wonderful,

She is so incredibly helpful,

they say to NSD.

Sunday 25 november. Women's relay

in Gällivare VC premiere is on

way to get a resolution.

Marit Bjørgen takes little unexpected Norway

Case first. Then Charlotte

Call in second spot for Sweden.

But behind it is a hard

battle for third place. Jessica Diggins

against Marthe Kristoffersen, USA

against Norway 2.

Diggins know several times how

dryer disappears and the legs fold

itself. But the 21-year-old from Minnesota

refuses to give up. She knows she can

write history. And she does.

This is the first time a U.S.

women's team stands on the podium in the relay race

a World Cup.

And lyckotårarna runs.

"Love Kalles caviar"

Sunday, December 2. Kikkan

Randall and Liz Stephen has just

come home to her cottage situated

a few hundred meters from the ski stadium

Ruka in Kuusamo outside. They are worn

after a tough weekend and planning a quiet

evening. Maybe a nice dinner and some

good TV series. Modern Family and

Grey's Anatomy belong to the favorites.

- And so it will be some spicy food.

We have a strong season from home,

that's probably what they miss most

Here in Europe, says Kikkan Randall.

- But there are very good here. I

love Kalles caviar. I can eat

much anywhere and I do not

have no bread, says Liz Stephen

and laughs.

U.S. women have had a dream start

the ski season.

Kikkan Randall, which is the seasoned

"Big sister" of the team, was third

ten-kilometer charge in Gällivare last

weekend. In Kuusamo, she came second in the

five kilometers freely and fifth overall

on the mini tour.

Holly Brooks was fifth in Gällivare

Liz Stephen finished second in rehearsal in Muonio,

Jessica Diggins twelfth of five kilometers

freely in Kuusamo ...

But what strikes maximum - for them

all - is this the third spot on the relay

in Gällivare.

- It was absolutely fantastic, it beats everything

other things I've done as a skier, says

Kikkan Randall inter alia

has a World Championship silver in the sprint from Liberec

2009th

- But this was better, just getting

do it together with the other

girls.

Living in suitcase

At home in the U.S. is not cross-country

any major sport. And the U.S.

riders far from some celebrities.

- Could we win a race on the World Cup

we will be happy if it comes

a notice in the newspaper. For a OSguld

maybe we could get a picture as well,

says Randall.

- But now the races on any

kind of website online anyway. My

parents sat in front of the computer at half

three in the night, says Liz Stephen.

American Ornamental live their lives in

portmanteau. The majority of the year, they are on

traveling in Europe, Asia and North America.

They'll rarely home between

races. Nor do they have any

high wages or obese sponsorship agreement that

boast.

- It's part of the job to be out and

pick up different sponsors. But we are lucky

Nevertheless, the girls in the B team may pay all

their trips themselves. Imagine having to sit

and worrying about whether you can afford to

stay in Europe for another week, says

Stephen.

- And we have great fun together

the team. Otherwise, it would probably

been harder to travel so much. Now

we have each other and we are like a big

Family says Randall.

The American

girls are working very hard

to launch

the sport at home.

They go around

in schools, lecture

and preaches skiing.

The hope

is that little girls

across the U.S.

to open their eyes

for skiing.

- I got an email

from a man to a

while ago who told me he dragged

up her four-year daughter in the middle of

night to watch a ski race

on the internet, when I was happy, says

Randall and laughs.

What are the secrets behind

the U.S. ski revolution?

There are many factors that play

in. One is cooperation with Sweden

in general - and Norrbotten

in particular.

The American girls have

been to Sweden several times and

trained with Charlotte Kalla and

the other Swedish national team.

They have a wax head from Koskullskulle

and is tight with Sweden

coach Lars Oberg

from Kalix.

- To get to train with Swedes

has been fantastic. Charlotte

is absolutely wonderful. A little shy

at first, but once you learn

know her, she is really funny,

says Liz Stephen and continues.

- And she is incredibly helpful.

There are no secrets

where not, we have learned a lot.

No confusion

Kikkan Randall also salute

herd manager Peter Johansson.

- He is amazing, I have

always good skiing when I compete.

We have had many great robbers before,

but as soon as they have done

progress with us as they leave

U.S. to any other country. It

's great that Peter believes in us

and want to be left behind.

Randall also had Lars Oberg

the wax head of U.S. 2002nd

- It's fun to see him out here

among paths. It appears

that it goes well for him

captain of Sweden.

Kikkan Randall and Liz Stephen

decides

to, via NSD

send a thank you

throughout Norrbotten.

- We s s t units

the "thank you

much, "said

Kikkan Randall

and start writing.

One need

not just write

We've touched down in Quebec City after four flights and nearly 24 hours of travel. There's no snow here in QC but I'm excited for this morning's exploratory run! More soon. Thanks for reading! 

Cheers, 

Holly :) 

Ruka Ruka Ruka

Two races down, one to go - hence, the Ruka Triple title. This will be short because I need to get some zzzz's for tomorrow's crazy race.  Basically, we have the ENTIRE women's team starting in the first 24 starters!  (There were 90 girls at the beginning of the Tour!)  The first two day's results are compiled and then we have a staggered start - first one across the line wins, and wins big. (Something like 50k?) 

Anyways, I've been slacking on my picture taking because it's been pretty darn cold but here are a couple of recent shots: 

 Ida in the inflatable ice-tub after her awesome classic sprint race 

Noah with the foam roller after his career-best in the Ruka 10k skate! 

 They love their reindeer here in Finland! I think I ate his brother for lunch.... they had incredible reindeer soup in the FIS Family tent! 

 The cool thing about Ruka is that it's a ski-festival atmosphere with cross country, nordic combined, special jumping - and lots of fun things for spectators and fans to do and see! The fireworks show during my evening run was a nice surprise! 

 The essence of the "World Cup."  Lots of Nation's competing.... 

 Santa, Mrs. Claus, the Sleigh & Rudolph

 Why, Hello! 

Skate race today, compliments of Nordic Focus & Salomon :) 

Good nite! 

h :) 

Gallivare LOVE

What a crazy, memorable, historic weekend. Gallivare is perhaps my new favorite place on the face of the earth :)

I’m not even sure what to say. The reality of it all is just sinking in and I’m still not exactly sure what to think or say… or how to express all the emotions of the weekend.  

Giving "Sadie" a kiss!

 Fish paste for breakfast! 

We've been staying in cabins which is always preferable to hotel rooms! 

 "Hellner Stadium" in Gallivare - Swedish ski star who lives in the town... 

The optimist in me is purely PSYCHED.  The act of making a goal & meeting it – or in this scenario, exceeding it has got to be the most rewarding feelings in the world. Two days alone made all the Friday nights spent alone in the APU weight room worth it… the missed Alaskan adventures, family trips… everything that I have sacrificed in the last couple of years pursuing the life and goals of a professional athlete.

It’s crazy to start the season on such a high note. In the span of two days, the first two days of the season, I blew some of my (entire) season’s goals out of the water.  On Saturday I was 5^th place, just 2.9 seconds from the podium and in the company of World Champions and Olympic Gold medalists. In fact, I had to take multiple pictures of the results such that when I woke up the next morning I could ensure myself that the day – and the result – was more than just a vivid dream! 

Sitting in the reindeer leader’s chair was an experience in and of itself.  Going into the day it was one of my goals to be the race leader when I passed across the finish line. Being bib #6, this didn’t initially mean a whole lot seeing that there was 72 girls that started after me with the opportunity to seize the furry chair from under my behind!  I remember Liz being in the same scenario last year the season opener in Sjujsoen when she was the early race leader. It looked like fun and I wanted the experience!  Little did I know that I would occupy that seat for the next 25 minutes until I “passed it off” to Kikkan!  The weather was less than ideal and the FIS people kept telling me that I was free to change my clothes and come back but I insisted on staying.  I had never been in this position in my entire life and I wasn’t about to throw a single second of it away.  It was by far the best seat in the house and I wanted to watch the race from the line.  Over and over, I kept expecting to get bumped down.  Great skaters like, Anouk from France, Anna Haag from Sweden, Martha and Stiera from Norway……somehow, my name remained at the top of the list through all these fast girls.  It was an unreal feeling and looking back, I was ten-feet tall, floating in mid-air despite the lactic acid surging through my entire body. 

Pure joy & excitement... pumped to share the moment with teammates! 

Hugs 

Raw emotion 

A historic day with the coaches! Chris Grover (left) Head Coach USST and Matt Whitcomb (right) Head USST women's coach 

Not to forget this guy!  Kikkan and my personal coach, Erik Flora at APU!!!! 

 Autographs with the kids 

 The results.... REALLY? 

Our TEAM! 

With our Swedish Friends Charlotte Kalla and Lisa Larsen pre-awards ceremony 

 

Saturday night downtown awards ceremony... super FUN!

Like I said, Swedes, especially those in Gallivare love a home town boy! 

Then, on Sunday it just got even better. Our women’s 4x5k relay took the first-ever relay medal for USA Skiing!  

I'm in the front, black suit! 

The start  

Ides was an AMAZING cheer leader and an important member of the relay team 

I was lucky enough to be selected to ski the “scramble, lead off” leg for the team. I love the scramble leg and just like it’s namesake, it is a TOTAL scramble. Each team has their “bulldog” out on course. There are lots of big girls that will do anything they can to push you around or ski a line on course that will stop you in your tracks. Unlike the men (!) it’s pure aggression and vying for position.  I started bib#3 which is historic in and of itself. I was on the second line at the start gun, even with Sweden and just one stride behind Norway #1.

I had a great start and was skiing with the top girls until part way through the race I got tripped up on a transition and a small gap started to form. It was a high-speed downhill with a transition into a herringbone and either I tripped or someone skied over my ski just as I was trying to lift it. I had an “uphill fall” but it was enough to let some of the girls behind me pass and I wasn’t able to fully recover.  That said, I’m proud of the leg I skied and feel like I kept our team in contention for the remainder of the girls to do their jobs!  (While I am historically a better skater, I am able and open to doing any leg of the relay – it’s whatever our team needs on any given day!)

The anticipation was palpable during the next three legs of the relay. I quickly changed and then spent the next 35 minutes PACING back and forth from the TV screen, to the track, to my teammates that finished one by one. The excitement was also too much – I don’t think my heart rate dropped out of zone 4 for at least 20 minutes PAST the end of the race.  Jessie’s sprint to the line was incredible and after she collapsed on the ground, we all pig-piled on top of her, sobbing in happiness, disbelief, and elation.  I think we can all agree it was one of the more emotional moments of our entire careers.  I am certain that everyone thought we were absolutely crazy and we made quite a scene of the finish pin.  To say we were happy is a HUGE understatement! 

 The socks! 

 

Per tradition photo, via our last season's best in Nove Mesto!  

 The aftermath

Things have finally settled down now and we get to race again tomorrow!  We’re currently in Ruka, Finland outside of Kuusamo.  Friday the 3-day mini-tour kicks off with a classic sprint. Saturday is a 5k skate and Sunday is a 10k pursuit start classic race. Kuusamo was the site of my breakthrough race last year so it’s sweet to be back. Each race weekend and the style of race suits different skiers…. Last weekend suited my strengths so it’s going to be hard to compare but all in all, I’m going into the race with a new level of confidence and an elevated level of enthusiasm. Go TEAM USA! I’m lucky number 13 tomorrow!

THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the kind emails, messages & facebook posts we’ve received. The Internet here in Kuusamo is a bit rough so I apologize that I haven’t gotten back to everyone but your words mean the world to me – THANK YOU!!!!!

Cheers & thanks for reading!

Holly :)