Pure XCSki

 


Our cross country skiers.

Olympians, 

Winter delivered over the past week in Burlington, giving us roughly a foot of fresh snow! Not taking this weather sitting down, Our Olympics sprung to action in our first ever Cross-country Skiing event!

Just Finished: Cross-country Skiing I: Individual Sprint (Classic)

It was a warm and sunny Sunday afternoon in the Intervale, with temperatures soaring 30 degrees higher than the past few weeks. Yes, it was into the low 20s! A great number of skiers with skills from high school racing down to never-evers showed up to get out, function, and enjoy it! Heat one consisted of Phillip "I hate cross-country skiing!", Kelly "Just finished my warm-up laps!", Olivia "If I lose it's because I'm wearing Carharts!", and Katrina "Maybe these loaner skis are for classic?". It was two laps of the course and after lap one, the athletes sufficiently spread out. Coming in first was Kelly, followed by Phillip in second who previously thought he was only good for last. After a passing around some pickle flavored ice cream for encouragement for Heat 2 and a reward? for Heat 1, it was time for our final three skiers to show their cards: Rubaina "I've never been on skis before", Corey "No pickle ice cream before I ski", and Gustave "The way these loaner skis are waxed, looks like they might be for classic". Then they were off, to the sound of the ding ding dinging of voices, rather than the usual cow bells. Gustave and Corey had a head to head sprint, followed by Corey pushing it a bit too hard, and over the edge... Corey finished with a scraped knee, Rubaina held a steady pace throughout, and Gustave won the heat. But how did the times compare to the first? With just a five second deficit, Gustave lost out to Kelly who won with a time of 10m 3s! Corey scored the bronze. 

WINNER'S INTERVIEW with Kelly Richards, gold medalist

OO: What's your prior experience in cross-country skiing?

Richards: I used to race in high school, and still ski occasionally.

OO: What was your inspiration for this event?

Richards: Pickle ice cream.

OO: If you had to make skis out of a vegetable, which would it be?

Richards: A carrot, split in half. A big one.

OO: Did you use any unique training techniques? Drink raw eggs, etc.?

Richards: I had coffee with chocolate in it before the event.

OO: Do you think you had a leg up since you used to race?

Richards: Yeah...

OO: What's your favorite outdoor winter activity?

Richards: This winter: ice skating. I've been going to Arthur Park.

OO: So what's next?

Richards: More ice cream!


What's Next? - MORE SKIING!?

February might give us a roller coast of icy chills and schluppy thaws, but we'll try and get another event or two in. The skate sprint? The big air? The biathlon?? Where there's a good idea, there's a way!

Our Olympics

-Gustave

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Figure Skating I: Singles

Image
Olympians, I'm trying something new: blog updates for Our Olympic events. If you have any feedback on this format for updates, let me know. The site is currently in a state of flux as Google is discontinuing the old "Sites" and forcing a move over to the new Google Sites which means that every page will have to be reformatted. The site will be revamped when I can throw more time at it. But without further ado: RECAP - FIGURE SKATING I: SINGLES I t was one of the most technical and ambitious events we have ever attempted. Guided by our resident expert figure skater and eventual event judge, Raphaëlle Siemers, the format was laid out for a figure skating event filled with tricks attainable by even beginner skaters. But c'mon, a waltz jump!? By the end of February, six athletes had braved the cold, icy flatness and sent in their videos from wherever they could find ice time. Just days ago, the short and long routines were brought before the Honorable Judge Siemers as
Read more

Going It Alone

Image
  1st Place, unopposed Olympians, I recently signed up for a Nordic ski race and wasn't able to rouse any of Our friends to make the drive to compete in Flagstaff, but was determined to enter the race solo. As I went to retrieve my registration packet I announced that I was in the 10km classic race and got the reply, "You must be Gustave! You're the only one in that division." Racing at Nordic Village got me thinking about the future of Our Olympics, and the struggle it is for anyone, myself included, to agree to try something new or to even have the free time to do it. Our Games have periodically struggled with attendance, but after joining a race organized by an outside organization and finding myself alone in my division, it's clear that Our Olympics is no worse off than larger and more established sporting groups. We will continue in the quest to see our athletes compete in every Olympic event, because any periods of struggle are worth pushing through for tho
Read more

Move Busted

Image
  Freezin' the Breeze Olympians,   It's been a while since our last update, so here comes a big one! Index: Coming Up Just Finished: Breaking Just Finished: Cycling Honorable Mention Coming up: Tuba City Games! T his October we will inaugurate Our Games in Tuba City with an in person athletics event in Tuba: the 100m dash! Join us at 6pm on October 16th at the Tuba City High School Track (access via the gate at the corner of Edgewater Dr and Hilltop St. If attendance allows, we will also run the 4x100m relay! Coming up: Cross-country Skiing III:  50k (55km) Classical Mass Start C are to join us in the most famous ski race in the USA? Sign up for the American Birkebeiner and race with us in the 55km commemoration of a 1206 smuggling of an illegitimate prince! Also, mark your calendar for xc ski races at Flagstaff's Nordic Village Just Finished: Breaking: Individual N ew to the Olympic Games this year was Breaking, AKA Breakdancing. Since January, Our Olympics took up the
Read more