Training Log Archive: biggins

Ski-o tour day 1 mass start long.
This one started in exactly the same place as the fake-transjurassienne I did two years ago, though I can happily report there is currently much more snow this time. As in, some. Trails were all good, I hit dirt a few times in the woods, but for the most part it was soft dirt. It didn't freeze last night, and was a ways above zero for the race, but it was old saturated snow so the glide was fine, even with the rock skis.

The race went well. Took it pretty easy, I'm feeling ok but still coughing up colored stuff. Got a little mixed up on the first one, I was following the pack but couldn't really see where any trails were, since there was some crazy thick fog around. Went a bit up a wrong trail but decided it was up in the wrong place and turned around for the right one. Saw the tail end of the pack leaving the control and that was mostly it for other people during the race. My first map had a bunch of narrow snowmobile stuff early on, and it was mushy steep snow, so not bad for climbing in, but tiring. Second map was more long legs on big trails (or downhill narrow through straight fields), so that was quite a bit easier. Third map crossed the road and headed up a crappy narrow trail for one control, then out a different crappy narrow trail, then a super long skate on a big trail for a couple controls and some bonus distance. Got stuck on a barbed wire fence in there somewhere too.

Anyway not a bad race, not particularly fast but I don't feel wrecked or much more sick afterwards, so I'll take it for now.

Also we're using touchless SI, which I think I like better than touchless Emit, because your arm beeps when it registers. This is better than just the flashing led of the emits because while skiing even looking down at your arm requires you to change focus from either reading the map or reading the trail, while just listening for the beep can happen in parallel. The only notable downside so far (besides the one dead control) was that it seems to take about half a minute per person to get the arm thing turned on and active (and had to be done by the SI guys), which for a mass start field of 60 that doesn't like waiting around in the cold means they were sortof freaking out when we didn't all orderly arrive at the start line 30 minutes in advance. Also the totally bonked the computers (control assignments / split printouts), so no results yet. But that may be unrelated.

Warmdown jog (Ali came, does that make it a joggeroo?) back to the start to grab the spare equipment bag. Saw Sandra and Marc on the way back, but they disappeared before we caught up with them.

Made it to Geneva, found the posse, drove to Premanon, got ourselves registrated and fed and waxed and showered, and now mass start long tomorrow!

Well I finally came down with dad's plague. Not too bad yet, just a solid cough and both a stuffy and runny nose. I guess the tradeoff about living up high is that the low pressure in planes dont hurt my ears when I'm sick, but being down here in airports does. Get me back up in the air.

Got upgraded to first on the flight to seattle this morning, and sat right behind Thor, who was getting the royal treatment from Alaska Air.

Edit: and there's first class to Paris as well. I'm gonna miss this in a couple months when I lose my delta awesomeness status.

Edit: yeah, my airplane seat has a massage button.

C • Massage 1

Quick ski around TD before packing up the toys. Off to Geneva tomorrow.

C • Mass Start Sprint 3

Morning dp around TD. Sunny, but some spots were still too chilly for even the blue wax. My feet were frozen by the end, they never really move during dp skis.

C • boot covers 7

Afternoon skate. This cold stuff is uncalled for. Its clear and sunny and late afternoon and it barely cracked 25. If this keeps up I might have to go to france or something. Then again the glide was sexy fast and the trails were immaculate, so at least we have that going for us.

C • Complaints,complaints... 4

Long easy workout at TD. They changed around one of the trails on the far side of the valley, which is pretty sweet now, bonus climb. Got unpleasantly cold towards the end, both for my fingers and my skis. I think I need to practice eating and drinking more during long workouts, since I don't really do that except during races.

Quick skate around TD just before they closed. Snow was speedy fast and it felt really good.