Déjà Vu Timberland Wasatch Citizens Series Race #4 at Soldier Hollow, February 11, 2006

Transcription

1 The Utah Nordic Alliance Volume XVI No.6 march 2006 Déjà Vu 2002 Timberland Wasatch Citizens Series Race #4 at Soldier Hollow, February 11, 2006 All the ingredients were in place for Olympic cross country memories. Cowbells clanging, enthusiastic spectators, bright sun, cold snow, beautifully groomed tracks, speedy skiers, stadium finish, electronic scoreboard, and the Olympic voice of our own Taylor Robbins. While the world was focused on 2006 Olympic events in Torino Italy, Utah cross country enthusiasts were gathered at Soldier Hollow, the 2002 cross country venue, to celebrate a few Olympic memories before the start of the Timberland Wasatch Citizens Series 10k skating race. It was an appropriate setting for former Olympian Laurie Humbert to use her experience to move ahead of Roxanne Toly and Rosie Brennan in the home stretch winning the Women s Open Division by 12 seconds. In the Men s Open Division, 2002 Olympic forerunner Barry Makarewicz finished in front of Tav Streit and Jason Travis. A large field of 269 racers started off in age group waves including over 100 junior racers. Who knows, maybe we will see some of these youngsters in a future Olympics. After the lunch, skiers headed to the Soldier Hollow Day lodge for lunch courtesy of Nate Wade Subaru in Salt Lake City. Kirkhams Outdoor Products provided a number of prizes for the participant drawing after lunch. Our other season sponsors were well represented on the prize table also making for a great day all around. Gary Fladmoe

2 EDITOR S NOTE High Expectations Every year I start the winter with high expectations for my skiing. I expect that I will find time to ski as much as I want, the snow will be plentiful, and I will ski my best in all the races I enter. Somehow events do not always unfold this way for me, which got me to wondering what everyday skiers can learn from how World Cup and Olympic skiers manage expectations and disappointments when only a few make it to the podium. Learned Optimism For over 25 years, psychologist Martin Seligman has been studying optimism, which he defines as reacting to setbacks from a presumption of personal power. Resilient athletes view slow races as temporary setbacks that are isolated and can be overcome by personal effort and abilities. This explains how ski racers can crash one day and come back and outperform the next. These skills of learned optimism can be acquired by all of us and are especially important for children to learn at an early age. Learning to be optimistic inoculates against depression, improves overall health, and in combination with talent and desire, enables achievement. Read Laura Howat s interview with two time Olympian Wendy Wagner for an up close visit with a resilient and talented skier. We all have high expectations for Wendy Wagner although she probably has even higher ones for herself. Junior Programs Anyone who has skied at Mt. Dell on a Tuesday or Thursday evening can see first hand the success of the TUNA junior programs. Junior photos this issue capture a slice of the fun and learning that happen each week. Rich Bullough shares successful stories of youngsters skiing well at Soldier Hollow. Junior racer Kajsa Vlasic gives a personal story of her first TUNA road trip to Bozeman for the Junior Olympic Qualifier. Comments Welcome Submissions, photos, and high resolution digital pictures are needed throughout the season. Direct your questions, concerns, and comments to me at bruceschroeder@yahoo.com. MARCH 2006 CONTENTS Déjà Vu Nordic News by Dave Hanscom Wasatch Citizens Series Race #4 at Soldier Hollow Results Thanks to Junior Coaches by Jim Haisley and Patrick Putt Over 500 Junior Nordic Skiers at Soldier Hollow by Richard Bullough My First TUNA Team Road Trip by Kajsa Vlasic Sundance Classic Tales by Ron Sawdey Interview with Wendy Wagner by Laura Howat Mountain Dell Update by Chris Magerl Meiko Hoemke Edged by Wilbrecht in Snowy Classic..... by Kurt Dudley Simons, Metos, Dalebout, Bruns, Haisley Have First s by Kurt Dudley Boulder Tour Utah Race Results Back of the Pack by David Susong GEAR REVIEW, Start Tape by Tom Leake Utah Cross Country Ski Race Schedule The Lasaloppet Returns by McKay Edwards The Utah Nordic Alliance (TUNA) is a nonprofit organization which supports Nordic skiing in all its forms in the state of Utah.The club offers its members discounts on equipment and ski passes at participating local merchants, as well as discounts on races and social events. Members also receive TUNA News which is published seven times a year. Annual membership runs Sept. 1 thru Sept OFFICERS PRESIDENT David Susong VICE PRESIDENT Tim Metos SECRETARY Donna Wahoff-Stice TREASURER Susan Hallenberg BOARD OF DIRECTORS Cassie Dippo Jim Haisley Richard Hodges Barry Makarewicz Tim Metos Robert Myers Pat Putt Bruce Schroeder Donna Wahoff-Stice John Werner ADVISORS John Aalberg Dave Hanscom Ernie Page TUNA NEWS EDITORIAL STAFF Bruce Schroeder, Editor Brian Alm, Kurt Dudley, Ron Sawdey, David Susong, TUNA NEWS / DEPARTMENTS Race Results Kurt Dudley Membership Promotion Robert Myers Yurt News Chris Magerl Nordic Scene Dave Hanscom Youth Program Jim Haisley Dryland Program Bill Hokanson Design & Production Elmore Design Printing & Mailing Moench Printing TUNA NEWS / CONTRIBUTORS Richard Bullough, Kurt Dudley, McKay Edwards, Jim Haisley, Dave Hanscom, Laura Howat,Tom Leake, Chris Magerl, Patrick Putt, Ron Sawdey, Bruce Schroeder, Dave Susong, Kajsa Vlasic PHOTO CREDITS Stuart Beling, Lisa Bruns, Gary Fladmoe, Dave Perkins, Bruce Schroeder, ADVERTISING Suzi Elmore, elmore@aros DEADLINE IS THE 1 ST OF EACH MONTH Articles, race listings, photographs and artwork are welcome, but TUNA News assumes no responsibility for loss or damage. Material sent on disk or is especially welcome. Classified ads are free to TUNA members. A $5 donation is required for nonmembers classified ads for up to 20 words; 20 per word over the first 20 words. Send to bruceschroeder@yahoo.com tuna@utahnordic.com voice: TUNA News, PO Box 9008 Salt Lake City, UT page 2 march 2006

3 NORDIC NEWS by Dave Hanscom March 2006 What a difference a year makes! The snow never got deep, but it did last a long time at Mountain Dell and Soldier Hollow. Whew! Once again we thank Steve Evans and his crew for nurturing a thin snowpack so we could celebrate the Olympic opening day with a Timberland Wasatch Citizens Series race at Soldier Hollow on February 11. And our thanks, too, to all the volunteer groomers at Mountain Dell who donate so many hours to keep that track in such fine shape. Now it s time to move to the high elevations. The snowmobile roads in the Uintas (Mirror Lake, Soapstone, Wolf Creek Pass, Mill Hollow, etc, etc) will be great for another month, particularly on weekdays when they re pretty much deserted. The Daniels Summit Lodge loop, which is groomed on Friday and Saturday nights well into April, can be heavenly on a Sunday morning before the snowmobilers wake up. And before you know it, we ll be getting up before dawn to ski the crust in the Strawberry Valley. Timberland Wasatch Citizens Series The Timberland Wasatch Citizens Series is done for another winter. It appears as I write this in early February that participation will be up again this year. It s nice when all the cross country areas have such great skiing to keep us in the mood to race on weekends. If we do see an increase, it will be due to the huge turnout (196) at the first event at Soldier Hollow. I never thought we d even come close to getting 200 people at a classical event in Utah! Once again, I want to thank our generous sponsors. The regular drawing at the last race included about 75 prizes! The special drawing (for those who participated in four or more races) included skis from Atomic, Mashes, and Rossignol, plus a pair of top-of-the-line poles from Swix. The latter group also got a nice long-sleeved, zip-necked shirt from Timberland. Thanks also to Kelly Milligan, Jeff Scott, and Brett Kassing at Nate Wade Subaru for their generous cash donations for lunches at three races. We had an offer from another potential sponsor, but had to turn him down due to lack of a suitable venue. We re working on a change for next year to allow us to serve lunch at four races instead of three. March Races March will be a full month for Utah cross country skiers. It starts with a new event called the Ullr Chase (formerly named the Steam Mill Stampede) on March 4 in Logan Canyon. This is a point-to-point 40-kilometer skate starting at Franlin Basin, gradually climbing a couple thousand feet over Danish Pass, and then descending to Beaver Creek Campground. Check for details. The Yellowstone Rendezvous will occupy its usual spot on the second Saturday in March. You can choose between 25 and 50 kilometers (with even shorter distances for kids), and between classical and free technique. I ll be there for the first time in about 10 years. My Colorado son has great expectations of soundly defeating his big brother, whose training in Vermont has been limited due to scarce (often non-existent, actually) snow. I, on the other hand, am just hoping to finish with enough energy to make it to the hot tub! The next Saturday, March 18, will be the annual Wooden Ski Classic at Alta. This is a 5K classical event in which participants are rewarded more for their wool knickers, wooden skis, and bamboo poles than for their speed on the track. Bring a dish to share in the post-race potluck lunch and come join the group for some end-of-season socializing and welcoming of spring. To wrap up the winter, McKay Edwards will host the fourth annual LaSaLoppet in Moab on March 25. This is an overland-style event that starts with a climb up into the LaSal Mountains on a road groomed for snowmobiles, makes a loop, then descends back down to the start. As usual, there will be a great party after the race, and you ll be able to do some early mountain biking before heading home the next day. march 2006 page 3

4 Timberland/Wasatch Citizen s Series Soldier Hollow Wasatch Citizens Race #4 Soldier Hollow, Midway, Utah February 11, 2006 Place Bib Name Time Time Back Place Bib Name Time Time Back Place Bib Name Time Time Back Class: MO - Men Open 15 km 1 25 MAKAREWICZ, Barry. 24: STREIT, Tav : TRAVIS, Jason : HOEMKE, Meiko : HUMBERT, Chris : : COOK, Steve : : GELINAS, Drew : : DRESSEN, Richard... 27: : ROGERS, Tim : : WILSON, Isaac : : PARDYJAK, Eric : : HAJIYAN, Aram : : MCELWAIN, Randall.... DNF Class: MS1 -Men km 1 6 BRAY, Anders : Class: MS2 -Men km HARRIS, Daniel : BOLINGER, Alex 56: : Class: MM1 -Men km 1 72 BAUER, Jeff : PHILLIPS, Aaron : WALENTD, Jason : JOHNSON, Scott : : BRYANT, Robert : :28.2 Class: MM2 -Men km 1 62 HAGEMAN, Todd : ANYAN, Walter : : DELEO, Willam : : TURNER, Chuck : : DAVIDSON, Chris : : BRILEY, Tim : : YEH, Kenny : : SZEKELY, Joseph : : PUSHKA, Steve : : WILKINSON, Fred... 36: : SORENSON, Robert.. 37: : WARD, Marc 41: : Class: MM3 -Men km 1 11 POLLARI, Don : NIELSON, Scott : ANDERSON, Randy... 27: BROWN, Sandy : : BELING, Stuart : : PETERSON, Peter : : GONTRUM, David : : WEGLARZ, Michael.. 30: : RICE, Robert : : DAWSON, Mike : : FOSNOCHT, Dave : : MAGERL, Chris : : BRILEY, Steve : : THULIN, Justin : : BRUNS, David : : O`LANGER, Dan : : SWANSON, Eric : : MOYER, Tom : : EGAN, Michael : : BROWN, Dave : : LEAKE, Tom : : CONCANNON, John.. 40: : MOORE, Kevin : :37.4 Class: MM4 -Men km 1 73 ALLEN, Bruce : HENNEMAN, Todd... 28: EVANS, Steve : : SHEA, Lee : : SWENSON, Jordan... 30: : STONE, Ken : : LANG, Rob : : YOUNG, Steve : : LOWELL, Dan : : BRAY, Daniel : : METOS, Tim : : MATTHEWS, Charlie.. 32: : TOLY, Scott : : HARRINGTON, Keith. 32: : BULLOUGH, Richard. 33: : HULTQUIST, Arne... 33: : SUSONG, David : : MCNEIL, Andrew : : HAISLEY, Jim : : WOLFE, Sam : : PALOMAKI, Ted : : MYSHRALL, Art : : HULL, Jim : : ADAMS, Greg : : CHAMBERS, Wally... 43: :34.6 Class: MM5 -Men km 1 54 JOHNSTON, Steve... 31: STURGIS, Charlie : : MCEWEN, Patrick : : PEDERSON, Bill : : DUDLEY, Kurt : : HUBER, Dean : : WILLIAMS, Craig : : STENQUIST, Bill : : SCHROEDER, Bruce.. 41: : DOLL, Drew. 43: : LEAKE, Robert 48: : Class: MM6 -Men km 1 81 ENGLISH, Patrick... 31: RICH, Bradley : : GROTH, Ray : : TIETZE, Chris : : FICHTER, Gary : : NEHRING, Ron : : DAVIS, Al DNF Class: MM7 -Men km 1 35 OLSEN, Noel : WAGNER, David : GROTH, Richard : :44.7 Class: MN -Men Novice 5 km 1 31 DALEBOUT, Michael.. 19: WHITLOCK, Dru : PARCELL, Brent : : WOLFE, William : : CONKLIN, Mark : : BURKEMO, Tom : : MEYER, Jim : : TAYLER, Greg : : ALM, Brian : : SEMERAD, Tony : : ALM, Brent : :18.1 Class: MJ2 -Men km MCMINN, John : DUKE, Curtis : :34.1 Class: MJ3 -Men km 1353 STRAY-GUNDERSEN, Ste : GATES, Erik : HAISLEY, Cody : : ANDERSON, Zachary. 18: : TAYLER, Evan : : GARCIA, Dylan : : ANDERSON, Todd... 20: :16.1 Class: MJ4 -Men km BRUNS, Kurt : BULLOUGH, Garrett... 5: HOKANSON, Karsten.. 5: ROGERS, Isaac : JACKSON, Mark : BURKEMO, Aren : HODGES, Daniel : MOORE, Andy : LOWELL, Ian : : DAVIS, Joshua : : BELING, Kyle : : DAWSON, Conner.... 7: : UNKNOWN, Daniel.... 8: : COLEMAN, Brett : : HUNTER, Ryan : :17.1 Class: MJ5 -Men km STRAY-GUNDERSEN, Gu 3: DUNKLE, Michael.... 3: CARPENTER, Matthew. 3: EGAN, Liam : ADAMS, Luke : LAUFER, Zach : WARD, Paul : : ANDERSEN, Brady.... 4: : WARD, Ethan : : BROWN, Benjamin... 5: : LOWE, Richard : : HEIMBURGER, Fischer. 5: : JENSEN, Chase : : SMOOT, Spencer : : JENSEN, Aidan : : CHIPMAN, Brian : : DAWSON, Kegan : : CAMPBELL, Noah.... 7: : WYCOFF, Eli : : WEST, Baylee : :37.3 Class: MJ6 -Men km 109 HARRIS, Greg..... NO TIME MYSHRALL, Lane... NO TIME LANGE, Wyatt..... NO TIME BRAY, Eli NO TIME LILJENQUIST, Tanner NO TIME BOWN, Brandon.... NO TIME MORGAN, Kayde.... NO TIME ALM, Kyler NO TIME CARPENTER, Bryan.. NO TIME BURKEMO, Xander.. NO TIME FOSNOCHT, Hank... NO TIME KNIGHT, Daniel.... NO TIME SMOOT, Andrew.... NO TIME BRILEY, Ben NO TIME WYCOFF, Gage..... NO TIME ROYER, Maya NO TIME JACKSON, Joseph... NO TIME DUDLEY, Peter..... NO TIME Class: WO -Women Open 10 km HUMBERT, Laurie... 29: TOLY, Roxanne : BRENNAN, Rosie : THOMPSON, Whitney. 34: :50.0 Class: WS1 -Women km DENNETT, Sarah : Class: WS2 -Women km GIBSON, Kathryn... 44: Class: WM2 -Women km HALLENBERG, Susan. 32: WILSON, DodiAnn... 43: :48.7 Class: WM3 -Women km SWENSON, Tanya : HULME, Judi : : BLANKE, Barbara... 33: : ROGERS, Dawn : : MYSHRALL, Janet... 36: : BEST, Kris : : COX-CONKLIN, Sara.. 37: : MOORE, Margaret... 39: :21.1 Class: WM4 -Women km HOWAT, Laura : FOSNOCHT, Diane... 37: : SMITH, Sheldon : : WHETSTONE, Kirsten. 37: : EPPLER, Celeste : : BRENNEN, Wiggy... 39: : BURNS, Giggi : : PALOMAKI, Mickey.. 51: : LYNCH, Bev DNF Class: WM5 -Women km LOBOSCHEFSKY, Paula 44: Class: WM6 -Women km WAGNER, Deborah... 36: FICHTER, Nancy : : SCHWANDT, Cyndi... 39: :57.0 Class: WN -Women Novice 5 km MCDONALD, Lori : DUDLEY, Kathy : TOWLSEY, Gail : JOHNSON, Barb : : BRUNS, Lisa : : VANDEKAMP, Wendy.. 25: : BRAY, Annie : : WORKS, Heidi : : HARRIS, Anne : : BOLINGER, Patty : :39.5 page 4 march 2006

5 Place Bib Name Time Time Back Place Bib Name Time Time Back Class: WJ1 -Women km OLPIN, Madalyn : Class: WJ2 -Women km JOHNSON, Ellie : BROWN, Mary Kathryn 27: :09.4 Class: WJ3 -Women km DUNKLE, Andrea : PALOMAKI, Lisa : EGAN, Annaka : : ARANGO, Marley : :28.3 Class: WJ4 -Women km LOWE, Tristin : ANDERSON, Mia : EGAN, Brenna : KIEFFER, Madison.... 6: TESCH, Sally : MILLIGAN-SUSONG, Katie 7: : MOUNTEER, Megan... 7: : MERRYWEATHER, Tiffany 8: : SMOOT, Alyssa : : SMITH, Alexis : : PINGREE, Sydney... 11: : POISSON-PLEW, Kayli. 12: : MORGAN, Whitley... 13: :14.3 Class: WJ5 -Women km BRUNS, Hannah : LANGE, Leah : JACKSON, Lauren.... 4: BROWN, Anna : LOWE, Analicia : GONTRUM, Eva : : JANES, Kasey : : ADAMS, Lindsey : : PHILLIPS, Zoe : : KNIGHT, Iris : : BONACCI, Katie : : TAYLER, Bronwyn.... 6: : BRAY, Sabrina : : BOWN, Brooke : : MCDONALD, Sophie... 6: : FOSNOCHT, Erin : : ROUNDY, Tess : : ROBERTS, Savannah.. 7: : TERRELL, Lynzee.... 7: : MYSHRALL, Marta DNF Class: WJ6 -Women km 191 SCOVIL, McCall.... NO TIME HARRIS, Emma.... NO TIME HUMBERT, Geneva.. NO TIME HOKANSON, Annika. NO TIME FOSTER, Makayla... NO TIME O`HARA, Jessica... NO TIME FOSNOCHT, Libby... NO TIME HUNTER, Molly.... NO TIME NORTON, Ingrid.... NO TIME DUNKLE, Sarah.... NO TIME PHILLIPS, India.... NO TIME VIRDING, Mia..... NO TIME ROGERS, Jessica... NO TIME WILSON, Sabine.... NO TIME SWANSON, Abby.... NO TIME Janet Myshrall march 2006 page 5

6 ATTENTION: SPRING DAYS ARE HERE! looking for something fun for your kids to do after school? white pine touring s nordic center offers classic & skate skiing lessons. stop by or call for more information THAYNES CANYON DRIVE page 6 march 2006

7 Race Photos: Gary Fladmoe Don Pollari Nancy Fichter, Cyndi Schwandt Kevin Moore Chuck Turner, Michael Weglarz Margaret Moore, Gigi Burns Lori Mcdonald Thanks to the Race Volunteers Eric Pardyjak Karin Lindquist, Shirley Coltraine march 2006 page 7

8 Eli Bray, Baylee West Located just 2 miles from Soldier Hollow, 2002 Winter Olympic Biathlon/Cross Country Venue Offering Inclusive Ski Packages, 12 km XC Ski Area, 2 Restaurants, Lodging, Resort Spa, Hot Springs, Scuba Diving & Much More! 700 North Homestead Drive, Midway, Utah T U N A C L A S S I F I E D FOR SALE: New 05/06 Fischer RCS 184cm Cold Grind. 104k flex. $475, New 05/06 Fischer RCS 184cm Cold Grind. 99k flex with Salomon Pilot Bindings. $525. Call Solitude Nordic FOR SALE: Atomic 184 cm RS10 Race Skis, Warm Grind Med Flex with Salomon Pilot Bindings, Great Shape! $220/OBO. Salomon Equipe Skate Boots. Men s size 7.5 US (40 2/3 Euro). $60/OBO. Call Bill TUNA Talents and Resources Suzanne Dalebout, LL.M: Retirement Planning for the generation that redefined acting your age. I am one of The Personal Advisors of Ameriprise Financial, the next generation of American Express Financial Advisors. I ll work with you one-on-one, face-toface from day one to plan the retirement you want.together we can develop a customized financial plan to help you get to What s Next in your life. Call me for a complimentary initial consultation page 8 march 2006

9 THANKS TO JUNIOR COACHES! Thanks to the enthusiasm and hard work of our talented coaches, it s been another great year for the TUNA junior programs! This season we ve had over 250 kids learning to ski and race through TUNA sponsored programs 55 kids skiing with the Park City Nordic Ski Team, 140 with the Salt Lake Nordic Ski Team, 22 with the Ogden Nordic Ski Team, and 35 in the Sunday Learn to Ski Program. It s also been a banner year for race participation, with a record number of juniors participating in the Wasatch Citizens Series (123 juniors participated in one day during the Feb. 11 WCS race at Soldier Hollow!). We also had close to 50 skiers from the TUNA Park City, Salt Lake, and Ogden teams joining over 500 of the best young skiers in the West during the Soldier Hollow Junior Olympic qualifier on January 27 and 28! Park City Coaches Teresa Eggertson (Head Coach) Heinrich Deters Karen Dodge Gary Fichter Logan Jones Chris Magerl Patrick Putt Blair Rajamaki Franklin Williams JUNIOR by Jim Haisley and Patrick Putt Salt Lake Coaches Bill Hokanson (Head Coach) Anne Collier Morgan (Assistant Head Coach) Andy Briefer Giggi Burns Scott Cheney Don Deblieux Nancy Fichter Mike Freed Lori Gates Carter Gregory Jim Haisley Learn to Ski Program We d also like to extend a huge thanks to Mark Oftedal and all of other coaches and parent volunteers who help organize and coach the Sunday Learn to Ski Program, including Nils Abramson, Annmarie Buoscio, Kurt Dudley, Suzi Elmore, Mike Freed, David Lester, Vicki Overfelt, Mark Overfelt,Tim Metos, Allison Shayne, and Howard Silverman. SKI PROGRAMS Although much of the credit for the success of the TUNA junior programs goes to the wonderful group of kids who participate, none of this would happen without the work of our dedicated coaches. On behalf of TUNA and all of the families participating in the TUNA junior programs, we d like to give a little recognition and a big thanks to all of the coaches and volunteers who make this happen including: Wilhelm Hampusson Richard Hodges Moqui Johnson Chris Magerl Barry Makarewicz David Susong Debbie Wagner Franklin Williams Ogden Coaches Paul Stromberg (Head Coach) Terri Davis Rich Dressen Jock Glidden Linda Ries If you see any of these fantastic coaches out on the trails, please give them a big pat on the back and a kind word of thanks for the tremendous effort and wonderful service they provide to our kids and the Nordic skiing community! Race Photos: Gary Fladmoe march 2006 page 9

10 JUNIOR OLYMPIC QUALIFIERS Over 500 Junior Nordic Skiers at Soldier Hollow by Richard Bullough Wearing tattered Carhartt overalls, a cowboy hat and skate skis, Jed Lehman from Cody, Wyoming watched as wave after wave of younger, lycra clad competitive-class skiers flew by. It is just amazing how fast and how well some of these little folks ski, he exclaimed. A noviceclass skier new to skate skiing and competing, Jed shared his gusto for the sport as he cheered and encouraged the skiers working hard to crest Horseshoe Hill. He talked about how great it is to be on the Cody High School ski team with such good friends, and about how he loves this sport! Jed was one of over 500 junior skiers who enjoyed two superb days of competing, meeting new friends, and basking in the energy of the Junior Olympic Qualifiers (JOQ) at Soldier Hollow. Held January 27th and 28th, 2006, these races were organized by The Utah Nordic Alliance (TUNA) and Soldier Hollow. The nearly 75 volunteers made these events run seamlessly and, as always, Soldier Hollow provided a premier experience for racers, spectators, and support crews. Summit Systems Timers made determination of both personal and overall victories possible. Competitors, ranging in age from seven to 19 years, traveled from 10 states representing four ski divisions. The divisions represented were: Intermountain (Utah, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming), Pacific Northwest (Oregon and Washington), Rocky Mountain (Colorado) and Far West (California, Nevada, and Arizona). Top competitors in the older age classes were competing to qualify for the 2006 Junior Olympics this March in Michigan s famed Upper Peninsula. For most, perhaps, the triumph was in the adventure, camaraderie, and fun. On Friday, the skate technique sprints were held in steady snow and stable, warm temps. The course was fast, and waxing must have been fairly simple, as most competitors appeared to have equally fast skis. Even with 500 skiers churning through the course, in nearly 40 heats, conditions were firm and fair for the finals. Top Utah finishers, and their placing within the Intermountain Division, were: Tyler Scott and Sam Lepley (10th and 11th Boys 16-19); Erin Eppler, Kirsten Stray- Gundersen and Elisa Nord (9th, 10th and 20th Girls 16-19); Andrew Putt, Wilson Dippo and Ben Lepley (2nd, 4th and 8th Boys 14-15); Elizabeth Guiney and Wendy Dunkle (6th and 15th Girls 14-15); Sten Stray-Gundersen, Chris Putt, and Jonathan Bruns (1st, 2nd and 5th Boys 12-13); Maurissa Weight, Andrea Dunkle and Kajsa Vlasic (6th, 7th and 9th Girls 12-13); Garrett Bullough, Kurt Bruns and Kyle Beling (1st, 2nd and 5th Boys 10-11); Tristin Lowe, Madison Kieffer and Dani Poirier (1st, 2nd and 3rd Girls 10-11); Karsten Hokanson, Michael Dunkle and Gunnar Stray-Gundersen (1st, 2nd and 3rd Boys 8-9); Sophie McDonald, Hannah Bruns and Lauren Jackson (1st, 2nd and 3rd Girls 8-9); and Noah Putt (1st Boys 1-7). A clear, cold night following Friday s storm, and the perfect diagonal tracks created by Soldier Hollow groomers, made for absolutely flawless conditions for Saturday s classic technique races. Multiple kick waxes were working and even on the steepest hills most looked to have adequate grip Top Utah finishers, and their placing within the Intermountain Division, included: Ben Page, Sam Lepley and Daniel Guiney (8th, 15th and 17th Boys 16-19); Kirsten Stray- Gundersen, Erin Eppler and Alexis Sumsion (8th, 10th and 14th Girls 16-19); Andrew Putt, Wilson Dippo and Peter Lowell (4th, 6th and 13th Boys 14-15); Wendy Dunkle and Elizabeth Guiney (3rd and 10th Girls 14-15); Henrik Burns, Logan Phippen and Jonathan Bruns (4th, 5th and 6th Boys 12-13); Andrea Dunkle, Lisa Palomaki and Maurissa Weight (5th, 7th and 10th Girls 12-13); Garrett Bullough, Kurt Bruns and Isaac Rogers (1st, 2nd and 4th Boys 10-11); Tristin Lowe, Katie Susong and Madison Kieffer (1st, 2nd and 3rd Girls 10-11); Karsten Hokanson, Michael Dunkle, and Gunner Stray-Gundersen (1st, 2nd and 3rd Boys 8-9); Hannah Bruns, Brenna Egan and Ellie Burton (1st, 2nd and 3rd Girls 8-9); and Noah Putt, Jackson Burton and Grady Anderson (1st, 2nd and 3rd Boys 1-7). The racing on both days was of the highest caliber, as was the sportsmanship of the athletes. Most appreciated by the volunteers were the numerous skiers, parents, and coaches who went out of their way to say thank you. After the races, many volunteers shared stories about their positive experiences with athletes and others. Al Davis, who has volunteered at Soldier Hollow in events ranging from the Olympics to local events stated, The most heart warming were the athletes personally thanking us for being there and putting on such a well run event for them. I told them that if they keep coming, we d keep coming. And then there was Jed from Cody. As he skied away he stopped, looked back at me, and said, Sir, it was a pleasure. Thank you for letting us come and ski. From Soldier Hollow, TUNA, and the volunteers you are always welcome, we will be here. Garrett Bullough Stuart Beling page 10 march 2006

11 Marcus Dippo My First TUNA Team Road Trip by Kajsa Vlasic This past weekend took me and eight other Salt Lake City TUNA ski racers to Bozeman, Montana. We were headed to the final of three Junior National Qualifier races. Our trip started mid-day on Thursday, and after seven and a half hours in a van full of wild teenagers, we arrived amidst the beautiful Montana Rocky Mountains. On Friday morning, we viewed the classic sprint course that we would be racing on the following day. The groomed tracks were at the Lindley Center, just up the hill from our hotel. The rest of the day was spent waxing race skis, resting, and of course watching the Olympic Opening Ceremony in Torino, Italy. We had an early start on Saturday. Because I am a J3 skier, my race did not start until later, but I watched the older racers ski hard and fast, cheering them on as they went. As I started warming up for my one-kilometer sprint, butterflies started fluttering inside my stomach. I was in one of two heats of five girls, and only the top three from each group would advance to the final race. Unfortunately, I barely missed the cut, coming in fourth place. Our J3 boys took second and third place for the day. That evening, we got lost on the way to the banquet, but finally made it and watched the winning racers stand up and receive their medals. It was a beautiful, bluejay day up at Bohart Ranch on Sunday. Because J3 racers didn t race until the end, I experienced a four hour waiting process. It was my first interval start race, and I was nervous about how it would go. As I poled out of the start gate, I thought what the team had told me: Ski so it hurts! And that is exactly what I did. Their advice paid off, as I ended up taking third place. It was definitely the most memorable race of the season. Utah Junior Olympic Qualifiers head to Houghton, Michigan in early March. Erin Eppler, Wilson Dippo, Elizabeth Guinney, Kirsten Stray-Gunderson, Coach Bill Hokanson, Andrew Putt, Duncan Ellinwood, Ben Page. Not pictured Rosie Brennen, Coach Gordon Lange, and Wendy Dunkle Ready to go Bill, Gus, Erin, Peter, Wilson, Duncan, Ian, Jonathan, Kajsa, Henrik It was a great race day for the Salt Lake TUNA team. Five of us took the podium, and the most nerve-racking part was yet to come: naming the USSA Intermountain Division Junior Nationals team that would travel to Houghton, Michigan for the Junior Nationals. Three of our racers made it Erin Eppler, Wilson Dippo, and Duncan Ellinwood. This trip was the best weekend of my first race season. Congratulations to the whole team, and a special thanks to our coach and mentor, Bill Hokanson, and the parents who followed along to help us reach our goals. Hopefully this trip is only a first taste of many more years of racing, road trips, and fun times ahead! Henrik Burns, Jonathan Bruns TUNA Salt Lake Skiers Excel at Bozeman JOQ All of the TUNA kids had a great experience and terrific results but particularly noteworthy are: Erin Eppler took 7th in the J1 (16-17 year old) girls Skate Kajsa Vlasic took 3rd in the J3 (12-13 year old) girls Skate Wilson Dippo took 2nd, Duncan Ellinwood took 3rd in the J2 (14-15 year old) boys Skate Jonathan Bruns took 2nd, Henrik Burns took 3rd in the J3 (12-13 year old) boys Skate Jonathan Bruns took 2nd, Henrik Burns took 3rd in the J3 (12-13 year old) boys Classic march 2006 page 11 Lisa Bruns

12 Sundance Classic Tales by Ron Sawdey Rather than give the usual recap of the race results, which were already reported in the last issue of the TUNA News, I would rather take a different approach in reporting on the third race of this season s Citizen Series. I would like to share the impressions I gathered after another fine day of racing. This is not intended as any slight against the remarkable efforts of those who medaled in their age group, or turned in a personal best effort. Instead, I d simply like to share why I love to race. Those of you who know me, know that a podium finish is a rare event, so obviously I m not racing for glory. Instead, the Citizen Series, and even the regional races I manage to attend are a chance to feel very much alive in the winter outdoors with a bunch a people that are fun to be around. It really is all about the people that race, and the people that make the race possible. That Saturday it was great to see Chris Teitze again, and catch up on his mountaineering adventures in South America. And it s good to run into Dean Huber who always has a good laugh to share. Gary and Nancy Fichter got me stoked with their tales of skiing the World Loppet races in Europe and possible plans to do the Engadin next year. I think I wanna go! I like riding down to the race from Salt Lake with Bruce Schroeder; this time hearing about how TUNA had offered financial help to Wendy Wagner to enable her to attend the World Cup Races that were so critical to her qualifying to be in the Olympics. It was even more fun to talk briefly with Dave and Debbie Wagner about Wendy, and to find that Debbie will retire from the Granite District in time to be in Torino to see their amazing daughter race in another Olympics! It s even good to see people that I don t know that well. I First Place Divas Kathy Dudley (Novice), Kelly Milligan (W Open), Laura Howat (W45-49) ran into Mike again, and finally remembered his first name, but still struggle with his last name (I m terrible with names). I had a nice chat with a new racer as we made our way up the hill to the start. He was a bit nervous, so I tried to sound like the confident veteran. It must have worked because he dropped me on the second climb up that nasty long hill on the course. And the kids just crack me up. They always manage to find something not quite proper to do to entertain themselves. I saw a group before the race taking dares to jump off a storage shed into the snow, and someone got nailed with a well thrown snowball. Perhaps the coolest thing that happened that day (other than not biffing it on the downhills) was having the good fortune of parking next to Donna Wahoff-Stice and Ann Wennerlund. As we were packing up our vehicles to leave Donna announced that a Clif Bar is not an adequate post-race meal, and that she had come prepared this year. Next thing we know, Donna and Ann are laying out a smorgasbord of goodies and inviting us to partake. Not being at all proud, and certainly being famished, we gladly dug in on smoked salmon, cheeses, crackers and fruit. What better way to end another great day at the races. Thank you again, Donna and Ann! I ll look for your car next year. Bruce Allen Donna Wahoff-Stice Dave Wagner page 12 march 2006

13 Race Photos: Gary Fladmoe and Dave Perkins Volunteers Chris Teitze Resting march 2006 page 13

14 Interview with Wendy Wagner 2002 and 2006 Olympian, 2006 National Pursuit Champion, and Multiple Time National Champion by Laura Howat TUNA members and Utah nordic ski enthusiasts are thrilled that they can once again cheer for home grown Wendy Wagner at the Olympics. Wendy has graciously taken a few minutes off from her hectic schedule preparing for the Olympics to talk to TUNA skiers. LH: Wendy, a hearty congratulations on being named to your second Olympic team for Torino. How did your build up towards making the team compare with 2002? WW: In 2002 I was happy to be on the team and wanted the experience. Now, in 2006 I am looking for more, I am focused on racing fast in Torino and performing at my absolute career best. My training has been more detailed, including a strict strength program as well as a year long interval/intensity progression training schedule aiming at peaking for the Olympics. LH: Congratulations on your victory race at the Nationals 20k Pursuit.Tell us about the race. WW: I was very determined to have a great race after struggling through the Nationals week. I felt like I was getting stronger as the racing week progressed and decided to stop worrying about winning and focus instead on skiing with good technique and in control. Sounds like a no-brainer but really, Nationals is always quite stressful for me. I skied well and won and I can t tell you how happy I was to get that! LH: You had your best 2006 Nationals race, results wise, at the final race, the 20k Pursuit. At this point, was your Olympic berth secure so you could focus on a great race or did you feel like you were still trying to insure your spot on the team? WW: I felt fairly secure with my position on the Olympic Team due to the selection criteria including the early season races as well. I wanted to have a great Nationals to simply prepare for the Olympics and give all my supporters a great show. LH: Overall, you had a very successful 2006 Nationals series, what were some of your other highlights? Any frustrations during the series? WW: My only big frustration was putting too much pressure on myself and that caused a few mistakes. One day I was so worried about details I chose the wrong ski for the condition that didn t help! I had many highlights, first was the tremendous cheering and support I received from all the volunteers and spectators. I felt like everyone was behind me that is an amazing feeling! I also was so happy to win a race for everyone. Second It was a great highlight for me to see Kikkan and Liz perform so well. The women s field was very, very strong this year!! That is awesome for women s skiing. LH: The U.S. Ski team decided not to support any women skiers this season. Can you comment on how this has affected your Olympic build up? WW: My confidence was shaken for sure. Fortunately my coach (Pete Vordenberg) has giving me all the coaching support I could hope for and the USST sports science staff has stuck with me as well. So, I had the support and direction as to how to succeed, my big problem was how was I going to afford it. Which is not a problem anymore! Thanks to all the Utah skiers! LH: What experiences in your life helped create your passion for nordic skiing? WW: My parents dragging me to all the citizen races as a kid and beating them! I think that is what gave me that competitive spirit. I can still remember the euphoria when I first beat my dad on the front 9 at Jeremy Ranch. I thought life could not get any better. LH: As a child of nordic ski enthusiasts, what advice do you have for parents of TUNA junior skiers? WW: Have Fun! Looking back I had so much fun skiing, hanging out, making jumps and messing around with the other kids. I remember no pressure what so ever to race well; I wanted to of course but I honestly don t remember page 14 march 2006

15 any pressure from my parents/coaches/myself. I was just having fun. I think that part is huge. Dream Big! I remember my dad saying to me as a kid the sky is the limit. I knew whatever it was I choose to do my parents were going to help me do it 100%. That let me dream. LH: Wendy, it was very special in 2002 when Utah nordic skiers could cheer for you in person as the local favorite. Although many of us wish we could be in Torino, we will need to cheer for you from afar. Best wishes for a truly successful Olympics. Juniors in Bozeman, Febraury 11 Duncan Ellinwood, Gus Johnson, Wilson Dippo, Peter Harris, Erin Eppler, Kajsa Vlasic, Jonathon Bruns, Ian Anderson, Chris Putt, Henrik Burns Thanks Wendy!! Jerry and I would like to thank everyone at TUNA who have sent their good wishes, flowers, cards and s regarding Angie s breast cancer diagnosis. During surgery, recovery, and now chemotherapy, we continue to be blessed with great friends that support us and help us remain positive. Thanks again. Angie and Jerry Richardson march 2006 page 15

16 Mountain Dell Update by Chris Magerl The season at Mountain Dell has been quite the improvement over last winter. As of the end of January, the volunteer crew had groomed the ski course at least 63 times this season. For comparison, we groomed about 22 times last season and at least 89 times during There were a few days this year that we have groomed both in the morning and the evening to stay on top of a storm. The upper loop has been skiable almost without interruption since early December, and for much of the time, the lower loop and the trail across the creek have been in play, as well. I am hopeful that we will still be skiing as you read this. (I am writing this at the end of January.) With a bit of last-minute snow, we were able to host a successful Demo Day on January 1. Several people were on skis for their first time that day. On any given Tuesday afternoon, Tuna has about 120 kids and a dozen coaches on snow at Mountain Dell, with about half that number on Thursdays. Laurie Humbert led a weekly adult on-snow clinic there, an extension of the fall dryland training, which drew overwhelmingly positive reviews. There are other programs for disadvantaged youth that make use of the skiing at Mountain Dell. And every day, skiers with a wide variety of skill and fitness levels can be found enjoying the track. This season, many skiers have offered a hand to groomers hooking and unhooking machinery, and this is much appreciated. Thank you to all who have put $5 in the fee tube every time you ski. A special thanks to those who purchased season passes. The grooming crew works hard to make sure you find the best skiing possible each day, and all take pride in the track they produce. If you are curious about what goes into a day of grooming, please contact me ( or daymag@hotmail.com). If you have a love of snow, three or four hours some morning, and the ability to handle some physical labor, I will pair you with a regular groomer and send you out for a shift. You will learn a lot about snow and gain an extra appreciation for well-maintained ski track. Maybe you ll even join us as a regular for next season! Thanks again to all the Tuna pass holders who make the Mountain Dell season possible. We hope you have found time to log many kilometers on our track. Join Jeannie Wall racer, product developer and Patagonia Endurance Ambassador for a slide show at the Patagonia Outlet 2292 Highland Drive, Salt Lake City March 16th at 7:30pm Learn about randonnée racing (the allure, the addiction, the rush) and find out about the lightest backcountry ski clothing system from Patagonia. Jeannie Wall does it all. The consummate endurance athlete: cross-country, alpine and randonee racing; alpine-style and ice climbing; ultra trail running; triathlons, you name it; Jeannie has probably done it (or wants to). Jeannie s first true passion, though, is backcountry powder skiing, where there are few people, wideopen spaces and endless opportunities to push beyond perceived boundaries. There will be a product give-a-way and all proceeds support SUWA page 16 march 2006

17 Meiko Hoemke Edged by Wilbrecht in Snowy Classic Teton Ridge Classic, Driggs, Idaho by Kurt Dudley January 21, Warmer than expected snow conditions and a steady light snow fall made for slow plodding during the 3rd annual Teton Ridge Classic ski race just north of Drigg s, Idaho on Microsoft s cofounder Paul Allen s private mountain estate. Eric Wilbrecht (1:36:13,) a former US biathlete, outsprinted Utah s Meiko Hoemke and John Mallory in the 28 K segment to win this years Teton Ridge Classic. Grethe-Lise Hagensen (1:42:00) edged Nikki Kimbal by 4 seconds for top honors among the 28K women. Laurie Humbert (1:47:15) was 4th in the overall women s standings while husband Chris Humbert (1:40:59) was 10th overall. Susan Hallenberg and Richard Groth were 2nd in their age groups while Nancy Fichter and Michael Freed managed bronze medal placements. Utahn s finished last in 9 of 11 28K race categories with more than 2 racers. The 14K women s race went to Rebecca Konieczny over Barb Linquist and Mitzi Bowler and the men placed Josh Sample, Brian Schilling, and Brad Carlson in the top three spots respectively. Five women and nineteen men from Utah participated in the 28K. Gigi and son, Henrik Burns classiced the 14K loop along with Scott Hallenberg. Wendy VandeKamp and Susan Elmore skied the 5K and finish first and second in their group and they got to the luncheon long before the last two lap skiers. One time Wasatch Citizen s Series Race director and current Snake River Brewmaster, Chris Erickson of Victor, was bedeviled by wife Lori Clark-Erickson in the 14K race. The lunch chili and cornbread was excellent and the race crew was friendly and helpful. It was another well done race by Dan Streubel and the volunteers for the Teton Valley Trails. march 2006 page 17

18 Simons, Metos, Dalebout, Bruns, Haisley Have First s in 31st Boulder Mountain Tour by Kurt Dudley The 31st Wells Fargo Boulder Mountain Tour finished with former Park City Nordic junior racer and University of Utah product Zach Simons out sprinting Patrick Weaver and Casey Ward in a soft snow 1:22:12 for his first BMT win. Brooke Hovey took home the women s overall prize beating Kate Whitcomb and Kristina Strandberg in 1:30:33. Twelve year old, Thomas Metos, finished his first BMT with the help of dad Tim (Wild Rose Sports) and cheering family and friends. Marley Arango-Dalebout, also age 12, finished with style for the Utah contingent. Thirteen year old TUNA juniors Jonathan Bruns and Cody Haisley completed the lengthy skate with the feel of a home town crowd. The TUNA master skiers showed some excellent results with the usually fast people performing well. The largest single age group was Men with 93 finishers. I would like to highlight the performances of Joan Thompson (Whitney s mom) who finished 3rd in her age group and my old friend Ray Groth who I know had a tough day and finished anyway. Ray has skied in more consecutive BMT s than any other Utah skier with about 21. Way to go Joan and Ray! Race day seemed destined to be difficult. It was bracketed by beautiful sunny weather on either side with the threat of new snow looming. The storm hesitated just long enough to increase race anxiety a notch or two before dumping near start time. The start in Senate Meadows near Galena Lodge, 26 miles north of Ketchum, was well prepared for the near 800 participants of this 32K point to point American Ski Marathon series freestyle race. The race has a few newer features that I felt were quite helpful. Finally, most of the old school buses have been replace by newer luxury coach units with luggage/ski carriers, heaters, no fogged windows and way more comfortable seats. The shuttle time is reduced by the newer, faster buses, which is nice so you don t sit at Galena as long nor do you have to leave as early. The award ceremony and raffle is free, has a cash bar, and is back at the Limelight room in Sun Valley after a few years hiatus. This is just the right place for the event. Master of ceremonies Bob Rosso, did a nice job and I liked the fast paced awards with men and women of the same age group present at once but not in any strict order. And the whole thing was over in less than 90 minutes. Bob can talk fast...but somebody needs to tell him how to pronounce Zach s last name (long i for Simons). page 18 march 2006

19 Wells Fargo Boulder Mountain Tour 2005 UTAH RACERS FEBRUARY 4, 2006 Place Name City Time Place Name City Time Place Name City Time 4 Josh Smullin Salt Lake City UT :22: Tav Streit Park City UT :22: Barry Makarewicz.... Salt Lake City UT :22: Ian Harvey Heber City UT :24: Jedediah Hinkley.... Park City UT :25: Jason Travis Park City UT :28: Chris Humbert Salt Lake City UT :28: Meiko Hoemke Salt Lake City UT :29: Dave Knoop Park City UT :29: Scott Nielson Salt Lake City UT :29: Todd Henneman..... Park City UT :29: Richard Dressen..... Ogden UT :31: David Gontrum Salt Lake City UT :33: Bruce Allen Park City UT :33: Bill Hokanson Salt Lake City UT :34: Sandy Brown Salt Lake City UT :35: Roxanne Toly Park City UT :36: Kelly Milligan Park City UT :36: Drew Gelinas Park City UT :36: Brent Nixon Park City UT :36: Eric Pardyjak Salt Lake City UT :38: William Bedford..... Fairview UT :38: Inge Travis Park City UT :38: Laurie Humbert..... Salt Lake City UT :38: Anne Kari Hunt..... Park City UT :38: Susan Hallenberg.... Park City UT :39: Steve Klatt Salt Lake City UT :39: Steven Bowling..... Park City UT :39: Peter Peterson Salt Lake City UT :40: Patrick English Salt Lake City UT :40: Michael Weglarz..... Salt Lake City UT :41: Amy McDonald Sanyer. Salt Lake City UT :41: Scott Toly Park City UT :41: Andre MacDonald.... Salt Lake City UT :41: Michael Freed Salt Lake City UT :42: Crystal Ward Park City UT :42: Chris Magerl Salt Lake City UT :43: Bradley Rich Salt Lake City UT :43: Brad Anderson Salt Lake City UT :43: David Fosnocht..... Salt Lake City UT :43: Tim Henney Park City UT :43: Jeffery Keyser Providence UT :44: Joel Trachtenberg.... Salt Lake City UT :45: Jeff Wolfe Salt Lake City UT :45: Jeff Sumsion Park City UT :45: Cory McNeely Park City UT :45: Tim Briley Park City UT :45: Erika Lloyd Salt Lake City UT :45: Jesse Hunt Park City UT :45: Susie Henneman GravesPark City UT :45: Jim Haisley Salt Lake City UT :46: Laura Howat Salt Lake City UT :47: Jake Malloy Park City UT :47: Jeff Bauer Park City UT :47: Dawn Rogers Park City UT :48: Paula Hudson Park City UT :49: Robert Rice Salt Lake City UT :50: Eric Swanson Salt Lake City UT :50: Bill Thompson Park City UT :51: Pete Icobelli Park City UT :51: Andrew McNeil Salt Lake City UT :52: Christian Johnson.... Salt Lake City UT :52: Lurah Klatt Salt Lake City UT :53: Kurt Dudley Salt Lake City UT :53: Steve Briley Park City UT :53: Dwight Hibdon Park City UT :53: Jake Garfield Salt Lake City UT :54: Gerald Hughes Hyde Park UT :54: Carolyn Sterrett..... Salt Lake City UT :54: John Fassio Park City UT :55: Howard Silverman.... Salt Lake City UT :55: Whitney Thompson... Park City UT :56: Ron Allen Park City UT :56: David Bruns Salt Lake City UT :56: Dean Huber Salt Lake City UT :57: Preston Wilbourne... Sandy UT :57: Joan Thompson..... Park City UT :57: Ray Groth Salt Lake City UT :57: Lou Seppi Salt Lake City UT :57: Jonathan Bruns..... Salt Lake City UT :59: Michael Dunn Salt Lake City UT :59: Christopher Tietze... Salt Lake City UT :59: Osman Sanyer Salt Lake City UT :00: Diane Fosnocht..... Salt Lake City UT :01: Gary Colgan Salt Lake City UT :01: Ann Page Salt Lake City UT :02: Jim Kearns Salt Lake City UT :04: David Wiener Park City UT :04: Paul Quinlan Park City UT :04: Tony Chesrow Park City UT :05: James Viney Salt Lake City UT :06: Gary Fichter Park City UT :06: Linda Dunn Salt Lake City UT :06: Sonja Van Hala..... Salt Lake City UT :06: Nancy Fichter Park City UT :06: Marc Ward Draper UT :07: John Berneike Salt Lake City UT :07: Ted Palomaki Park City UT :07: Kate Wiener Park City UT :09: Bruce Schroeder..... Salt Lake City UT :11: Ronald Nehring..... Salt Lake City UT :11: Rachel Allyn Salt Lake City UT :11: Dodi Wilson Midway UT :14: Darlene Batatian.... Salt Lake City UT :14: Gitte Larsen Salt Lake City UT :14: Stefani Day Salt Lake City UT :14: Tom Stephens Salt Lake City UT :15: Richard Groth Park City UT :16: Mark Garfield Salt Lake City UT :17: Sara Ward Draper UT :18: Paula Loboschefsky... Park City UT :18: Kanda Hazelwood.... Sandy UT :19: Nick Bouwes Providence UT :20: Drew Doll Heber UT :22: Kevin Moore Salt Lake City UT :22: Susan Elmore Salt Lake City UT :22: Joan Benson Park City UT :23: Jessica Nehring..... Salt Lake City UT :25: Al Davis Coalville UT :27: Kathy English Salt Lake City UT :27: Dawn Bowling Park City UT :28: Brian Seethaler..... Salt Lake City UT :30: Thomas Metos Salt Lake City UT :32: Tim Metos Salt Lake City UT :32: Cody Haisley Salt Lake City UT :32: Jeff Dunn Salt Lake City UT :34: John English Salt Lake City UT :34: Deidra Groth Salt Lake City UT :36: David Singer San Francisco CA :36: Angela Rowland..... Salt Lake City UT :37: Kathy E. Dudley..... Salt Lake City UT :39: Betsy Johnson Salt Lake City UT :41: Ann Hoover Park City UT :42: Michelle Palomaki.... Park City UT :43: David C. Taylor Salt Lake City UT :44: Chantel Thackeray... Woods Cross UT :44:56.1 march 2006 page 19

20 BACK OF THE PACK I Am Looking For My Daughter and Do You Know A Good Divorce Lawyer? by David Susong Our family enjoys skiing in nearly all it forms. For me it is probably backcountry skiing with its long days of moving up and down through the mountains that is my favorite. My wife is definitely partial to skiing on the tracks and challenges of racing. Our daughter so far likes to do it all classic and skating on the track and alpine skiing. We have only had her out in the backcountry for a tour once but there is more of that to come in the future. We have encouraged her to try all forms of skiing although I must admit we have stayed off the aerial jumps and the big jumping hill. My wife and I grew up alpine skiing but left the crowds and circus of the resorts behind. Now we find ourselves back on the slopes with our daughter. Often my wife and I are there somewhat begrudgingly because neither one of us particularly enjoys the resort scene. Yet we have wonderful memories of alpine skiing as kids and so are taking our daughter. A recent weekend found us standing in line at the base of the Canyons waiting to take flight on the gondola. We brought one of my daughter s friends along who we knew was a good skier. We were still getting over the trauma from the previous weekend of bringing along another of her friends of unknown skiing ability. It turned out that this girl was in the 25 mile per hour snowplow phase and scared us to death, as she nearly took out a few boarders as she bombed at high speed straight down the runs. She later confessed as I drove her home that she had only hit two people this year. She said, One of them was really nice but the one got ugly angry. The friend this weekend was a known quantity and skis well and fast. The four of us covered a lot of ground and made our way to the upper lifts. Kids love gullies and trees and the girls were attracted to them like a magnetic force. Following them I soon found myself in a narrow nasty gully the width of my skis. The girls bombed down it making little turns leaving me behind as I jumped my skis around. The girls found most of the jumps on the mountain and following them was decidedly dangerous for an adult. I learned early on to be very selective about the jumps that I go off and I have gotten more cautious in middle age. I swear I can feel the disks in my back compress as I land. My daughter s friend caught some good air off what appear to be a good jump. The jump was OK but the landing was another bump. She landed hard driving her knees up and her face down until they connected and she bit the end of her tongue. After a few tears, she was tough and got up, spit out the blood and we were off again. Moving from one area of the mountain to another requires advanced planning and navigating multiple runs and lifts. Midday we decided to try another part of the mountain. We looked at the map and planned our route before setting off. My wife took the lead rather than her usual sweep position. I followed with the girls. The girls and I soon got sucked off into a gully that I quickly realized was a serious mistake because we could not get to our chosen lift from the bottom of the gully. I yelled at my daughter to stay high and get back on the run while her friend and I started traversing out of the gully. We slowly made our way out and hit the run well below where I had last been in contact with my daughter. I hollered up to her, but received no answer. We assumed that she had skied on down to catch up with her mother. We waited a couple minutes and then headed down to the bottom of the lift. There we found my wife waiting and the first thing she said was, Where is Katie?. From the look on our faces she immediately realized that we didn t know and after that she said a bunch of words directed at me that are not appropriate for a family oriented publication. I got the look with daggers attached as she skied off to talk to the lift attendant and alert the ski patrol. She then headed up the lift to search for our daughter. I was assigned the duty of waiting at the bottom. Her friend and I stood at the bottom anxiously scanning up the slope looking for the colors of my daughter s coat and helmet. She didn t appear and didn t appear. Now, I was starting to get a little worried. Where had she ended up? Then we saw her. We both waved our arms and when she saw us she skied to us. Teary eyed and scared she came up to me and I gave her a hug. I told her I was so sorry that we had missed her on the slope. She said that she had waited and waited for us and then slowly made her way down looking for us all along the way. I skied over and talked to the lift attendant who alerted the ski patrol that she had been found. Meanwhile my wife had ridden one lift up and skied down to the base of another and she checked in with ski patrol at the base where she said, I am looking for my daughter and a good divorce lawyer. The ski patrol was sympathetic and said that they had heard that before and called over to the lift were we were waiting. They informed her that her daughter was with her father. I don t know if she took much comfort in that but she skied down to join us a little while later. My daughter got a big hug. I got the look with daggers again. We skied the rest of the afternoon and enjoyed the day and by the time we arrived home the days misadventures had faded behind us. In the words of Shakespeare, Alls well that ends well. However, I don t think he had hot-blooded Scots in mind when he wrote this. The following day we all arrived home from work and school and my wife informed me that she had told everyone at work about me leading the girls astray into the gully and losing our daughter. I expected this but then she said that she had gotten mad at me all over again while she was retelling the day s events. I am afraid I am going to be relegated to the family dog house every time the story is retold and I am sure that it will be retold often. page 20 march 2006

21 gear review Start Grip Tape by Tom Leake Compared to most who will read this review, I am not a good skier, particularly not a good classic technique skier. Part of the reason for this is that between family, career, and other obligations and interests, I have not had tons of time to effectively learn the magic art of grip waxing. Last year I was seriously considering buying an advanced pair of waxless skis. I was about ready to do this when I ran across some reviews for the Start Grip Tape. I decided that it was a lot cheaper to try than new skis. I could not find any at local shops so I ordered some from GearWest. Here are some of my thoughts after having used it for several outings. Application Application is not difficult but for best results carefully read the all instructions, do not scan them. Proper application of this product is critical as an improper application will allow your grip tape to peel off. A proper installation will give you a layer of what almost looks and feels like a red klister (but slightly less sticky). Durability Good it seems to hold up well over lots of miles. I used the same application for about 50k on the skis over 6 or 7 different outings. One of the issues in obtaining this kind of durability is that the ski bottoms in the grip surface will become very sticky, approaching klister. If the bottoms come in contact with your ski bag they will leave a red goo on it. This also means you are losing some of your grip. I read a suggestion that worked well for a while. That is, use the anti stick backing tape to cover the stuff when you are not skiing on them. Kick I am not really well trained in classic technique, and I have even less training and experience with classic waxing. In many conditions the grip was equivalent to a wax that is a little off which is still better than my normal waxing ability, which has been that I am normally way off. I found two days in particular when it did not work well at all, one was the classic Race last year at Sundance. It was not sticky enough for the quite warm snow conditions that day. I could not get any kick as I tried to get up to the start, so I used an old pair of waxless skis I had in the car. The other was the classic technique race at Soldier Hollow this year. This event featured very cold temperatures, I believe the grip surface was icing as I had both marginal kick and less than average glide. Anticipating that it would again be very cold for the December 2005 Tuna Relay, I removed it and went to a hard wax, with some excellent suggestions from the Toko booth (Todd Hennemen in particular), actually worked very well. Removal The most important point to remember if you want to remove this product is let your cleaner do the work. I found that if I apply the gel cleaner and let it sit for about ten minutes it would dissolve most of the grip tape. If you are impatient you will spend a lot more time and use a lot more cleaner. Summary Like most products for classic grip this product is not a cure all. For someone who has not learned all the fine points of waxing it can be quite useful. In a fairly reasonable variety of normal conditions it will reward good technique with some grip. I think it is a good tool especially for those who are learning classic technique, or just have not been patient enough to learn good classic waxing. I find that the grip tape, on days when it worked, helped me to learn better classic technique. As I stated above in extreme conditions (cold approaching 0 degrees, or klister like) it will not be effective. I am not sure how useful it would be to those who are more experienced. I suspect they may find and a more constrained set of conditions where it works well for them. It would be most useful if you have an extra pair of skis to dedicate to it. march 2006 page 21

22 2006 Utah Cross Country Ski Race Schedule race finish Now to April 30 MULTIPLE PAIR DISCOUNT $5 OFF Nordic Stone Grind Service With service of two or more pair NORDIC STONE GRIND FULL REFINISH $49.99 Bases better than new! Complete restoration of your skis with Precision Custom Structure Base Repair* Precision base flattening on stone Blank Finish applied to flat base Precision custom structure applied to base Base hair removal Hand polish and brushing of base material One coat soft penetrating wax PREMIUM REFINISH $64.99 Precision Custom Structure plus Hot Box Treatment Hot Box base saturation process replaces hours of tedious hand waxing Everything in our Standard Tune plus the following: Extensive hand polishing and brushing of base Hot Box base saturation with soft penetrating wax One coat blue wax for base hardening Hand hot wax with wax of the day 702 Third Avenue Salt Lake City DATE RACE TECHNIQUE(k) LOCATION START March Sat Yellowstone Rendezvous class(25) West Yellowstone 8:45 Yellowstone Rendezvous free(25/50) West Yellowstone 9:00 18 Sat Wooden Ski Classic & Potluck class(5) Alta 10:30 25 Sat LaSaLoppet any (18) Moab 9:00 For more up-to-date information check the TUNA web page at This race schedule is published and distributed compliments of Timberland and TUNA. Race Details for March Saturday, March 4 Ullr Chase place: Logan Canyon time: 9:00 distance: 40 km technique: free registration: fee: $65 contact: Paul Grams (grams@cc.usu.edu) sponsor: Utah State University Campus Recreation Saturday, March 11 Yellowstone Rendezvous place: West Yellowstone, Montana distance: 50 kilometer full marathon or 25 kilometer contact: Saturday, March 18 Wooden Ski Classic & Potluck place: Alta time: 10:30 distance: 5 km technique: classical preregister: before 3/11 - Charlie Coltrain, (w) or (h) registration: 9:00 to 10:00 on race day fee: $10 plus a dish to share (soft drinks provided) contact: Charlie Coltrain sponsors: TUNA Saturday, March 18 4th Annual Black Diamond PowderKeg place: From Alta to Brighton Race & Recreational Divisions more info: go to Sunday, March 19 Gold Rush Royal Gorge place: Royal Gorge, California distance: 50 km, 30 km, 15 km, 6 km contact: Saturday, March 25 LaSaLoppet place: Moab time: meet at Moab Springs Ranch before 8:00, race starts at 9:00 distance: 18 km technique: any registration: pregister or day of race fee: $15 in advance, $20 day of race contact: Tag Along Expeditions ( ) or McKay Edwards ( ) sponsors: Tag Along Expeditions, Moab Springs Ranch page 22 march 2006

23 The Lasaloppet Returns March 25th by McKay Edwards 18K Race & 14K Social Tour Who says Moab isn t a ski town? The La Sals are Utah s second highest mountains. With about twelve peaks over 12,000 feet, they are more reminiscent of the Colorado Rockies than the Wasatch. A thick conifer forest between 9,000 and 11,000 feet holds almost every flake that falls between November and April, yielding great touring in an incredibly scenic setting. While the backcountry skiing for turns can be inconsistent, the touring on roads, meadows and forest trails is almost always outstanding. About twenty-three miles Southeast of Moab, the Geyser Pass road is plowed to 9,500 feet. The Manti-La Sal Forest is acquiring grooming equipment that is supposed to be in action before this season ends. Meanwhile, locals either skate on snowmobile packed roads or beat their own trails. From the trailhead to Geyser Pass, the Forest Service road skis a lot like upper Millcreek Road in Salt Lake County not as steep overall, but much more alpine. It s entirely protected by deep conifers on the north slope of Mt. Mellenthin, which rises to 12,600 feet. Once through Geyser Pass, some high meadows at 10,500 feet provide for beautiful loops with huge views to the east over the Dolores River to the San Juans in Colorado. The descent is fast here and there, but overall quite mellow. The first two Lasaloppets were set at about 15 kilometers, and were distinguished by very competitive fields of skiers. The first year was skied in a white-out snowstorm. The second year the course was rock-hard, and was won by Van Edgette of Alta in a smoking time of 49:24. This year we re adding an extra loop in the high meadows to bring the distance up to 18 kilometers. I expect that the course will be moderately but not perfectly groomed for skating, but can t guarantee classical lanes. We give awards in skating, classical and classical no-wax. Lightweight no-wax skis are one of the best ways to enjoy southern Utah snowmobile roads. The snow is so variable, especially in late March, that waxing is very difficult. I ll be leading (or following) a Social Tour for those who just want some fresh air and scenery before eating Lentil Soup back at the Ranch. The Social Tour will be a bit shorter and will take about two hours with a stop or two. There will be an award for the most socially skilled person on the social tour and I ll be the judge of that. The après ski party is now famous. There s something magical about skiing up to 10,500 feet in the morning, gazing over Canyonlands, and wading at Moab Springs Ranch at 4,000 feet in the balmy afternoon. By March 25th, the weather in Moab is usually fabulous. Pre-register at Tag-A-Long tours in Moab, pick up an entry at Wasatch Touring, Wild Rose or my office over Jolley Corner Pharmacy (Club Utah, across from Emigration Market). Or call at and we ll send you one. Pre-registration really helps us to know how much lentil soup to make! Making Visions a Reality! General Contractor Design/Build Service 18 Years Experience Kitchen and Bathroom Remodels Whole House Remodels Additions Owned and Operated by TUNA member Robert Myers 1448 East 2700 South, Salt Lake City, UT P# 801/ F# 801/ march 2006 page 23