Soldier Hollow Super Junior National Qualifier

Transcription

1 The Utah Nordic Alliance Volume XXIV No.5 March 2014 Photos by Kirk Nichols Soldier Hollow Super Junior National Qualifier by Kirk Nichols Noah Putt (left) held a steady second the entire 5km race The Utah Nordic Alliance once again hosted the Junior National Qualifier along with Soldier Hollow on February 7 th and 8 th. And like all the past Super JNQ s, racers from all over the west descended on SOHO to test themselves against their regional peers and the course and terrain of Soldier Hollow. Over 640 skiers participated in two days of racing, unfortunately not in the most ideal weather conditions. For the older skiers, these races are all about qualifying for Junior Nationals. Each USSA division brings nine male and nine female U16 (under 16 years old) skiers to Junior Nationals. Each can also bring twelve U18 combined with U20 men and twelve women. That means four years of birthdays are combined into one group of twenty four skiers. Very competitive and the body sizes between ages 16 and 19 can be considerable, but unpredictable. The Super JNQ is super because, not only is it the Intermountain Division of the USSA s national qualifier, but four of the other nine divisions are invited to ski for podiums as well. Then to make it more super, the Wyoming High School system uses this opportunity to call this their state meet. In addition, the reason there are so many skiers under age 14 is that many are younger siblings of the U skiers who wish to qualify for the Junior Nationals, this year at Stowe, Vermont. Friday s sprint qualifiers and sprint heats were challenged not only by a climb halfway up Hermod s Hill with a wild descent down the Whale s Tail, but the weather added a stiff, cold, gusty wind, and blowing snow. Unlike past years when the sky was blue and the sun was warm, the sprint day was nasty. One young woman pleaded with her coach not to have to climb Hermod s again because of the hill and the cold. There were no post-race frivolities in the stadium as in years past, with Frisbee games in the warm sun. As soon as teams were finished racing, everyone packed up and headed back to their hotels. The juniors were divided into various age groups to make the competition as fair as possible. For the classic sprints, this means almost 400 skiers started individually for a qualifying round, followed by twenty elimination heats to winnow down the fields for the semi-final and then final heats. All this adds up to a day packed full of racing, with the older juniors competing on the exact same sprint course as the seniors did back in January. The conditions made for tough skiing, with more than one skier going down on the corner at the bottom of the big descent. In between the qualifying rounds and the quarter through continued on page 4

2 TUNA NEWS Editor s Note This issue of TUNA News has extensive coverage of the Junior Nationals Qualifier held at Soldier Hollow on February 7 th and 8 th. This is the big show for junior competitors from all over the Western US, and it determines which skiers get to go to Stowe Vermont to compete in the US Junior National Championships. My thanks to Kirk Nichols for helping chronicle and photograph these exciting events. The Wasatch Citizen Series Solider Hollow Race #4 is detailed, along with full results. Conditions were excellent and all competitors appreciate the challenge of SOHO s trails to get ready for the longer end of season events. I have always felt that racing at SOHO is the best preparation for skiing anywhere and doing well. Some of these Boulder Mountain, Round Valley, and Moose Chase are covered in this issue. The WCS Farm Race, Yellowstone Rendezvous, and O Nordic Championship will be detailed in the final TUNA News for The big news for this issue is really the performance of the junior skiers. The Intermountain Division Team has been named and sixteen skiers from Utah were included. From its inception 25 years ago, TUNA has had one overriding goal, and that has been promoting Nordic skiing in this state. And the performance of our athletes, regardless of what ski program they come from, shows that Utah is a Nordic community that produces top-notch talent. Each Nordic program in Utah is now able to cater to a specific demographic of skier goals, and this is something everyone who is involved with, or cares about, Nordic skiing should be cognizant of. To compete at a high level of Nordic skiing involves a tremendous amount of commitment and sacrifice. There is no glory in our sport, even at the top levels as the NBC Olympic coverage demonstrates once again but the years of hard work and physical pain are rivaled only by a few other sports. Being a top Nordic athlete requires a hellva lot of effort over a long, long time. The athletes and coaches should get our praise and support because if Nordic skiing thrives everywhere in Utah, it will benefit all of us. So when you see the juniors, their coaches, and the parents, congratulate them on their accomplishments. I was looking at the Methow Valley Olympic training videos on YouTube, and in a demonstration of one of their masochistic workouts, there was a sign on the wall that said, You Can t Coach Desire. I know what they are saying and why, but I disagree to some extent because if you create an environment where the athletes efforts are respected, appreciated, and to some extent exalted, their desire will be increased. So I would respectfully disagree and say that if we create the right environment here in Utah with Nordic skiing, we can, in a sense, coach the desire that is so critical in such a demanding sport as ours. Happy Trails, Bill PS The Wasatch Citizens Series Race Crew and the Soldier Hollow Race Crew, along with all of those who were touched by her wit, passion, and charm, mourn the passing of Marie Irvine. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Bob and their children. This is a huge loss to our community, and we are devastated. MARCH 2014 Contents Soldier Hollow Super Junior National Qualifier... by Kirk Nichols...1 Nordic News... by Dave Hanscom...3 Wasatch Citizens Series Race #4... by Bruce Schroeder...8 A Taste of Sochi Weather, Round Valley Roundup... by Dave Hanscom Moose Chase... by Bill Stenquist The Swix 39th Boulder Mountain Tour... by Kurt Dudley The Open-Invitation Solitude Hill Climb... by Kirk Nichols Learn to Ski... by Bob Wilkerson Mountain Dell... by Chris Magerl Team Soldier Hollow Growing through Experience... by Morgan Smythe TUNA Comp and Junior Comp Update... by Matt Johnson Wasatch Nordic Ski Academy... by Bill Hokanson Park City Nordic Ski Club... by Gordon Lange Selecting, Organizing and Differentiating Your Skis... by Barry Makarewicz Ogden Nordic... by Trish Painter Nordic Adaptive Sit-Skis Bring Freedom... by Roger Lohr Ute Skiers... by Brooke Frederickson Masters Ski Training and Snow Therapy with Coach Laurie... by Cynthia Burrows Back of the Pack.... by David Susong 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 six times a year. Annual membership runs July 1 thru June Officers President Richard Hodges secretary Donna Wahoff-Stice...dwstice@gmail.com treasurer Lori Gates OTHER Directors Greg Adams Tom Bonacci Lisa Bruns Cassie Dippo Mark Keeney Chris Magerl Jesse Stewart Eric Swanson Ogden nordic board representative Richard Schneider Advisor & WCS Director Dave Hanscom Advisor & JOQ Director David Susong Advisor Tim Metos Head Coach & Junior Program Director Matt Johnson Junior Parent Liason Lucy Jacob-Nichols TUNA News Editor Bill Stenquist bstenquist4@gmail.com TUNA News departments Back of the Pack David Susong Membership...Lisa Bruns Mountain Dell... Chris Magerl Nordic Scene...Dave Hanscom Race Photographer...Gary Fladmoe Social...Donna Wahoff-Stice Yurt... Greg Adams Design & Advertising Suzi Elmore suzi@suzielmore.com Go to and click on ADVERTISING for rates and deadlines. Articles, race listings, photographs and artwork are welcome, but TUNA News assumes no responsibility for loss or damage. www. utahnordic.com twitter:@utah Nordic TUNA News, PO Box 9008 Salt Lake City, UT page 2 March 2014

3 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE nordic news March 2014 by Dave Hanscom As the deadline for this article approached, I received news of the death of one of our most loyal TUNA volunteers. Marie Irvine suffered a major heart attack and passed away on February 10, just three days after helping out with the Junior National Super Qualifier at Soldier Hollow. Marie was a member of the Wasatch Citizens Series race crew for fourteen years and assisted with many other TUNA activities. Our hearts go out to her family. Her cheerful smile, keen wit, and willing hands will be sorely missed. On a more positive note, for the second year in a row, a record number of Utah skiers qualified for the Junior National Championships that will be underway in Stowe, Vermont, at about the time this issue of TUNA News hits the streets. Congratulations to all sixteen of them. Several local juniors had big races at the Soldier Hollow event to seal their places on the Intermountain Team, some on the podium for the first time this winter. In particular, TUNA Competition Team member Katy Bonacci came through in a big way (for the second year in a row!) and took home a silver and bronze. Other news this month is that the Wooden Ski Classic and Potluck has come to an end after 25 years. Started in 1989 by the father of Utah nordic skiing, McKay Edwards, to promote a proposed Park City development called Telemark Park, the race was taken over in 1999 by Charlie Coltrain, then a TUNA Board member. After single handedly keeping it going for 15 years, and with participation dwindling, Charlie decided it was time to put the event to rest. Smartwool Wasatch Citizens Series I probably shouldn t say this, since it might break the spell, but this winter has been the best in quite a while for the local races. The snow cover has been very thin, but cold weather has kept it intact. Hopefully the conditions will last a couple more weeks, and a meltout or blizzard won t spoil the final WCS event for a change. We ll know by the time you read this. The success of the series is due in large part to our generous sponsors. Our title sponsor Smartwool generously provided almost 250 shirts to season pass holders, race crew, and others who participated in at least four races. I m excited to announce that Smartwool has agreed to join us again next year, so you ll have another of their great merino wool shirts to add to your collections. We particularly appreciate our food sponsors ClifBar for Shot, Shot Bloks, and energy bars, as well as Kelly Milligan (MidValley Animal Clinic), Jeff Scott (Intermountain Bobcat), and Brett Kassing (Nate Wade Subaru) for cash donations to cover lunches. In addition, more than 25 local and national companies contributed to the overflowing prize tables at each race, and the special drawing featured skis and/or poles from Atomic, Fischer, Salomon, and Swix. We couldn t put on such a high quality events without our incredible race crew. They make sure the races start on time and results are done quickly and correctly. This is even more amazing when you consider that we do day-of-race registration. That kind of consistency only comes with many years of working together and being dedicated to detail. March Races Several spring events are on the calendar for March, starting with the Ogden Nordic (O Nordic) Championship on Saturday the 1st. They advertise this as a fun race on their North Fork Park trails, and allow participants to choose either skate or classic technique. Postponed from early January, the Potato Cup is also scheduled for that day. With snow cover finally sufficient for the event, this pursuit race is the only one if its kind in the intermountain area. It consists of a 10K mass start classic loop, followed after a short break by a 10K skate, with each skater s start time based on how far s/he finished behind the classic winner. The 34th annual Yellowstone Rendezvous will be on Saturday the 8th. They ll host classic and free technique 25 kilometer races, a 50 kilometer free, and shorter distances for kids, all with the usual cannon blast at the start. If you re looking for something more radical than a groomed track that weekend, the Wasatch Powder Keg might be just the ticket. It starts with a sprint on Friday evening, followed by the main event on Saturday that consists of 6500 feet of climb in 10 miles around the Brighton Basin. If that s not enough, you can do the technical race for 2-person teams on Sunday that s even more gonzo than the previous day. As their motto says, it s all about the up! Solitude Nordic s Spring Fling will close out the season on March 22. Between a morning skate race and an afternoon sprint relay, they ll provide food and music to entertain you. This is a great way to celebrate the Equinox and welcome spring. f March 2014 page 3

4 TUNA NEWS continued from page 1 Mason Heimburger making fast look easy Park City s Julia Lazzeroni Quinn Keeney looking vulnerable to the wind but showing she is not final heats for the older juniors, skiers below the age of 14 raced in waves and raced only once no heats. Five U8s (under eight years old) raced around the stadium. Awfully cute. Two waves, one boys, one girls, of U10 were followed by four starting waves of U12 boys and three waves of U12 girls. Finally, seven waves of U14 boys, six waves of U14 girls, one group of novice boys, and one of novice girls ended the morning, with many of the age groups doing multiple laps around the sprint course all at once. This turned into controlled chaos, since some of the skiers finished without doing their second lap, resulting in a day s delay in announcing the novice winners. The above description of individual start for the older skiers and the waves of younger skiers only described the morning. The afternoon was filled with 36 waves of six-skier sprint heats. Big thanks to the volunteer timing and starting crew! Thirty males and thirty females were formed into heats of six skiers for both the U16 and the combined U18-20 groups. The two fastest skiers from each of the five heats for each age and gender moved into semi-finals of twelve skiers each. If you were quick with your math you saw that two spaces were left to be filled by the lucky losers, which at this level of skiing means the two fastest skiers from the morning s elimination round that did not qualify as one of the first two in their heats. This adds a little anticipation to an already hectic day. The quarter-finals cut the field down to a dozen skiers. The semifinals separate those twelve skiers into an A and B final heat. The fastest three skiers from each semi-final heat move to the A final to compete for the top six places overall. Those in the B final will end up in places seven through twelve. Especially with skiing down the treacherous Whale s Tail in sloppy classic boots, crashes happen, and sometimes the better skiers fall into the B final that is sprint racing. If you are not going fast enough to crash, you are not going fast enough to win. Qualifying is cool but everybody racing on skis is what matters. Watching those barely attached long boards that allow winter travel up and down the hills and through the woods when connected to young athletes in bright team colors is a spectacle not to be missed. Having to eliminate skiers is sad but all the athletes get faster and improve their fitness by training and competing with each other. Utah racers skied well in the sprint competitions even better in the distance races. One third of the Utah skiers made the quarter-finals and half of those skiers moved into the finals. Approximately 370 skiers started in the qualifying round, 35 from Utah from whom 11 made the first cut of quarter finalists. Skiing FU16 for the Park City Nordic Ski Club were Maddie Morgan and Sydney Palmer- Leger finishing 5 th and 6 th. Skiing FU18-20 for Park City were Julia Lazzaroni in 6 th and Brenna Egan at 11 th. Katy Bonacci skiing U16 for TUNA skied in 7 th. Henry Gorman skied to 6 th for Wasatch Nordic Ski Academy. Saturday s Mass-start Distance Races The mass start skate distance races are (wrongly) seeded on the previous day s sprint results. Sure, sometimes the best sprinter is the best distance skier, but at other times the sprinters are just in the way. At least they move out quickly at the start and, like the annoying driver who passes on the freeway to pull in front of you just to slowdown, at least for the distance skier, the sprinters become targets to draft and then to pass. Putting 106 racers on the narrow technical course alters the outcome. After the races, skiers reported being buffeted around, feeling like the first two and a half kilometers were a contact sport. Fischer Heimburger broke two poles over the week-end and was forced off the raised track falling among the now bloody sagebrush. Wil Nichols recalled being spun completely 180 degrees, fortunately retaining balance but having to wait-out a dozen skiers to find room to turn back into the flow. One Sun Valley skier blew off the course at the sprint bridge, falling 10 feet but climbing back up and searching out a gap to return to the race. Yet most skiers prefer a mass start for its obvious and immediate feedback on how they are competing. Saturday s distance races saw outstanding performances by our local talent. Henry Gorman, who completely dominated the second two laps of the older boy s race, and Riis Wilbrecht with a major push at the end (Wasatch Nordic Ski Academy) took 1 st and 2 nd in the 15 km, showing the value of full-time skiing. And with Ben Grodner coming in 12 th, Wasatch Nordic Ski Academy had a great Junior National Qualifier. Park City Nordic saw Alex Jackson in 23 rd and Kyle Beling 24 th trading leads and pulling each other along. Luke Adams finished 57 th, while TUNA s Wil Nichols 25 th and SOHO s Fisher Heimburger 28 th also traded leads throughout the 15 kilometers. Not bad placing in a field of 102 of the best the West has to offer. In the older girls 10km skate race, Park City pink stood out with Sophie MacDonald and Brenna Egan in 14 th and 15 th, page 4 March 2014

5 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE PRESENTS LOCAL'S APPRECIATION DAY! One day only train with the pros at White Pine Nordic Center! Want to learn to cross country ski or just want to fine-tune your skills? On March 16th, join White Pine for Local s Appreciation Day! Classic and Skate ski lessons, demos, track day pass and food all for just $15! And for season pass holders, it s all FREE. Sunday, March 16 th, 9 am - 3 pm 45 Minute Lessons thru the day: Learn to Ski Lessons Skate & Classic (Minimum 10 years old) Race/Advanced Technique Clinics Skate & Classic Perfect your race technique! Reps from Rossignol, Atomic, Fischer, Salomon and Madshus will attend. For more information call White Pine Nordic Center at Fischer Heimburger in the MU18, 15km Katy Bonacci comfortably leading the B-Final Henry Gorman 15km Champion at JNQ Julia Lazzaroni in 38 th, and Lindsey Adams in 52 nd. Bronwyn Tayler of Soldier Hollow skied in 55 th. In the 5 km FU16 class, young women under 16, twelve year old powerhouse Sydney Palmer-Leger (Park City Nordic) quickly moved forward from 54 th starting position to just behind the race leader. She pulled the next skier four kilometers to be barely out sprinted at the line, taking 3 rd overall, and Katy Bonacci (TUNA) was 6 th! Haley Batten (Park City Nordic) was 17 th, Madison Morgan (Park City Nordic) took 20 th, Sienna Leger-Redel (Park City Nordic) 22 nd, Lydia and Mary Strohl (TUNA) 46 th and 53 rd, and Addison McCarthy (SOHO) finished 76 th. Noah Putt again put Wasatch Nordic on the MU16 podium with a 2 nd place finish in the 5 km race, a mere 3.5 seconds behind Leo Lukens of Mt. Bachelor Ski Education Foundation; Drew Palmer-Leger was 13 th only 58.6 seconds back; Connor Patten (Park City Nordic) popped a great race at 28 th ; and Park City s Jesse Reid skied in 33 rd. Among the U14 men were Tate Hoefler (Park City Nordic) in 2 nd place, Skylar Patten (Park City Nordic) 5 th, Felix Firth (SOHO) 10 th, Aidan Rasmussen (Park City Nordic) 11 th, Ben Slawson, Vincent Bonacci, and Keenan Peters (all of TUNA) took 15 th, 16 th and 17 th, respectively. The local U12 boys were also well represented, with Gunnar March 2014 page 5

6 TUNA NEWS Lane Myshrall at the head of his wave Lindsey Adams topping out on the first climb Tate Hoefler of Park City Travis (Park City Nordic) 6 th, Jack Jarrett (SOHO) 7 th, Mason Heimburger (SOHO) 13 th, Joseph Bonacci (TUNA) 18 th, rounding out the top 20. Boy s U10 saw Jefferson Thompson (TUNA) 5 th, The always determined Zachary Selzman Sabine Wilson (TUNA) 6 th and Maddux Leonard (SOHO) 7 th. The women s U14 had Savannah Fassio (Park City Nordic) always pushing the pace and earning a very close 2 nd place, with Mila Leger-Redel and Sarah Morgan (both of Park City Nordic) taking 11 th and 12 th. Utah s young women s U12 skiers pushed through the storm to finish in the following order: Sabine Wilson, Sophia Burkemo, Tory Peters, Sara Livingstone, Hanna Farra, Anya Szwajkun, Victoria Eggert, Quinn Keeney, Rachel Haight, and Genevia McCracken-Bennion. No wonder the Wasatch Citizens race series is so full of juniors. Grace Soldier Hollow s Felix Firth in the classic sprint Park City s Alex Jackson and Kyle Beling at the 15km finish line Swanson of TUNA took the FU10 age followed by Grace Humbert, Georgia Morgan, and Victoria McCracken-Bennion. For more details and I m sure I missed someone go to To find videos of these great skiers check-out TUNA s race blog at What a week-end, and what an opportunity for these athletes! Also a great opportunity for parents to see their children race. Shelly Gorman appreciated having such a big race within driving distance, allowing her to see her son race and stand on the top of the podium. Every race holds new possibilities. f back row: Ben Grodner, Karsten Hokanson, Riis Wilbrecht, Henry Gorman, Leah Lange, Katy Bonacci, Jesse Reid, Brenna Egan, Noah Putt, Julia Lazzaroni, Madison Morgan; front row: Sydney Palmer-Leger, Sophie McDonald; not pictured: Kyle Beling, Alex Jackson and Fischer Heimburger page 6 March 2014

7 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Congratulations and Good Luck to the 16 Utah Nordic Youth at the Junior Nationals this year 2014 USSA Cross Country Junior Championships March 1-8, 2014 Trapp Family Lodge Stowe, Vermont FU16 Leah Lange Sydney Palmer-Leger Madison Morgan Katy Bonacci MU16 Noah Putt Jesse Reid GREAT DEALS ON ALL REMAINING WINTER EQUIPMENT give your friends THE GIFT OF gear envy (It s the thought that counts!!) Make them jealous while gratuitously rewarding yourself with the gear you really want (maybe even deserve). We stock racing gear from Atomic, Fischer, Salomon, Swix, Rossignol, Toko, V-2 and many others, plus have proven flex evaluation and stone grinding programs we have tested and developed for over two decades. Check us out online at FU18/20 Sophie McDonald Brenna Egan Julia Lazzaroni MU18/20 Karsten Hokanson Henry Gorman Riis Wilbrecht Kyle Beling Ben Grodner Alex Jackson Fischer Heimburger (Alternate) 702 Third Avenue Salt Lake City Visit our website March 2014 page 7

8 TUNA NEWS January 25, 2014 Wasatch Citizen s Series Race #4 Soldier Hollow Photos by Gary Fladmoe by Bruce Schroeder The fourth race of the Smartwool Wasatch Citizens Series had ideal weather with sunny skies and 9 degree temperatures as skiers arrived at the Soldier Hollow Day Lodge to pick up their race bibs along with prerace Clif gels and bars. Course conditions were near perfect for the 270 racers (89 were 16 and younger) participating in the freestyle event. Jeremy Teela, 3 time Olympian biathlete, was the overall winner with a time of 25:46.7 on the 10.4km course, a few seconds faster than his winning time last year at this event. Finishing behind Jeremy were Noe Bellet and Kevin Bolger, members of the University of Utah Ski Team. In the Women s Open, Emma Garrard finished in 31:08.2, a minute ahead of Roxanne Toly in second and Anna Svendsen in third. In the age groups there were some fresh faces standing in first at the end of the day. Bruce Allen at his first WCS race of the season won the M50-54 just ahead of Paul Smith and Tom Bonacci. Norwegian born Carl Kjeldsberg was the first M70+ on the 5.2km loop in 19:57, just 8 seconds off his winning time from last year. He was followed by age group leader Noel Olsen and Steve Swanson. First time race winners on the Women s side included Sari Rauscher F40-44, Tricial Livingstone FNovice, Emma Burke F14-15, Sophia Burkemo F10-11, and Grace Humbert F8-9. The largest age group of the day was the M50-54 group with 22 racers. Julian Zagoda finished ahead of season leader Jeff Minema, who edged out Michael Weglarz, setting up for a great race finale at White Pine. The closest finish of the day was between the Patricks for 2nd and 3rd in the M60-64, with Patrick English finishing half a ski length ahead of Patrick McEwen. Tom Noaker finished in first for his fourth win of the season. Other age group finishers not already mentioned are Nathan Borgevicht M18, Matthew Stewart M25, Gwenael Layec M30, Aaron Phillips M35, Jonathan Santoro M40, Randy Anderson M45, Ray Groth M65, John Fassio MNovice, Adam Brown M16-17, Matthew Behrens M14-15, Cole Burnett M12-13, Joseph Bonacci M10-11, Maddux Leonard M8-9, Phillippe Radu M5-7, Maurissa Weight F18, Sarah Cookler F30, Kathryn Gibson F35, Sari Rauscher F40, Barbara Blanke F45, Amy MacDonald F50, Kanda Hazelwood F55, Deborah Wagner F60, Nancy Fichter F65, Savanna Fassio F12-13, and Eden Keeney F5-7. After the race everyone gathered in the Soldier Hollow Day Lodge for lunch and cookies sponsored by Nate Wade Subaru. After the race results were announced and medals awarded, the prize drawing was held for the bounty of sports gear provided by our race sponsors. The Trachtenberg family scored 3 for 3 with early picks for Joel, Max, and Ben. REI was the race sponsor and supplied a number of REI brand gear as well as a 20% OFF Coupon to everyone who participated. f Jeremy Teela skis in the pack for the first lap Emma Garrard drives to the finish Roxanne Toly beats U of U skiers Joseph Bonacci and Sophia Burkemo out in front Age group winners Maurissa Weight and Barbara Blanke page 8 March 2014

9 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Aaron Phillips charges to the front Geneva Humbert Ageless Carl Kjeldsberg rules the over 70 class Nancy Fichter Adrian Castro leads the sit skiers Emma Burke tops the under-16 girls Wally Lee cranks a turn Future Olympians Under-8 winner Eden Keeney Savannah Fassio cruises to an under-14 victory Daniel Bray is half way home Zoe Peterson inherited good form Thomas Seidel battles Tyler Smith to the finish Charlie Sturgis makes a gear adjustment Mike Weglarz chases Julian Zgoda Amy MacDonald has an easy victory March 2014 page 9

10 TUNA NEWS Smartwool Wasatch Citzens Series Soldier Hollow Wasatch Citizens Race #4 Free Midway, Utah February 25, 2014 Place Bib Name Time Place Bib Name Time Place Bib Name Time Place Bib Name Time Class: MO - Male Open 10.4 km TEELA, Jeremy...25: BELLET, Noe...25: BOLGER, Kevin...26: LOOMIS, Adam...26: HENDRICKSON, Nick...26: WARD, Michael...26: SEIDEL, Thomas...27: SMITH, Tyler...27: MAKAREWICZ, Barry...27: CLARK, Paul...28: ROSSMAN, Matt...28: GUINEY, Daniel...29: IVARS, Oscar...30: HAGEMAN, Todd...30: HUMBERT, Chris...30: PARDYJAK, Eric...31: HAJIYAN, Aram...31:57.7 Class: M18 - Male km BORGEVICHT, Nathan...34: GIBBS, David...40:49.2 Class: M25 - Male km STEWART, Matthew...33: JODA, Max...37:07.0 Class: M30 - Male km LAYEC, Gwenael...32:39.3 Class: M35 - Male km PHILLIPS, Aaron...29: CUMMISFORD, Kevin...31: BURTON, Mike...33: MILLER, Matt...35: CROUCH, Andre...37: HIGLEY, Tyler...38: MORKEN, Dan...38: FICHTER, Eric...39: WEIGEL, Jim...42: OLSON, Eric...42:36.8 Class: M40 - Male km SANTORO, Jonathan...31: TRACHTENBERG, Joel...32: FIRTH, Brandon...32: DAVIDSON, Chris...32: POWERS, Garrett...38: SILVERMAN, Howard...38: KOHLER, Andre...39: CHAPMAN, Robert...39: THOMPSON, Todd...40: BONKOWSKY, Josh...42: ROBISON, Shawn...54:34.6 Class: M45 - Male km ANDERSON, Randy...30: BRILEY, Tim...30: KEENEY, Mark...31: SWANSON, Eric...31: LAZZARONI, Robert...32: WOOD, Peter...33: BURKE, Jay...33: WHITLOCK, Dru...33: EGGERT, Don...36: NIELSON, Scott...36: NEU, Troy...38: MCBRIDE, Russ...39: SLAWSON, Matt...40:35.8 Class: M50 - Male km ZGODA, Julian...31: MINNEMA, Jeff...31: WEGLARZ, Michael...32: REYNOLDS, Kurt...32: MACDONALD, William...33: DEBLIEUX, Don...33: BUNDS, Michael...33: LANG, Rob...33: COLGAN, Gary...34: BRUNS, David...34: MAGERL, Chris...35: O `CONNOR, Dan...37: CHRISTENSEN, Jon...38: STROHL, Clint...38: SUSONG, David...39: BRAY, Daniel...39: LEW, Paul...40: BURNETT, Rick...41: STOKES, Don...43: PALOMAKI, Ted...44: ADAMS, Greg...46: KEARNS, Jim...46: JANERICH, Dwight... DNF 351 LOWELL, Dan... DNF Class: M55 - Male km ALLEN, Bruce...31: SMITH, Paul...31: BONACCI, Tom...32: ARMSTRONG, Don...33: HENNEMAN, Todd...34: HENNEY, Tim...36: WILBOURNE, Preston...37: WOLFE, Sam...38: DOUGHERTY, Tim...40: ROGALSKI, Rob...40: PALMACCI, Jed...41: WILLIAMS, Craig...41: BERRY, Mike...43: HUBER, Dean...52:48.3 Class: M60 - Male km NOAKER, Tom...33: ENGLISH, Patrick...37: MCEWEN, Patrick...37: STICE, David...38: STURGIS, Charlie...38: DUDLEY, Kurt...40: TIETZE, Chris...41: DOLL, Drew...49: SCHROEDER, Bruce...57: GROTH, Ray...41: FICHTER, Gary...44: SOUTHWICK, Jim...46: STEPHENS, Tom...48:31.6 Class: M70 - Male km KJELDSBERG, Carl...19: OLSEN, Noel...20: WAGNER, David...23: SWANSON, Steve...25: GROTH, Richard...29:54.5 Class: MN - Male Novice 5.2 km FASSIO, John...18: ANDERSON, Scott...20: DALEBOUT, Michael...22: GULDNER, John...23: NICHOLS, Kirk...26: KREITZER, Eric...27: HEULMANNS, Bernhard...29: ALM, Brian...30: WEIGHT, Gary...30: SOMMERS, Dan...38: WARBY, Joseph...47:31.6 Class: MU18 - Male km BROWN, Adam...36:41.9 Class: MU16 - Male km BEHRENS, Matthew...16: GOODWIN, Kenen...20: PENROD, Haden...20: JENSEN, Matt...26: ALM, Kyler...59:04.2 Class: MU14 - Male km BURNETT, Cole...10: HEIMBURGER, Mason...11: LIVINGSTONE, Joshua...12: CHAMBERLAIN, Logan...12: HAIGHT, Christian...13: COX, Austin...15: GOODWIN, Braysen...15: OWEN, William...16: NABAUM, Cannon...16: GREGRICH, Hayden...16: EGGERT, Jakob...20: MCCRACKEN-BENNION, William.22:54.6 Class: MU12 - Male km 1 19 BONACCI, Joseph...6: WALLIS, Liam...7: CHENEY-SEYMOUR, Colter..7: SULLIVAN, Andrew...7: CHAMBERLAIN, Reed...8: MARTIN, Ian...8: BETHKE, Kenyan...9: CALL, Mac...9: SULLIVAN, Isaac...10: BALA, Levi...10: KATZ, Zev...11: DONALDSON, Eli...12: ZIERENBERG, Isaac...12: MORNINGSTAR, Benjamin.14:57.3 Class: MU10 - Male km 1 58 LEONARD, Maddux...5: RADU, David...5: THOMPSON, Jefferson...5: OLSON, John...6: SELZMAN, Zach...6: BOYER, Easton...6: BROWN, Altan...6: BERG, Carsten...7: HOTTLE, Dean...11: ALM, Karter...12:35.4 Class: MU08 - Male km 1 12 RADU, Phillip...5: FASSIO, Lucas...8: RADU, Martin...9: CHAMBERLAIN, Jacob...10: DALEBOUT, Cody...12: MCGINN, John...12: LINDLEY, Morty...13: SULLIVAN, Eli...13: BERG, Garrett...17: TRACHTENBERG, Max...17: TRACHTENBERG, Ben...20:10.8 Class: MJN - Male Junior Novice 60 OLIVER, Zak... NO TIME Class: MSSA - Male Sit Skier Advanced 4 km CASTRO, Adrian...16: LEE, Wally...16:49.5 Class: MSS - Male Sit Skier 2 km DIAZ, Pedro...12: CARDENAS, Roberto...17:04.0 Class: FO - Female Open 10.4 km GARRARD, Emma...31: TOLY, Roxanne...32: SVENDSEN, Anna...32: NILSSON, Josefin...32: SANTORO, Jen...34: CARR, Kat...37: MERBACH, Anita...37:57.5 Class: F18 - Female km WEIGHT, Maurissa...37: COOKLER, Sarah...35: COX, Anna...40: MCKENNA, Megan...42: HEZEL, Suzanne...44: MAPP, Kate...58:52.9 Class: F35 - Female km GIBSON, Kathryn...37:24.4 Class: F40 - Female km RAUSCHER, Sari...40: KEENEY, Caroline...40: BURKE, Hilary...42: MCMASTER, Beth...42: PETZOLD, Tricia...43: CALL, Mara...46: ROLLO, Jeannie...47:04.2 Class: F45 - Female km BLANKE, Barbara...36: FRYE, Allison...38: WARE-PEEK, Lynn...38: BEST, Krissy...39: HUMBERT, Laurie...39: BURGESS, Sydney...40: MOORE, Margaret...42: BRUNS, Lisa...43: SLAWSON, Kira...43:53.4 page 10 March 2014

11 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Place Bib Name Time Place Bib Name Time Class: F50 - Female km MACDONALD, Amy...36: LYNCH, Bev...39: HOWAT, Laura...40: DEJONG, Linda...44: JACOB-NICHOLS, Lucy... 49: PALOMAKI, Mickey...59:12.7 Class: F55 - Female km HAZELWOOD, Kanda...41: BURNS, Giggi...41:52.9 Class: F60 - Female km WAGNER, Deborah...42: SCHWANDT, Cyndi...51:09.3 Class: F65 - Female km FICHTER, Nancy...48: GLENNE, Marit... DNF Class: FN - Female Novice 5.2 km LIVINGSTONE, Tricia...27: BURROWS, Cynthia...27: RICH, Trish...28: SMITH, Connie...31: RICH, Susan...32: ATKINSON, Jodi...32: BURNETT, Diana...33: DEHONEY, Sarah...33: SOUTHWICK, Angela...33: O `HARA, Lori...34: ZIRDEN-HEULMANNS, Birgitt.34: NEMEROFF, Lisa...42: CHAMBERLAIN, Brenda...44:15.9 Class: FU16 - Female km BURKE, Emma...19: MCCARTHY, Addison...28:49.3 Class: FU14 - Female km FASSIO, Savanna...11: HUMBERT, Geneva...11: FARRA, Lina...12: GREENE, Liza...12: OBERG, Claire...12: MISCHO, Morgan...13: YOUNG, Kate...15: OLSON, Victoria...15:40.0 Class: FU12 - Female km 1 32 BURKEMO, Sophia...7: PETERS, Tory...7: LIVINGSTONE, Sara...7: FARRA, Hanna...8: ANDERSON, Ellie...9: KEENEY, Quinn...9: EGGERT, Victoria...9: HAIGHT, Rachel...11: JEWKES, Sofia...12: SARFATI, Ashley...13: JEWKES, Lilian...15:48.6 Class: FU10 - Female km 1 56 HUMBERT, Grace...5: PAISLEY, Heidi...6: PETERSON, Zoe...7: WALLIS, Aurelie...10: MCCRACKEN-BENNION, Victoria.10: MCCRACKEN-BENNION, Genevieve... 12:48.1 Class: FU08 - Female km 1 21 KEENEY, Eden...6: MCMASTER, Anna...8: BERG, AnneClaire...10: HOTTLE, Sarah...11: PETERSON, Margot...12: LEONARD, Montana...13: MORNINGSTAR, Sasha...14:07.1 Pat English nips Pat McEwen by half a ski r a c e f i n i s h 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 Bruce Allen Adrian Castro March 2014 page 11

12 TUNA NEWS A Taste of Sochi Weather by Dave Hanscom Charlie Sturgis must have offended the weather gods again for the fourth winter in a row. This year he scheduled his Round Valley Roundup race in February instead of March, in hopes of avoiding the early spring melt that had cursed him in the past. No such luck. Two days of fifty degree highs and forty degree lows (all-time records for mid-february) threatened to force cancellation for the second time in the short four year life of his Mountain Trails Foundation fundraising event. With that possibility in mind, the start was moved up an hour to 9:00 am. Groomer Rick Fournier decided at midnight on Friday that there was no hope, but by 6:00 am Saturday the snow had firmed up considerably, and with a few creative course changes, the race was on. Unfortunately, they had to forego Round Valley s signature 20 kilometer loop to avoid some knee-deep puddles and bare spots. Charlie s solution was multiple laps around a 10 kilometer loop through the main part of the valley and a 5 kilometer loop west of the start. Despite the early morning dramatics behind the scenes, the race started with only a minor delay for instructions. The first group on the course were the 40 kilometer skiers. Their course had been shortened to 31 kilometers in hopes the snow wouldn t turn to slush as the morning got warmer. Early leader Jeremy Teela opened up a 30-second gap after the first five kilometers, then extended that to almost two minutes by the halfway point. Biding their time at a more comfortable pace were Barry Makarewicz and Thomas Seidel, who traded leads through the softening snow. In the last lap they were able to reel in Teela and set themselves up for a sprint to the finish. Seidel managed to stay ahead of Makarewicz and cross the line less than a second ahead for the victory. The winning time of 1:27:22 attests to the fact that the early start was justified. The snow held up quite nicely, at least for the leaders. In the women s race, veteran Roxanne Toly led from start to finish, with Jennifer Santoro 3 minutes back and Amy MacDonald in third. Winning time was 1:43:14. The 20 kilometer race wasn t quite so exciting. US Nordic Combined skier Michael Ward and Park City junior Alex Jackson skied together for about half the race before Ward made his move and opened up a 30 second gap for an easy win in just under an hour. Highland resident Barbara Blanke took the women s race in 1:14:25, about a minute and a half ahead of Kat Carr. The 5 kilometer event was dominated by local juniors. TUNA skier Wil Nichols battled Park City Nordic s Drew Palmer Leger from start to finish. Their race proved too close for the officials to call a winner, so a tie was declared. Their time for the loop, which had been shortened by about a kilometer, was an amazing 9:54. TUNA s Caden MacFarlane finished third in 10:36. Among the girls, Park City skiers Sydney Palmer-Leger and Michael Ward came from behind to win the 20K Roxanne Toly opened up a big lead in the 40K Drew Palmer-Leger and Wil Nichols battled to a tie in the 5K Sydney Palmer-Leger (right) nipped Brenna Egan in the 5K 40K winner Thomas Seidel (106) and Barry Makarewicz (94) were close all the way Brenna Egan led the pack. Just a tenth of a second separated them in the end, with Sydney taking the gold in 10:43. TUNA s Katy Bonacci was third. After the race I commented to Charlie, What s the probability of having to cancel or modify your race due to bad weather four years in a row!. His response tells the story. Never mind probability. I ve got Murphy sitting on my shoulder! But in true Sturgis fashion, he was able to figure out last minute modifications and pull it off. f page 12 March 2014

13 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE 2014 Moose Chase Trail Creek Ranch, Wilson Wyoming by Bill Stenquist If you haven t done the Moose Chase before, it needs to be on your bucket list. I had done it many years ago in its second or third year; the course started at either the Trail Creek Nordic Center, or in a field across the road, and then wound its way to Teton Village through what seemed to be endless fields and then a golf course. I thought it was uninteresting, not very challenging, and not worth a return trip. So I stayed away for many years but with my daughter living in Jackson, and skiing the tracks at Trail Creek after doing the Teton Ridge Classic, I decided to revisit the race. The Moose Chase is now a real race. It is two 15 km laps around the perimeter of the Trail Creek Nordic Center, delightfully located right at the base of Teton Pass. There are two short steep climbs, and when I say steep, I mean they need to install a rope tow to haul some of us older skiers to the top! What a nice trail system; lots of turns, aside from the two lung-busting hills, the course is very skiable. There is a great roller-coaster drop off where you ski off a very steep descent, but you can see the bottom and the run out is perfect to just let em rip. I had a great time and I will definitely be back for the 2015 rendition. The other thing that struck me about the race was how low key it was. It was like a Wasatch Citizens Series race from twenty years ago. Each wave had about twenty or thirty skiers and there was plenty of room to pass people, or in my case, get passed. The weather could have been better; Jackson was getting hit hard by the Pineapple Express, so the temperature at the race start was hovering at 35 F. Fortunately the rain from the night before had taken a brief respite. For those of us out on the course for a while, it did make a comeback to enhance the overall experience, and there is nothing more fun than racing in the rain. But this is atypical for Jackson although I am not sure there is anything typical anymore about weather. I think we just have to learn to adapt to whatever Mother Nature throws at us. The Moose Chase is a fundraiser for the Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club, and they cater to all levels and types of skiing. Distances range from 3K to 30K, with skate and classic options at each. So if you want to ski 30 km of classic technique, step right up. The winner of the 30 km classic race, Adam Johnson (2:02:27), was just out of my reach but as is usually the case when classic is mixed with skating, his tracks were pretty much obliterated on the second lap. Still, he beat many of us who were on skating skis, and he was using klister. Not bad. For the complete results go to jhskiclub.org/moose/results. I thought I would have seen more Utah folks at the race, but there were almost no faces I recognized. This is a good race on a very challenging but skiable course. Be sure to put it on your to do list, and I think you will enjoy it as much as I did. And, to really cap the weekend, take your alpine skis and go to the Jackson Hole resort on Sunday. The gravity skiing is outstanding and if you are lucky, like I was, it is a powder pig s heaven. f March 2014 page 13

14 TUNA NEWS The Swix 39th Boulder Mountain Tour February 1, 2014 Elleson and Holmes Win Overall Titles by Kurt Dudley Family Affair at the Boulder for the Bonacci s, Strohl s, Peter s, Slawson s, Rasmussen s, Myshrall s, Guiney s, Werner s and Wilson s The 39th Swix Boulder Mountain Tour took a couple of new twists and turns. This year s course was changed due to marginal snow conditions from the starting area down to the usual road crossing about 3 kilometers into the race. The skiers started with the usual climb up at the top of Senate Meadows, turning down the normal long decent, making a U turn toward the bottom of the first decent and then climbed back up toward the start area and headed to a new road crossing just south of Galena lodge where it hooked in to the Harriman trail for the duration of the race. This added about 3 K to the race course, totaling 35 km instead of the usual 32 km distance. Mountain Dell groomer and BMT veteran, Gary Colgan called this a medium- fast race in spite of starting temperatures in the low teens for the glide through the Wood River valley. Sylvan Elleson of Vail, Colorado repeated his title with a little easier victory (1:16:02), seven seconds ahead of Matt Gelson from Ketchum with Miles Havelick beating out a pack of 4 racers vying for the third podium spot. Chelsea Holmes (1:23:55) thumped Rose Kemp (1:26:34 and 40+ year old Brooke Hovey (1:28:19) in the battle of Ketchum. By my calculations, the new course added 7 minutes or so for the faster skiers and 9 to 20 minutes for the rest of us. TUNA families showed up in force for this year s race. Eight year old Salt Laker Joseph Bonacci, and ten year old Sabine Wilson from Park City were the youngest competitors this year. Sabine seemed like the Belle of the Ball at the evening banquet, helping out Bob Rosso and Muffy Ritz with prize drawings and posing for photographs. Sabine s mom Dodi, got in a good ski and was all smiles for awards party. Groomer and Wasatch Citizen s Series Centurian, Steve Swanson was one of the oldest participants. I counted 5 Bonacci s, 4 Peter s and 4 Strohl s this year. Bonacci s did well with dad Tom (2nd in M55-59), sister Katy (1st W 14-17) and brother Vincent all finishing along with Joseph and mom Kristin. The Strohl girls, Mary and Lydia finished 2nd and 4th in W14-17 with mom Stephanie (originally from Flint, Michigan ) and dad Clint having fun racing as well. The Peter s showed up led by Keenen (1:41:22), hot off of his first Wasatch Citizen s Series age group win, who just missed 1st place in the MU 13 field. Dad Kenton skied the whole BMT while mom Sara and sister Tori finished the half Boulder as well. Janae Rasmussen was 1st and Sabine Wilson was, 3rd in W13 and under. Leah Werner (W14-17) and dad John made it all the way and usually have as much fun as TUNA Jr. Finishers at the end of the 2014 Boulder Mountain Tour. Back row (l to r): Keenan Peters, Caden MacFarlane (1st in Men 14-17), Mary Strohl, Lydia Strohl, Katy Bonacci (1st in Women 14-17) front row: Ben Slawson, Tory Peters, Vincent Bonacci, Joseph Bonacci Sabine Wilson and Joseph Bonacci accepting awards for youngest skiers they can while out skiing/racing. Matt Slawson, wife Kira and son Ben (4th MU 13) all had a good day. Mom Joanne finished while daughter Janae (1st WU 13) and son Aiden Rasmussen (3rd MU 13) both skied to podium finishes. Art and Layne Myshrall left mom, Janet and sister, Marta, at home for the boy s weekend in Sun Valley. Layne raced to a 2:02:27 time for his first BMT. Daniel Guiney (M18-24) skied with the fast guys and finished 22 overall while mom Julie used fish scale classic skis and toured her way through the lovely Idaho scenery for her first ever BMT. Caden Macfarlane (1:30:24) crushed the M14-17 field by nearly 19 minutes in winning his age group Centurian, Ray Groth (M65-69) continued his amazing streak of finishing every Boulder Mountain Tour since 1982 or 83. Long time Wasatch Citizen s Series racer, Dean Huber was celebrating his 60th birthday along with Punxtahawney Phil the day after Boulder and was planning a fun trip to Elko, Nevada with friends for Super Bowl Sunday. The Boulder Mountain Tour state cup for the five fastest men s and women s times added together was easily retained by the Idaho group with Utah finishing a distant 2rd once again. The usual awards banquet was handled very well in spite of some race day timing issues. See for full race results. Keep the wax room light on and check out next year s Boulder scheduled on February 7, f page 14 March 2014

15 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE The Open-Invitation Solitude Hill Climb and the Mt Dell Perimeter Time-Trials by Kirk Nichols UP You won t like it but it is good for you. There has been talk of making a time-trial out of this for years, clearly idle talk til now. After eating two thirds of a calzone at the Stonehouse, and in need of keeping warm initially, I started skiing up. The only way out of Solitude Village on cross country skis is UP. I dropped the tiny hill next to the lamp post and slowly skated past the hotel and in a valiant effort to not embarrass all Nordic skiers in front of the downhill skiers I kept moving up the hill making sure that I was out of sight around the first trees before considering a stop. Except the slow pace was working for me, I found a new low gear V1 for the day and kept skiing up. Up and left onto Cornucopia, crawling up to the Canyon road then paralleling it, down the barely perceivable decline, behind the new fire station, over the creek, to the maybe second place I could make something other than V1 work, then past Camp Tuttle, and on up the Cabin Fever trail. By now I had overheated and threw my jackets at the cabin with as short a stop as possible and continued climbing, past more cabins, then cut straight through the intersection between Evergreen and By-pass, and then left after the climb to Silver Lake where V2 became possible again. Tried in vain for a little V2A, went back to V2 (don t laugh). Squeezed between the private road and the beaver ponds, finally seeing the Nordic Center on my left, pulled up in front of the doors with the ski rack and checked my watch, 1:12:17pm. The clock tower in the village had read, 12:35pm. After clicking out of my skis I walked through the doors, turned left and wrote 37:17 on their whiteboard and turned to Aram and dared him to cut that time in half. Lucy cut 11 minutes off it later in the week. Cameron cut a few more minutes including stopping twice to puke. The only recorded classic technique time is about ten minutes faster than my original time. The times are collecting on a piece of paper behind the counter. And yes, Aram has cut my time by more than half. Times are looking similar to Agony Hill. The Solitude Hill Climb route climbs 537 feet across 3.4km. Head to Solitude, pick-up a TUNA member discounted pass and warm-up with a few Redman loops on your way down to the start. Then drop to the village and start on the flats level with the bridge and next to the lamp post at the top of the short drop. Start your watch or your cell phone and get at it. Solitude is offering a free Nordic trail day pass to anyone breaking the season s record. If the record keeps getting faster, more free day passes will be awarded. Not that TUNA skiers are competitive, but since they are, it is time for talk of a TUNA s Mountain Dell-Perimeter open-invitation time-trial. Here is the route. Start at the B on the Mountain Dell map which is where you walk down to meet the track. Ski clockwise, of course, taking the left onto the Mitten s thumb, keeping left onto the Lower Loop, grind up the early hills then race through the drops and turns down to circle the little snack-shack building at the low end of Mountain Dell. Continue by skiing up the winding course to complete the Lower Loop to turn left to Solitude Nordic Center and finish on far left Final climb to Silver Lake complete the Mitten. Upon finishing the Mitten go left onto the Main Loop, keep left twice then drop left onto the Creek Loop, Start of Solitude Hill Climb complete it and return, then take a left as you climb up from the creek to circle the Lollipop. Return from the Lollipop past the Creek Loop intersection and then take the hard Solitude Nordic Hill Climb trail map left back onto the Main Loop. By-pass all distractions staying on the Main Loop inside the Lollipop, climb up toward the freeway, then drop the curves skiing past the grooming equipment returning you to the top of the small hill and back to the start: 9.9km. After writing the above description I went out cold and skied the route with 4 inches of new snow and snowing harder, classic tracks barely visible on the lower loop, clogged and fogged glasses, a little vertigo in the heavily falling snow, too grippy of kick wax, all the other excuses a slow novice skier can come up with and classic-skied the Perimeter in 1:08:14. Not much of a target time except most anyone can beat it and better skiers can, as usual, cut that time by more than half. A box to house a clipboard will be mounted to the outside of the Greeter Hut. Keep your own records as who knows how long the clipboard will survive. We will look into building a digital repository if interest indicates and post a link or app on the clipboard at the Greeter s Hut. f Mtn. Dell Perimeter Time -Trial route March 2014 page 15

16 TUNA NEWS Parents are a big help Zachary Sun, skis and smiles Having a blast What is it About Working with the Very Young That is So Wonderful? by Bob Wilkerson My first time experience with the TUNA Learn to Ski (LTS) program began with an from Andre Crouch, the LTS leader, asking parents to help. Since I had a granddaughter in the program I felt a compunction to volunteer. Little did I know that I would be getting a class of my own for the very first week. I enjoyed the kids so much after the first week, I asked Andre if I could stay on for the remaining three sessions. First of all, let me say that teaching the kids is similar to herding cats but in a fun and crazy way. In addition, if you are having any difficulty sleeping, I would strongly suggest volunteering for this program. And I am grateful for the parents who are there helping out as well, they are a important and necessary ingredient to the program s success. So how does the Learn to Ski program work? Everyone receives an of the group number for their child and then they find that number painted on a large sign once they get to Mountain Dell. The fun really begins when we start putting the skis on the kids; this is where the parental help really becomes important. I ski over to my class, introduce myself and attempt to learn the names of the eight five and six year olds I had in my charge, only to learn this would not be my first or last mistake. As an incentive for the kids, you are given a bag of M&Ms: do not leave the bag of M&Ms in plain sight of the students as they will certainly see it and then, well, you know. And yes, I left the bag of M&Ms in plain sight. Liam, 5, brought this to my and everyone else s attention. I quickly stuffed them out of sight until later. Because I was new to this and also because I was dealing with eight kids it was important to get a name tag on each child (remembering their name) and also some form of ID on all their gear so you know who belongs to what. The name tag is to aid the instructor in remembering who is who. After a few What s your name? I learned that Henri was in a blue jacket and Jack in red. That was great until the next week when Henri and Jack had on different colored jackets and the exercise started all over again. It is also the responsibility of the teacher to stay with the kids until they have been picked up by their parent at the end of each session so name tags are essential. Now on to the skiing. One of the first exercises we did was to learn how to get up after falling down. We had a lot of practice then and throughout every class. Simon says came in very handy. Another basic drill was to balance on one foot and then the other and back and forth while in a stationary position. Then we walked/skied up to the start of the classic trails. I say trails because there were numerous tracks just begging us to slip our skis in the grooves and ski. Now these grooves or tracks are going down a small hill so holding them back was another lesson. Thanks again to the parents. We did a circle step of 360 degrees so everyone who was listening could learn about their new three foot long feet. Now why wasn t everyone listening, you ask. I did say I was learning a lot from the kids. And did I mention anything about cats earlier? At the first session I asked the class what they wanted to call themselves, kind of a team thing. I asked them a second and then a third time until Liam, again, raised his hand and shouted out narwhal. My mind went fuzzy for a second. What is a narwhal I asked myself? And as fast as you can say Jack Robinson I remembered, a whale-like creature with the long tusk. What else would you like to be called? trying to wrestle a tiger or a hawk out of these kids. As it turned out, we ended up calling ourselves the Snow Leopards. We didn t use poles at any of our classes. Learning to balance on one and then both skis was going to take all four weeks. We spent the first part of the class learning technique and getting used to being on skis. For many there was a fear of going out of control, so we dealt with that. The skis can be in one of two positions; the French fries (parallel) and the pizza (wedge) position. As I learned rather early there were a few more unintended positions that the Snow Leopards got themselves into as well and I have not as yet decided on names for those spaghetti, hash browns, pretzels? What impressed me most was that the kids tried every drill and course we put them on. They did not say I can t. What seemed to urge them on, to go beyond their skill level, were the other kids in the class. If Ali could do it then Addy was going to try it. I believe peer pressure worked better than any other method of teaching or helping. Do you want to go on the race course? I asked. The poles or gates were set up on the flats the first couple of weeks and then graduated to a more challenging area for the last two weeks. This is where fear and fun struggled with each other until fear was overcome and the duration of the class was pure ecstasy and a blast. These five and six year olds learned to side step and to herringbone up a fairly steep hill. Ask your child what herringbone is if you are wondering. They also started to learn page 16 March 2014

17 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Mountain Dell by Chris Magerl Ali, Addy, Ruby and Skye Addy, Henri, Zachary and Illario how to turn using weighting in their pizza or wedge ski position. They also learned to go fast using the French fry ski position and to sit on their skis while screaming down the hill. I have worked with kids before in sports and what I was reminded of was the enthusiasm these young people have for life and for fun. I got caught up in it all and had a wonderful experience of my own. So, I want to thank my Snow Leopards for teaching me a thing or two and for giving me a memory that I will long cherish. When Ali showed up at the last LTS session Addy, her new friend, shouted, Ali, I am here! Ali said, I see you, let s go ski. And the two of them went off on their skis holding hands. The kids each found their little niche. Austin was content skiing straight down the hill with no turns and going fast. Henri was bent on controlled turns. It was a delight for me to be spending time with these youngsters. It made the hour or two go by very quickly and pleasantly, I might add. Now it is Sunday evening and the final session is over. What s left for me are the experiences and the memories from the last four weeks. What s also there is how tired I am after another LTS session. I will be getting to bed early, thanks to the Snow Leopards. And I will dream once again of cats. f There is a new twist on the Lower Loop this year. I have heard mixed reviews, but would like to hear from more skiers. We don t have much leeway on the route at Mountain Dell, as we are not allowed to cross any fairway, tee or green. It is a golf course most of the year, and we are guests for a few months. But there are a few opportunities to make slight changes here and there. The Lower offered one such chance. After leaving the driving range, the Lower is mostly one long, mostly straight descent to the bottom of the course. This year one groomer suggested a wiggle part way down. The track now takes a hard right, dips down and back up to the left, returning to the route of the previous Lower Loop. I find the turn a bit too challenging, especially when I am on classic skis. But several skiers have told me they like the challenge, and that the Mountain Dell course has too few areas that require good descending skills. The Lower is supposed to be our most difficult terrain, after all. I am also looking for feedback concerning two small loops off the Main. These are both short, half a kilometer or so, and were meant to provide some space on crowded Tuesday nights, when TUNA has several programs going at the same time. Down n Back and Wiggle Room are both short features that get groomed regularly, 0.4K and 0.3K, respectively. You can send comments about these course features, or any other aspect of the layout of the Mountain Dell course, to mountaindell@utahnordic.com Thank you for making Mountain Dell your ski course. f March 2014 page 17

18 TUNA NEWS Team Soldier Hollow Growing through Experience by Morgan Smythe Team Soldier Hollow has had a great year of growth with a very young team. We have set new records and learned from some challenging experiences. Our season kicked off with an early JNQ in Jackson. Fischer Heimburger kicked off the season with a 5th in the 10km mass start skate race. Xander Burkemo, younger brother of Aren, raced his first JNQs finishing 15th and 17th in the U16 races. New skiers Adam Brown and Spencer Brosnahan also had a great start to their ski racing careers. Adam won both days in the Novice category. Spencer learned quickly not to follow the person in front of him when he found himself across the finish line a lap early! Despite the detour he finished 43 and 46th in the U16 category. On the girls side Ingrid Norton notched a career best 23rd in the U16 female category! The Sun Valley JNQ weekend at Galena Lodge was an exciting weekend for the Soldier Hollow team! We got to take our new Sprinter Van on its first trip! The new vehicle enables us to travel with our entire team together, and is much more spacious than the Suburban. Saturday was the first sprint race of the year, and for many the first sprints of their career! Almost everyone qualified in the top 30 and advanced to the elimination heats! However, the day proved to be a learning experience on skiing in a group and using tactics as, unfortunately, no one was able to make it out of the quarterfinals. Sunday, the individual start classic, Fischer Heimburer led the way finishing 9th in the U18/20 boys. Xander Burkemo finished 14th in the U16 boys. Sierra Enos and Ingrid Norton finished 19th and 23rd in the U16 girls. While the Comp Team was competing in Sun Valley. The Wasatch Citizen Series at Soldier Hollow drew 41 Team SoHo Youth Ski League and Devo Team skiers out for a new record number of Team SoHo racers! SuperQ weekend also saw a record number of Team Soldier Hollow skiers! Many Youth Ski League and Devo Team members joined the Comp Team to make for a 31-skier SoHo crew! Friday was a classic sprint for the older kids and a classic distance race for the youngsters. Highlights included Felix Firth 2nd place in the U14 boys, Mason Heimburger 10th place in the U12 boys, Sara Livingstone and Sophia Burkemo 12th and 13th in the U12 girls, Maddux Leonard 4th in the U10 boys. For the coaches the highlight of the day was seeing all the kids give it their best with challenging classic conditions on Hermod s Hill! Saturday was the skate day. We woke up to fresh snow and some rain. All the races were mass start. It was great experience skiing in large groups. Even the U14 category has almost 100 racers!!! Highlights of the day included Jack Jarrett 7th and Mason Fore-runners from U.S. Championships. Sara Livingstone, Sophia Burkemo, Reed Chamberlain, Joshua Livingstone, Logan Chamberlain Heimburger 13th for U12 boys, Felix Frith 10th in the U14 boys, Sophia Burkemo 11th in the U12 girls, and Maddux Leonard demonstrating consistency with another 4th in the U10 boys. Honorable mention to Fischer Heimburger who broke a pole, then crashed off the course and came by the bottom of Hermods on lap 1 in 68th. By lap 3 he had moved up to 28th and skied the 19th and 14th fastest laps for lap 2 and 3. It was a great example of perseverance and determination. All in all, Team Soldier Hollow s JNQ races were filled with highs and lows, crashes and top 10 s, but we learned from each and every race and are excited for the upcoming All-Utah trip to British Columbia Championships! f Devo Team members at WCS at SoHo Ingrid Norton and Sierra Enos Spencer Brosnahan, Joseph Jackson, Xander Burkemo page 18 March 2014

19 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE TUNA Comp and Junior Comp Update by Matt Johnson This year s Super Qualifier at Soldier Hollow brought warm temperatures, wet snow, and a little rain which made one long-time coach exclaim This is the first time I m not feeling déjà vu waxing for SoHo. Friday s classic sprint was an exciting and challenging day for coaches and athletes alike. The tracks were glazed and icy in some areas, soft and filled with dry powder from the wind in others, which meant kick wax was a compromise all day. Many teams ended up skiing on waxless zeros for at least part of the day but we decided to keep our skis a little faster by opting for hard wax. The athletes were feeling some unusual pressures at various levels; many of the younger kids were skiing against fields significantly bigger than anything they had skied all year which is exciting and intimidating, and for our U-16s and older athletes it was their last chance to race their way on to the IMD Junior National Ski Team. In the end, our younger athletes really stepped up and had many outstanding performances, including wins, podiums, and even some kids who really felt they achieved their process goals for each race and were happy with their outcomes, even if it didn t include a medal. Our older athletes had a mixed bag of races, and it was clear the stress of being on the bubble for JNs qualification was weighing on a few of them. The World Cup points system we use rewards breakout top performances, which means it s hard to win a race and not qualify for the JNs team, and also means there is always hope for bubble skiers to pop a great race and move up the rankings significantly. Since we have great skiers on this team completely capable of racing onto the podium in our division, our skiers knew what was required of them if they wanted to qualify. Unfortunately, often times that sort of pressure does more harm than good, and can get in an athlete s head before and during a race so they forget to concentrate on the most important aspects of their skiing: technique, power application, and breathing. Part of ski racing is leaning how to deal with these stresses on race day, so for those who didn t have the results they were hoping for, there Grace Swanson tops the podium in both races Abby Swanson gets last minute advice from coach Matt Johnson are plenty of learning opportunities for next time! TUNA athlete Katy Bonacci had her best races of the season to date, and easily qualified for the IMD JNs team. I ve graphed out the points trajectories of the IMD athletes over the course of the qualification season, and her line is steadily trending upwards; right towards Stowe, VT for Junior Nationals. She has really focused nicely this season, looking at the long term in times of disappointment, and that attitude and focus is paying off as we come towards the championship part of this season. Five of our U-14 and older athletes who are not going to Junior Nationals will be traveling with members of the Soldier Hollow and Park City ski teams to Kelowna, BC at the end of February to compete in their own championship event. Most of the IMD division teams will be taking athletes to these races and working together as Team USA which will be a really unique experience and important for long term development as they continue to prepare for the future when they will attend JNs, NCAAs, Word Junior Championships, and hopefully eventually World Cup and Olympic races. We are wishing all our Utah athletes best of luck at these races and at Junior Nationals in Stowe, VT this year. f March 2014 page 19

20 TUNA NEWS Wasatch Nordic Ski Academy Photo by Kirk Nichols Henry Gorman center, Riis Wilbrecht right finished 1st and 2nd by Bill Hokanson Racing Highlights Wasatch Nordic junior athlete race results from mid-january through mid-february include: U18 skier Karsten Hokanson finished in 19 th place in the 10km classic, and 22 nd in the skate sprint (15 th in the sprint qualification) at the Nordic Nation s U18 Championships in Rovaniemi, Finland ( Scando Cup ). Karsten was very competitive in the large field of 50 male junior skiers; he was 2 nd or 3 rd American and finished ahead of Finnish, Swedish, and Estonian Junior National Team members in each event. U20 skiers Henry Gorman and Riis Wilbrecht have each had a number excellent race results this season. A highlight was the recently completed Soldier Hollow SuperQ 15km mass-start skate race. Henry fell 200m into the race when an adjacent skier jammed his pole into Henry s ski. He went down, and was passed by 50 racers before he was skiing again. Henry stayed relaxed and began picking off skiers. At 2km he was already back in 15 th place. By 5km he was skiing with the leaders. Henry took over the lead on the second lap, stayed in first for the remainder of the race for his most important overall victory. Riis also rapidly worked his way to the front of the same 15km skate race, passed several talented skiers from Colorado and California on his final lap, and followed Henry in for an outstanding 2 nd place finish. U18 athlete Ben Grodner needed a good race at the SoHo SuperQ 15km skate. Ben s race results this season have been impacted by several minor colds, and as a consequence, he needed a pretty good result at SoHo to achieve his goal of qualifying for JNs. Unfortunately, Ben caught another nasty stomach bug just before race weekend. Ben had not recovered enough to accomplish much in Friday s sprint race, but he was feeling pretty good on Saturday before the 15km skate race. He was seeded pretty far back in the field, but had a solid start and worked his way up into the top 15 by the end of the first lap. Ben continued to move up and was in 12 th place by the end of the 2 nd lap. Ben held on to finish 12 th overall, 4 th Ben Grodner of Wasatch Nordic dropping toward the stadium U18, and 4 th U18/U20 in the IMD (for JN scoring purposes). As a result of his outstanding race, Ben will be joining the rest of his teammates in Stowe for this year s USSA Junior Nationals. U16 skier and team member Noah Putt made a statement in the 5km mass-start skate race at the Soldier Hollow SuperQ. Noah jumped to the front with Leo Lukens from MBSEF (Oregon) and several other skiers from Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and California at the start of the race. Early on, Leo broke away from the lead group. Noah held back, but soon realized that Leo was the man to beat. Noah also broke away from the rest of the leaders and chased Leo for 3km. Leo won the race, with Noah finishing a very close 3.5 seconds behind for an impressive second place! Senior Wasatch Nordic teammate Thomas Seidel had a very productive January and February. Thomas accomplishments include: 1 st place open class WCS #3, 7 th place open class WCS #4, 25 th overall in the Boulder Mountain Tour, and 1 st place overall in the Round Valley Roundup 40k. Thomas is training hard in preparation for the upcoming West Yellowstone Rendezvous. f The Wasatch Nordic Ski Academy is a competitive race team and cross country ski development program providing junior and senior athletes with national class training support and technical coaching. Contact head coach Bill Hokanson, xcskicoach@gmail.com, for program information. page 20 March 2014

21 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Park City Nordic Ski Club by Gordon Lange It s always nice to see all your hard work pay off and have your goals realized. This year PCNSC qualified eight people to attend the Junior National Championships in Stowe VT. It s different for all people. I ve known kids try to make the Intermountain Team for five years and finally on their last chance they make it. Others make the team all five years. That has to do with the complex and physically demanding nature of Nordic skiing. There are so many factors, so many variables; it s an incredibly technical sport, with countless factors skis, snow conditions, waxing, the course and how it has been prepared, other people, strength, heart, desire. The list goes on and on. All the possibilities make it very difficult to predict results but also allows for unexpected opportunities. It s one of the things that keeps people focused. For me it s what makes the sport so interesting. For all the kids from Utah that made the Team congratulations. People that have made this Team in the past will tell you it is an exciting and very challenging event. For the people who did not make the team please keep your devotion and commitment. Nordic skiing rewards hard work like no other, and there are always areas you can improve technique, fitness, strategies ways to fine tune are endless. Utah qualified 16 people this year. I believe it s a record. This record number is a testament to the coaching and professionalism of the clubs we have in Utah. Another reason to stay involved. We keep getting better and we are making an impact in the Intermountain Division the other powerhouse teams from Colorado, Idaho, and California are taking notice! Unfortunately this year Jr. Nationals are a week early and consequently our qualifying races have ended early. That means for some athletes other sports will become more attractive, especially if the weather keeps warming up. If at all possible you need to ski out the rest of the season. It s immensely important you capitalize on all the available snow and all the work you have put in this year to build that big motor. Remember just a couple months ago how you were looking for snow and how eager you were to go to great lengths to seek out that snow. Now you have it, take every advantage you have to be on your skis. Remember it s not just about reaching a goal but the process it takes to get there. Some people will take longer than others but it s always rewarded. Sydney Palmer-Leger (left) Maddie Morgan (center) moving from the back to the front in the first 300 meters Named to the IMD team from PCNSC this year are Kyle Beling, Alex Jackson, Brenna Egan, Sophie McDonald, Julia Lazzaroni, Jesse Reid, Leah Lange, Sidney Palmer-Leger, and Maddie Morgan. Special congratulations to Sidney. She raced up two age groups and qualified number two in the Girls U16 class. Her results are unprecedented. I have never seen this coming out of one of the most competitive divisions in the country. Although it is clear Sidney could go to Stowe and be very competitive she will sit this one out in 2014 but Sidney is the real deal and she will qualify for many Jr. Nationals in the years to come. It is important she remains hungry for these events 6, 7, and 8 more years down the road. Obviously she gets rookie of the year. I can t wait to get to Stowe and see how the Intermountain athletes do against the whole country. I am very optimistic because based on the Junior National Qualifiers at SOHO, we have an incredible amount of talent just waiting to be unleashed. f March 2014 page 21

22 TUNA NEWS Selecting, Organizing and Differentiating Your Skis by Barry Makarewicz All skiers enjoy having fast and well prepared skis so we often invest considerable time, money and energy to make our skis glide fast and perform well. Having perfect kick and glide while classic skiing is wonderful and having the fastest gliding skis in a skating race makes the skier feel like a superhero. This article is intended to help skiers select and organize their skis to optimize their performance, whether they have a single pair or a whole quiver of skis. First let s consider the Three Basic Elements that combine to determine how well a ski performs and glides: 1 The overall quality and flex characteristics of the skis are often the most important element. These things can never be changed. Top quality skis are expensive, but you get what you pay for. Good skis should last for many years, but be sure they are the correct length and have the correct flex to fit the skier. Skating skis can range from very soft to very stiff. Skis with a soft overall flex and easy flexing tip are generally good on a soft track because the tip will float over the snow rather than plow through the snow and be slow. Skis for cold snow should distribute the skier s weight evenly across the ski. If the skis are too stiff in the tips and tails it creates concentrated pressure points or hot spots that tend to be slow. Skis that run best in wet snow usually have a high camber under foot. This way the middle part of the ski rides above the snow and reduces wet friction. A soft ski on a very hard track will be hard to control because the skier s weight will be concentrated under the middle of the ski creating a high pressure point. This causes a pivot point and makes the skis feel squirrely. Stiffer skis with a higher camber are better for a hard track because they put more pressure on the tips and tails. This gives the skis a longer wheel base and makes them more stable and easier to control. Proper fit for classic skis is more crucial than for skating skis. A skier s weight, ability and intended use should be considered when selecting classic skis. Generally, a soft track or powder snow requires a soft flexing ski that is easy to compress and kick on. If the ski is too soft, however, the grip wax will drag on the snow and be slow. The grip wax will also be stripped off the ski more quickly. Classic skis for a hard track should be stiffer under foot so the grip wax stays up off the snow while gliding. Skis that are too stiff make them hard to compress and difficult to get grip on the snow especially when the skier is fatigued. Skis that are specifically for klister conditions need to be stiff underfoot with a high and short wax pocket. This helps keep the sticky klister wax riding high above the snow while gliding. Because classic skis need to be just right for a number of different snow conditions, this means investing in at least a couple of pair, and for some of us, many pairs! But there is nothing better than classical skis that work well and so the investment is well worth it, especially since the skis will last a very long time. 2 The Stonegrind or Base Structure is the texture that is etched into the plastic base and is designed to help the skis overcome the effects of moisture in the snow pack. Stonegrinds can be changed, but it is done with expensive machines at professional skis shops by trained technicians. There are hundreds of possible stonegrind patterns to choose from. When considering stonegrinds, be sure they are for cross country skis and not alpine skis, and I recommend only having your skis ground by a shop that specializes in Nordic grinds. Alpine skis use more pressure on the stone and a Nordic ski can be ruined by someone who is used to mainly grinding alpine skis. Stonegrind structure patterns range from very fine and shallow (for cold, dry snow) to coarse and deep (for wet, saturated snow). Somewhere in the middle of the spectrum are Universal stonegrinds that are designed to work well in a broad range of conditions. For the drier snow that we typically have in Utah, fine to universal structures usually work best. A skier with many pairs of skis will have skis with stonegrinds for many different types of snow and specialty skis for extreme cold and sloppy slush. Classic skis typically have slightly coarser structures because repeatedly skiing in the classic tracks causes the snow to transform more quickly, condense and increase the moisture content of the snow in the tracks. Select stonegrinds to best match the characteristics of the skis. Generally, softer skis should have finer structures and stiffer skis should have more coarse structures. There are, however, plenty of exceptions to this generalization. Skis can be stoneground many times before the base is ground off completely. A freshly ground ski absorbs more wax and generally performs better. For best performance, skis should be reground every year or two depending on how often they are used and waxed. Stonegrinding flattens the ski base, exposes fresh base material and retextures a worn or abraded ski base. It is possible to use hand structure tools to add different structure patterns and modify the base structure. These added hand structures are usually pressed into the plastic base and disappear after 1 or 2 hot wax applications. They can, however, be very effective in improving ski speed especially in wetter snow. 3 Ski Wax is the third element of ski performance and this is applied and adjusted often. There are literally thousands of different ski waxes and wax combinations and they vary widely in their cost and performance. Waxing skis can be a very complicated topic, but it does not have to be overwhelming. Attend waxing clinics and learn all you can from experienced waxers. Ski wax products and application methods are constantly evolving so it pays to continue to learn from experts. When acquiring new skis it is important to consider the most common conditions they will be used in. In Utah and the Rocky Mountains our snow tends to be drier than places like the Northwest, California or New England. Manmade snow can be a whole different thing. page 22 March 2014

23 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Selecting and Organizing Your Skis for Typical Utah Conditions For skiers with one pair of skating skis: choose a medium flexed ski for your body weight and apply a fine universal stoneground structure. These should run best in normal snow conditions (14-25 degrees F snow temperature). If the weather warms up and the snow gets wet you can always add more structure with a hand structure tool. If adding a second pair of skating skis: go for slightly stiffer skis and a medium universal stonegrind. A third pair might be soft skis with a very fine grind for extra cold dry snow (below 10 degrees F). skis with a medium to coarse universal structure. An example of a specialty classic ski would be a very stiff ski with a short, high wax pocket to be used only in klister wax conditions. Most elite skiers would have a ski like this in their quiver. Because our climate is changing and weather patterns are becoming less typical, it is nice to have a pair of waxless classic skis for those nearly impossible waxing conditions. If you enjoy classic style skiing it might be worth investing in a good pair of waxless or Zero type skis that do not need kick wax. Proper fit and preparation is crucial for these types of skis. The mechanical kick zones on waxless skis can be draggy and slow so look for a stiff pair to keep the kick pocket high off the snow and set them up with a coarse stonegrind since they will most likely be used in warmer and wetter snow conditions. This advice is for skiers with the inclination and desire to have the best skis possible most of the time. If you just enjoy skiing and don t need to have high performance all the time then one or two pairs of skis is plenty. There are certainly drawbacks in time and money with having to organize and maintain a whole fleet of cross country skis. But when snow conditions are outside the normal situation, it is nice to have the perfect skis for the day and know that you are prepared and ready to go. f With more than 3 pairs of skis you will be getting into specialty skis for narrow ranges of conditions. Examples would be a very soft ski with a superfine shallow grind for extremely cold conditions (below 5 degree F) or stiff skis with a high camber and a coarse stonegrind for very wet snow. The point is to differentiate your skis so you have different options and choices. Then you can wax them appropriately and have skis that cover a broad range of conditions. Avoid having multiple pairs of skis with similar flexes and the same base structures because your goal is to have a quiver that allows you to have the right ski for the widest range of conditions we have here in Utah. For skiers with one pair of classic skis: a medium flex ski (for the skier s weight and technical ability) with a medium universal structure would be most useful in a broad range of conditions. These skis could be used for hard kick wax or klister if necessary. A second pair might be soft flex skis with a fine universal structure. These would be best on a soft track with newer powdery snow and hard grip wax (not klister). A third pair of classic skis would be stiff skis with a higher camber for a firm track or klister conditions. Stone grind these WITH YOU ALL THE WAY. PROUD SPONSOR OF THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE. healthcare.utah.edu healthcare.utah.edu March 2014 page 23

24 TUNA NEWS Ogden Nordic A Smooth Running Volunteer Organization by Trish Painter Do you ever wonder how the ski places where we spend so much time got started? After moving to Ogden Valley a couple years ago, I asked that question about Ogden Nordic. This area is nestled in Weber County s North Fork Park along the northwest end of the valley. The 25 km of trails are hilly and immaculately groomed by volunteers! Here s the story of this amazing place. In the 1990 s Paul Stromberg, a Nordic ski coach started a Junior Cross Country Ski team in North Ogden. They practiced in a park in North Ogden where they used a snowmobile to pull a set of box springs to smooth out a trail. Occasionally they came up to North Fork Park which was somewhat regularly groomed for cross-country skiing using a 8 foot wide mechanical cat that had a drag that made a corduroy, 3 inch wide on center. This made for some treacherous skiing. Swanson s North Fork Environmental Center (E.C.), (part of Weber School District) sits at the south end of North Fork Park. When Dave Jenkins took the job as director of the E.C., he had a vision of having school kids out in the woods year round, which meant he needed a better grooming system to make skiing safer for beginning skiers. In 2002, he and Paul Stromberg invited representatives from TUNA for a visit, and TUNA generously donated a snowmobile (with over 10,000 miles that had been at Mt. Dell for many years), a skate drag and a classic track setter for grooming the North Fork Park Trails. Subsequently Dave enticed a bunch of locals to help groom and they started grooming the main road in the park! Dave and several others got the ski operations at North Fork Park as branch of TUNA, and in 2003, a motivated group of loyal skiers gathered and put Ogden Nordic into place as an organization with regular grooming, a junior s program, a master s program and web presence! With some creative maneuvering and generous contributions from various local companies, the group was able to purchase a new snowmobile and Ginzu. Two snowmobiles, a roller and a Ginzu meant more trails and more skiing! Along the way a partially disassembled snow cat was purchased by the E.C. and put back together by Dave and a crew of volunteers it was used to groom trails for Ogden Nordic trails, who paid E.C. for its use at the end of the season. Then came RAMP!! (Weber County s version of ZAP that funds Winter Trails Day community projects.) RAMP funding was used to purchase a snowcat for the county, which was contracted with Ogden Nordic to use for grooming trails. Ogden Nordic had to cover maintenance and fuel costs, so they got permission from the county to establish a trail use fee. Ogden Nordic was growing, and with the full support of Weber County Parks and Recreation Department, they obtained RAMP funds to move a Forest Service yurt-structure that had fallen in disarray in another county park after the 2002 Olympics. In the summer of 2010, the Yurt was moved to its new home at the South Entrance of North Fork Park to be used as a warming hut/gathering place. Local contractors helped with site preparation, construction and renovation efforts. It was outfitted with electricity. A deck was constructed and a new insulated floor a new roof, windows and doors. Volunteers helped paint it. Signs were hung, and when the rental ski equipment was moved in, it officially became known as The Nordic Center! The Nordic Center opened for business for the Winter Trails Day in January 2011, an event that drew hundreds of trail users! Ogden Nordic is now an independent non-profit organization with a mission to promote the sport of cross country skiing in the Ogden Area through Information, Facilitation, Trails Planning & Construction, Coaching, events and Social gatherings. To meet these goals, Ogden Nordic hosts numerous events during the winter months, including winter trail days that introduces new skiers to the sport through clinics and classes and tours; races for novices through elite skiers; moonlight glides; and a juniors program with up to 40 regulars in the program who come ski on two days/week after school for coaching and social interaction with some terrific volunteers. The Nordic Center is open and staffed from Thursday to page 24 March 2014

25 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Sunday by volunteers who greet visitors, fit rental equipment for skiing and snowshoeing and provide advice and encouragement for a great day in the park. Ogden Nordic is a classic example of optimal cooperation among multiple organizations. All operations at Ogden Nordic are directed by a volunteer board and are approved by the Weber County Parks and Recreation Department, serving the County by making North Fork Park accessible through the winter. The shared operations for grooming and trail maintenance between Ogden Nordic and the Environmental Center is unique and a true win-win for both organizations Ogden Nordic provides expanded trail opportunities for the President Days Race Environmental Center activities, and the Environmental Center introduces many students and community members to cross country skiing, and they come back to Ogden Nordic to pursue the sport (O Nordic s feeder program!). Personnel at Camp Utaba (located at the north end of the park) are always available to assist with grooming as needed. The Environmental Center also provides housing and maintenance expertise for the grooming equipment, and the charisma and charm of Dave Jenkins keeps the grooming team motivated and enthusiastic! Of course none of the magic surrounding Ogden Nordic would be possible without generous donations of equipment for our rental fleet from Salomon and REI, and donations from other individuals and organizations in Weber County and Ogden Valley. Donations for help with equipment maintenance, trail preparation, grooming, ski school activities and other operations by volunteers has made Ogden Nordic a premier Nordic ski venue. If you have not experienced the O Nordic magic come on up and ski with us! We have LOTS of densely packed snow on our trails that we expect to last well into the spring! For more information and details, please check out our website at www. ogdennordic.com. f ANNUAL RENTAL/DEMO and Winter Gear SALE begins 9 am Saturday March 8th Up to 50% OFF Nordic/Skate Telemark Alpine Touring 20 to 50% OFF All Winter Ski and Bike Apparel East 100 South Salt Lake City March 2014 page 25

26 TUNA NEWS Nordic Adaptive Sit-Skis Bring Freedom to Mobility Impaired Persons by Roger Lohr (reprinted with permission) Nordic sit-skiing gives a taste of freedom to a person with mobility limitations to access snow covered trails, fields, and cross country (XC) ski areas that cover the North Country. People such as wounded warriors or accident victims, who have mobility impairments can experience the benefits of XC skiing that is, getting outdoors in the natural environment, feel the confidence associated with physical and mental fitness and wellness, and enjoy the freedom to travel over snow as far as they can go. Sit-skis are the adaptive equipment for folks in a wheel chair (spinal cord injuries) and for those with leg injuries or amputations. There are different kinds of equipment designs to support a wide variety of users such as people with and without legs, people of different sizes, and so on. Sit-skiers use short poles in the range of cm long. Those with one lower leg amputation are encouraged to participate in a standing position, so they might utilize the same equipment as able-bodied participants. Sit-ski equipment consists of an ultra-light weight plastic or carbon fiber bucket supported by an aluminum alloy frame that clips into a pair of XC skis. The ski poles are shortened to accommodate the seat height and the skier double poles for a cross country ski experience. So how much work is XC skiing for a mobility impaired person? The skis glide efficiently and the biggest challenge is steep hills. Most sit-skiers start on flat terrain and become accustomed to double poling to propel the equipment forward. Beginner trails at commercial XC ski areas provide optimal terrain for a sit-skier to practice and see if XC skiing is right for him or her. As in any endeavor, practice and repetition helps to develop the muscles and body parts that are needed. But the first time sit-skier should expect to have some arm soreness for a couple of days afterward. It is a good idea to take a lesson and rent sit-ski equipment at the start to try it and see if XC skiing is something that feels right. There are dozens of different sit-ski designs with regard to attachment to the skis, but there are only a few manufacturers of the equipment. Some sit-ski models clip right on any XC ski with an SNS binding and others bolt permanently and require tools to change skis. You would be able to change skis depending upon snow conditions if you have the clip-on model sit-ski. The length of the ski selected will vary based on the skier s weight and it is good to start beginners on shorter skis for easier maneuverability. A sit-skier wants to minimize the ski base friction and narrower skis are generally faster than wider skis. There are only a few XC ski areas that have sit-ski equipment to use including Vermont s Rikert Nordic Center in Ripton and Craftsbury Outdoor Center. Other areas with programs in the northeast include Pinelands Farm in New Gloucester, Maine and Weston Ski Track in Mass. (both of these areas Patrick Standen of Northeast Disabled Athletic Association have snowmaking). Most often an introduction to sit-skiing is through programs. Such organized programs across the country are in Minnesota, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Oregon, and in Sun Valley, Idaho. For a list of program contacts check out and do an advanced search for winter sports and XC skiing. A sit-ski beginner usually has his/her equipment prepared for him/her ahead of time by the instructor. A sit-skier applies downward pressure in order to move forward and wants to get everything lined up to make the movement efficient and take full advantage of their functioning muscles. As you might imagine, hills are a challenge for sit-skiers and the key is to avoid steep uphill terrain. Backsliding on gentle terrain is less of an issue although on a steep incline there is always a point of no return. Since your sole source of energy is double-poling and you cannot side step or herring bone, you are at the mercy of physics and at some point you simply cannot climb. Beginning sit-skiers are taught a safety procedure for bailing out on a backwards descent. Patrick Standen of the Northeast Disabled Athletic Association commented, A person could chose whatever ski set up works best for them, their adapted equipment, and the terrain they use. I have some buddies who backcountry in the Sierra Nevada s, who sit-ski up mountains with skins, but they are seasoned skiers. In general, it is recommended that sit-skiers go out with a companion who can help push them up hills. Specifically, the double-poling motion and cadence changes as you approach and begin to climb hills by becoming shorter and more rapid until, if needed, you are ice-picking or pulling yourself up one carefully planted pole pull at a time. It can be arduous but it is a total upper body workout and a great cardio pump. Nordic skiing offers peace in the wilderness and feeds personal wellness and hopefully more persons with mobility impairments will discover that they can use ski-skis to attain this experience of beauty and tranquility. f page 26 March 2014

27 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Midway Valley Cedar Breaks Rattlesnake area Southern Utah Nordic Report Cedar Mountain Nordic Ski Club by Dave Uherka As I write this in early February 2014, we have just received two nice snowfalls in our mountains east and north of Cedar City and are blessed with having to break trail in 1.5 to 2 feet of new powder. We had a dry January till the 30th, but our snow still held up quite well and we held ski events at various sites once or twice per week. The groomed trails at Deer Valley on SR14 east of Cedar City went for several weeks in January without new grooming, due to the warm weather and lack of snow tillers on the small Dixie Forest Ginzu groomer, but we still had nice classic skiing on the Deer Valley trails. Some of us down here, including me, who are accustomed to skiing in the boondocks all our lives, tend to get a bit bored with groomed trails anyway. I am almost embarrassed to admit it but while skiing on a couple of the popular skate sites in northern Utah, I got the feeling that I was running laps in a gym, which I never liked. I must also admit that the skaters were very gracefully passing me at twice my speed (or more) on my old well waxed waxless classic skis. Two of our popular ski events in this area are the Midway to Deer Hollow and the Cedar Breaks Rattlesnake area ski tours. The former starts at Midway Valley at the intersection of SR14 and SR148, starting through the valley meadow, then winding up a ridge to an overlook to Deer Hollow, then retracing our tracks back, a round trip of about 5 miles. Though not too long, this tour can be hard work in deep new snow. The above-mentioned Cedar Breaks tour starts at the north boundary of Cedar Breaks National Monument, which is reached via Parowan and Brian Head on SR143. UDOT plows out a parking area at the Rattlesnake Trailhead at the north boundary of the park. This route is ungroomed, as are most of our sites, but is often marked with orange poles by volunteers (Jack & Peg Simons, escapees from Salt Lake). We ski from the trailhead, either north into Ashdown Wilderness or south into the Park and back, winding through the trees or visiting the rim occasionally. You can t get lost, as the highway is on one side and the rim (a thousand foot drop) is on the other side I would like to remind you again that we invite TUNA members to join us on Saturday, March 22nd when we plan to take you on a tour of our Deer Valley trails and perhaps other (non-groomed) areas, depending on the weather and snow. Details will be given on our website If you might be interested in joining us, send me an at uherka@netutah.com. f Save the Date 2014 Salmon Bake Friday, May 16th Benefit for the TUNA Youth Programs Silent Auction, Dinner, Music, Good Times March 2014 page 27

28 TUNA NEWS Ute Skiers by Brooke Frederickson Colorado Invitational January 31 February 1, 2014, Winter Park, Colorado Four Utah skiers finished in the top 10 of the nordic classical races on the first day of the Colorado Invitational. The Utes are third after day one with 152 points behind first-place Denver (176 points) and New Mexico (154). I m very pleased with how we opened on first day of competition, Utah Director of Skiing Kevin Sweeney said. We are not 100 percent healthy and not having Sloan (Storey) here, everyone had to step up and I think they did a great job doing that. Every team has some very strong skiers, so it s very competitive, which makes it exciting. The competition is very close. The women led the way for the Utes with Anna Svendsen and Josefin Nilsson finishing fourth and fifth in the 5-km, respectively. It was Nilsson s highest career finish while Svendsen tied her previous season-high result. Anna-Lena Heynen crossed the line 13th as Utah s third scorer, while Madeleine Thorn, competing in her first career race, finished 18th. For the men, Noé Bellet led the way in sixth in the 10-km race, while Niklas Persson crossed the line seventh. Both skiers have not finished outside of the top 10 this season. Kevin Bolger scored points for Utah in 11th, followed by Tucker McCrerey (20th) and Oscar Ivars (28th). I was a little nervous coming into the weekend because several athletes have been battling colds, and Sloan is still away competing at the World Junior Championships in Italy, but today went pretty well, head Nordic coach Abi Holt said. At this point in the season, we are aiming to land all three scoring athletes in the top ten. Today we saw Anna, Josefin, Noé, and Niklas all grab spots in the top ten, with Kevin and Anna-Lena just barely missing the mark. We are very close to where we aim to be. The skiing is great, and the course is fun. I am satisfied with the day and am looking forward to tomorrow s mass start freestyle race. Utah also had a pair of top-10 finishes in the men s 20-km freestyle race, with Noe Bellet coming in fifth and Niklas Persson finishing sixth. Tucker McCrerey finished 14th followed by Kevin Bolger in 17th and Oscar Ivars in 24th. The women s nordic team was led by a 14th-place finish from Anna Svendsen. Josefin Nilsson finished 19th followed by Madeleine Thorn in 21st. Utah slipped to fourth after day two with 437 points, just one point behind third place Colorado (438). Denver continues to lead the meet (512) followed by New Mexico (443) in second. It was a difficult weekend for us, as we are struggling to field a full team in all events, Utah Director of Skiing Kevin Sweeney said. We are fighting some illness as well as having several of our top performers away at World Junior Championships and NorAms. The bright-side of this is that everyone who competed did a superb job and we ended the Invite in an extremely respectable position. We also had several standout performances which is exceptionally rewarding and motivating for the entire team. The invitationals are proving to be intensely competitive and FIS points are outstanding for both disciplines. The flip side is that illness and mistakes are magnified. I think we have benefitted from this weekend. We are a cohesive team across the board, can score well in all disciplines, and it demonstrates how important each individual is to the entire team. We need to get 100 percent healthy, work on a few weaknesses and come out with the desire to win as a team. I believe our newcomers now have a really good understanding of what collegiate skiing is all about. I applaud my coaching and medical staff for doing a great job with this squad on and off the race course. I see everyone making strides forward. We are really looking forward to the second half of the season. Utah finished third in the final standings with 579 points, trailing meet winner Denver (648) and New Mexico (591). Colorado finished fourth (555) followed by Montana State (415) and Alaska Anchorage (398). New Mexico Invitational February 7-8, 2014, Red River New Mexico Six Utah skiers earned top-10 finishes on the first day of the New Mexico Invitational, led by a second-place finish from Niklas Persson in the men s 10-km classical race. Everyone was really charging today, however, we made a few mistakes and came up short in the point tally, Utah Director of Skiing Kevin Sweeney said. We have not skied to our full potential yet as a squad, so we are all focused on that. Motivation is high and it looks like we are on the up-and-up health-wise, so those are big positives. Persson earned his second podium finish of the season, which also includes a win in the Pat Miller Invitational. Oscar Ivars finished 11th, followed closely behind Tucker McCrerey in 12th and Kevin Bolger in 14th. Noe Bellet crossed the line 18th. In the women s 5-km classic, Anna Svendsen recorded her third top-five finish of the year with a fifth-place finish. Josefin page 28 March 2014

29 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Nilsson finished sixth for her second top-10 of the year. Sloan Storey, returning from the Nordic Junior World Championships, finished 10th, followed by Anna-Lena Heynen in 14th and Madeleine Thorn in 20th. Utah stands fourth after the first day with 285 points, behind New Mexico (315), Colorado (294) and Denver (288). In the men s 10-km skate race, Oscar Ivars finished seventh while Niklas Persson crossed the line ninth to continue his unbroken string of top-10 finishes. Tucker McCrerey finished 11th followed by Noébellet in 13th. Kevin Bolger finished 21st. Sloan Storey led the women in their 10-km skate with a sixth-place finish. Anna Svendsen finished 19th with Madeleine Thorn in 19th, Josefin Nilsson in 22nd and Anna-Lena Heynen in 23rd. It was great to finally get the full team to the starting line this weekend, Utah head nordic coach Abi Holt said. It s the first time this season that we ve started our full roster, so that was one of our successes for the weekend. As seems to happen in Red River, we had mixed results. The altitude is so high there that excellent racing strategy and execution are essential. This weekend we saw Anna, Josefin, Anna andniklas Sloan, Oscar, and Niklas nab top-10 finishes. We clearly still have room to improve, but I think our results are steadily on the upswing. We are still building toward the championship. New Mexico won the invite with 655 points, followed by Colorado (588.5),Denver (573.5) and Utah in fourth (549). Alaska Anchorage rounded out the top five with 436 points. And remember the University of Utah will be hosting the NCAA Championships at Soldier Hollow, March 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th. Come out and watch some spectacular Nordic racing. f Masters Ski Training and Snow Therapy with Coach Laurie by Cynthia Burrows It s an eclectic bunch meeting at Mountain Dell on Wednesday afternoons; from the true masters of the sport to the master wannabes like myself, we meet in all weather and all conditions for words of wisdom from Coach Laurie Humbert. Each workout is focused on an upcoming race the WCS, the BMT, or the recent Round Valley marathon, for example, Cindy with her husband Scott Anderson working similar terrain in terms of climbs, fast stretches and transitions. After a few warm-up laps around Mitten without poles or with double-poling only, we move into a specific workout that might focus on how to work the snow conditions for maximum advantage, how to improve technique with body position and stride, or how to optimize fitness for the best results in a race. Some in our group are wax experts or expert groomers, and the collective wisdom of the group really helps everyone get psyched for the next race. While many in the group are benefitting from personalized tips on ski training that improve technique, some of us are also making the weekly pilgrimage to Mountain Dell for snow therapy. Leaving the hub-bub of the city and the sedentary desk job behind for a quick trip up the canyon does more than just physically improve ski technique it also clears the brain of troublesome colleagues, endless deadlines, and an overwhelming inbox. Ninety minutes of intervals and relays, strength training and pacing, with a focus on form and speed can really do wonders for mental health and motivation. Coach Laurie talks to us about race strategy and setting goals with a philosophy that helps each of us achieve our personal best. I really enjoy hearing the after-race rundown of how everyone did; only a few reach the podium, but most people feel a sense of accomplishment with every race. When Scott and I duck out of our offices Wednesdays at 4:00 with our tights on, we get some questioning looks. I just tell my colleagues we re going off for therapy, and that cuts the conversation short. Half the time, one of us is still changing out of work garb and into ski gear while the other one is battling the University of Utah Hospital exodus creating heavy traffic on Foothill Drive. Once we re in Parley s Canyon, we ve left the workday behind, and we re headed for fresh air and intense exercise. Both the Masters training group on snow as well as Laurie and Janet s Fall Dryland training sessions, build a sense of community among folks who want to ski hard, not just to face the challenge of racing, but also to recharge mentally while we enjoy the fantastic geography of Utah. A friend of mine in graduate school once said, You know those people who say, I don t race, I just ski to have fun. They really don t get it. Racing is fun! I skied my first Wasatch Citizen s race at the ripe old age of 53, and I finally began to understand his comment. If you re getting serious about the benefits of both ski training and snow therapy, you might consider joining us on Wednesdays. For information on training and therapy contact laurie_humbert@yahoo.com to schedule your couch session. f March 2014 page 29

30 TUNA NEWS back of the pack Olympics 2014 by David Susong As I sit down to write this month s column, the Sochi Olympics have just gotten underway. NBC is going to be broadcasting a reported 1,000 hours of coverage from the games on multiple channels and on the Internet. The 1,000 hours number caught my attention. That is a lot of hours. If you are an 8-5 worker you will work about 2,100 hours in a year depending upon holidays. If one were to watch all 1,000 hours of Olympic coverage that would be equivalent to watching TV for half a year of work days. An alternative way to think about 1,000 hours is you would have to watch TV for almost 42 days for 24 hours a day to watch a 1,000 hours. We are Olympic enthusiasts and we watch a lot of Olympic coverage. But a 1,000 hours is a lot. I am afraid I have to admit that I am going to miss some. I am glad that both the summer and winter Olympics only last a couple weeks and that they are two years apart. I am usually sick of watching TV by the time they are over but after two years I have recovered and am ready to go again. In the first days of the Olympics we got to watch a couple new events. One new and one made up. The slope style snowboard competition is a new made for TV event with spectacular jumps and a few crashes. The amount of time the riders spend in the air is amazing. It is another judged event that I am completely clueless about how it is scored. There appear to be style and trick points as well as air points. I can t imagine going off those huge jumps but it was kind of fun to watch. The second event is made up. Someone decided that we needed a team figure skating competition. Ugh. In the past, the second week of the Olympics was dominated by figure skating and now it is introduced in the first week. A little figure skating goes a long way. I can only guess how many of the 1,000 hours are figure skating. As I thought more about those 1,000 hours, I marveled at how television and television coverage of the Olympics has changed. The cameras on cables, tracks, snowmobiles, and on helmets have all brought the coverage closer to the viewer and much of the race course is now covered. Cross country and biathlon are actually being shown. This is heartening and amazing. There were Olympics past where there was almost no coverage broadcast. Now the events are being shown albeit with some annoyances like major commercial breaks, or completely skipping middle laps, as we break to ice skating practice sessions. I guess I should not complain for it is a significant improvement over coverage of Olympics past. Every time the Olympics comes around, I think the equivalent of the Nobel prize should be awarded to the inventor of the digital video recorder. It is now possible to watch 6 hours of Olympics broadcast coverage in a couple hours. Skipping the commercials has saved my sanity. If we run out of recorded coverage and the only alternative is to watch live broadcasts, we shut off the TV. I can t stomach all the inane interviews, personal profiles, insider reports and commercials. Our daughter is watching on the Internet and that way she can watch all the figure skating she wants and I don t have to see any of it. New technology is a beautiful thing. Peace and harmony in the family and Olympic cross country skiing. I hope you and your family enjoyed the Olympics. f page 30 March 2014

31 THE UTAH NORDIC ALLIANCE Spring Races This race schedule is published and distributed compliments of Smartwool and TUNA 2013/2014 Utah Cross Country Ski Race Schedule DATE RACE TECHNIQUE (DIST) LOCATION START March 1 Sat O Nordic Championships any (10k) North Fork Park 10:00 1 Sat Potato Cup pursuit (4/10/20k) Mink Creek, ID 10:00 6 Thu NCAA Cross Country Championships Soldier Hollow 8 Sat NCAA Cross Country Championships Soldier Hollow 8 Sat Yellowstone Rendezvous classic (25k) W.Yellowstone, MT 8:45 8 Sat Yellowstone Rendezvous free (25/50k) W.Yellowstone, MT 9:00 8 Sat Wasatch Powder Keg mountaineering (10/15k) Brighton 7:00 8 Sat Steamboat Pentathlon ski/bike/run Steamboat Spr. CO 10:00 15 Sat Glide the Divide free (15/45/90k) Steamboat Springs, CO 9:00 (formerly North Routt Coureur des Bois) 22 Sat Equinox Snow Challenge ski,bike,run W.Yellowstone, MT 10:00 (3/6/12/24 hours) 22 Sat Spring Fling free (7k) Solitude Nordic 9:30 22 Sat Spring Fling relay Solitude Nordic 1:00 Ogden Nordic Championship March 1 Jim White For more up-to-date information check the TUNA web site at March Race Details Saturday, March 1 Ogden Nordic Championship place: North Fork Park time: 10:00 distance 10 km technique: classic or free registration: day of race or contact: Jim White, or jim@ogdennordic.com Yellowstone rendezvous March 8 rendezvousrace.com Saturday, March 22 Spring Fling place: Solitude Nordic time: 9:30 and 1:00 distance: 7 km in morning, 1 km sprint relay in afternoon technique: free registration: 8:30 on day of race fee: $20 includes noon barbeque and live music contact: Aram Hajian, Wasatch powder keg March 8 Brighton wasatchpowderkeg.com Spring Fling Solitude Nordic Center March 22 Aram Hajian UU skiers lead winner Jeremy Teela at the start of the WCS Race #4 at SOHO March 2014 page 31

32 The Utah Nordic Alliance PO Box 9008 Salt Lake City, UT Non-Profit Org. U S Postage PAID Salt Lake City, UT Permit No SAVE THE DATE! Spring Sale is March 14-16; Spring Gear Swap on Saturday, March 15, 8 a.m. to noon! THE BACKCOUNTRY SOURCE Featuring a huge selection of top brands and the latest TELEMARK, TOURING and SKI MOUNTAINEERING GEAR and CLOTHING, the Black Diamond store is your local source for all things backcountry. GRANT GUNDERSON For the best selection, friendly staff and local knowledge, visit the Black Diamond Store your backcountry source. BlackDiamondEquipment.com/store 2092 East 3900 South Salt Lake City, UT Hours: Mon-Fri 10-7, Sat 9-7, Sun 11-5 Wide selection of skis, boots, bindings, splitboards and accessories from top brands Technical and casual clothing for any weather conditions Huge demo fleet and ski shop One of our best years ever good snow, good weather, and an all-time record turnout for a classic race. Dave Hanscom Check your total points online