I know, I know. Where is the sweat busting aerobics that we heard so much about? It’s coming and soon, but for now you will have to satisfied with that punched in the gut feeling you have now.
We have snow now and we have a lot to do so let’s get to it.
Review.
Balance: Our 2X2 drill last night looked more like the Drunk Monkey Chorus Line review. Balance needs work. Do this (Homework). Find a big mirror or large darkened window. Floor length is best. Do just what we did last night. Wear shorts (or less) and watch the muscles/tendons in your legs fire as you balance. This is a REAL TIME DRILL, which is you getting to see the response in actual time. Corrections come fast that way. Imagine skiing with a video monitor hooked up right in front of you, looking at you! Do it flat foot then with a 2X2 or even a 2X4. 5 minutes left and right, 3 nights.
I was happy with the core work we did. Even though the pace feels slow we are doing better QUALITY work than before. That will pay off. Remember that stride LENGTH is more effective than STRIDE RATE, especially as we get older.
I am working on more steps. We need some Aurora Doc’s to light a fire. Send Hartmann to management with your demands. Just kidding but the bulk of your aerobic base should come from skiing. Right now the tracks are pretty good and cold temps make classical waxing easy. Skating is slow on the desiccated snow we have and places a greater burden on your glide wax. Cold snow draws wax out of your base so keep up on it. It is doubtful that you can ski 3 days without re-waxing. Skis with a high wax count are fast skis. Put in perspective, 3% faster skis on a 3 hour Birkie skier equals 9 minutes faster. 9 minutes faster means your buddy buys the beer, what’s that worth!
Skiing: Right now most trails are open and groomed. Long is better than fast at this point. Low threshold with a strong technical focus is critical. No Christmas racers please. Check with http://www.skinnyski.com/ for reports. The Bay Nordic Youth Ski League has their first session Saturday at the Camp at 10:00am. You will note a groomed “stadium area” west of the trailhead. Give them some room and cheer them on. http://baynordic.blogspot.com/
Steve Peplinski (age 62 and the only one able to do repeated full planks) has an interesting perspective on KNOLL Training. Read that below. I am impressed with the overall fitness of the group; you collectively make me feel fat… now if we can focus that conditioning into skiing….Johnny bar the door. We start at 5:57 pm next Tue, 5:48pm if your name has an MD behind it.
Steve Peplinski writes:
Hey Dude! You got the wax!
Sometimes they scream it at me as I flash past them on the downhill. It’s always during a race. Sometimes it’s a long steep downhill, and I’m in a tuck shooting past some gently skating skiers. Other times, it’s a less dramatic pass, late in the race. A couple of years ago with only a few k to go in the Birkie, I was closing in on a skier. I watched him climb each hill, and then pulled closer on each downhill. Finally, I knew that I could pass him just over the next rise. As I glided past, he said “Boy, I wish I could change skis with you.” I smiled inwardly, knowing the secret of fast skis. I’m about to share it with you.
Is it stone grinding? Perfect base structure scientifically matched to the temperature and snow conditions? Maybe it’s using a heat box to saturate the bases. Or maybe it’s that final brushing with a brush crafted of Tibetan yak hair. It’s all of the above and none of the above. Yes, I have good wax, but in truth, my competitors probably know just as much about waxing as I do. So why do I have the fast skis? It’s simple. I ski faster. Not all the time, but I ski faster when it counts.
I watch my competition as I climb. They all look pretty strong. Some look more powerful than I. They may be pulling away from me on the uphill. But once I hit the downhill, I usually gain ground. I’m not too concerned about losing a couple of feet to them on the uphill. In fact, I prefer to. But when the crest of the hill approaches, I want to have a little bit extra to keep skiing when most everyone else is resting. I see it all the time, After a great climbing effort, skiers stand up and go into resting mode at the most critical part of the climb. Meanwhile, I’m trying out my best V2 sprint form as I crest the hill and accelerate down the back side. Once I get up to speed, I get into an aerodynamic tuck and enjoy the scenery as I close in on skiers in front of me. All because “I have better wax”. It’s interesting to see strong, experienced skiers stand up and get into a resting slouch as they get to the top of a hill. Interesting and rewarding because I know that even though they trained just as hard as me, even though they are in just as good shape (maybe better) as I; even though they may be 20 years younger than I, “I got the wax!” I’ve decided to come with an acronym for the phenomenon: WAX: Win At the Xenith” alright, zenith is the correct spelling, who knows what WAZ is. As they start their well deserver rest for a hard climbing effort, I win the downhill by the judicious application of power at the highest point of the climb.
So stop worrying that your skis didn’t spend enough time in the hot box. Forget about the shortcomings of your base prep. The way to have fast wax is to ski fast when it counts. And that is completely within your control.
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