Hillbounding November 29. By the Numbers

For the final 18 skiers that braved the 32F temps with a brisk North wind last night (John in shorts!) the speedy wrap up of the season was a double blessing, the hill goes away for 9
months and snow historically come to GB in the next week or so.

The group ramped up the speed and shortened the efforts, typical for this time of the year as we get ready for snow. Our Paced Lactate Interval went (I thought) awesome. That may be a
keeper. Some of the numbers this season. We averaged 25 skiers a night with 30
reps averaged per session for more than a combined 750 trips up the hill over
11 weeks, whew!

The 18th Annual Birkie Class starts next Tuesday and yes we held a few slots for the late
comers. See http://www.incompetition.com/ for signup. We have several new ideas coming which I am sure will generate much enthusiasm [?]. Watch for the 1st group email coming in the next week.

Meanwhile….keep watching http://www.skinnyski.com/ for updates and don’t
forget to send in trail reports. If you have not signed up for our newsletter
updates you should (or die an un-beautiful person) Lots of stuff happening and
that is the best way to be informed and kept up to date. http://visitor.r20.constantcontact.com/manage/optin?v=001o9BVU3HO12w70DsvKK-6-_jIbuy3LGOxLjBo4ABi3TAk86ctcDgSjX_RfHXm3cRXQSiHjFNFVOna6QgnPBYbRdcc8ugg5YWA


My initial thoughts on the year are one of improvement. The skill and output improvement from September until now was fantastic. Having lots of good role models certainly helps. These
are hard efforts and WILL make you a better skier and athlete. Nicely done. See you at the Birkie Class or on the trails.

Hillbounding Nov. 22 Who Goosed the Moose

Frost tipped the grass last
night as we started the penultimate bounding session of the year. A condensed
field of twenty athletes made the most of the night which saw technique
improvements that bode well for the coming snow.

Balance is notably improved,
even when tired. On skis folks struggle for balance, especially on icy tracks.
A well refined sense of balance will help a lot. I notice a lot of skiers who
are smoother now. Less head/shoulder bobbing, poles entering earlier and more
sliding and less stomping, nice.

Next week we will wrap up
with some shorter (yet faster) reps as we transition to snow. Note that we WILL
go unless there is snow on the hill. http://www.skinnyski.com/
is posting trail reports and while the weather is going to warm for a day or
two it is trending down. The snow line is about Lakewood and I would expect to be on snow in
the next week or two.

Birkie Class signup is down
to the last 10 spots or so http://www.incompetition.com/shopping/event.php
and the Birkiebeiner is officially
CLOSED. Unreal to have it fill this early!

The photo above was taking by
my pals Mark Zeigler and Jeff Metzger out in Utah this past weekend. Check out what is
behind Jeff. The hillbounding has really made a dent. Things look great and we
will finish this thing next week.

Hillbounding Nov. 15th Turnip Trucks

"you think I fell off a turnip truck" I asked Jim Beno after he called me from Lakewood last Saturday. "No really the skiing was great" he said. I trust Jim but a picture says it all. Check out his first tracks on the 12th. Nice!

Jim was still a little buoyant about the whole weekend thing which helped when he and a couple dozen other athletes "glided" their way up the hill. The night was punctuated by some extra (don't blame me when your sore) upper body work which had a spirited effect on morale.

Lots of positives to report the biggest being balance improvement. After nine weeks thing look vastly better. Most skiers are "skiing" faster. Our fastest 10 skier time average has dropped over 30 seconds in a four minute effort, wow. Virtually everyone is smoother and able to hold it together right to the end. Nice again.

News updates: www.skinnyski.com has trail reports coming in with snow forecasted up nort this weekend. The West Yellowstone Camp starts this week and they are up and grooming. We "finally" have the Birkie Class registration up (hopefully working). We are going to be more strict about numbers this year and since everyone has asked ....http://shop.craftsports.us/catalog/product/gallery/id/18025/image/1093/ Bright Red, Very hip!

See http://www.incompetition.com/shopping/event.php or our website at www.incompetition.com

Lastly, I expect [?] to see our gate closed next week so just park at the bottom and avoid blocking the gate. I would stay off Bairds Creek Parkway as that is a no parking area. We go until snow or the 29th. I'm betting we see snow the 30th. A free GU to all the bounders if I'm wrong. See you Tuesday at 5:29pm as we countdown the final two weeks till snow. Solid effort tonight!

Hillbounding Nov. 8 No Rest for the Weary

By now most skiers know that we are not weather sensitive, that is, we go till snow. One must remember the sport weather rules. When biking subtract 15 degrees from the temperature. When running add 15 degrees, when skiing add 20 degrees and when hillbounding add 30
degrees.... to the “feel like” temperature.

15 skiers (four in shorts) found out that cold, wet and wind is no match for the heat generating
capabilities of hillbounding. The rain missed us totally and the soft wet grass made
for perfect gliding. The smaller and motivated group averaged a rep cycle every
two minutes which was stellar. There was a noticeable uptick in respiring rates
as recovery times dropped. The steamy breaths made it look like a herd of musk
ox being chased by a wolf. (Good visual).

Pole control is coming along as expected at week eight.

Note that next week the park “officially” closes at dusk. The gate MAY
be locked in which case we park at the bottom away from the gate and off to the
side, just as in years past. Snow is forecasted but is just a tease although
there is man made snow to ski on already in the Midwest
and snow is found in the west already http://www.skinnyski.com/
has trail reports up already. This is the peak training hour month so when the
weather is bad double your effort, the hardest part is getting out the door.
Meanwhile if you’re under 25 this can help? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIqMIrmpUjc ...but I doubt it.

Hillbounding 11-1-11 Where's the Rest?

Overheard on the hill last night; “where is the rest”? It warms my cockles when I hear that.
If you did not notice the increased urgency last night, well good for you. The
pace definitely quickened, the recovery less complete. With a big (and
powerful) group like last nights it is easy to get caught up in the [fun] heat
of battle but it is important to keep your focus on what you are doing
technically. Fortunately most not only held it together but excelled. The good
thing about being cashed is that your body seeks ways to be more efficient.
Lets practice our little pole “toggle” drill a little more, it seemed to help. There
also seems to be some improvement in balance. We may bring some “wood” to the
hill soon (2X2) to enhance that process. Lastly, be sure to focus on that
forward shin, acute shin angle, positive shin angle (call it what you like) but
try and get forward by bending AT THE ANKLE, not the knee, neck or waist.
Birkie Class
18 will start December 6th and we will start sign up within the next
week. I liked what I saw last night. I could actually hear the breathing and
could see the speed. Very nice. Recover today, ski tomorrow as we have only 4
weeks till snow! Nice. See you at 5:23pm next week. In the meantime if you want to be cutting edge hip you can always watch. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Qrjtr_uFac Too cool to be real!