We have made our annual pilgrimage out to West Yellowstone and are excited to be here and get the racing season underway! Skiing and racing in West, or "Jellystone", is a tradition for a large portion of the American Nordic skiing community this time of year. Similar to everyone else out here, we are psyched to try out the gear of the new season, get in some k's in good tracks, and test our fitness after a year of training.
Here is most of our ladies team strutting our are stylin' NEW Swix uniforms, and E'Klaar buffs! I'm also enjoying the new modifications to
Atomic's latest skis, boots, bindings and
Swix's new poles!
One of the bonus features of the new skis is they come with an edible tip!
... Just kidding. That's just Sadie getting some H20 hydration on her 21st bday yesterday. Although in all seriousness, we have been making sure we are well hydrated since we went Anchorage's coastal climate at sea level to Montana's drier western climate at altitude.
We are also aiding the acclimatization process is by adjusting our training accordingly and taking plenty of iron throughout the week. Today was our third day at altitude-- the day when O2 saturation levels are typically the lowest-- so we skied easy and only trained once. I have also been making sure I eat plenty of red meat in conjunction with vitamin C-rich fruits or vegetables to help aid iron absorption and to help prevent any symptoms associated with anemia.
Luckily, there are no lack of food options in the APU house. Our 19 athletes and coaches will not go hungry.
Here is Morgan Smyth checking out our mountain of food in the living room before we put it away. This 3G Costco run of bulk food items and produce will hopefully last through this entire week and will help supply our cooking in the month to come.
Speaking of which, below is my Early Season Travel and Competition Schedule:
American Supertour
Nov 24: Cl and Sk Double Prologue, West Yellowstone, MT
Nov 26: 10k Skate, West Yellowstone, MT
Nov 27: 5k Classic, West Yellowstone, MT
Canadian NorAms
Dec 11th: 1.4k Classic, Sovereign Lake, Vernon, BC (CAN)
Dec 12th: 10k Skate, Sovereign Lake, Vernon BC (CAN)
Canadian NorAm "Mini Tour"
Dec 17th: Skate Prologue, Rossland, BC (CAN)
Dec 18th: 10k Cl, Rossland, BC (CAN)
Dec 19th: 5k F, Rossland, BC (CAN)
Christmas Break
Dec 21-28 Anchorage, AK
US National Championships
Jan 2nd: 1k Classic, Rumford, ME
Jan 4th: 10k Classic, Rumford, ME
Jan 6th: 20k Skate Mst, Rumford, ME
Jan 8th: 1k Skate, Rumford, ME
American Supertour (continued)
Jan 16th: 5k F, Lake Placid, NY
Jan 17th: 1k C, Lake Placid, NY
...And then we will see what the season brings from there!
It's going to be a well-earned adventure. I'm looking forward to the highlights, challenges, and fun experiences and hope to "take you with me" in a way!
Happy Thanksgiving and thanks for reading,
Katie
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