Let the Games Begin (Fall '11 Recap)

Things seemed to get off to a slow start back in September as I headed out to Sun Valley with Evan.  As I returned for the first of October the team was somewhat splintered. Joe and Molly were keeping a large part of the troops on their game with the cross country team.  Sam M., Emily, Silke, and Brian (BFV) were all ready to roll, and so we did. 

Night time bounding at Cochran's in November

Halloween seemed to come out of nowhere and we were hitting the road for long rollerski days, intervals, and technique.  Cochran’s became a staple as we bounded right into the dark, but even the dark could not derail the pain. “Just pull this switch,” said the incredible friendly folks at Cochran’s.  Let there be light, and the team was as one.  3 hour roller skis, bounding and Joe’s team core were all part of a great fall of training.  But… the fall would not be complete with out Joe’s fun…. “It’s time for SMC to TT up the Bolton access road.”

Gabby and Sam-Dan were treated to a Thanksgiving with the Martell’s and a great week of on snow training.  Hard’Ack, Mike B’s gym, and incredible skiing at Craftsbury all came together to provide a great week of training.  By Friday the numbers began to grow as the on snow skiing was extended right though Saturday.  Sunday found everyone back on campus and a long roller ski.

Isaiah in the EC sprint

The Craftsbury gang worked their buts off and pulled things together for a fun weekend of racing as the first Eastern Cup went off with out a hitch.  Sam M., Gabby, Colin, Isaiah, and Sam-Dan jump-started their season against some of the toughest competition in the country.

Winter camp found the gang putting in long hours of skiing at Trapp’s.  The team put together 10 days of long skis, countless intervals, and a TT with the UVM and Dartmouth ski teams. But wait…we could not stop there, so we headed northeast to the long rolling trails at Craftsbury for a 3 hour ski and the 11^th day of skiing followed by pizza all around.

The girls putting in a solid 3 hours at Craftsbury 

Three more training days and the games will in fact begin. The college season kicks off as we roll into Rumford, Maine for a 5 & 10K interval start skate on Friday and a 10K mass start classic on Saturday.  This weekend is the first of six weeks of Carnivals and the team is ready, so… “Let the Games Begin”.

-Lary