A Skier's Holiday Calendar

Life as a nordic skier is an awesome one. But I'm not the first to say that we are notorious for missing out on traditional holidays. Whether it's training, traveling, training, racing, resting, or.. training, holidays to us are the quick moments in between all the rush that we get with family and friends.

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of traditional holidays. Don't get me wrong, I love the chance to be close with people I don't see all that often, I absolutely LOVE giving gifts (like it's my favorite thing ever, you don't understand), and I definitely won't say no to some delicious food (hi, I'm Paige, I like to eat).

But the thing that gets me about holidays is the hype that surrounds them. There's so much pressure to have the MOST fun or do things the RIGHT way and follow every single tradition in the book, and if you don't, it's like you did your holiday  completely wrong. Which makes it hard for athletes, because the demands of training and racing usually don't yield to drinking beers on a boat on the Fourth of July, sleeping in on Christmas morning, or staying up until past midnight to ring in the New Year.

So, for the sake of those who aren't skiers, I compiled a list of the holidays as interpreted by skiers.

And for the sake of skiers, feel free to commiserate (and celebrate!) with me.
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Thanksgiving: "Merry-First-Day-of-Racing!" (SO EXCITED!)

Black Friday: "Thank-God-There-Isn't-A-Mall-In-West-Yellowstone Day"

Christmas: "Stock-Up-On-Training-Gear-And-Then-Go-Training Day" (cough.. BeFAST, Toko, Smith Optics, Bjorn Daehlie)

New Years Eve: "Well-This-Is-Nice-But-I-Have-To-Be-Asleep-By-Ten Eve"

New Years Day: "Another-Year-Another-Senior-Nationals Day"

Idaho Human Rights Day: (I had no idea this was a holiday but it is so..) "Exercise-My-Right-To-Exercise Day"

Groundhog Day: "I-Really-Hope-Winter-Keeps-Going Day"

Valentine's: "You're-Really-Actually-Dating-Your-Skis-Anyway Day"

Daylight Savings Starts: "Finally-It's-Not-Dark-During-Practice Day" (arguably the best day of the season)

St. Patrick's: "OMG-The-Season's-Over-What?! Day" (obviously the worst day of the season)

Easter: "Chocolate-Because-I'm-Not-In-Season Day" 

Cinco de Mayo: "Time-To-Start-Training-Again Day"

Mother's Day: "Thank-Your-Mother-For-Her-Endless-Patience-and-Support Day"

Memorial Day: "Try-To-Remember-How-To-Rollerski-Without-Looking-Like-An-Idiot Day"

Father's Day: (see: Mother's Day)

Fourth of July: "This-Is-A-Free-Country-But-I-Have-To-Train-Tomorrow Day"

Labor Day: "It's-Officially-Fall-So-You-Better-Hope-You-Did-Enough-Work-This-Summer Day"

Columbus Day: "Get-Out-And-Declare-Those-Trails-Yours Day"

Halloween: "I-Don't-Need-This-Excuse-To-Wear-Spandex Day" (Also known as: "My-Coach-Scheduled-a-Time-Trial-Tomorrow-Morning Day")

Daylight Savings Ends: "Well-It's-Pitch-Dark-When-I-Train-Now-So-That's-Cool Day"

BONUS: Your Own Birthday: "Lolz-You-Just-Moved-Up-An-Age-Category Day"

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Happy Thanksgiving everyone, for those of you headed out to West Yellowstone, find me on the trails and we can ski and hug and cry and chat and all that.  For those of you at home, give your loved ones hugs, they're lucky to have you.

To round off this post: I've spent the past 5 years (holy crap that's a lot) in West Yellowstone, Montana for Thanksgiving. Here's to the memories, and to making many more!!

Forest-Fairy MSC Suits, circa 2009

Literally babies.

The drive from MN to Montana is not always easy, especially in snow storms.

Thanksgiving Dinner for a Thanksgiving 5k

Ohh the Olaf crew.

FAST Performance Training circa 2011?

Olaf retaking the traditional pic

I'm pretty lucky I get my mom (and Dad sometimes) for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day SKI! Of course.

And don't forget racing!

But don't worry, we don't miss out on Thanksgiving dinner (yes that's homemade lefsa).

Let's hit the road! Happy holidays!!

19 Thoughts from a 3 Hour Workout on a 2k Loop

1. Jesus Christ it's still dark out why do we have to start this workout in the pitch black of morning I could have slept for at LEAST two more hours and I definitely didn't drink enough coffee and I'll NEVER be a morning person no matter what anyone says

2. Okay well at least skiing in the dark makes me feel like I'm going a whole lot faster than I actually am. Thank god.

3. Oh look, only another 15 minutes until the sun comes up. Only 2.5 more hours to go!

4. Do you think anyone will notice if I just go hide in the woods?

5. Man my legs are tired.

6. Also my arms.

7. Also my core. Also everything.

8. What should I eat when this is over? I think I'll make an omelette. No, a quesadilla. No.... a sandwich. Or maybe I'll just have ice cream. People would judge me if I just had ice cream. You know what? I skied for 3 hours today. I deserve the ice cream.

9. Although grilled cheese sounds super good too... Okay grilled cheese and ice cream it is.

10. ... Is it socially acceptable to eat grilled cheese and ice cream at 10:30 in the morning?

11. Okay.. starting to look a little bit like a blind penguin, focus on technique for a bit. Right arm in, left arm back, even weight shift. Relaxed shoulders.

12. What lap is this again? 39? Is this what it feels like to be one of those ponies at carnivals that just walks around in a circle for hours?

13. I am 400% over this workout.

14. Okay, but it's actually pretty gorgeous out. Point to Canada. Nice job Canada.

15. And I guess I'm feeling pretty decent now. It just took a little to work into it.

16. Oh look, teammates! Hi friends. I'll ski with them. This is nice.

17. OH my gosh it's already been 2.5 hours WHERE did the time go I am almost done with this workout! Well now I'm feeling pretty good. This is pretty fun I guess. I really do like skiing.

18. Wait I have to be DONE now? But I could totally keep going! I'm finally getting my technique down! And it's actually nice out! And I'm skiing on snow and not rollerskis! And there are mountains!

19. But I'm definitely still not a morning person. And I love coffee (Lizzie's!!!) too much... and naps and quesadillas... and there's plenty of time for more skiing later.... yeah I think I'm good.

Me, Mary, and Makayla on Frozen Thunder

We wrapped up our camp in Canmore with a skate time trial and one of the hardest over-distance workouts I have ever done.  I've learned that when I'm faced with a long and tough workout, I really just have to put my head down, shut up, and focus purely on the task at hand; AKA trying not to trip, sprain an ankle, or have a complete meltdown. That doesn't mean I don't love what I'm doing, and it doesn't mean I don't want to be there, it just means that every ounce of my energy is being directed toward concentrating on the workout. Which is one of the reasons I love my sport, sometimes it just demands your full attention.

We're back in Sun Valley for two weeks, counting down the days to the West Yellowstone Ski Festival and the kickoff of our racing season! From there it's on to Bozeman, MT, then to Rossland, BC (Canada), and then before we know it, home for Christmas. I have a feeling this season will fly by.  Until we leave, we've got the SVSEF Wild West Game Dinner and lots of training to tackle. Bring on the snow!

Play Hard, Give Back!

The Sun Valley Gold Team is super excited to announce our partnership with Play Hard Give Back (PHGB), a local company based out of Ketchum, Idaho.  PHGB works closely with athletes to help them in reaching their goals, but also gives them an opportunity to contribute back to and make a difference in the community that supports them. 

PHGB creates absolutely DELICIOUS trail mixes and granola bars, which the athletes sell from their own "storefront" page. Part of the proceeds from the trail mixes and bars go to help fund the athlete's career, but part also goes to the social cause of the athlete's choice. How cool is that? 

The SVSEF Gold Team has decided to support the Willie Neal Environmental Awareness Fund (WNEAF), a cause that is especially close to our hearts and the hearts of many other skiers and winter athletes.  A portion of all of the products sold off of the Gold Team member's PHGB pages will be given to the WNEAF.  The mission statement of the WNEAF is to promote responsible choices through education, community involvement, and environmental initiatives. They do so through supporting Idle-Reduction Campaigns, putting up No-Idle signs, supporting a No-Idle bike tour, and developing a bike commuting program, all activities aimed at creating responsible environmental decisions among the community.

So. How can you help?

Visit my page at PHGB and order some delicious goodies! (Trust me, these snacks are SO good and they're perfect for when you're out on the trail. I highly suggest the Rise and Shine Trail Mix.) You have the option to submit a one-time order, or even subscribe to a monthly delivery! The best part? The snacks come right to you! 

This is an awesome way to support an athlete you are close to, support a cause that all athletes value, and receive some tasty snacks in return.

Thank you all for your support! See you out on the trails! 

- Paige

#givesyoupurpose