Channeling Your Inner Elasti-Girl: Flexibility on the Road

I've learned innumerable things while racing this season, but one of the most valuable and continually reinforced lessons has been the importance of flexibility. And no, I do not mean the ability to do stunts commonly associated with 13 year old Chinese gymnasts or the superhero Elasti-Girl (but I'm in no doubt that that type of flexibility would probably also help my skiing). No, I  mean the type of flexibility that allows you to “go-with-the-flow”, no matter how frustrating the situation or how tired or uncomfortable you are. Traveling while ski racing is something that can quickly shove you out of your comfort zone, and the ability to bend with the turns makes the adventure a lot easier on your body and mind.

Most of you might know, Nordic skiers are pretty habitual. We like oatmeal and peanut butter for breakfast, a place to nap in comfort, lots of space to roll our muscles out and stretch, a way to dry our wet training gear, and relatively fast wifi for connecting with the outside world or getting work done. And when we’re in the states, it's pretty easy to pick up our usual patterns while on the road. Hop on a jet over to another continent, however, and the story changes.   

So how does flexibility help in Europe or Central Asia? Let me make a list.

Sometimes you have to shovel off your car first.

1. Driving days. Gone are the 4-8 hour van rides on the straight, fast, freeways of the states (looking at you, North Dakota). If you are brave enough to drive a van, I hope you know how to drive stick shift like a daredevil, because I'm pretty sure the designer of many European roads also created the video game MarioKart. Driving here is like ski racing, you own your space and you SEND it, or you'll be swallowed up and dropped faster than you can yell “Use your blinker!” And don't even get me started on Siri’s pronunciation of roads in Czech and towns in Germany. Patience, an immunity to carsickness, and an innovative talent for utIlizing roundabouts will get you a looooong way.

Overwhelming the KAZ airport

2. Flying days. FYI, your massage stick WILL show up on customs security as a long metal blunt object (aka a weapon), so unless you want to play charades with Dutch security, I suggest checking it. And if you're ever flying out of the Kazakhstan airport, understand that the employees aren't quite used to being bombarded with luggage for a 23 person ski team, and add an extra couple of hours pre-flight to adjust. While you're at it, the ability to set up camp and hang out in an airport for 8-10 hours is also a necessity, but hopefully at that point you'll just be appreciative of having all your bags and access to wicked fast (and free) wifi. Which brings me to my next topic…

3. Wifi wars. Skiers have a lot of down time. We also have a lot of other responsibilities to attend to while we are on the other side of the world (e.g. class, work, blogs, emails to the real world, paying our bills, and staying up-to-date with Scandal). And it doesn't help that the other side of the world is 6-12 hours behind us. So, prime screen times for a typical day? Immediately after lunch and right before bed. Aka the time when so many phones, iPods, tablets, computers, e-readers and lord-knows-what are waging war with the wifi that it will inevitably crash, or at least slow down to a painful I’m-not-sure-if-she's-going-to-actually-finish-the-race crawl. So you learn to space out downloading, post up in the lobby or hallway, get your work done early, or simply close the computer and pick up a book.

4. Hotel rooms. Americans are ridiculously used to giant hotel rooms with double (if not queen) beds, wardrobes, TVs, oversized bathrooms, and space for duffel bags as large as I am, providing ample hangers for wet gear, floor area to stretch, and more tv channels (in English!!!) than you can remember. European hotel rooms? Not so much, because Euros are pretty minimalistic. Which is totally fine, as long as you're totally fine rolling out in the hallway and trying not to sweat too much during workouts because you only have so many places to hang shirts and gloves. Also I wouldn’t expect more than one pillow. 

Getting cozy with Annie

5. Laundry. And speaking of sweating, try not to do that at all because you honestly never know when your next chance to do laundry will be, and it might cost you approx. 30 American dollars. If you're good with the occasional sink wash, props, but you better hope your roommate is okay with your now clean(ish?) underwear hanging all over the room. (I suggest asking first.) So pack comfortable clothes that you love but also won't mind burning because after 6-7 weeks of the same shirts and jeans, you'll pretty much be ready for a change in pace.

6. Food. Diets of any type are not easy while ski racing in Europe or Central Asia unless you're big into potatoes, pasta, pork, chicken, chocolate, and gummy bears. Standard ski meals are served family style and can be pretty different from American food, but it's an amazing chance to try foods in each country that you've never even heard of before. And shoutout to Europeans for their incredible talents with soups, twice a day, every day. Also the desserts… If I could spend the rest of my life eating desserts in Switzerland, I'd be a pretty happy girl.

It snowed SO MUCH in Campra!

7. Language barriers. I can honestly say it's pretty disorienting to be in a place where you can't even attempt to read the signs on the roads or buildings, because the alphabet isn't even close to yours and looks like lots of squiggles and squares. And while it can be pretty difficult to communicate with someone who speaks German, Italian, and French but not a lick of English, one of my favorite parts of traveling here is learning simple words and phrases in each new language. People light up when you make an effort to attempt their language, no matter how butchered it is. (Just ask the Kazakh businessmen listening in and giggling to us shouting attempted Kazakh “thank you’s” in the elevator.) And don't forget, a smile is universal, and miming is usually pretty entertaining.  

6 Americans in one semi-final! Defying the laws of
sprint racing- GO USA

8. Race conditions. This trip is the first one I have been on where some races have been delayed because the course isn't ready, and other races have been delayed because of the chance of avalanches over the race trails. Being able to roll with the punches takes a lot of stress out of race day, whether the punches be pollution, rain, cold, 4 feet of fresh powder, rocks, ice, or  general disorganization. Your first instinct may be frustration, but in reality it's usually not something you can control (kind of like having 6 Americans in one sprint semifinal). The best way to handle it is usually to laugh it off and stay relaxed, because everyone is in the same boat on race day, and sometimes, s*** happens.

After a mini-tour of races in spectacular Switzerland, we are in Rogla, Slovenia, where we met up with Mary, Miles, and Colin (YAY GOLD TEAM) and the other U.S. OPA skiers. My races so far haven't all been what I've wanted, but I've learned what needs to be worked on, and the season isn't over yet. Congratulations to everyone who raced in the American Birkie this weekend, and let's keep sending good vibes to the U.S. Team at World Champs in Falun! We just watched J-Diggs and Caitlin Gregg (both from Minnesota) ski to a silver and bronze medal in the 10k!!! AHHHH! It's pretty exciting to see America get so stoked on skiing.

I mean I see the resemblance.... 

Struggling with the wax bench 

The trails at Campra, Switzerland

Cheering on the boys at Campra with Rosie and Joanne

Annie-squared and I

Glitter, Bows, and Braids: Rituals on Race Day

In the past couple of years, the U.S. Women's team (and U.S. ski racing in general) has been at the center of an emerging trend, most noticeably seen through the increasing popularity of race rituals that aren't exactly the "norm" in nordic skiing.

The U.S. Ski Team ladies rocking the podium, and some awesome socks. 

What's the trend? Girl-ing out ski racing.  Replacing war paint with glitter, throwing bows in our hair, wearing elaborate race braids and fun socks, and adding pink or purple accents to our race suits and warm ups. And although commonly associated with sports far away from the cold winter trails, these trends can now be seen all the way from the World Cup and Olympics to the newest emerging high school skiers. And not just in the fun costume races. Glitter is for the big races. The important ones.

Recently, I tried to explain to a friend WHY exactly the glitter effect exists. And for some reason I found it more difficult than I expected. So OBVIOUSLY the only solution is to write a blog about it.

Here’s the thing. No, we are not 12.  The bows and braids aren’t driven by the need to “glam” ourselves up for racing. We know that when we’re racing, there is sweat, snot, saliva, and tears. We know we usually look like we’re in huge pain anyway. We realize that our sport isn’t geared towards glamorous.

It’s not about appearances.

It’s about the same reason Fast and Female has gained so much ground so quickly. The same reason the U.S. Women have become a team that competes with the best in the world. And the same reason Nordic skiing is slowly growing in popularity amongst the younger generations.

Team energy.

The Norwegian skiers have this pre-race ritual of skiing a “hot lap” (an interval) the day before a race to warm themselves up. Which is what most skiers do; it’s part of the training plan. Only the difference is that the Norwegians ski the lap as a team, all wearing their race suits. It doesn’t matter if there are people in their way, they will zoom around them and stick together, pushing each other and mentally preparing to race together as a team.

And not only does it prepare them, it sends a message to their opponents.  “We are here. And we are ready.” It’s pretty intimidating, not gonna lie. Granted, other teams have picked up on this and followed suit. But the idea behind it is that the lap puts you in the mindset of a team. Because while Nordic skiing is incredibly individual in that in the end, your race is purely determined by what is under your control, the truth is that a team is what backs you up. You train together, you live together, you travel together, and you race together. So why not use that to your advantage?

The U.S. Women’s team has done exactly that. Only in a slightly different form. A new race day tradition was created: braiding hair, writing "USA" on cheeks in glitter, and handing out ribbons. For the first time in U.S. nordic ski history, "team spirit" became a pre-race ritual. And it quickly spread. 

It reminds a team that although the race is up to each individual, you're all here together, and you're all facing the same opponent and obstacles.  Not only that, but like any race morning ritual, it prepares you for the challenge ahead. Only instead of the nerves associated with force feeding yourself oatmeal and dragging yourself out of bed for a run, overtones of excitement are added to the morning of races. It takes a little bit of the pressure off and reminds you how lucky you are to be here, racing as hard as you can, leaving it all out on the course. It gets you psyched to represent whatever team you're a part of, whether it be a country, a club, or a relay team. 

And not only does it prepare you, it sends a message to your opponents. 

“We are here. We are ready. And we are excited.”

Braids and bows on race day

We sat down as a U23 women's team at the beginning of the week here in Kazakhstan, and our coach Kate Barton (she rocks) had us write down team goals. We were told to have 5 process goals, and 3 outcome goals. And one of the process goals we created was having good team energy. Supporting each other, picking one another up, racing with one another, helping each other out in warm-ups, cheering for each other, and just being plain excited for one another was something that we all agreed would help us ski faster individually. Team energy would be something to work for on race day.

And so we did. The first day of World's we saw Annie Hart qualify for the classic sprint heats and fight her way to the finish. We watched Ben Saxton ski to a 6th place overall (!!!) in some gnarly sprint heats. And we cheered Thomas O'Harra on to a 14th place and Logan Hanneman race hard in the U23 heats. And although some of us didn't qualify, we were so psyched to represent the USA and have the opportunity to race hard and learn from it. 

Next up is the 10k/15k Free race tomorrow!

If you're interested in following the races LIVE, download the FIS Ski app (it's free) and it gives you live updates for the races. You can even select your favorite country (cough.. USA) and all of its skiers will be highlighted in blue, making it easier to spot us as we come through. Send good vibes!

The bottom of the sprint course

Basically the entire sprint course, minus the stadium.

USA girls with our awesome ambassador Altnyai