Hey Everybody!

With only one month remaining in the season, I just wanted to connect and lay out what the rest of the season will look like for the team, as well as clear up any confusion with the process moving forward. First things first, I want to clear up any confusion, as I know that information doesn’t always fully make its way beyond the athlete.

As you have noticed, the past couple weeks have consisted of a few official practice days, a couple of meets, and then a few days “on their own”. And as we know, nordic skiing is a very weather-dependent sport. Due to the lack of snow this year, the only opportunity we have to ski as a team is when Elm Creek has a practice time slot for us. This late in the season, I the most important thing is to get on snow as much as possible. So for those days we don’t have a slot at Elm, rather than requiring them to spend a time at school running or lifting, I want athletes to do their best to get out to Elm on their own and ski (I, as a coach, am not allowed to be present outside of designated time slots). I’ve been providing workouts to the athletes through GroupMe that they are then able to perform if they can ski. And worst case scenario, if they are not able to make it to a trail, they know to get a run in on their own.

I know many athletes have been proactive in arranging carpools, so I want to encourage them to continue to build on that for those days we don’t have a practice slot.

Looking ahead, there are only a few weeks of racing left, starting with tomorrow at the ABC relays. This is one of our unique relay-style meets where each athlete will be on a team. It is held at the Mora Vasaloppet Center with the bus leaving AHS at 8am. The boys race is at 10:00, with the girls starting at 11:30. Spectators are advised to park at TRAILVIEW ELEMENTARY, just west of the Nordic Center.

Our conference meet will take place Monday, the 29th, with sections being the following week. These are limited Varsity races, so not all athletes will compete. For those who don’t compete at either of those, their final race will be Wednesday, January 31 at Elm Creek.