What is wrong with me?
When did Ironwood sprout a Mtn. range?
By Gus Kaeding
The other night I exchanged text messages with a friend of mine who’s in graduate school. We have a history of poking and prodding each other for being a little lame on the weekend nights. Obviously, weekends are typically important to a skier so it is normally early to bed, which is fine. But, it is somewhat different than the average Friday night of a 25 year old.
I told her “Well it’s 9 o’clock, my bet is you’re doing homework, then bed.” She replied at 11pm that I was close, it was a movie than bed and that she knew I hadn’t done anything better. Sadly, I got that text the next morning because I had already been asleep for 45 min by 11…..after watching a movie. Driving to my interval workout the next morning I got to thinking about our exchange. Combined with the fact that it was 35 degrees and pouring rain outside, I had a moment of self reflection and asked “what the hell is wrong with me?” It has long been my contention that there is a something a little “wrong” with everyone who cross country skis and to be the best, you’ve got to be one step shy of bat$#!& crazy.
Well, yesterday morning I got a pair of wax less skis, drove out a glorified logging road which possesses a puddle that comes over my tires. I layered up on clothes and skied out to what I like to call, a big a$$ hill. The grooming here lately has been more miss than hit. So after skiing in some tracks, I began some 6x4min level 4 intervals. At the end of my last interval, drenched to the bone, alone in the woods, I threw up my breakfast. I had a little chuckle to myself and thought “yup, there is definitely something wrong with me.” For some reason, I love every second of it.
As crappy as the weather was that morning, it was far from the norm as of late. The skiing has been, for lack of a better word, perfect. Every skier knows the unexplainable sensation of perfect skiing. The snow is fast, the sun is out, and it’s easy to forget the elapsed time on your watch. It doesn’t matter if you’re in Switzerland, Alaska, or Michigan’s Upper Peninsula; training in these conditions is simply a pleasure and I know there ain’t nothing wrong with that!
Sunsplashed Marquette!
Next up is the Spring Tour in Craftsbury, VT. Then on to Maine for Supertour finals. Should be some good posts upcoming so keep checking in!
