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gkuzzy 12:27 am on January 7, 2010 Permalink | Reply

US Nationals 30km

The forecast for today was 28 degrees and partly cloudy. It wouldn’t be a 30km Classic at Nationals without some more variables thrown into the mix. Sure enough, when we woke up this morning, there were big dollar flakes accumulating in a hurry. Of course, coach Bryan Fish and his wax crew of Igor Badamshin, Brandan Ostroot, and John Hugus were out and on the trail testing kick wax before 6:00 this morning. By the time the men’s team arrived at the venue for their 11:30 start, Fish had the wax dialed and the women were already on course.

Getting reports from their race that we had two women in the lead pack was encouraging for our crew warming up. In the end, Compton and Rebecca took 3rd and 4th, not far behind Kikkan Randall and Holly Brooks in 1st and 2nd.

Caitlin Compton leading Rebecca Dussault and Liz Stephen

The men’s race was just as exciting. I sat out the race this morning, as has been the plan all along, in preparation for the classic sprint on Friday. I tested skis in the stadium with a number of the other sprinters, while the men’s field clicked off kilometers on their way to 30km through the fresh falling snow. James Southam, Kris Freeman, and Bryan Cook pulled away from the field early. In an exciting race of fades and comebacks, James extended his lead over Kris who barely held off a hard charging Cook over the final kilometers.

With Cook on the podium, that made for a CXC athlete on each podium so far this week, and our 5th different CXC skier on the podium. Brian Gregg and CXC’s very own pro mountain biker Tad Elliott worked together for most of the classic race, before Gregg pulled away with an impressive double-pole at the end of the race to take 5th. With Chuck’s 4th in the 15km skate and Gregg’s 5th today, that makes 7 different CXC skiers with Top-5 finishes so far at Nationals. Not bad. We’re still looking forward to a National Championship that could come in the Classic Sprint. Stay tuned!

Bryan Cook

Brian Gregg

Tad Elliott

Thanks to Ian Harvey & Toko for the great photos, fast skis, and sharp suits.

gkuzzy 5:15 am on November 11, 2009 Permalink | Reply

Week in Review

It’s been over a week now since I packed up for the fall and hit the road. The last week in October, Brian showed me a video of skiing in Silver Star. Seeing snow on the ground got me fired up to hit the road and get on snow. After 3 busy days of packing and wrapping up loose ends, I hit the road and met up with teammate Matt Liebsch in Kelowna, BC. We were on snow in Silver Star the next morning. It was a bit of a risk coming out here, as was particularly apparent when we were told that they were going to close the trails. Fortunately, the weather stayed cold, the trails remained open, and we got some great skiing under our belts. No risk, no reward!

Matt Liebsch at Sovereign Lake

Matt took off last Friday to do a presentation in Winona, MN (check out his post below). There are a few other skiers out on the trail here, but not nearly as many as I would’ve expected. While the skiing is great here, I’m still keeping my fingers crossed that West Yellowstone will get snow soon! Looking forward to getting back on the trail with the CXC crew.

The Sovereign Lake trails, the race course for our December Nor-Am’s, finally got some fresh snow last night, which cleaned up the trail well. We woke up in a cloud this morning with low visibility all the way to the trail head. I popped in the new clear lenses on my Rudy’s, expecting an overcast ski. One loop around the trail, however, and the sun burned off the clouds. I was startled to almost run into Jim Miles, Sovereign Lake Ski Trail’s resident photographer. Turns out he took a couple of stealth shots of me on the trail today and sent them on this afternoon.

See ya in West, Kuz
gkuzzy 12:41 am on September 25, 2009 Permalink | Reply

Runners take your mark. . .

The course is set and ready to go for this weekend’s Birkie Trail Run. The grass is cut shorter than a golf green and the mile markers are up. Want some insider info? Two-time defending champion Brian Gregg will be flying back from his brother’s wedding in Washington early on Saturday morning to claim his Hat Trick of victories at the Half Marathon.

Brian Gregg accepting his award at the 2008 Birkie Trail Run.

This just in. . .Brian’s flight was cancelled at the last minute. Without Gregg, who will win this year’s race? CXC skiers are working the timing at the finish on Saturday and will gladly accept bribes.

We’ll look forward to seeing you at the finish!
gkuzzy 3:11 pm on September 14, 2009 Permalink | Reply

Birkie Trail Work

The American Birkebeiner ski trail is a 52km long, 6m wide ribbon of grass that transects the Chequamegon National Forest between Cable and Hayward, Wisconsin. Maintaining the trail requires almost constant attention. The CXC Vertical Limit Team athletes spent Sunday afternoon doing volunteer trail work to get the trail prepped for the winter.

Every five years, brush needs to be cut back from the trail’s edge and tree limbs need to be trimmed. This allows the Tidd Tech’s to groom the trails without running into downed trees and also allows maximal snow accumulation on the trail. We got after it with chain saws, brush cutters, and tree limbers to cut back overgrowth.

Of course, everything that got cut had to be cleared as well. A number of cyclists out inspecting the Fat Tire course for next weekend’s race came across our operation and got some good cyclocross practice dismounting to get over the tree piles. In all, we cleared 2km of trail from OO South. That’s a good chunk of the 10km that needs to be trimmed this year.

It felt good to get out in the woods and do a little manual labor. The highlight for me was kicking back afterwards and listening to the Packers take down the Bears in the opening weekend of the 2009 NFL season!

XC Ski Alliance » Birkie Trail Work is discussing. Toggle Comments
gkuzzy 11:27 pm on September 5, 2009 Permalink | Reply

Hello, Is there anybody in there?

The International Mountain Bike Association (IMBA) has 10 trails around the world they call “IMBA Epics” – sort of like the Seven Wonders of the World for mountain bikers. Atop IMBA’s list is the most famous ride, so famous that Pink Floyd named a song after the trail, Comfortably Numb.

I’m in Whistler, BC at the moment, at a training camp with the national team, Sun Valley, Steinbock, NEG, and more. The training and conditions have been awesome all week. Check out TeamToday for pics and updates on the camp. The great weather we’ve had finally gave way to rain this morning.

Time to ride Comfortably Numb. It wouldn’t be an Epic without wet roots or an overcast view. Pete & I hit the trail early Saturday morning, heeding trailside warnings to “Leave with plenty of time to return before dark.” The 17 mile trail had over 1500 vertical feet of climbing–that’s about 25 round trip rides from Fish Hatchery to OO on the new Makwa Trail in Hayward. Success is measured on this challenging trail not by how fast you can ride it, but how long you can ride without unclipping from your pedals. My record was about 3 minutes. It was an awesome ride, despite the bone chilling rain. Kicking back in the condo this afternoon, I understand why they call the trail, Comfortably Numb.
gkuzzy 11:58 pm on August 23, 2009 Permalink | Reply

CXC is Trendy

Yes, you heard it here first, CXC is Trendy. According to Fasterskier.com, Green and Vintage are the two biggest trends of the 2009 dryland season. They have yet to pick up on the growing Nordic Walking trend, but as they say about all things Nordic, “It’s big in Europe.”

Bill & I spent the afternoon cutting and rebuilding old broken poles found on the Birkie trail over the past 30 years. We will be using these recycled (read: “Green”), old (read: “Vintage”) poles to teach Nordic Walking (hey, “it’s big in Europe”) clinics around the Midwest this fall. Let us know if you’d like to host a Nordic Walking Clinic for your fitness group. All CXC Team Vertical Limit athletes are trained professionals and will put on an informative, entertaining clinic. Get your Nordic on!

Pete Edwards is discussing. Toggle Comments
- Pete Edwards 7:49 pm on September 12, 2009 Permalink | Reply
  
  Nordic Walking is HUGE in Europe with some 8 million Europeans reported to be walking in the cities (with special removable rubber Nordic Walking Tips/Paws on), out in the country and up in the mountains.
  
  Cross country skiers know that one-piece poles are safer, lighter and much more durable than twist-lock and/or flip-lock adjustable length/telescoping/collapsible poles. One-piece poles that are sized correctly improve posture and help to reduce the stress to the shins, knees, hips and back.
  
  Utilizing xc poles that have been cut down to the correct height is a green way to go – keeping old poles out of the landfill and providing an inexpensive way to get folks fired up about Nordic Walking.
  
  Perfect length poles help us to automatically walk with a super straight back – better walking posture is biomechanically a good thing. This improved walking posture when combined with the unique 4-Wheel-Drive type action of walking with poles radically reduces the stress to the shins, knees, hips and back. Nordic Walking is low impact and yet provides a highly effective workout – burning more calories and working more muscle groups than regular walking.
  
  The best Nordic Walking Straps are the fingerless glove type straps patented by the Salomon Ski Company. All of the poles at http://WWW.SKIWALKING.COM and The American Nordic Walking System are equipped these comfortable straps patented by the Salomon Ski Company. All poles also come with removable rubber tips/paws for pavement and other hard surfaces plus durable carbide metal tips for trails, the beach, snow and ice.
  
  Nordic Walking Poles are not just for skiers deprived of snow during the summer! Nordic Walking Poles are helping individuals with balance issues, knee issues or new knees, hip issues or new hips, back issues (including those with rods in their back), weight issues, multiple sclerosis (MS), parkinson’s (PD), neuropathy, arthritis, bursitis, scoliosis, lumbar stenosis, fibromyalgia, post polio, osteoporosis, stroke recovery, cancer recovery and other limitations to walking. Nordic Walking poles are helping thousands of Americans get off the couch, successfully get outside, start walking safely and effectively launch much needed walking campaigns.
  
  If you have poles – hit the trail. If you need poles be sure to avoid cheap twist-lock and flip-lock poles that can’t hold up to Nordic Running, hill bounding and ski walking.
  
  If you have a family member that isn’t getting out and walking daily please consider Nordic Walking Poles – even if the use a cane or walker. When hosting Nordic Walking Clinics and donating real Nordic Walking Poles to the Wounded Warriors program we found that poles that are sized correctly are a huge improvement over their canes and walkers 100% of the time!
  
  Walking with poles is the best – when we can’t find snow for our skinny skis!
gkuzzy 2:26 am on August 6, 2009 Permalink | Reply

The Week of Camps

Every once in a while, we CXC skiers step out of our position of athletes and assume the role of coach. This week has been filled almost entirely with coaching, and I’m gaining a new respect for the hard work that coaches put in on a day-to-day basis!

I started the week with a clinic for the Northland College & St Cloud State University “Endurance Camp” in Delta, Wisconsin. The camp has over 20 high school Nordic skiers and cross country runners training all week: running, rollerskiing, swimming, biking, & doing high ropes course adventures. I was only able to join the group for a morning, but we had a blast running ladders, holding jumping contests, playing balance games, and rollerskiing on the perfect asphalt on the Delta-Drummond Road. After a brief (albeit big) lunch, I bid adieu to the Northland Endurance Camp (thanks to Dave Beeksma for all his hard work organizing the camp!) & made the short trip down to Telemark for the CXC Birkie Junior Technique Camp.

This is the the 10th annual running of the camp and my fourth year being involved. It’s a great chance for middle school & high school skiers of all abilities to get out and get in some great summer technique work. We’re out on rollerskis twice a day for four days, but as difficult and boring as that may sound, it’s been a blast. It’s cool to watch as skiers get more comfortable on rollerskis & really push their limits and make big improvements. This afternoon we skied on Lake Owen Drive and ended the ski with a barbecue and some tubing on Lake Owen. Sweet.

Tomorrow is the last morning of the junior camp and on Friday the Masters Camp starts. I’m looking forward to that as well, but I don’t know how it’s going to be even half as much fun as the junior camp!

Tougher than Packer training camp!
gkuzzy 7:06 pm on July 25, 2009 Permalink | Reply

Minocqua Clinic

Get Your Nordic On! Clinic Recap

Minocqua, WI

July 23, 2009

On Thursday afternoon, July 23, CXC Elite Team skiers Brian Gregg and Garrott Kuzzy led an American Birkebeiner Get Your Nordic On! technique clinic at the new Premier Physical Medicine facility in Woodruff, WI. The skate technique clinic was attended by skiers and coaches from the Lakeland and Rhinelander High School ski teams. Premier Physical Medicine provided an ideal location for the clinic. For the warm-up skiers were run through a series of grueling obstacles on “The Hill,” Premier’s man-made hill behind their clinic comprised of paths, stairs, tires, logs, and even a tunnel.

Brian and Garrott kept everyone on their toes, running them through the CXC Team’s new coordination and agility workout. Lakeland High School coaches Ken & Pam Schoville commented on how challenging these drills were, but added that they were also a lot of fun and ski specific.

Warmed-up and feeling sharp, the entire group was very attentive and picked up quickly on the technique progressions, both on foot and roller skis. Premier’s owner, Dr. Jim Mullen, was also on hand and demonstrated a number of active stretches that will help improve range of motion and prevent injury for the skiers. Brian and Garrott would also like to thank Dr. Dave Kozeluh of Family Dentistry in Minocqua for his support as the CXC Team dentist—keeping our smiles bright.
gkuzzy 1:39 am on July 8, 2009 Permalink | Reply

Welcome to Summer

Summer is in full swing at Cresthill Resort in Hayward, Wisconsin. The past week has been filled with the usual training and highlighted by some good summer flavor.

Musky Fest is Hayward’s big summer festival. The snow that covers Main Street for most of the year is briefly replaced by big crowds, live music, food vendors, and carnival rides. As a side show, there is also a 5km running race, which drew in almost 300 competitors. Brian Gregg and I took part in the festivities and even posted some respectable times on the flat, fast course around town.

Muskies aren’t the only animals active up North right now. During my morning jog last week, I almost ran into a black bear foraging on the side of the road. Neither of us were paying much attention to our surroundings and I think the bear was just as surprised as I was. Fortunately, we both took off running in opposite directions, unlike the bear Dennis Kruse came across a couple of weeks earlier. I’ve seen the same bear a few more times since then and even caught it on camera.

The week ended with a relaxing trip up to Ashland for the Fourth of July, full of parades and Wimbolden finals. We are now back in Camp with 30 of the Midwest’s fastest junior skiers at the Regional Elite Group (REG) Camp. Check back soon for more updates. . .
gkuzzy 10:01 pm on January 15, 2009 Permalink | Reply

Olympic Jump Venue

More of the same great skiing in Whistler–a virtual carbon copy of yesterday, if not a little warmer still. The stadium is totally complete with tracks set for the sprint course, v-boards, fencing, and jumbo-tron. So far, however, this event feels like the smallest World Cup event I’ve seen. Many teams are much smaller than normal–the Norwegians only have one sprinter here–and some big teams are missing completely; I haven’t seen any Finns, Swiss, or Czech skiers at all. Because there is only one distance event here, I heard that many teams left their distance athletes at home. This is surprising considering this will be the only World Cup race on these trails before the Olympics. Don’t be fooled, though. Most of the top skiers in the world are here, especially in the sprint field, and the World Cup points are as valuable here as anywhere else. Everyone in the CXC camp is getting fired up to get out and race.

Bryan race waxed our skis last night so we could test them on the course today. Looks like we’ll be going on klister skis for sure, as the zeros don’t kick at all in the icy fast tracks we’ve got now. I’ve got my fastest classic and skate skis picked out now and will see how the trail looks in the morning when I make my final decision whether to stride the course on classic skis or double-pole the loop on faster gliding skate skis.

There are Jumping and Nordic Combined World Cup competitions taking place here this weekend as well. Following our ski today, we stopped by the jumping complex, adjacent to the Nordic trails, to watch some training jumps. Here are a few photos from the jumps. . .

Caitlin Compton at the jumps

The jumps don't look that big, but check out the skier flying down the 140m hill

Post-training interviews with skiers a long way from home!

We watched the special jumping training (skiers that just compete in ski jumping). There are no US athletes that compete in special jumping. US skiers Billy Demong, currently 3rd in the World Cup Overall, and Johnny Spillane are training later in the afternoon during the Nordic Combined training.

The drive back to Whistler takes about 30 min, but the views help to pass the time