CXC Elite Team Blog

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• audreyweber 3:50 am on September 19, 2009 Permalink | Reply  

  Twin Cities Happenings 

  Well, it’s been a busy week since I drove home from Hayward on Monday.  Luckily, it is a pretty low-volume, low-intensity week due to the speed block we completed at camp, so I have some spare time for non-training activities. 

  I spent the first half of the week preparing for the first event of my trail running series, which took place Wednesday night at Hyland Park in Bloomington.  It was the first race I have organized, so I was a little stressed pulling it all together, remembering all the supplies, and micromanaging the volunteers who helped me set up the course and registration (thanks Mom and Dad).  But the racers didn’t seem to notice my frenzied condition and a fun and fast time was had by all.  Post-race we had some tasty treats and gave away some raffle prizes from Salomon and Hoigaards, including 2 pairs of XT Wings shoes.  The fun continues next Wednesday night, as well as on October 21 and 28.  For more info visit http://www.SalomonAutumnTrailSeries.blogspot.com

  

  Myself and the race volunteers setting up registration.

  

  The race start. I was pleased with the race turnout, and already have as many people pre-registered for next week.

  I had Thursday to get race results up online as well as take my boyfriend out to a theater performance for his birthday.

  Friday I was back in action at GearWest in Long Lake for the first of the team’s Super Fit Weekends.  Bryan, Yuriy, Igor, myself, Garrott, and Matt were busy testing peoples’ old skis for fit on the 3D pressure sensor mat and fitting new skis.  Bryan also gave a wax clinic in the evening.  We’ll be at the store Saturday and Sunday testing skis all day, and on Saturday there is a roller ski clinic at 8AM, a Birkie presentation with Matt Liebsch at 4:30 PM, and a training talk by Bryan at 5.  Come out and see us!

   

  

  The scene at the Gear West Super Fit. Garrott fits a high school racer with new skis, while Yuriy and Igor help a master skier to test his old skis and find a compatible new pair on the 3D pressure mat.

  

  Bryan answers questions after his waxing clinic.
   

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• kchaudoin 6:05 pm on September 7, 2009 Permalink | Reply  

  Fitting It All In 

  

  Instead of sending Fish a monthly training log, I think pictures of my increasingly awful sportsbra tanline will be sufficient.

  

  Captain of the pontoon...

  

  Huge fish!!! Unfortunately just a huge rock...

  Well, we’re in Hayward again. It’s absolutely nuts how quickly the summer is passing! It’s September already and we can technically consider it fall, yikes. Don’t get me wrong, fall is probably my favorite season, with all of the leaves changing colors and the temperature dropping a bit, but I don’t think I’m quite ready for it. I’m pretty sure I can count the number of typical “summer days” that we’ve had on one hand…maybe two…but of course none of those fell on a Monday, which is usually our only day off each week. Oh well, I can’t complain too much. The weather has been optimal for training, and though not every day is perfectly sunny in the 80’s, I still found a few days to have some relaxed, fun-in-the-sun.

  One of those days that I found was during my last two week period at home. One of the perks of working at Silver Rapids Lodge (where I work the front desk and waitress) is that employees are able to rent watercrafts for free. KP and I took advantage of that one of the Mondays that we both had off while he was visiting in Ely, and took out one of SRL’s pontoons. We were only able to stay out on the water for a few hours (due to a storm that was coming in) but it was still a relaxing, and awesome time. We packed a lunch, some fishing rods, and sunscreen, and were all set to enjoy the afternoon.

  Another highlight of my time at home was the “Get Your Nordic On” Nordic Walking Clinic that I held in Ely. I was really nervous no one was going to show up…but I actually had a few make the clinic. Though I am not an expert Nordic walker by any means, the clinic went especially well. It is awesome leaving a clinic that everyone enjoyed, and over half the people are asking you where to buy the Nordic walking poles so that they can continue the sport that you introduced to them.

  As for the Hayward camp, it has been going really well. As Karl was writing, we VO2max tested on Thursday. My test went well and it’s really encouraging to see on paper that I’m becoming fitter and just improving as an endurance athlete in general. As for the next couple of days we are taking it a bit easier than usual, getting ready for our second speed block of the year. It’s a week that not many people are ever REALLY looking forward to, but it’s just one of those times that you are have to be mentally tough and think about how much faster it will make you this winter. So…bring it on!
   

• 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!
   

• kletz 1:40 pm on June 9, 2009 Permalink | Reply  

  Get Your Nordic On! Rochester Clinic Recap 

  
  Rochester, MN
  June 7, 2009

  The 2009 rollerski season is underway! The Rochester Active Sports Club and Rochester Nordic Ski Team hosted a great early summer rollerski clinic led by US Ski Team and CXC Elite skier Garrott Kuzzy. By attending, clinic participants earned the technique clinic portion of the USSA Level 100 Coaches Certification.

  The Rochester Active Sports Club is a conglomeration of silent sport enthusiasts in the Rochester area. In only a few years, they have developed an extensive trail network with the help of a great volunteer workforce, allowing local skiers to ski on only minimal amounts of snow. In addition to the trail network, they have grown their junior program to over 100 skiers, led by about 12 volunteer coaches. The enthusiasm for skiing in Rochester is infectious; look for the club to expand both their trail network and skier base in the coming years.

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  During the clinic, Kuzzy led skiers through a progression of dryland drills, both on foot and on rollerskis, to develop a strong technique base upon which to build over the summer and fall. The basics were taught in an easy to follow progression used to teach USSA Level 100 Coaches Certification. The coaches at the clinic will be able to use many of these drills when coaching their skiers this fall and winter. The skiers at the clinic will have skills to master throughout the summer so they are ready to fly when they get on snow this winter. A big thanks to the Rochester Nordic Club for doing a great job getting the clinic organized and even hosting informal rollerski practices over the past couple of weeks to get newcomers comfortable on their rollerskis before the clinic.

  For more information on getting a clinic for your Nordic Club this summer or fall, contact Garrott Kuzzy – garrottkuzzy@yahoo.com.
   

• Brian Gregg 3:36 am on February 11, 2009 Permalink | Reply  

  CXC Skiers share Birkebeiner Story with Hayward Schools 

  By Brian Gregg

  The ‘Skiers’ came to class at the Hayward Primary School on Monday. Kristina, Heather, Katie and I presented a short skit of the Birkebeiner Story, brought in our ski equipment for show and tell, taught the crowd a few skiing cheers and shared our experiences as professional cross country skiers.

  Thanks to Janet Wisdom for helping to organize the day, what started out as visiting one classroom grew to 19 different classes. We had a lot of fun.

  

  Cross Country Ski Show and Tell

  

  Protecting young Prince Hakkon. Kristina told the Birkebeiner story and we acted it out.

  

  Refueling our bodies and minds at Lunch

  

  Who wants to play tag?

  

  XC Skiing is Cool, but nothing beats ‘Tag’ at Recess

  

  With staggered Lunch/Recess and fresh teams of kids, it was a fun and intense 45 minutes of  tag.

  

  The Barnebirke is on Thursday February 19th at 12:30pm. Come on out and ski and cheer, it will be a good time.
   

• jojowinters 4:16 am on November 17, 2008 Permalink | Reply  

  Jojo and Caitlin’s Twin Cities Traveling Ski Clinic 

  Earlier this month, Twin Cities skiing cohorts Caitlin Compton and Jojo Winters held their first of two ski clinics in the Minneapolis and St. Paul metro area as part of their Traveling Ski Clinic series. After completing a long over-distance ski in unseasonably warm weather, the girls wolfed down lunch in time to greet their clinic participants at Baker park Reserve in Maple Plain, MN. There was a wide range of skiers from beginners to more seasoned athletes.

  Caitlin and Jojo led the group of eager skiers through a warm up jog, a progression of stretches, and a series of isometric core strength exercises. The group also got a taste for some of the plyometric drills that the CXC Team practices to develop quick and explosive movements.

  Before strapping on the rollerskis, Caitlin and Jojo debriefed the group on the fundamentals of skiing technique, beginning with basic body positioning, knee and ankle flexion, and forward hips. The instructors also demonstrated a number of dryland drills to emphasize proper body positioning and utilization of the core muscles.

  Next it was time to hit the pavement. Jojo demonstrated the “locked and loaded” double pole drill and discussed how this dynamic usage of the core muscles translates to both classic and skate skiing. Caitlin worked with participants on the proper timing of V1, V2, and V2-alternate techniques. The instructors chased their flock around the parking lot as they worked on snappy push-off, long glide, and dynamic weight transfer.

  The group then migrated to a hill where they focused on finding a comfortable and efficient body position that allowed them to V2 up the incline. They also practiced V1 drills, such as “hot feet,” to emphasize quick and snappy weight transfer when climbing a hill. There were even some first-time rollerskiers in the bunch who braved skiing back down the narrow path and suffered no casualties!

  After three hours of hard work, clinic participants refueled on homemade pumpkin cookies, and had a chance to win a plethora of skier schwag in a free raffle. Prizes included water bottles (one can never have enough of those), winter ski hats and gloves, gift certificates for massages, a free Toko thermo bag wax service at Hoigaard’s, and an entry to the City of Lakes Loppet ski marathon. And for the finale, everyone was invited to Gear West in Long Lake for hot chocolate and “goodie bags” provided by Gear West owner Jan Guenther. The unseasonably warm weather did not deter the bunch from getting excited about the upcoming winter months!

  

  

  

  
  

  

  

  

  
  
  

  
  
   

• koskier 2:53 am on November 2, 2008 Permalink | Reply  

  Madison (by Kristina Owen) 

  In the last college ranking list that Playboy magazine published, they listed University of Wisconsin-Madison as the biggest party school in the nation. There were many reasons why Playboy felt that they had earned this distinction, but their annual Halloween festivities were high on the list.

  I mention this because it’s a measure of how tame my life has become. Heather and i are down in Madison for the weekend, which happens to be Halloween weekend, the weekend of biggest party of the year at the biggest party school in the country. And what are we doing? Eh, you know, fitting skis at the local shop (Fontana Sports), doing some clinics, training, hanging out with Yuriy, and going to bed early. We didn’t even bother to bring costumes. I know…seriously lame.

  And we’ll be doing it all again tomorrow, so if you’re in the area, be sure to say hi. We’ve got a clinic in the morning at Badger park, and we’ll be at the west branch of Fontana all afternoon.

  New toy: a pressure mat for more precise ski fitting. Apparently there’s only two of these out there. One belongs to the Canadian national team, and the other to Salomon USA. It’s seriously cool stuff. If you want to see it in action for yourself, i’d be willing to bet that it’s going to be out in Yellowstone for the Fall Festival expos.

  Coach Natalie: “I want you to start with a thin layer of Toko green base, and then we’ll cover with a few layers of Toko blue…”