First off, a big congrats to Taz Mannix and the USST coaching crew for winning the OPA (European Continental Cup) 15km skate race in Planica, Slovenia. This is a great accomplishment and shows that the US has some talent brewing and a development program that is working. Click here to read the fasterskier.com article and here for the Teamtoday version.
It will be exciting to see if the US World Cup crew can continue their breakthrough performances this year as the Sapporo World Championships kick off February 22nd. I wish the 15km individual race was classic technique, as Kris Freeman seems to be ready to dominate (10th and 15th in skate races on the world cup this year), but just hasn't had the chance to put on the classic skis and go. The US Sprinters certainly have high expectations as Newell, Randall, Koos, and Cook have all shown theiy have the necessary speed to compete in World Cups this year. It is hard not to be excited about the potential for serious results from the US this year. The Sapporo World Championships schedule is here, with WCSN.com broadcast schedule here.
A friend forwarded this article about XC skiing on the moon. It is worth a read. I'm not the only random XC skier out there.
As people begin the trek to Northern Wisconsin, there is still a lot of uncertainty. The news from the Birkie Foundation itself is alarmingly positive. The official word is the conditions are "generally good with some sections rated as 'fair'". This news release brought back memories of listening to similar pronouncements on the radio in 2000, mired ankle-deep in dirty slush, staring at disbelief at Birkie Trail as the rain poured down. Given the weather forecast and the firsthand reports we've heard, I'm crossing my fingers while programming the customer service numbers for the airlines into my phone. I think there will be a race, but wow, it is going to be a nailbiter. The best we can do is show up ready to have fun and make sure that we hit that target. There are a lot of good bars in the Hayward/Seeley/Cable area and the world's largest Muskie is a sight to behold.
So, what to do with our skis? It is currently Monday and I have not seen the trail. Conditions on the birkie trail right now have been described to me as granular, dirty and hard. The weather outlook does not look ideal as it will warm up mid week and possibly melt out a bit just in time for some unsettled weather to move in Friday. The reports I've seen have been predicting a 20-30% chance of very light snow on Friday, with an overnight low of 15-20F. It looks likely that snow will be falling Saturday with a high in the mid 30s and we could even get some of that fun "wintry mix". As the Birkie Trail Report says, "think snow".
Recommendations for structure: It is so hard to predict what will happen this far out, so please test skis as much as you can and be prepared to be flexible. With big weather swings forecast, we will need to get more testing data to have any sort of meaningful info. My guess at this point is that we will be racing on ZR1XL, but that could easily be a ZR2, Q1 or even ZR1 if things change slightly from what is currently predicted.
For wax, stay tuned to Swix and Toko, as you can bet that they are probably paying attention to this event. And licking their lips because you can also bet that your wax job will require approximately $4300 worth of fluorinated waxes for Saturday's Main Event. HFBD7 and FC1 for Swix with possible alternative HF8/FC8. For Toko, it will probably be Toko HF Moly, HF Red mix covered with Jetstream old snow (Moly?). Test Helx to see if it is deciding to go fast or suck. Same with any of the BD's. For some reason they seem to be great when they are great, but they can also stink. These conditions are textbook perfect for these waxes, but you never know....
Stay tuned, we'll try to do daily updates on the birkie with first-hand reports beginning Wednesday evening.
Speaking of Birkie Fever, the new Master Skier is out and in full Birkie fervor mode. Don't miss the last MS of the season with articles on aerodynamic bib placement and a thorough review of skating technique by World Champion Vincent Vittoz. We have a few copies in the store.
Regardless of what happens in Hayward, Wisconsin, the Snow Mountain Stampede will be happening the following Saturday, and unless Armageddon arrives, the snow will be plentiful. This is Colorado's premier race and as such we want to go big with it. The landlord nixed the livestock corral in the front of the store, but we'll dress up in our our best cowboy gitup and jump into the theme with some great service and wax specials. Experience the same ski treatments we gave Subaru Factory Team skiers Lars Flora and Kristina Strandberg the night before they won Continental Cup races in West Yellowstone.
Stampede Special 1: The Cowboy. Receive the stone grind of your choice, Extreme Hot Box Treatment with fluorinated waxes and full race wax including HF underlayer and pure fluoro (Cera F) for $125 (regularly $175). All skis must be received at BNS by high noon on Monday, February 26th for pickup at Snow Mountain Ranch Saturday morning beginning just after sun-up (7AM).
Stampede Special 2: The Rancher. Snow Mountain Ranch Race Wax: Extreme Heat Box treatment with Low Fluoro waxes followed by an HF final layer for $40 (regularly $49). Drop off your skis at BNS by Thursday, March 1 at sundown and pick them up at Snow Mountain Ranch Saturday morning just after sunrise (7AM).
Stampede Special 3: Desperado. Get what you need to stay ahead of the Posse. Say "Buzzards gotta eat, same as worms" and receive 20% off any 3 wax items. Just don't spit on the floor.