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Sovereign Lake World Cup report



 
 
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  #1  
Old December 13th 05, 05:54 PM
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Default Sovereign Lake World Cup report

My wife and I travelled to Silver Star last week to ski and watch the
world
cup races, but I ended up getting a bit more involved than I could have
imagined. A friend of mine had volunteered months ago to help and so
when
I got there I found out that through illness they were short help for
the
TV crew, who needed spotters on the course. I signed on and went to the
training sessions, even though it meant missing some snow time. At the
first
briefing it turned out that I was the biggest ski geek there and got
assigned a wireless head-set and the stadium posting. I was told I was
the director's eyes out there and could delay the start if the TV
production was
behind ( 60 million people watching live in Europe). Also, I was to
direct
the roving camera guy to the main players and especially Becky and
Sara, it seemed, since
our Canadian camera guys don't really know the sport, and update them
during the race as to relative positions and anything of interest.
It was tremendously exciting, even just skiing around the trails with
the world cup skiers around. Here are a few anecdotes and observations:

#1 Jurgen Brink and Thomas Alsgaard
Most will remember the dramatic finish of the relay in Val di Fiemme
when Brink when out too fast and hit the wall, allowing Alsgaard to go
by and
take the win for Norway. During the pursuit I noticed a tall guy in
Swedish kit looming near me who looked very familiar. It was at the
point in the stadium where they completed the freestyle laps. Brink
came up the
little rise into the stadium looking a bit worse-for-wear and Thomas
Alsgaard was standing there giving him verbal encouragement. I thought
it was
an interesting bit of understated drama. I didn't bother pointing it
out to the crew because I'm not sure anybody but me would have cared
at that point, since they were following the lead pack.

#2 National stereotypes
I saw the German men training as a team. They came by me in a pace line
while
I was out creeping along, struggling with the altitude. It looked quite
impressive, and they chatted quietly as they skied. I think we saw
evidence of
teamwork in the race.
The Italians were boisterous and happy, and seemed to be more randomly
distributed.
I told some of them that my dad was from a city in Friuli, and one
morning when
I got on the shuttle bus they called out "Pordenone". On the way back
Zorzi ( I think) opened the back door of the bus meant for emergencies
and jumped out, triggering
the alarm. He just looked back in and grinned like a kid. Didn't want
to go out the front.
I skied behind Becky and Sara for a bit one day, and they were chatting
away
and talking to people that they met along the way. I can't imagine many
other sports
where this occurs. A downhill skier told me that for world cup events
the skiers are pretty much cloistered in their own world and isolated
from the masses.

#3 Easy means easy
It seems hard to get through to the competitive, testosterone-driven
bunch
who do their distance training in zone 2/3 because their egos won't let
them get passed on the trail, but these elite guys go at a pretty
comfortable pace
when they are out doing easy distance. Save the hard effort
for intervals and races. I'm tired of skiing with people who say they
want
to go for some easy distance and it turns out to be a slugfest... which
is
why I tend to ski by myself alot.

#4
The organization was superb. The people of Vernon were extremely
friendly. This
could be a template for any other venues in North America decides to
host this kind of event. Of course having perfect weather and snow
helps...

#5 German classic technique
I think this could be a better template for us middle-aged guys with
occasional back problems than the classic Scandinavian style. I've
always
wondered about the extreme emphasis on forward lean and feeling like
you are
falling over. To me the important thing is getting the hips high and
forward
and over the kick zone and driving the free leg forward.
I watched them do legs-only drills up a hill and they looked very erect
compared
to the Norwegians. In my experience the most important thing is getting
a good kick and not slipping... one slip seems to use up alot of ATP
and
throws off your rhythm.
I have tended to classic ski in a more "German" way and have been
"corrected"
by instructors to put more lean into it, even though my hips are
forward and
I can glide pretty well on one ski unsupported.

#6 When nature calls
I had to pee through most of the men's pursuit and had to wait until
between the races. The director told me to go and hang out at the
finish line after the men's race so I had to wait until
the melee had finished. So here I am standing in line my turn with 10
mins to the start of the women's race and a voice (imagine a Finnish
accent) comes on the head-set... "Chris, get me Becky Scott for the
camera". "But I really have pee". I managed to make it with a few
minutes
to spare.

#7 Finland v.s. Sweden?
I didn't realize there was a such "thing" between Finland and Sweden.
The directors were Finnish, and I heard some funny comments about
Swedes. During one of the sprints, I heard the director say, "I like
this Swede, he is losing". We had bets going on before the final, and I
felt I had to support Lind to make things fair.


Chris

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  #2  
Old December 13th 05, 06:19 PM
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Posts: n/a
Default

WOW. Best post on RSN this season. What an adventure that turned out to
be !

I like your take on the "German classic technique." Sounds like what I
have arrived at thru trial & error. When I lean forward "Old School"
style, I completely lose it. I have seen recent still photos (even from
Sovereign Lakes) where I see the upright style in non-Germans as well,
so I think we are on the right track. Yep, when slipping, it takes a
huge immediate toll.

  #3  
Old December 13th 05, 06:30 PM
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Posts: n/a
Default

Great report. What an opportunity and fun. Talking about your role, I
remember during the women's pursuit there was a TV shot of Sara Renner,
who was about 10th at the time, that went on and on and on as the
leaders skated away around the next bend, and I was thinking someone has
a fixation on Sara (like David Goldstrum). Was that your doing? ;-) And
is it really "Sara" with an 'ah' like Goldstrum pronounces it? I've
found cross country skiers to be a friendly bunch for the most part and
by the nature of the sport there's a lot more time and ability to
talk. Plus, racers are often helping each other out.

Gene

"cpella" wrote:

My wife and I travelled to Silver Star last week to ski and watch the
world
cup races, but I ended up getting a bit more involved than I could
have imagined. A friend of mine had volunteered months ago to help
and so when
I got there I found out that through illness they were short help for
the
TV crew, who needed spotters on the course. I signed on and went to
the training sessions, even though it meant missing some snow time.
At the first
briefing it turned out that I was the biggest ski geek there and got
assigned a wireless head-set and the stadium posting. I was told I was
the director's eyes out there and could delay the start if the TV
production was
behind ( 60 million people watching live in Europe). Also, I was to
direct
the roving camera guy to the main players and especially Becky and
Sara, it seemed, since
our Canadian camera guys don't really know the sport, and update them
during the race as to relative positions and anything of interest.
It was tremendously exciting, even just skiing around the trails with
the world cup skiers around. Here are a few anecdotes and
observations:

#1 Jurgen Brink and Thomas Alsgaard
Most will remember the dramatic finish of the relay in Val di Fiemme
when Brink when out too fast and hit the wall, allowing Alsgaard to go
by and
take the win for Norway. During the pursuit I noticed a tall guy in
Swedish kit looming near me who looked very familiar. It was at the
point in the stadium where they completed the freestyle laps. Brink
came up the
little rise into the stadium looking a bit worse-for-wear and Thomas
Alsgaard was standing there giving him verbal encouragement. I thought
it was
an interesting bit of understated drama. I didn't bother pointing it
out to the crew because I'm not sure anybody but me would have cared
at that point, since they were following the lead pack.

#2 National stereotypes
I saw the German men training as a team. They came by me in a pace
line while
I was out creeping along, struggling with the altitude. It looked
quite impressive, and they chatted quietly as they skied. I think we
saw evidence of
teamwork in the race.
The Italians were boisterous and happy, and seemed to be more randomly
distributed.
I told some of them that my dad was from a city in Friuli, and one
morning when
I got on the shuttle bus they called out "Pordenone". On the way back
Zorzi ( I think) opened the back door of the bus meant for emergencies
and jumped out, triggering
the alarm. He just looked back in and grinned like a kid. Didn't want
to go out the front.
I skied behind Becky and Sara for a bit one day, and they were
chatting away
and talking to people that they met along the way. I can't imagine
many other sports
where this occurs. A downhill skier told me that for world cup events
the skiers are pretty much cloistered in their own world and isolated
from the masses.

#3 Easy means easy
It seems hard to get through to the competitive, testosterone-driven
bunch
who do their distance training in zone 2/3 because their egos won't
let them get passed on the trail, but these elite guys go at a pretty
comfortable pace
when they are out doing easy distance. Save the hard effort
for intervals and races. I'm tired of skiing with people who say they
want
to go for some easy distance and it turns out to be a slugfest...
which is
why I tend to ski by myself alot.

#4
The organization was superb. The people of Vernon were extremely
friendly. This
could be a template for any other venues in North America decides to
host this kind of event. Of course having perfect weather and snow
helps...

#5 German classic technique
I think this could be a better template for us middle-aged guys with
occasional back problems than the classic Scandinavian style. I've
always
wondered about the extreme emphasis on forward lean and feeling like
you are
falling over. To me the important thing is getting the hips high and
forward
and over the kick zone and driving the free leg forward.
I watched them do legs-only drills up a hill and they looked very
erect compared
to the Norwegians. In my experience the most important thing is
getting a good kick and not slipping... one slip seems to use up alot
of ATP and
throws off your rhythm.
I have tended to classic ski in a more "German" way and have been
"corrected"
by instructors to put more lean into it, even though my hips are
forward and
I can glide pretty well on one ski unsupported.

#6 When nature calls
I had to pee through most of the men's pursuit and had to wait until
between the races. The director told me to go and hang out at the
finish line after the men's race so I had to wait until
the melee had finished. So here I am standing in line my turn with 10
mins to the start of the women's race and a voice (imagine a Finnish
accent) comes on the head-set... "Chris, get me Becky Scott for the
camera". "But I really have pee". I managed to make it with a few
minutes
to spare.

#7 Finland v.s. Sweden?
I didn't realize there was a such "thing" between Finland and Sweden.
The directors were Finnish, and I heard some funny comments about
Swedes. During one of the sprints, I heard the director say, "I like
this Swede, he is losing". We had bets going on before the final, and
I felt I had to support Lind to make things fair.


Chris

  #4  
Old December 13th 05, 07:08 PM
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Posts: n/a
Default

Seeing the Germans last year gave also me more confidence in skiing
relatively upright and focusing on moving from my core area. While not
all the Germans have adopted the style, the ones who have are very
upright, even in skating, and have a lot more up and down motion than
the others. This presumably makes waxing a lot easier, and I wonder if
their classical skis have a softer closing flex or the bounce is enough
to compensate. What I also notice looking at WC classical videos is that
irrespective of the style, they all have an aggressive forward arm
swing on uphills. Like runners, that seems to help drive forward
momentum and a good foot plant.

Gene

"delltodd" wrote:

WOW. Best post on RSN this season. What an adventure that turned out
to be !

I like your take on the "German classic technique." Sounds like what I
have arrived at thru trial & error. When I lean forward "Old School"
style, I completely lose it. I have seen recent still photos (even
from Sovereign Lakes) where I see the upright style in non-Germans as
well, so I think we are on the right track. Yep, when slipping, it
takes a huge immediate toll.

  #5  
Old December 13th 05, 07:35 PM
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Default

.. . . really nice write-up Chris! That was enjoyable to read.
I was simply curious. How long were you working outside/outdoors in the
stadium?
Mark Graves

  #6  
Old December 13th 05, 08:43 PM
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For the pursuits I was in situ at about 8:00 am and was there until
about 12:30 pm. For the sprints I was out here from 9:00 am until they
finished in the early afternoon. Lots of standing around but I didn't
mind that under the circumstances. The temperature was very
comfortable.

Chris

  #7  
Old December 13th 05, 08:53 PM
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Default

I have to burst your bubble, as mine was. When I asked the directors if
I would be able to meet David Goldstrum, they laughed. Apparently the
Eurosport announcers aren't always on site, even if you think they are.
"The magic of TV" , is what the Finnish director said. They could be
sitting in London for all we know. The CBC guys were there, but
personally I think the CBC coverage of nordic sports is rather bad. I
feel like
throttling the CBC "expert" commentator sometimes. Even if the
Eurosport announcers aren't on site, at least they show the whole race
from beginning to end and are much more knowledgeable about the sport.
He does pronounce Sara in the English way, as if he was saying SARS.
What is funny is the Finnish way of saying much, which sounds like
muts.

  #8  
Old December 13th 05, 09:02 PM
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Default

Gene,
That was one of the legs-only drills I saw them doing. They were really
exaggerating their arm swing. Once they had done that for a while they
did the same with one pole and then the other, in progression. I
suspect they do this before every classic ski workout. With Teichmann
there is very little up and down motion though, probably because he is
so strong. He makes it look effortless.
Another thing I noticed...
With the men, there is a becoming a clear differentiation in body type
between sprinters and distance specialists. The Swedes and Norwegians
in the finals were all built like the athletes you see in heavy rowing
eights. Hetland, Lind, Iverson etc... I'm 6' and they towered over me.
The good distance skiers are all average height, some quite a bit
shorter than me. This rule doesn't pertain to the women yet, but
perhaps in the future. Chandra Crawford is an up and coming Canadian
sprinter and she appears taller than the others.

Chris

  #9  
Old December 13th 05, 09:27 PM
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Default

Sometimes they tell you they are on site and indicate the window, but
other times they are in Paris or somewhere. I had the sense he
was in Canada, but not necessarily on site, altho he tried to make it
seem like he had been there for several days. OLN sometimes does
remote bike racing too, if I'm not mistaken.

Gene

"cpella" wrote:

I have to burst your bubble, as mine was. When I asked the directors
if I would be able to meet David Goldstrum, they laughed. Apparently
the Eurosport announcers aren't always on site, even if you think
they are. "The magic of TV" , is what the Finnish director said. They
could be sitting in London for all we know. The CBC guys were there,
but personally I think the CBC coverage of nordic sports is rather
bad. I feel like
throttling the CBC "expert" commentator sometimes. Even if the
Eurosport announcers aren't on site, at least they show the whole race
from beginning to end and are much more knowledgeable about the sport.
He does pronounce Sara in the English way, as if he was saying SARS.
What is funny is the Finnish way of saying much, which sounds like
muts.

  #10  
Old December 14th 05, 12:09 AM
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Posts: n/a
Default

On Tue, 13 Dec 2005 12:30:45 -0600, Gene Goldenfeld
wrote:

Great report. What an opportunity and fun. Talking about your role, I
remember during the women's pursuit there was a TV shot of Sara Renner,
who was about 10th at the time, that went on and on and on as the
leaders skated away around the next bend, and I was thinking someone has
a fixation on Sara (like David Goldstrum). Was that your doing? ;-)


Funny.

Great post.

JFT





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