Note from John

Thursday we will practice at Pineland on foot as the trails will likely be closed. Friday we will have a captain's practice either on foot or on the man made loop if available. Next week is the WMC Championships so, despite the weather, everyone should stay focused, just as you have all year. Good race to all who toed the line yesterday for the sprint, I know the results are mixed up however your efforts were good all around. It is not too early to be prepping your race skis for next week, mid week looks cold for the skate race and a warmer day is forecast for Saturday - of course this may change but cleaning skis and waxing now will save time later.

Thanks,

John

Sassi Recap from John

Last Saturday the team traveled to Rumford for the Sassi Race. This race is the largest HS Nordic Race in Maine with over 400 racers and is a good test to see where all the teams stack up. The Merriconeag team did very well as the girl's team was the overall winner and the boy's team placed fourth. These are truly great results and give validation to the teams focus and dedication in their training. 

Zoe, as she has for all her four years, led the team with a 9th place finish and was recognized in the top 10, despite for her not having her best day. Emelie was not far back in 14th place, followed by Sam in 20th, Teagan in 31st and Carlin in 38th. For the girls - they improved overall from 4th last year to 1st this year - a result they all worked hard for.

The boys' team also had a good day led by Jack in 14th, Graham in 30th, Ben in 45th, John in 52nd, Zach in 56th and Lars in 107th. Many of the team recorded great improvement from last year - Lars jumped 75 places and continues to improve, Samantha, Graham, John, Ben and Emelie also recorded improved results from last years Sassi.

Within the Sassi Race each year is the J2 age group qualification for the Maine Team competing at the New England J2 Championships. This year Zach earned a spot on the team with a strong 18th J2 finish - good luck at the NE Championships Zach!

We are looking forward to the upcoming WMC Championships as well as the State Championships in Presque Isle. Visit the Maine High School Skiing website for complete results and a link to a story about the race in the Lewiston Sun Journal.

RACE ON TUESDAY - January 29

Due to expected rain, the race scheduled for Wednesday, January 30 has been switched to Tuesday, January 29.  It will be a 1.3K skate sprint.

Please note: Pineland has STRONGLY stated that NO PARENTS/SPECTATORS should be on snow for the Tuesday race.  They have so little snow that they do not want any of it mucked up by non-skiers.  You can be on dirt at edge of trail, but NOBODY BUT SKIERS SHOULD BE ON THE RACE COURSE SNOW.  Thank you!

***Note from John***

The new snow should make for good conditions, the race for now is 1.3K but may be extended to 5K if enough new snow allows Oak Hill to open. We should use this race as a tune up for more important races to follow. Try to focus on those areas that you feel need work, this may be a particular technique or  pacing or tempo. For those racing this weekend at Stowe, you can benefit from a hard workout even if you may not feel you will be digging as deep as usual. For wax use Swix lf 8 or equivalent, temps expected to be around 32F.

Thanks,

John

Waxing Update From John

I am forwarding a wax recommendation from BNS with comments.  A graphite base is almost always used under a race wax, so do so if you have one available.  As I recommended earlier a cold LF glide wax is a good choice, Swix LF 4 or equivalent will be good, if you have an HF wax per Roger's recommendation fine, however in my view given the cold conditions the HF is not as critical as it would be in wet or humid conditions. I have hard wax binder and klister binders and can do skis at Pineland Friday at practice in the wax room at Pineland. I also have the hard waxes we will apply at Rumford pre race.  Please be sure to mark the kick zone.  If there is skiing at school Friday we will do easy classic with speed pick ups.  If not, bring running gear and do an easy run with speed mixed in as I wax.

Lastly, fine tune your cold weather clothing for the race and for pre and post race. 

Thanks,

John

PS eat breakfast Saturday and be hydrated!

      
                             From Roger

The glide will be easy. I recommend doing a layer of Ski*Go LF Graphite scraped and brushed. Then do a layer of Ski*Go HF Green. This wax is extremely versatile up to the high of the day vs other Green waxes like Swix 4 and Start Green. For those of you doing a topcoat I would highly recommend Ski*Go C105 block or Ski*Go C22 block. Even though the C22 is for warmer conditions it performs extremely well in these cold conditions as well.

For kick, this should be fairly easy. First a klister binder is highly recommended. Toko Green base klister is the choice. Make sure the zone is sanded well. Put just a few drops on the kick area and smooth out. You want this to be thin. You are looking for a surface that is tacky but not thick in any way. Freeze this overnight. The guess here is that the wax of the day will be Ski*Go HF Blue hardwax, possibly covered by a green wax. Other choices include: Start Synthetic Green, Start Oslo Green Special, Swix VR30, Ski*Go XC Green, and Guru Green.

Shane and I will be on site to test wax and make recommendations so please check in with us there.

Thank you for your support.


Roger Knight 

Today and Tomorrow

Unofficial team practice at Pineland today until 4:30 - no coach

Tonight:

Wax race skis - see wax info below

Friday:

• Bring waxed race skis - John will be putting on a binder Friday afternoon
• Bring rock skis - in case we can ski
• Bring running gear - in case we can't ski

Saturday:

SKI FAST!

WAX INFO:
Have your race skis waxed with a COLD LF wax if possible. Swix LF Green or equivalent works. Scrape and brush making sure to mark the kick zone for a hard wax. John will do a final brush and a hard wax binder so we are ready for the final wax on Saturday.

Stark's MLK Relay Wrap-up and Plans for the Week

Great job at today's relay and mass start races at Starks Hill. It is telling in how far the team has come when other teams do not see our team's results as a surprise, but expected. While this is a testament to hard work by the team, more is possible by a continued dedication to working those weaknesses that need attention.

Today the girls skied a fine race and allowed anchor Zoe to ski the last leg unchallenged. Sam started the girls off in good form leading her opening leg. Lily (skiing for Emelie) skied a fine 2nd leg to give Teagan the chance to mark the team just in front. Zoe skied alone to finish the job.  For the boy's race Graham skied a good leg in a fast start giving Ben the 2nd leg with a number of teams close by. Ben closed in on the lead team and Zack held position and gave Jack the chance to close on the lead Yarmouth Team. Jack skied a very strong last leg missing a win by a matter of seconds. John, Lars and Carlin all raced in the mass start race and had good finishes.

Next up on Saturday is the Sassi Classic at Black Mountain. This is one of the highlights of the year so a week of skiing, school and rest is important.

Tuesday 1-22-13 is expected to bring new snow so we will NOT do a practice. If school is held and Pineland is open and you have the chance to ski on your own - ok, otherwise use the time to catch up on schoolwork and recovery for classic practice Wednesday and Thursday.

John

Christmas Camp wrap-up from John

***See next post below for race/wax info for Monday's race***

After Christmas the Merriconeag Ski Team traveled to Carrabasett Valley for a four day pre-season camp. After a struggle to find snow last year at Christmas camp, we were rewarded with fantastic conditions this time. Thanks to the generosity of the Cashell family, we were encamped at their wonderful retreat along the Carrabasett River in New Portland, a 35 minute drive to the Outdoor Center at the base of Sugarloaf Mountain. Our camp was delayed one day thanks to a post Christmas snow storm that covered the state, leaving close to two feet of snow on the trails. I have skied often at the outdoor center, however this was the first time since the lodge was rebuilt and the parking lot moved. One thing I was aware of was the trail network itself, situated on the side of the alpine slopes. The network consisted of a maze of trails around the lodge and longer routes up the slope and back down.

Our first two days were spent exploring these trails, long climbs followed by a fast decent made for tired skiers all around. After two days we moved to the more moderate Redington Trail with rolling terrain and found great skiing. We skied twice each day and experienced cold winter conditions, just the way to kick off the ski season.

There was more to the camp than just skiing on perfect groomed trails - the group was looking for a special winter experience and it did find us! Returning to our warm and cozy cabin on a dark, cold, windy evening the team van and escorts failed to transit our local short cut on the well named Airport Rd. This road was well plowed at the entrance, however half way through the wind driven snow had drifted deep and firm, making the passage impossible. I was in my truck with 4 wheel drive and new studded tires and just made it through ahead of our caravan. I attempted to drive around the long way and save the rest from the pearls of the snow covered road but alas, without luck. Despite the manpower of the ski team we were unable to push out the snow stuck autos. After a return to the camp for shovels, with lots of snow removal and manpower we finally unstuck ourselves and returned a tired lot to a warm home. Luckily Susan's car was able to get free first and Jennifer with a few of the girls got a head start on dinner that awaited us upon our arrival

I was surprised after dinner that the team was still willing to venture outside for a moonlight ski on the local snowmobile trails after a full day of skiing and pushing out stuck cars. Lucky for us, the trail was just at the end of the driveway and the snow was packed by the snow machines, making for fun skiing with headlamps. Being outside in such conditions is always for me one of the highlights of winter, especially when the conditions are perfect.

On behalf of the team, a special thanks to the parents for making the camp possible, and extra special thanks to Jason, Jennifer and Susan for all their efforts and help during the camp. We are now in the middle of the competition season and the team is performing at a very high level thanks to their dedication and preparations - I will give a summary of our races to date shortly.

John

MLK race day info from John

Monday is looking to be very cold so please plan ahead to prepare for the conditions. Be sure to have a pair of warm gloves or mitts, a neck warmer, extra hat, face cream or skin protector, extra layers of underwear, warm-ups, parka, backpack to handle extra gear, drink and food. Skiing in the cold can be some of the most enjoyable with hard tracks, just do not let yourself get cold - skiing will help you stay warm.

For wax - simple - Swix LF 4 or CH 4 or equivalant and brush well.

Monday race schedule:

Boys Relay at 10:30

Girls Relay at 11:35

Boys Individual - Mass start at 12:45

Girls Individual - Mass start at 12:50

We have skiers in all 4 races, so our team will be at Fryeburg until close to 2:00, arriving back to Desert Rd around 3:30.  As you can see, the team will be there for a long time, so even more reason to bring warm clothes, food and water.

Saturday and Sunday should be nice - try to ski 45 - 90 minutes easy each day.

***Two vans leave Desert Rd Monday morning at 7:45.***

NO RACE TODAY

While it looks mighty snowy outside, unfortunately not enough snow has fallen at Pineland to be able to hold a race today.  Fingers crossed that more continues to fall ...

Race Info for 1/16/13

Oh the joys of nordic skiing in January in Maine ...

Here's what we know about the race tomorrow - Pineland says that if we get 2+ inches of new snow we can probably hold the race at Oak Hill.  Weather reports currently are predicting 2-4 inches, so it's possibly we may be able to race.

Stay tuned during the day on Wednesday as we stay closely connected to Pineland and the weather.  As soon as any final determination is made, it will be posted on the blog.

Wax/Ski Info

Update on Wednesday morning:

John skied the course again this morning and chatted with the groomer.  The course WILL be in the woods.
AND NOTE - this race is at Twin Brook!

Wax note from John:

I did the course this morning and it is all in the fields, no woods, at least that is what I expect. You should expect to use your race skis but do wax and have your warm up skis ready to use should conditions change. The overnight temps are expected to be in the mid 20's and race time temp around 40F. For Glide base use a graphite base and race wax LF8 or LF10, you can mix them 50/50. If this was a championship race we would use a different combo but this should be close. For kick,clean and sand base, we will do waxing for kick on site. I think we will end up with a warm hard wax like VR 70 or 75. We would only go to a klister if nothing in the hard wax works at all as the course is fairly flat. See you all tomorrow.

Merriconeag in the News!

Here is a link to a brief PPH article about the Telstar Relay. Coach Tarling is interviewed!

Click here to read the article...

Here is a link to a Lewiston Sun Journal Article about the Relays. Merriconeag is in the headline!

Click here to read the article...

Check the Race Photos tab for a link to photos for purchase from Telstar

Note from John

I hope all are taking a couple of easy days to recover from a volume week and a race on Wednesday. Getting out for a short easy ski Friday is a good idea.  It is important to ski easy but mix in a few short pick ups to keep the feel of race pace. Saturday looks to be sunny with a high of around 20F and overnight low in the mid teens so wax selection is similar to the last race. The venue is wide open so be prepared with full winter warm ups as it may be breezy. Try to plan ahead to keep from getting cold before or during the race.  A few ideas:

- a buff for neck

- light weight hat to have under race hat

- glove liners

- warmer mitts rather than race gloves

- good hydration before the race

- minimize standing still

- carry a back pack for extra gear

- hand and foot warmers

- additional layer under race suit

Also a good practice is to work back from your start time and establish a routine: a warm up with pick ups; remove warm ups; check gear and adjust clothing and get to the line up; keep moving even while in line w/o warm ups.  Generally a course preview is desirable for a short race and always look at the start and finish sections to be familiar with the best line and lanes for passing and also to know where you can prevent a skier from passing you.  After the race be sure to get in warm ups before you get cold, drink fluids and do a short post race ski to help prevent lactate from settling in tired muscles.

These early races are a good opportunity to experiment with pacing and different techniques. Almost always you want to get out fast and then settle to a pace you can hold vs. pushing the pace to the max at the start.  Another hint is to break the race into sections and focus on checking off each, then refocus as you move to the next section.

I was impressed with the team overall on Wednesday, even after a long week everyone raced hard and gave their all. Special props to Zoe on a gutsy win and all the girls for a team win to start the year in a good place - also Lily scored valuable points to seal the win. The boys also showed good form with a fine third against all our local competition. I will do a recap of the successful camp at Sugarloaf soon.

John

***Be sure and read the post below for info about the Telstar race***

Telstar Info

Great start to the season at the Pineland race yesterday!  And now, moving right along to the next race ...

As you probably know by now, most of the team (all except Lars and Samantha) are participating in the Telstar Relay Race this Saturday, January 5.  We will take 1 school van, which will fit all skiers plus John Tarling.  See the link below for race info.  Please send an email to highschool@merriconeag.org if your skier will NOT be riding the van.  Otherwise we expect all skiers will be on the van, departing Desert Rd at 8:00 AM Saturday morning.

Space in the van will be tight, so please bring only what you need.

Remember to bring the usual race supplies:
- Ski gear
- Food for before and after the race
- Water
- Warm clothes

Click here for Telstar Race Info

FYI - Hot and cold drinks, snacks, grilled cheese and chili/soup will be available for purchase at Telstar High School.

Wax Info for Wednesday Race

From John:

I skied at Pineland this afternoon and the conditions are good, no obstruction so race skis may be used.  The course is the Oak Hill loop w/o the Gloucester Hill section.

Ski wax should be straight forward, cold overnight 7F, high in afternoon around 20F, so Swix CH 6 or Graphite as a base and CH7 or LF7 for final layer.  Be sure to brush out skis before waxing and after each layer, removing all wax on the surface.  If you do not have Swix, any other brand for about 20F will work.

See everyone at 2:30 at the visitor center.....Dress Warm!

Thanks,

John