From Steve Thatcher...

Last class is next week. We'll do students choice again. That worked well last week.

Pizza Party: Please RSVP if you are coming to the Pizza Party. Indicate if you need vegetarian. S.O.'s and potential new members welcome. Awards, Prizes and lots of talk with your ski buddies. Feel free to bring a desert or salad to pass. Let me know.

Mora Carpooling: Carpooling to the Mora Vasaloppet: Meet at Moore Lake Lifetime Fitness Parking Lot 7:15am Sunday. This time is set up to work with the Freestyle start time of 10:00. You'll also be shuttled to the start and then cars will be driven back to the finish. No Bus Riding. We may need one additional driver. Bring a friend and then can chase the race back to Mora with Jyneen cheering and watching along the way. Let me know so we can plan vehicles.

Birkie Teams: I need to get all the R&G team members doing the Birkie or Korte to them by Monday. So let me know if you are racing. You have to already be registered. We still need a classic Korte person. I need your birth date as well.

March Trip: For the last several years we have done a North Shore trip in March. Skiing at Sugarbush. Anyone interested in a Last Gasp Trip this year. Maybe we could just go to ABR. They have great Spring Skiing. If we go it would be the weekend of March 14 or 21.

Skiing Time Trail: Next Sunday Feb 15 we will have the Winter installment of the Skiers vs Cyclists Timetrial. This will be a 6K flat loop at Lake Elmo. Skiers, it's time to come out and stick it to the cyclists. Show-em that anyone can ride a bike but it takes a .... You know. Everyone's welcome. You don't need to have done the bike portion last Summer. Prizes for the best combined time with the August Road TT. The perfect Pre-Birke Speed Workout. Watch for a separate announcement.

Video Taping: Saturday Feb 7. Meet inside at noon. RSVP

Steve Thatcher: I got two skiers. Ron and Kailash. I first checked them out on V1. They were at different levels proficiency wise so I took each of them aside separately and came them some things to work on and then let them ski while I worked with the other. Effectively 2 private lessons. As I have been stressing all year to do the V1 efficiently on hills you must set the ski and two poles down at the same time. A lot of beginners are still struggling with V1 on hills because they set their ski down before they plant their poles. This causes them to slow down and eventually stall out as the poles aren't there soon enough to help with the movement up the hill. In fast conditions and if you have a strong kick you can get away with this improper timing but eventually you tire or the snow is slow and the trouble begins. We worked on just falling on the strong side and feeling the ski hit the snow and trying to time the poles to the slap of the ski. That seemed to help. It also helps to count cadence (1-2, 1-2) and ski to that rhythm. A good way to learn a passable V1 is to forget about trying to skate to the strong side, but instead just fall on the strong side ski and pole and then do the skate push off to the weak side. This will give you a very useable V1 and will serve as a good foundation to improve your V1 later by adding a skate to the strong side move. I have found this approach to work for a lot of skiers. It's gets them so they can at least climb hills better and then we can work on better motions as they get proficient. The falling V1 technique is also a good stroke when you're dead tired and just trying to get back to the car or the end of the race.

We also worked on staying low while climbing. Too many skiers stand too tall while climbing a hill (myself included at times). We started out by sinking straight down with the knees and then leaning forward from the ankles. We tried to get the torso parallel with the snow. The I had them ski that way. Staying low with their torso somewhat parallel with the ground. This is an exaggeration of the movement required but it worked to get the skiers to feel what it's like to stay down and use the upper body to help with climbing. Then they just dialed it back a bit and it was a big improvement. It does take for strength to ski this way and you will get tired but you will eventually be able to handle it as your muscles develop the resistance to handle these moves.

Next we worked on skiing slowly. A lot of skiers have only one speed. All Out. They thrash along and eventually have to stop because they are exhausted. Skiing slowly is technically more difficult but it also prevents you from burning out and forces you to do things right. You can't cheat. You need to be able to ski slowly if you're going to go out for a long ski or race and not blow up. Try to develop several speeds in your skiing. Slow down and think about what you are doing.

- Steve Thatcher

In the advanced skate we focused on open field skate and corning in preparation for Mora. In terms of open field we talked about fully committing to each ski in order to get a good big push and take advantage of the glide. We also talked about tempo and finding a good rhythm that makes sense for the terrain and your speed. The faster you're going the slower your tempo can be. As you slow down, especially as the terrain becomes steeper, you'll need to up your tempo. We also worked on some cornering again along with powering out of corners.

- Erik

The cold kept all but 4 students from our group away. Arvid and I worked with the die-hards on transitions and hills again. Conditions were pretty fast, and some of the downhill sections were icy, so we worked on downhills, to increase comfort with that. Downhill is not that much different for classical than it is for skating. The first principle is that if you fight the hill and sit too far back on your skis, you won't be in control. You have to almost attack the hill. If you're in the tracks, and the hill's not too steep and has no sharp turns, bring your hands out in front of you to help keep your weight balanced, and let the skis simply follow the tracks. You can lean on the inside edge of your outside ski (the one on the outside of the turn) to help guide you around the turn.

If the turn is a little too sharp and your speed is a little too fast to keep your skis in the track, do a step turn (skate) around the turn. That is, use your outside ski to push your inside ski back into the track. Even if your inside ski pops out of the track, you can often continue to skate around the turn, if you're aggressive enough. It's important to get enough weight over the outside ski to get some bite from the edge of the ski. Most of us have a tendency to naturally want to get onto the inside ski, but this is self-defeating. It takes some practice to overcome this tendency. Practice on a hill you feel comfortable with, and don't be afraid to fall down. It's ok to take a few falls while you're learning. Remember to keep your hands out in front of you.

If the hill's really steep or fast, you may have no choice but to do a wedge and slow down in order to make the turn. You can adjust the force you put on the outside ski and control your speed. As you get more comfortable, you can take turns faster, and even transition into a step turn part way through.

If hills make you uncomfortable, find a reasonably challenging one and start near the bottom. Then go back and start a little higher. Keep working up the hill until you're comfortable doing the whole hill. Before you know it, you'll feel comfortable flying down the whole hill. And don't forget, if you're not falling down, you're not having fun.

- Ken Tobacman

We had another small group of stalwart skiers, braving the cold, icy conditions. By modifying our expectations, we managed to have fun. But a few reminders to all:

1. A lot of what we did in class are exercises - drills that accentuate motions so that you can see and feel the difference. As you become more skilled, the motion is changed into a more fluid, efficient movement. That is skiing. Kick and glide.

2. I have said that there are no wrong ways to do a skill, just less efficient or effective ways. Actually, if you aren't doing movements right, they are wrong. Each of us coaches has a different way of teaching, often patterned after our personal way of learning. And we emphasize different pieces of the technique puzzle. That is why I might tell someone to lean forward more, but another coach says "stand up straighter." Hopefully, we have conveyed the target concepts, and by now you can tell which of the criticisms will improve your performance.

3. We can only teach you the techniques. Balance, and auxilliary stuff like clothing and waxing, are things best learned by yourself. We can make suggestions, but you need to make the ultimate decision on whether you are more comfortable skiing in light-weight gloves or mittens.

- Jyneen Thatcher

City of Lake Loppet Weekend - Shad Holland

I spent both Saturday and Sunday volunteering as medical support. I did this as a Bike Patroller rather than a ski patroller.

The first day was the Ice Bike Races put on by Penn Cycle. At first it looked like the course was going to be super short. But whoever made the Ice Bike Race course did a great job! It was tight and twisty, which is always interesting on ice, which made it a lot longer than it looked. mara also volunteered Saturday as a Bike Patroller too. We had a great time! The weather was warm and people were having fun riding and watching the Ice Races. The highlight of the Ice Race was when Hollywood (Jay Henderson) had the lead for the entire A Class race, only to lose his lead in the last lap because of a flat tire. But he can still smile because he had a big enough lead to get third and had he not gotten the flat.....there is no way the other two riders would have caught him.

Later Saturday evening mara and I volunteered as Medical Support, on skis this time, for the Lumminary Loppet. The higher winds kept blowing out the candles, yet the event was still a fun one. We took our time skiing around the lakes listening to the jabber on the radio.....missing kid here....fighting couple there....another missing child....and so on. In the end, everyone was accounted for and the night went on. mara and I stopped to watch some dancers who had ropes with fire on the ends of them. They would swing the flames around in cool patterns to the music. It was neat to watch for awhile.....and I was happy to not have to use my burn care ointment.

Then came Sunday, the big day and the big races! mara raced in the 35k Freestyle event. I bike patrolled, see picture, on a Surly Pugsley. After mara started her race in the 5th wave I headed towards uptown to park and start riding the course in reverse to my post at the 394 water stop. I basically b-lined it across the lakes to get there as fast as I could. By the time I got across Brownie Lake, the first place Freestyle skier blew past me. That seemed amazing to me. For someone to be able to get through the Back 9, the wooded area (where the mountain bike trails are), and across the Front 9, through the Eloise Butler Gardens, and the Quaking Bog.......in under 1 hour!!! Wow!! I have no idea what it takes to be that fast on skis.....but it's truly hard to believe. I hung out at the 394 water stop for about 1/3 of the 35k field, then started riding the course towards the finish. The nice thing about the Pugsley and it's huge tires is that I can ride on the groomed trail and you don't notice any tire tread. So it's safe for skiers, unlike having a typical 2.1" mountain bike tire that would leave a rut for a ski to catch in. I stopped at the trail leading onto Cedar Lake and waited there until I saw mara come through. I was expecting a bit more of a wait. I saw John Schmidt go by then Steve go by shortly after him. It wasn't long before mara came by. I was like....wow....mara isn't that far behind Steve and John! Not realizing she was a couple of waves back from them, I didn't know she was ahead of them at that time.....but she was. Her finish time was just under 2 hours and 14 minutes....beating both Steve's and John's time. Sorry guys, gotta rub this in when I can....;-). mara was excited about her finish, but she was shocked, and I must admit a bit excited too, that she beat both of them. They are really good skiers and it made her feel good.

The best part of the weekend, besides mara's awesome finish, was that I didn't have to crack open my medical bag. There was one minor injury (collerbone) all weekend. This was the best COLL I have seen! A huge thanks goes out to the Loppet organization that puts this event on each year. Check out pics on this link! COLL Pics.

Rant from Jyneen

One of the toughest things about organizing a club like Ride and Glide is merging the "racers" with the "nonracers". Most instructional or training groups in the area focus on the Racing attitude, with heavy emphasis on training and fitness. Ride and Glide has made a conscious effort to reach out to less intense folks, stressing the possibilities as a lifetime activity. My guess is that our membership includes a majority of folks who see cross-country skiing as a winter sports activity. In my "beginner" group, one of the common backgrounds is family where there is one active member (okay, sometimes a fanatic) and a spouse or parent or friend who wants to participate or at least understand this new interest. But as we've tried to explain, becoming more proficient will benefit everyone, regardless of your personal goals. Whether it is setting a personal record at a race, or enjoying your ski day, or personal accomplishments like making it down a hill in style, the more skilled you are, the better you'll like it.

The first night of class, Steve mentioned that the "racer-types" get boisterous and domineering, so he apologized in advance. So if you were put off by the emphasis on racing in the 1/30/09 newsletter, and the "race-start-simulation" exercise last week, please forgive us. You may have noticed that during the simulation, I (and a group of renegades) were on the sidelines cheering. Some of you who participated may decide that you never want to be in a crowd like that, ever again. You learn from your experiences. You are adults; you can make choices based on those experiences. I have raced. Tried it, didn't like it, swore that I'd never do it again. But I learned from those races- where some of my weaknesses are, and also my strengths. I've learned similar things from all-day treks with friends, in a less competitive atmosphere. Without the registration fee.

I've done other races, but usually I'll choose the "Fun-tours" if I want to participate. Or I volunteer. Last year I accompanied one of my "students" on the Cheqtel Fun Race during Birkie weekend. Had a blast. This year, I'm considering doing a local Fun Tour in costume. Haven't registered yet; I will wait until I get a closer weather forcast. After all, it has to be fun. If the fun is gone, why do it?

Classic group:
The classic group has experienced the common drop-out rate, through the season. But even if you came just a few times, even just the dry-land sessions, you will probably have absorbed a few gems of wisdom that will help your skiing in the future. We had a few people drop out because of schedule changes, a few for financial considerations (that dog-gone economic belt-tightening again), and a few who decided that skiing just isn't there thing. And we had a bunch of folks who just stopped coming, but didn't tell us why. I hope it wasn't anything we did or said. We've tried to get personal feedback to all of you on most nights, but feel free to e-mail Steve (through the web-site if necessary) if you have questions about your technique, or suggestions for the program. He'll forward to the other coaches.

But this has been a really fun group to work with. I even did better at remembering names. I tend to remember some bits from each year, and this year those memories will probably be of the women who were trying their spouse's sport. But also, of times when a student went off by themselves to work on a single drill for most of the evening, while the rest of the class worked on other stuff. That took real strength of character and focus. But I saw results from those efforts.

If you come back next year, we'll be delighted. If you don't, but see me out skiing or biking someplace, say "hi", but remind me of your name.

SKIING WITH OUR (don't tell them this: LESS SKILLED) FRIENDS - Eric Snider

A week ago in an advanced class led by Hank, Anne asked what she might do when out skiing with friends who are not very good skiers. Is there something basic she should try to teach them. Some of us have big engines, and have friends with small engines, or bad technique. What to do?

One option is to try to super-charge their engines. Get them to push themselves a bit. That is not likely to work, since they are already likely working as hard as they want to. A better option is to try to demonstrate an efficient technique, and try to get them to be slightly more efficient. That, of course, as well as urging them to join R&G next September for the ski season starting in November.

What little techniques might they be able to pick up on? Try weight shift. Try to get them to think what ice skating is like, and to put most of their weight on one ski at a time. Most of your casual ski friends might be classical skiers, and are more or less walking with boards strapped to their boots. Get them to ski instead of just waling fast. Weight on right ski, kick to weight on left ski and glide. Kick and glide on right ski. No need for fast cadence. For skate technique, have them think about getting another 12 inches out of their glide.

A second technique might be the bent-knee forward lean-at-the-ankles falling-forward feel. Casual skiers tend to be very upright. A forward "feels like I am going to fall on my nose" might improve technique.

A third technique is to not teach at all. Ski at the back (or embarrass them by skiing at the front), and work on aspects of your technique. For instance, I have skied without using pole plant. For classical technique, work on setting the wax pocket, kicking, and gliding full weight on the glide ski, seeing how long you can glide before having to kick to the other ski and glide. Another option is to double pole more than you might otherwise (you might well double pole up hills much faster than they will ski). It will build some abs and lats strength at low intensity.

A fourth technique is to make days with your slower friends your easy days. If you ski two or more hard days a week, you need some very easy days to recover. You want to feel fresh to put the hurt on yourself on the hard days. Try to encourage them to consider R&G. But be wise. Maybe your skiing the hour with them that puts them at their cardio limits, but puts you at just above a walking pace, will motivate them to ask for advice. And then your advice about R&G will gain traction with them.

If you aren't having fun, none of this will matter to you or to your friends. The likelihood of you or your friends turning into national or regional class skiers is pretty low. The chances of improving or ruining friendships is much higher. Choose wisely.

Words from the editor - Shad Holland

My time here is almost done! One more newsletter and I pack my keyboard away until next fall when dryland starts up again. This has been a fun year with Ride & Glide! It's a fun club and the best part about it is that there is no pressure. If you want to learn fast and be a competitive racer, you can do that and get the coaching you need. But if you just want to take your time and learn as a causal skier how to ski better and improve technique...you can do that too!

With this warmup, there is a chance we won't have much skiing left. So make sure you get out there and ski as much as you can! It's been a great year for it.

Sunday mara will be doing the 58k Freestyle at Mora. She decided to make the jump up from the 35k event because of her great COLL finish. Wish her luck!