The Swiss And Their Mountains: a study of the influence of mountains on man

I am reading a few chapters of this - quite academic - book  by Arnold Lunn on the internet, but mostly just enjoying the reproductions of paintings and engravings.  This is an oil painting by Calame of the Wetterhorn.

Jan Reynolds … climber, biathlete, ski mountaineer, and guide

The Glass Summit, is the newest edition - autographed - to my alpine library.

This is not the forecast Adirondack skiers want to see!

A good race but …

Any time the evening before a race, you get an email suggesting race volunteers wear nanospikes, and racers go into their basement and dig out those old 1990 fishscale touring skis … you know there will be some sketchy sections! However, many thanks to Mike Battisti and his volunteer crew.

On a different note, with another race this weekend, my training totals were again, modest. I logged just under 13 hours, and just under 2500', on 121k (87k bike, 31k ski, and 3k run). I also managed a morning of alpine skiing and five sessions of PT stretching. The upcoming week looks like it will be slim indeed, given my foot injury.

Adirondack TdS

A Herculean effort by the staff to pull this race off.

With three straight days of temperatures in the 40s and then two nights of zero degree weather … it was an icefest. Blew my mind that people were on race gear, I opted for backcountry fishscale setup. Good to see some folks.

My goal was to stay on my feet - which I did - but somehow with a misstep I pulled something in my ankle. I will be off snow for awhile.

Another book off my shelf

Some great photos from Jimmy Chin on Everest, and a gripping account of skiing down the Lhotse face of Everest. (This is the face that the Japanese skier - Miura - fell down in the 1970s).

Any way you look at it, skiing the seven summits is pretty impressive.

A wonderful 90 minutes at Whiteface

I grabbed the first lift, and had wonderful corn snow for an hour, which rapidly turned to slush in the next half hour. Still, the best morning I had riding lifts this season.

Porter Mountain Loop



A wonderful ski but suffering these past few days of sun and mid-40 degree temperatures.





Great day out skiing Porter Mountain Loop

I think it's been a couple of seasons since I skied this iconic 1980 Olympic race course.

On the agenda for this weekend

Of course, hopefully the forecasted warm weather, will still allow this race to proceed.

Putting this skimo event on my schedule

I had a good time last year. 

WEAK LAYERS … a ski comedy video

Now streaming on Prime Video and AppleTV following its theatrical release, follows three Lake Tahoe-based women on a hilarious quest to win a prestigious ski film competition in hopes of carving out their spot in the ski industry.

Fiction added to my Alpine Library in the past decade

My collection of mountain fiction has always been robust, however, in no particular order during the past decade I have added: Murder On Skis, The Fall, The Sound Of Gravity, Where Blood Runs Cold, La Patrouille, Cham, Electric Brad, Mer De Glacé, One By One, Aspen Pulp, An Afterclap Of Fate, Murder On The Matterhorn, Hazard's Way, The God Of Skiing, Madog Mountain, Surfing The Himalayas, The Longest Fall, Peak, and The Ski Bum. While most of these make no pretensions about great literature, a few have received attention from Boardman-Tasker and Banff Festival award committees.

Stratton Mountain Skimo race

Yesterday I traveled to Vermont for the second event, in the Stratton Skimo series. It was a small field of 25 racers with a couple of certified hotshots in spandex and lightweight racing gear. I was the fourth skier to top of the course (an 850' climb), and then passed by a couple on the downhill, so I finished sixth.

I spent the evening relaxing with a college buddy and his wife who have a house in Manchester. Wearing my Skimo Shirt awarded for being the oldest racer.

As for my previous week's training, it was lower volume as I tried to recover from the previous three hard weeks, and the start of a new round of PT for my shoulder. I logged just under 14 hours, just over 4500', and 106k (75k bike, 25k ski, 6k run). I also did five PT stretching sessions, one strength workout, and a morning alpine skiing.

Minneapolis World Cup delivers

This was the first time a nordic World Cup has been in America in 23 years, and our athletes delivered, and the two day event drew huge crowds. (My daughter flew out to meet up with dozens of her former collegian racers to cheer the Americans on.)

And of all the good results, the most unexpected was an American man winning the 10k.

https://fasterskier.com/2024/02/gus-schumacher-rides-the-minneapolis-wave-american-wins-on-american-soil/

80th day on snow this season

Yesterday was my 80th day skiing this season, and it was a good one at Mount Van Hoevenberg.  Today I am heading out to meet a college buddy and do a skimo race at Stratton.

Children’s mystery book about skiing in the Alps

I was doing some research on Zermatt and St Moritz on the internet archive digital library, and started reading this gem. Probably good for a 3-6th grader, so if my grandson Dave really takes to skiing in the next couple of years, maybe this will be under the Christmas tree for him soon.

Best Toll Road tour of the season

A hard packed base covered with 2-3 inches of new powder. It was windy, so the single track was mostly covered over, and I was often breaking trail.

The flurries continue today, so it feels like winter is back.

AAC LEGACY SERIES … episode #10 George Lowe

https://m.youtube.com/watch?si=LodLnqZ1QIKAlXPJ&v=MTdb0Fub79A&feature=youtu.be

Skimo sanctioned races

If you are doing an ISMF or a USSMA sanctioned events these are three critical pieces of gear that will be checked.

Taking another book off my alpine shelf

Just the other day I spent the cocktail hour perusing TRACKING THE WILD COOMBA: the life of legendary skier doug coombs. So many great stories from east coast, to the Rockies, on to Alaska, and of course, La Grave in the Alps.

Enclosed below is a good one … skiing off piste, but with racing bib and binoculars in hand, so he wouldn't miss his start on the D1 college racing circuit.

It is February and I haven’t done a single Jackrabbit Trail tour.

Lots of skiing at Mount Van Hoevenberg on manmade loops, and Whiteface, skinning at Gore, as well as touring on Scott's Cobble. But, I am really missing the backcountry options. (However, I am enjoying this poster which I won at a raffle at NCS, after Tony Goodwin gave his slideshow on the history of the Jackrabbit Trail.)

Another antique postcard from my collection

This 1939 print was inspired by the famous schuss of the headwall at Tuckermans Ravine, by Toni Matt at the Inferno Race.

On a different note, despite the continuing poor winter we are having, I had a productive training week. I logged 159k (108k bike, 42k ski, 9k run), with 5500' vertical, on just under 16 hours. I also managed one strength workout, one morning alpine skiing, and another morning skinning laps.

BACK AGAIN … last skier standing

It usually lasts for 60+ hours, before the winner emerges!

When I am too old to bag peaks …

Then I will hopefully still be able to haul my carcass up to spend a night in the alpine zone.  So, these are on my bucket list to visit, and/or revisit. (Check out the website, it's a good one.)

https://www.stellarequipment.com/interstellar/places/hut-heaven/

Trends in American Skiing … interesting article in skiing heritage

https://books.google.com/books?id=Mi5PUyCj0sgC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false

Skinning laps at Gore

Warm, excellent grooming, and a bluebird day made for a wonderful morning, with just under a total of 2000' vertical. Maybe next trip, I'll also bring nordic gear and do some laps at the adjacent nordic center.

Training for UTMB

Great data, interesting article. If only I was younger and my knees healthier!

https://live-run-ool.pantheonsite.io/trail/trail-racing/strava-data-utmb/

Yesterday was my 70th day on snow this season

Beautiful day at Mount Van Hoevenberg

Continuing to dip into Martin Conway’s antique book … THE ALPS

This painting in the book, evoked strong memories from my first climbing trip to the alps in 1978 (June-early September). I climbed in the Lake District, Wales, Scotland, the Dolomites, Zermatt, and Chamonix.

On my first July day in Zermatt, as I hiked out of the campground (too expensive), I headed up to one of the grazing meadows, where I saw a husband and wife team; he handled the hay cutting in the traditional manner - with a scythe - while she hefted loads of hay up to the storage shacks. Eventually, I found a spot on the edge of the grazing areas to bivy for the next three weeks.

Needless to say, that agrarian era in the alps was dwindling rapidly even then, but by now that era is largely past, as tourism has grown by quantum leaps.

Cascade from our southwest pasture

Last week, brought just enough flurries to make skiing enjoyable again. This week will bring some more brilliant sunshine and more normal winter temperatures, but alas no more snow.

Last week was another good bit of training: 14.5 hours, on 134k (89k bike, 39k ski, and 6k run), with just over 4800' vertical. I also spent a morning riding lifts, and two yoga sessions (PT for knees).



Maybe a good week to visit Mount Washington

With little, or no, precipitation in the forecast, the snowpack should continue to be pretty stable. 

Sunrise alpenglow on Street and Nye

Another type of warmup …

I call it the cow pasture crust cruise. Twenty or thirty minutes lapping around the south pastures with Stash, when it's got a firm crust and a dusting on top. Then it's off to Mount Van Hoevenberg or Scott's Cobble for the main ski workout.

First sun and blue ski we have seen in weeks

New film about Kikkan Randall to premiere soon

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4bnSkzRjZmM

A good morning skinning laps on Little Gore Mountain (aka The Snowbowl)

Packing for skimo training as opposed to a backcountry ski touring day



https://wildsnow.com/34118/packing-for-skimo-vs-touring-what-a-coach-racer-carries/

Winter warmup for a ski workout

Often, I take Stash for a short, 1.5-2k hilly hike (20-30 minutes), on the nearby dirt road before I head over to Mount Van Hoevenberg. Of course, when it's a good winter there are many backcountry tours I can take him on.