(
click on any photo to enlarge) Done. Finished. Winter comes to a professional end for me on April 15. I'm ready. For the last 8 weekends in a row I have waxed 25 pair of skis, loaded them and two 10x10 tents, 20 pair of boots and a bunch of other crap in to my 4Runner and headed to one of the seven cross country ski areas in my territory. Two of those weekends were in Mammoth, one of which I actually raced - my first race of the year. In the ski and outdoor industry, preseason orders for equipment and textiles are placed by April 1 to receive product the following winter. That means deadlines. Fischer's deadline is April 1 and Swix is mid March. Needless to say for the past 8 weeks I have been pinned. Monday through Thursday is a mass jumble of emails, new part numbers, calls, discount structures, faxes and meetings. Friday is waxing day. Then bright and early on Saturday morning I stand in the wind and snow to hand out skis, boots and poles to perspective customers of my dealers. Sunday afternoon I load it all back in the truck and drive home tired and windburned. Boy - I'm tired. I did get to have some fun on some of those weekends, so I shouldn't whine too much. The third weekend in March, I went to Mammoth to help with the Mammoth Biathlon and maybe race if time permitted. Of course just like the rest of the weekends for the past three months, it was snowing sideways and cold. The Range in Mammoth is a 3 mile up hill ski from the Tamarack Lodge and Cross Country Center to Horseshoe Lake. We had to schlep all of our gear and rifles on our backs and ski up to the Range. I was gassed after skiing only 3 miles! The lake sits in an open depression in the Basin and the wind rips through the Range from left to right and the flags were standing at full attention at 8am when we got there. I was a range official for the early races, my race being at 2pm. I was then very happy that I hauled a bunch of extra clothing up the climb.
The kids and beginner categories were before our race and the Intermediate category was after our race. It was a long day on the Range. Normally, the races span two full days. The bad weather had forced the organizers to cram all events into one day. Saturday, normally the first day of competition, Mammoth received 2 feet of snow! Obviously the course was going to be slow, due to the knee deep fresh snow. Sunday morning dawned clear, cold and blustery. The entire community of Mammoth Lakes rallied and dug out the Range, groomed the track as many times as possible from 4am to 8am, put up all the snow fencing and the races commenced. Being a Range Official during the kids races is really fun. If they mange to knock down a target, they go crazy! My cheek muscles get sore from smiling and laughing so much. The adults take it much more seriously and get angry at everyone they miss. The kids just care about the ones they hit. It makes me realize that this crazy sport really is great. So I raced in the second Elite race of the day. The organizers invited four members of the US Olympic Biathlon Team. They and all the other young bad asses started in the first Elite wave. I was glad I was in the second race. My first race of the year against the US Teamers that are half my age? Are you joking? I managed to actually finish the race. I shot like shit the first two prone stations. I adjusted my sights more aggressively and shot better standing. Still with the brutal wind not many racers shot well (except the US Teamers who shot consistent, of course).
I finished fourth in my race and 15th Overall. I really felt out of shape. I skied pathetically slow. I just couldn't get out of my own way. I packed up and headed home late Sunday night. The following weekend I skipped the Marathon as I really didn't think I had 42km in my legs after my poor showing at the Biathlon. I worked instead. I taught skiing clinics for two days at Royal Gorge. The night in between the two days, I overnight camped on Donner Summit with 16 of the people that I was teaching. We had fun and ate good food.
Some of them had never snow camped before. Everyone made it through the night. It only got down to about 20 degrees so it really wasn't that bad at all.
We then skied the 10km back to the Nordic Center for next days clinics. That part of the job doesn't really feel like work. The next weekend was the Far West Spring Biathlon in my backyard, on Donner Summit. I helped to set the Range up on Friday with the race being on Saturday. I also worked as a Range official. At our race the Elites go first thing in the morning. My race was at 9am. I felt 100 times better and skied more like myself. I didn't shoot too badly either and managed to get fourth Overall. I also just edged out Ted Helbert the current National Biathlon Champion in my age group. He shot better than I did, but I out skied him. It was a great personal victory to finish my short Biathlon season. The true last event of my season was this last week. I attended the Cross Country Ski Association of America convention this year held in the Ritz Carlton at Northstar Ski Area. Northstar is also in my backyard and is truly a world class resort having an Alpine area, a Nordic area, a Biathlon Range and the Ritz Carlton Hotel all on one mountain. On Tuesday 25 people from CCSAA signed up for a Biathlon Clinic. I was an instructor along with Glen Jobe and Tom McElroy (both former US Olympic Biathlon Team Members). We had a great time and we were all amazed at how many people had interest in Biathlon but just never got the chance to try it. For once this year the weather during the Clinic was bluebird and warm. It really was fun. Thursday I was lucky enough to ski from Northstar to Tahoe XC with three members of the US Cross Country Team. This is a 20km ski up and over Starrett Pass following some of the Great Race course backwards. There were about 20 people that signed up for the ski. Half of them took the lift up and just skied the 10km down the other side of the mountain to Tahoe City.
Myself and the remaining 10 people (and the three US XC Team Members of course) left from the Nordic area and skied the 10km up the mountain and then all 24 of us descended together. Since I know both ski areas very well I made sure no one got lost. It was again good weather and we had a great 2 hour spring ski. The US Teamers were very gracious and offered tips and advice to all. Thursday afternoon I loaded all my skis, boots, poles and everything else into my truck for the last time and headed down the hill to my house. RB helped me unload everything into the garage. One last wax job for all the skis and I can put the lid on a great ski season. Until next month - Cheers.
(click on any photo to enlarge) Done. Finished. Winter comes to a professional end for me on April 15. I'm ready. For the last 8 weekends in a row I have waxed 25 pair of skis, loaded them and two 10x10 tents, 20 pair of boots and a bunch of other crap in to my 4Runner and headed to one of the seven cross country ski areas in my territory. Two of those weekends were in Mammoth, one of which I actually raced - my first race of the year. In the ski and outdoor industry, preseason orders for equipment and textiles are placed by April 1 to receive product the following winter. That means deadlines. Fischer's deadline is April 1 and Swix is mid March. Needless to say for the past 8 weeks I have been pinned. Monday through Thursday is a mass jumble of emails, new part numbers, calls, discount structures, faxes and meetings. Friday is waxing day. Then bright and early on Saturday morning I stand in the wind and snow to hand out skis, boots and poles to perspective customers of my dealers. Sunday afternoon I load it all back in the truck and drive home tired and windburned. Boy - I'm tired. I did get to have some fun on some of those weekends, so I shouldn't whine too much. The third weekend in March, I went to Mammoth to help with the Mammoth Biathlon and maybe race if time permitted. Of course just like the rest of the weekends for the past three months, it was snowing sideways and cold. The Range in Mammoth is a 3 mile up hill ski from the Tamarack Lodge and Cross Country Center to Horseshoe Lake. We had to schlep all of our gear and rifles on our backs and ski up to the Range. I was gassed after skiing only 3 miles! The lake sits in an open depression in the Basin and the wind rips through the Range from left to right and the flags were standing at full attention at 8am when we got there. I was a range official for the early races, my race being at 2pm. I was then very happy that I hauled a bunch of extra clothing up the climb.
The kids and beginner categories were before our race and the Intermediate category was after our race. It was a long day on the Range. Normally, the races span two full days. The bad weather had forced the organizers to cram all events into one day. Saturday, normally the first day of competition, Mammoth received 2 feet of snow! Obviously the course was going to be slow, due to the knee deep fresh snow. Sunday morning dawned clear, cold and blustery. The entire community of Mammoth Lakes rallied and dug out the Range, groomed the track as many times as possible from 4am to 8am, put up all the snow fencing and the races commenced. Being a Range Official during the kids races is really fun. If they mange to knock down a target, they go crazy! My cheek muscles get sore from smiling and laughing so much. The adults take it much more seriously and get angry at everyone they miss. The kids just care about the ones they hit. It makes me realize that this crazy sport really is great. So I raced in the second Elite race of the day. The organizers invited four members of the US Olympic Biathlon Team. They and all the other young bad asses started in the first Elite wave. I was glad I was in the second race. My first race of the year against the US Teamers that are half my age? Are you joking? I managed to actually finish the race. I shot like shit the first two prone stations. I adjusted my sights more aggressively and shot better standing. Still with the brutal wind not many racers shot well (except the US Teamers who shot consistent, of course). 
I finished fourth in my race and 15th Overall. I really felt out of shape. I skied pathetically slow. I just couldn't get out of my own way. I packed up and headed home late Sunday night. The following weekend I skipped the Marathon as I really didn't think I had 42km in my legs after my poor showing at the Biathlon. I worked instead. I taught skiing clinics for two days at Royal Gorge. The night in between the two days, I overnight camped on Donner Summit with 16 of the people that I was teaching. We had fun and ate good food.
Some of them had never snow camped before. Everyone made it through the night. It only got down to about 20 degrees so it really wasn't that bad at all.
We then skied the 10km back to the Nordic Center for next days clinics. That part of the job doesn't really feel like work. The next weekend was the Far West Spring Biathlon in my backyard, on Donner Summit. I helped to set the Range up on Friday with the race being on Saturday. I also worked as a Range official. At our race the Elites go first thing in the morning. My race was at 9am. I felt 100 times better and skied more like myself. I didn't shoot too badly either and managed to get fourth Overall. I also just edged out Ted Helbert the current National Biathlon Champion in my age group. He shot better than I did, but I out skied him. It was a great personal victory to finish my short Biathlon season. The true last event of my season was this last week. I attended the Cross Country Ski Association of America convention this year held in the Ritz Carlton at Northstar Ski Area. Northstar is also in my backyard and is truly a world class resort having an Alpine area, a Nordic area, a Biathlon Range and the Ritz Carlton Hotel all on one mountain. On Tuesday 25 people from CCSAA signed up for a Biathlon Clinic. I was an instructor along with Glen Jobe and Tom McElroy (both former US Olympic Biathlon Team Members). We had a great time and we were all amazed at how many people had interest in Biathlon but just never got the chance to try it. For once this year the weather during the Clinic was bluebird and warm. It really was fun. Thursday I was lucky enough to ski from Northstar to Tahoe XC with three members of the US Cross Country Team. This is a 20km ski up and over Starrett Pass following some of the Great Race course backwards. There were about 20 people that signed up for the ski. Half of them took the lift up and just skied the 10km down the other side of the mountain to Tahoe City. 
Myself and the remaining 10 people (and the three US XC Team Members of course) left from the Nordic area and skied the 10km up the mountain and then all 24 of us descended together. Since I know both ski areas very well I made sure no one got lost. It was again good weather and we had a great 2 hour spring ski. The US Teamers were very gracious and offered tips and advice to all. Thursday afternoon I loaded all my skis, boots, poles and everything else into my truck for the last time and headed down the hill to my house. RB helped me unload everything into the garage. One last wax job for all the skis and I can put the lid on a great ski season. Until next month - Cheers.
