| December 6 | Elm Creek Sprints | December 9 | Granite Peak |
| December 8 | Elm Creek Relays | Jan 16 - 17 | Midwest Ski League |
| December 15 | Pre-Season Physical | ||
| December 18 | Elever Park | ||
| December 22 | Elk River | ||
| December 27 | Elm Creek Time Trial | ||
| January 5 | City of Lakes Pre-Loppet | ||
| January 12 | Seeley Hills Classic | ||
| January 13 | Boulder Lake | ||
| January 13 | ABR Ski Race | ||
| January 14 | Teton Ridge | ||
| January 17 | Elm Creek Time Trial | ||
| January 22 | MLK Race | ||
| January 26 | Vinter Fest | ||
| January 26 | GOVERNOR'S CUP | ||
| January 26 | Noquemanon | ||
| January 27 | Marine on St Croix | ||
| January 27 | Nordic Spirit Race | ||
| January --- | Ruhpolding Junior Worlds | ||
| Feb 2 | Alley Loop | ||
| Feb 3 | City of Lakes Loppet | ||
| Feb 9 | Pre Birkie | ||
| Feb 10 | Mora Vasaloppet | ||
| Feb 16 | Baker Races | ||
| Feb 16 | Wasatch Series | ||
| Feb 22 | American Birkebeiner |
American Birkebeiner
Temperature; -8 F, Friday night,
cold and clear with a start time temperature of 0 F warming quickly to
the mid 20's by early afternoon, Sunny after a early morning haze and clouds
and a light wind of less than 5 mph from the south.
Snow -- new snow really dried out from
several days of below zero temperatures and high winds.
Several skiers rewaxed Saturday morning with a layer of HS-10 Teal or HS -0 White with the colder than predicted temperature Friday night.
50K Freestyle
| Nikolai Anikin | 26 th Overall
Time 2:11 |
HSF - 10 Green | Atomic |
| Dave Nelson | 44th Overall
Time 2:18 |
HS-10 Teal over HSF-10 Green | Rossi |
| Ben Blaugrund | 46th Overall
Time 2:18 |
HSF-10 Green with Flite11 | Fisher |
| Christian Brekke | 56th Overall
Time 2:20 |
HSF -10 Green | |
| Andy Schakel | 72nd Overall
Time 2:22 |
HSF - 10 Green | Atomic |
| Dave Christopherson | 120th Overall
3rd Age Group |
HS-Teal Fluor overcoat | Rossi |
| Clay Diggins | 256 Overall
Time 2:37 |
HS-Teal | Atomic |
| Katherine Himes | 62nd Overall
4th Age Group |
HSF -10 Green | Fisher |
52K Classic
| Grant Nelson | 3rd Overall | HS-Teal over HSF-Green
Grip Wax Blue Xtra |
Fisher |
| Josie Nelson | 3rd Overall | HS-Teal over HSF-Green
Grip Wax Blue Xtra |
Rossi |
| Don Pollari | 3rd Age Group | HS-Teal
Rex Power Grip Green |
Salomon - Fine Grind |
| Dan Cruiser | 138th Overall
Time 3:37 |
HSF-20 Tan covered with HS-10 Teal | Rossi |
From Katherine
I was the 62nd woman and 4th place in my
age group. And, I moved up one wave to WAVE ONE! My skis were stiffer Fischers,
and they were great. I had on one coat of blue and two coats of green,
and they were rockets. I was passing HUGE men on the downhills!!! And,
they were super rockets on Main Street. Thank you!
From Don
My skis were GREAT in the Birkie with two layers of HS-10 Teal on them and Rex Green Powergrip for kick. I had a better result than expected in large part due to my skis being as fast or faster than anyone I was skiing with the entire race. Ended up 24th overall in the Birkie classic race, 3rd in my age group.
My race skis were last year's Salomon Equipe classics in the cold version, medium flex, factory grind (fine).
What a fantastic event the Birkie was this
year, it couldn't have been better!
Cheers
From Dan
What a Birkie! Weather, snow and grooming were incredible. I skied out of the 5th wave in the classical division so things had warmed up a bit in the tracks by the time I started. I waxed using two coats of Tan and a top coat of Teal. My skis were fast, very fast. Perhaps some of the fastest skis I have been on. I know that sounds like a strong statement but I have never had skis so much faster than those around me. I finished in 3:37 and still had good kick and glide coming up Main Street. Congratulations to the other Fast Wax skiers. It looks like everyone had an excellent time.
Dan
Kortelopet Classic
| Dave Meyer | 12th Overall
1st Age Group |
HSF-10 Green
Rode Mulitgrade Blue |
Madshus |
Park City, UT Wasatch Citizen's
Series
Saturday Feb 16
Conditions were overcast, relative humidity
70%, air temp rising from 20 to 24 and snow going from newish to slightly
transformed during the race.
| Don Pollari | Age Group Champion | HS-LF 20 Blue | Fischer RCS skatecuts, |
My skis were Fischer RCS skatecuts, with
a medium flex and a Zach Caldwell Z-40 grind which is quite fine. They
might have been a hair slower than the two guys I was skiing most the race
with and I think Tan would have been faster. Unfortunately the skis I had
Tan on had too much structure for the conditions and tested slower an hour
before the start.
Baker Races Saturday, Feb
16, Temperature 17 F Windy Cold Snow, Race was after a week of cold,
windy weather
| Katherine Himes &
Josie Nelson |
Inga-lami | HSF-20 Tan | Fisher |
| John Stamm &
Dave Christopherson |
Baker Shaker | HS -0 White
HSF 10 Green |
Fisher
Rossi |
Katherine skied on the HSF - 20 Tan and reported slow skis, John was on the HS-0 White with a fine grind and reported excellent skis, indicating the snow is dry witjh sharp crystals skiing cold
Inga-Lami 11K race at Baker Park, Saturday, 2/16. Conditions: 17 at the start, sunny skies, and a big wind. The snow was much slower than 17 would indicate. Wax: Tan. Skis: Felt slow in areas that had lots of shade (where the snow was still very cold), felt ok in the sunnier regions of the course.
Mora Vasaloppet
58 K Freestyle
Weather -- Brutal -15 F Wind
Nw at 20 with gusts to 25 and 40 mph
| Nikolai Anikin | Race Champion | HS-0 White | Atomic |
| Dave Nelson | 2nd Age Group | HS-0 White | Rossi |
| Clay Diggins | 6th Age Group | HS-0 White | Atomic |
35 K Freestyle
| Andrew Schakel | Race Champion | HS-0 White | Atomic |
| Dave Christopherson | Age Group Champion | HS-0 White | Rossi |
42K Classic
| Grant Nelson | 3rd Age Group | HS-0 White | Fisher |
| Josie Nelson | 2nd Age Group
3rd Overall |
HS-0 White | Rossi |
| Dan Cruiser | 4th Age Group | HS-0 White | Atomic |
Pre-Birkie, Hayward WI, Saturday
Feb. 9
Temperature 25 F Humidity 97 % New Moist
Snow
| Nikolai Anikin | 2nd Overall | HSF-10 Green | Atomic |
| Paulette Niemi | 2nd Overall | HSF -20 Tan | Atomic |
Here is my info from Pre-Birkie.
Skied the race on Fast Wax HSF20 (tan). Skis were fast but were not
"rocket" fast. Temps were warmer than we thought they would be and
snow seemed to be moister than we thought. I am not sure what the
snow or air humidity was at race. I think it was 24-25 degrees at the start.
The snow was not fine grained or wind blown like we thought it might be.
It was larger flakes and more moist with about 1/2 inch of it on the trail
over the groomed corduroy. In looking back and thinking about our
conversation tonight, I am thinking the Flite would have been a good choice
for an overlay to give me that extra bit of speed I needed. I wonder
if Salmon would have been better for underlay wax too. I guess we
missed it by a bit. The forecasted cold and wind just didn't come as early
as forecasted for the area. That's how it goes sometimes.
I am trying the White extreme cold tomorrow
here.
Paulette
________________________________________
Crested Butte Alley Loop, Feb 2,
2008 (42km, Birkie qualifier):
Temperature 10 to 15 F, New Snow
Feb 2
| Ben Blaugrund | 3rd Overall | HSF -10 Green with Flite 11 | Fisher |
New snow, my skis were best of the 4 of
us who broke away (I was gliding farther on the downhills), but my fitness
was not enough to beat winner Jay Henry (reigning Mtn Bike Marathon Ntl
Champion), and second place long-time elite/pro Nathan Schultz.
City of Lakes Loppet
Temperature 18 to 22 F Light west wind,
Partly cloudy, Ground up corn snow --very fast
35 K Freestyle
| Nikolai Anikin | 3rd Overall | Atomic | |
| Andy Schakel | 12th Overall | Atomic | |
| Christian Brekke | 21st Overall | Fisher | |
| Grant Nelson | Fisher | ||
| Dave Christopherson | Age Group Champion | Rossi | |
| John Stamm | 4th Age Group | HSF 20 Tan
Flite Top Coat |
Fisher |
| Randy Larson | 6th Age Group | HSF - 10 Green | Atomic |
25 K Classic
| Dave Nelson | 3rd Overall | HSF -20 Tan | Rossi |
| Katherine Himes | 4th Overall | Fisher | |
| Josie Nelson | 4th Age Group | HSF -20 Tan | Rossi |
From Dave and Josie Nelson
Our wax at the City of Lake was as follows:
1 layer Fast Wax Blue with 2 layers Fast Wax Tan over the top
For kick I used a thin layer of Swix Green
Klister with a thin layer of Swix Purple klister over the top.
Then I added 3 thick coats of Extra Blue
and 1 layer of VF40 over the top
Josie used the same thing except she used Start Blue klister instead of Purple.
My skis were slightly slower than both Mike's and Evan's but it was probably because Evan had almost no kick and I had the best kick. I probably could have been a bit thinner on the Extra Blue, but I was pretty happy with the kick at the start. I was 3rd overall
Josie was happy with her skis. She was 6th overall, 4th in her age.
Dave
Ruhpolding Junior Worlds, photos from Wynn Roberts
 |
 |
 |
Nordic Spirit Race 25 K Freestyle
10 F at start warming to
about 20
| Nikolai Anikin | Race Champion | HSF 20 Tan | Atomic |
| Grant Nelson | 4th Overall | HSF 20 Tan | Fisher |
Marine on St Croix; 12.5 and 25
Classic and Freestyle
25 K Classic
| Dave Nelson | Race Champion | HSF 30 Salmon Flite | Rossi |
| Josie Nelson | Race Champion | HSF 30 Salmon Flite | Rossi |
25K Skate
| Andy Schakel | Race Champion | HSF 20 Tan | Atomic |
| Clay Diggins | 13th Oveall | HSF - 20 Tan | Atomic |
12.5 K Skate
| John Stamm | Age Group Champion | HSF 20 Tan | Fisher Fine Grind |
| Dan Meyer | 2nd Place Age Group | HSF 20 Tan | Atomic Fine Grind |
| Deb Diggins | 2nd Overall | HSF 20 Tan | Atomic |
From testing most racers used the skis with the fine grind and colder waxes after the week of below zero F temperatures
Noquemanon Ski Marathon, Ishpeming
to Marquette MI
| Nikolai Anikin | Race Champion | HSF - 20 Tan | Atomic |
| Christian Brekke | 7th Overall
2nd Age Group |
HSF - 20 Tan | Fisher |
GOVERNOR'S CUP NORDIC SKI 25K FREESTYLE
RACE
Camp Ripley, MN January 26, 2008
20 degrees F, 75% humidity, firm, with some sugar, corn snow
| Dave Nelson | 2nd Age Group | HSF 20 Tan | Rossi Fine Grind |
| Josie Nelson | 2nd Age Group | HSF 20 Tan | Rossi Fine Grind |
| Dave Christopherson | Age Group Champion | HSF 20 Tan | Rossi Fine Grind |
Race time temperature of 20 F, Dry cold
squeaky snow.
From testing most racers used the skis
with the fine grind and colder waxes after the week of below zero F temperatures
Vinter Fest 20 K Freestyle
| Katherine Himes | Race Champion | HSF 20 Tan | Fisher |
| Andy Schakel | Race Champion | HSF 20 Tan | Atomic Universal Grind |
| John Stamm | Age Group Champion | HSLF 10 Teal | Fisher Fine Grind |
| Dan Meyer | Age Group 3rd place | HSF 20 Tan | Atomic Fine Grind |
Race time temerature of 20 F, Dry cold
squeeky snow.
From testing most racers used the skis
with the fine grind and colder waxes after the week of below zero F temperatures
MLK Race Elk River, MN 20 K Freestyle Temperature 5 to 10 F
The conditions were cold and hard packed
with ~1/4" of fresh ultra fine snow on top.
| Dave Nelson | 6th Overall | HS - 10 Teal | Fisher Fine Grind |
White on the skis which I skied ~25km on and then I put a layer of teal over that.
My skis were EXTREMELY FAST! I passed
a number of people on the downhill
corners of the course. Unfortunately
I under dressed and got cold and dizzy after
the first lap. But I did ski a good
time only ~2 minutes behind the winner(Owen Hanley)
I was 6th place.
Dave
Teton Ridge Classic; Driggs,
Idaho.
| Don Pollari | 3rd Age Group
19th Overall |
HSF - 30 Salmon
Fluoro Overcoat |
Considering my fitness level I skied pretty
well and had excellent skis with Fast Wax salmon covered with some solid
fluor rubbed on and heated in. During the gliding sections of the course
I was catching up to people ahead of me and getting gaps from the people
I was skiing with
Regards,
Don
ABR Ski Race Ironwood MI.1/13/08
23K skate (really, it was 26K!) Conditions:
warmer than expected. The thermometer said 26 in Ashland, and I am not
sure how warm it was in Ironwood.
My skis did not feel like rockets, but they were certainly not any slower than other skis on the trail. I spent a long time on a "detour" in the woods (as in I crashed into a stump).
23K Freestyle
| Katherine Himes | 2nd Age Group
3rd Overall |
HS-20 Tan | Fisher |
Boulder Lake; 31K Freestyle; Duluth, MN; 1/13/2008;
Temperature; 18 degrees F, 80% humidity, crunchy new/old snow mix;
| Dave Christopherson | Age Group Champion
14th Overall |
HSF - 20 Tan | Rossi Uni Grind |
| Nikola Anikin | Race Champion | HSF-20 Tan | Atomic Uni Grind |
| Andy Schakel | 2nd Age Group
4th Overall |
HSF-20 Tan | Atomic |
Seeley Hills Classic, Seeley,
WI;
Temperature ; 22 degrees F, 80% humidity,
hard-packed ground crust;
22 K Classic
| Dave Christopherson | Age Group Champion
12th Overall |
Glide HSF - 20 Tan
Kick Swix VR45 over KR20 |
Rossi Uni Grind |
42 K Classic
| Josie Nelson | 2nd Age Group
7th Overall |
Glide HSF - 20 Tan | Rossi |
| Nikolai Anikin | 4th Age Group
7th Overall |
Glide HSF - 20 Tan | Atomic |
| Dave Nelson | 2nd Age Group
10th Overall |
Glide HSF - 20 Tan | Rossi |
| Grant Nelson | 2nd Age Group
9th Overall |
Glide HSF - 20 Tan | Fisher |
City of Lakes Pre-Loppet; Saturday January 5
Temperature low Friday of 24°F to 26°F, Snow dry and powdery even squeaky in the woods
Snow was hardpacked and fast
| Dave Christopherson | HSF-20 Tan | 11th Overall | Rossi |
| John Stamm | HSF -20 Tan - Flite | 29th Overall | Atomic |
| Katherine Himes | HSF - 20 Tan | Age Group Champion
4th Overall |
Fisher |
| Dan Meyer | HSF -30 Salmon - Flite | 60th Overall | Atomic |
Elm Creek Time Trial; December 27, 2007
Temp: 27 F
Track: A bit icy on man-made loop, softer but still very firm on the rest of the lighted trail Wax: Tan, with Swix Extra Blue for kick Skis: Felt pretty fast, but not super fast on uphills Result: 2nd place female
| Katherine Himes | HSF -20 Tan | 2nd Place | Fisher |
Elk River 20K Freestyle; (You Name Race) Elk River, MN; 12/22/2007;
Temperature 27 F and falling Hardpacked New Snow
| Dave Christopherson | HSF-30 Salmon - Flite | Age Group
Champion
8th Overall |
Rossi
Universal Grind |
| Katherine Himes | HSF 30 Salmon | 2nd Age Group
7th Overall |
Fisher |
Elver Park, Tuesday Night Series Madison, Wi. 12-18-2007
Race Results : http://www.madnorski.org/page/racing/
| Christian Brekke | HSF -20 Tan | 1st Place overall |
Pre-Season Physical; Minneapolis, MN; 12/15/2007;
Temperature; 0 degrees F, hard-packed old snow;
| Dave Christopherson | HS 0 White | 1st in age group
11 th overall |
Rossi
Fine Grind |
| Andy Schakel | HS 0 White | 2nd Overall
2nd Age Group |
Atomic |
Elm Creek, Thursday Night Sprints Dec 6th
Temperature: 24 F Combination of Man Made and Natural Snow
| Andy Schakel | HSF -20 Tan | 1st Overall | Atomic
Universal Grind |
Hoigarrds 3km x 4 relay Skating Team Elm Creek: December 8th
Temperature; 3 F
| Andy Schalel | HS 0 White | 6th Place Team | Atomic |
Elm Creek Time Trial January
17th
Temperature: 4 F and falling Combination
of Man Made and Natural Snow
Skis: Felt fast-no complaints!
Overall winner and first female (as in I beat the men!)
Great job Katherine!
5K Skate
| Katherine Himes | HS 0 White | 2nd Place Overall female | Fisher |
| Katherine Himes | HS 0 White-
Swix Extra Blue for kick |
Overall winner-
Males & Females
1st Place Female |
Fisher |