Coaches and Clubs Update – August 14, 2017

Here is your latest CXC update for Coaches and Clubs.

1. US Ski & Snowboard has updated their Training System Matrix. Please check this link to stay up to date with their revisions: http://ussa.org/ussa/training-systems-overview (look for the “USSA Training System Matrix” box and click on “Cross Country”)

2. The 2017 CXC/Wayne Fish Coaches Certification and Conference is coming together quite nicely. We are pleased to announce Ivan Babikov as our key presenter. Ivan was a World Cup Racing veteran with many top 10 performances for his adopted homeland of Canada. Since retiring from World Cup Racing he has taken over as the Canadian National Ski Team’s Head Coach and his charges have continued their momentum on the world stage with many top results last year, including Alex Harvey’s Gold Medal in the 50K at the Lahti World Championships. Join us to hear Ivan’s perspectives on training and technique.

We are also pleased to announce we will be adding an officials educational component to the weekend.

Save the date on your calendar now – October 20-22, 2017: http://cxcskiing.org/pages/events/cxc-coaches-conference.html

3. Coming this Fall we will supplement our Wayne Fish Coaches Education Conference with Shorter Coaches Clinics in a few spots throughout the region. If you are interested in hosting one of these “local” clinics at your facility, please reach out and let us know when you may have facility availability. We would like to spread about a half dozen of these out and have one reasonably close to each of our denser skiing areas as well as some of our more remote while still centrally located spots. We would like to hear of your interest in attending as well.

Enjoy these last few weeks of summer before the various school years start!!!

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Joe Haggenmiller | Director of Athletics
Central Cross Country Skiing
Community Olympic Development Program

Phone: (906) 281-1214
E-Mail: joe.h@cxcskiing.org
Web: www.cxcskiing.org
FB: www.facebook.com/cxcskiing

Coaches and Clubs Update – August 3, 2017

Hello Coaches and Club Leaders:

1. Don’t forget to use your CXC Academy subscription that comes with your CXC membership: http://cxcacademy.com/

2. If you haven’t heard, Birkie Waves are filling fast. Level 100 and 200 Member Coaches of CXC Clubs have the benefit of a Complimentary Birkie entry. Make sure you have renewed your memberships and get your Birkie entry before your wave fills: http://cxcskiing.org/membership.html#Coach

3. A few clubs have made a visit to the CXC Center of Excellence in the past month and made use of the physiological testing and the rollerski treadmill. Getting your athletes on the Rollerski Treadmill is a great opportunity to work on technique. We would like to invite all clubs to join us in Madison: http://cxcacademy.com/Service/performance-testing.html

Please reach out to schedule a session: joe.h@cxcskiing.org

4. Do you have cool stuff going on with your programing? If you wish to promote your club with a takeover of our CXC Instragram account, we would like to have you take it over for a day. Feel free to contact us in this regard.

 

UPCOMING EVENTS AND PROGRAMING:

1. CXC Open Camp / Ironwood, MI / August 4-10

2. Igor Legacy Camp / Ironwood, MI / August 11-13

3. Open Citizen Technique Camps / Cable, WI / August 18-20

I hope to see you on the trails soon.

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Joe Haggenmiller | Director of Athletics
Central Cross Country Skiing
Community Olympic Development Program

Phone: (906) 281-1214
E-Mail: joe.h@cxcskiing.org
Web: www.cxcskiing.org
FB: www.facebook.com/cxcskiing

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An Update from Kyle Bratrud – CXC Team Athlete

As I have typically found this time of year, time has absolutely been flying by and the summer of 2017 is no exception. I have entered this season with one goal and one goal only. I want to make the 2018 Winter Olympics. I have now been to two World Championships for the US since the last Olympics, but somehow that all seems irrelevant when coming into this year with the desire to be proclaimed an Olympian.

That being said, as I have learned through my time working with Sten Fjeldheim at NMU, in order to accomplish my goal, I must first break it down into smaller steps.

Kyle Bratrud Rollerskiing 2017 in Marquette, Michigan

With the help of Andy Keller, we have developed a slightly different training plan than I have ever followed before. After years of making small mistakes here and there, we have eliminated everything we know does not work for me or any other “waste” I used to have. I am listening to my body more than I ever have before.

We have lowered the number of intensity sessions I am doing in a week while raising the quality resulting in a net gain in overall “on” time. Despite a nagging Achilles issue at the beginning of the summer, I am running more and faster than I ever have in the summer. In the strength room, I have a level of focus I have never had.

For the first time in my life, I do not want to leave the strength room and thoroughly enjoy my time in there. I am also discovering, for the first time in my career, how much I like to train alone. This time with myself allows me to fully evaluate my energy levels and focus solely on what I need to improve in myself.

Kyle Bratrud classic rollerskiing

I have one more big volume block left in the summer and then we will get in to my favorite kind of training, lots of intensity.

While I enjoy the “eat, train, sleep, repeat” grind, I am greatly looking forward to a fall where my energy will start to slowly rise and the workouts really start to matter.

I am fully aware every skier in America has a goal of making the Olympic team, but I remain extremely excited and confident to toe the line this winter and sort things out once and for all.

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First Masters Ski Camp of the Season

CXC’s first Open Masters/Citizen Technique Camp of the season is coming up in less than two weeks!Join CXC Team head coach, Andy Keller and Joe Haggenmiler, CXC Director of Athletics, along with fellow Masters skiers, August 18-20 in Cable, (WI).

During the days at the camp participants work on agility, balance, dry-land training, ski imitation, roller skiing and then receive video analysis.

This is also a great opportunity to learn about training, technique, racing, recovery and more.

A fair amount of the work is drills and skills that break down technique to individual movements, to help skiers understand what they must work on to improve.

Got questions? Let us know.

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An Update from Felicia Gesior – CXC Team Athlete

I entered into the new training season in my favorite place to train: Marquette, MI. There isn’t any other place that makes me feel as motivated and ready to start working hard. This summer was a little different than my past Marquette experiences. In March, I started my student teaching placement at Father Marquette Elementary in a fourth grade classroom. This was the final step before graduating with a  bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education at NMU and went through the middle of June.

Technique Work on the rollerski treadmill at the Center of Excellence in Madison

When I started training in May, I had to balance skiing with the full time teaching placement for the month and a half I had left before the end of the school year. I looked at this new challenge as a chance to get in tune with my body and find out my limits when balancing work and skiing. I learned the hard way that pushing to do too much will just leave you more susceptible to getting sick. After recovering from a series of colds, I had to concede that I would not be able to put in as many hours as is typical for May. Instead, I focused on strengthening my weakness and building a solid strength base. As a competitive athlete, this is a lesson that takes a long time to learn. I really enjoyed the challenges that came with student teaching and I look forward to having my own classroom in the future. For now, I plan to continue to train and ski with CXC while substitute teaching in the fall when training and travel allow.

Teaching my fourth grade class about cross country skiing and living an active, healthy lifestyle over the summer.

I happily spent the rest of June and a portion of July training in Marquette while doing some tutoring on the side. I felt well rested and was able to get in a solid block of training. I enjoyed joining the REG camp held in Marquette and skiing alongside the juniors who attended the camp. I also had a blast getting back to Waukesha to coach two Peak Nordic Ski Camps.

Rollerskiing on the amazing roads up in Marquette, MI

Now onto a new trip!  I just arrived in Durango, CO where I will spend the final part of the summer before heading back to Marquette in September. I am excited for the change of pace training out west.

Coaching the Peak Nordic Camp with a motivated group of high school athletes

I am happy to announce that I will be putting on the Bergkonig Mountain King Run this year. The race will be held on November 11th at Lapham Peak State Park in Delafield, WI with a 5K/10K/1K kids run options. Bergkonig means Mountain King in German. This race was founded by Maria and Bryan Cook former CXC Elite team athletes.  Proceeds from the race will help fund my 2017/2018 race season with any additional funds going directly to the Bergkonig Scholarship Fund which helps local elite athletes pursue their cross country ski dreams. For more information check out the race website! http://bit.ly/mountainkingrun

To follow more of my adventures check out my personal blog and website! http://felgesior.wixsite.com/gesior

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Scholarships Are Available For First Time Skiers In The 2018 Kortelopet

Coaches,

We want you all to know WINN (Wisconsin Nordic Network) is again offering Scholarships which cover the entrance fee into the Kortelopet (or Birkie if 18 y/o and new to the event) in February 2018. Please send in all info about each applicant so we can send you a discount code for each. Scholarships are only available to first time participants in the event.

Send the following info to JohnsrudP@tds.net and AnneMRiendL@gmaiL.com

• First name of skier
• Last name of skier
• Age on race day
• Team in WNSL the skier skis with
• School the skier attends
• Coach phone number
• Coach email
• Grade in school
• Event the skier will do (Birkie or Korte)
• Did this skier have a Scholarship into 2017 Event – Yes or No

If you could get this info into a spreadsheet with all your scholarship recipients listed and send it to myself and Phil Johnsrud that would be very helpful. If you only have one or 2 nominees then it is fine to have it keyed into an email – whatever is easiest for you is fine.

Please be sure to let us know if any of your recipients needs to cancel before the race so we can remove them from the list of skiers WINN pays for.

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Thanks for participating in the WINN Youth Kortelopet Scholarship Program!

We are always looking for donors to support this program – Last year the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation gave us a significant grant – which helps a lot – but the main support for the program comes from individual donors – please encourage all potential donors to send money – $60 puts a kid on scholarship. Or send me contact info for potential donors and I can reach out to them.

Mail donations to:
WINN
2907 Farm View Court
Waukesha WI 53188

Anne Riendl
WINN Treasurer – Volunteer Supporter of the WINN Youth Kortelopet Scholarship Program

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NEXT: Igor Legacy Camp, Ironwood (MI)

Second of 2017 Igor Legacy Camps a Success!

The Mora Vasaloppet Nordic Center in Mora, Minnesota was the host venue for the second 2017 Igor Legacy Camp on July 14-16. 36 boys and girls, ages 10-14, attended the Minnesota camp.

These U12 and U14 Midwest athletes, along with the coaching staff, represented 15 different Nordic ski programs from Wisconsin and Minnesota.

A special thanks to Azael Meza for his amazing photography! – VIEW PHOTOS

Following the theme of all Igor Legacy camps, “Keep moving, moving, and moving” and “Having fun outdoors,” the mantras of late ski coach, Igor Badamshin, coaches guided the development of the athletes’ through classic and freestyle roller skiing drills, dryland and rollerski agility courses, relays, pole hiking, and a variety of movement games!

Each evening, campers met to learn something about the world of Nordic skiing and ended each day with a campfire, complete with S’mores.

By Sunday afternoon, many athletes reported that they made new Nordic friends, they now have a better understanding of training progressions, and that Igor Legacy Camps are lots of fun. Although it is still summertime, most skiers are already looking forward to the upcoming Nordic ski season.

One more weekend camp in Michigan is set to host U12 and U14 skiers (ages 10-13) for an unforgettable three days of fun outdoor activities.

MICHIGAN August 11-13, 2017
GOGEBIC COMMUNITY COLLEGE
SIGN UP TODAY!

 

The goal of each Igor Legacy Camp, is to promote the growth and development of junior cross country ski racers and expose young athletes to the fundamental building blocks of the sport.

* Coaches and parents are welcome to apply to attend the Igor Legacy Camps.

The camp will offer special features and activities including outdoor games, dry-land training, roller skiing, and cross training activities.

The Igor Legacy Camps are made possible by: Central Cross Country Skiing, Wisconsin Nordic Development Group, and the American Birkebeiner Foundation, along with several ski shops: FinnSisu (St. Paul, MN), Out There Nordic Sports (Rice Lake, WI), Gear West (Long Lake, MN) and Boulder Nordic Sport (Boulder, CO).

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For further information regarding the Igor Legacy Camps, contact Bruce Manske, (651) 304-0647