Alta Gas - Olympic edition

2010 WINTER OLYMPIC EDITION in association with

canada’s snowsports journal

Cross Country team ready for Olympic action

TABLE OF

2010 Winter Olympic Edition

n this Olympic year, we have the chance to admire the sporting talent that exists in our country. We have the chance to recognize gifted athletes who have committed to the consistent achievement of excellence and who are fulfilling dreams and inspiring national pride. Whether you’re watching the Games live in VancouverWhistler or watching on television, we are all bound to witness a truly remarkable moment in Canadian history.

The competition is about to unfold in British Columbia, where AltaGas has been establishing a growing presence. Last year we completed the province’s first wind park — Bear Mountain Wind Park — and we remain focused on continuing to develop our BC assets. At AltaGas, we understand that success doesn’t come easily — it takes hard work, dedication, and a commitment to excellence. That’s why we’re one of Canada’s largest and fastest growing energy infrastructure organizations. And that’s why we have proudly sponsored Cross Country Canada since 2007.

Cross country skiing is a sport where athletes, who train for a long time, are rewarded and see results from their hard work and their dedication to the pursuit of excellence. This special section shares some of these athletes’ stories — athletes who amaze and inspire all of us with their talent and their commitment to hard work and sacrifice in their pursuit of Olympic glory.

We are proud to sponsor Cross Country Canada and to be a part of fueling the drive to medal success for the nation’s elite cross-country skiers. AltaGas wishes all the athletes and coaches success in the 2010 Winter Olympics.

CONTENTS

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4 SECRET WEAPON Haig glacier provides spectacular training for national ski team

7 OLYMPIC PREVIEW The contenders, predictions and dark horses

8 AN OLYMPIC FAMILY The unfinished story of Pierre and Alex Harvey

11 OLYMPIC VENUE Whistler Olympic Park, home of cross country.

12 THE GEAR You need to win races

14 AT A GLANCE COVER

Devon Kershaw will lead the men’s Canadian team into the 2010 Winter Olympic Games at Whistler Olympic Park Photo: Nordic Focus

Eye of the tiger: George Grey

15 FAST & FEMALE Chandra Crawford offers some health tips

2010 WINTER OLYMPIC EDITION

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Alex Harvey works on his heart rate monitor tan line.

SECRET

WEAPON

Haig glacier provides spectacular training for national ski team PHOTO STORY BY JOHN EVELY

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t’s late Monday morning June 30th and the new Canadian nordic head coach Inge Bratten and I have it easy today. We are hopping aboard a supply flight with a gaggle of gear, headed to the high altitude cross country skiing camp on the Haig Glacier — recently renamed the Beckie Scott High-Performance Training Centre — while the national team skiers will drive for an hour and then trail run 18 kilometres up to the camp.

These athletes are the real deal. It’s doubtful that any athletes train harder than this team. After changing from trail running clothing to summer ski wear, lunching massively and washing their dishes at the rudimentary camp, the skiers scramble up another 1,000 meters through steep rock and sun-glazed summer snow to the machined set tracks on the Haig Glacier, where they will ski, confer with coaches and test lactate levels for the next three hours.

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After their last lap on the track, the skiers park their skis and ingest a few chalky textured chocolate protein recovery drinks before descending steeply again to an evening of living large at the “Yo-Yo High Country Club”.

Team Canada’s current Yo-Yo training recipe, cooked up by coaches Bratten and Dave Wood, calls for spending three days of skiing at 2,700 meters followed by three days of trail running and roller skiing at somewhat lower altitudes between Lake Louise and Bow Summit. Three up, three down. Six hours of training per day, six days a week.

“It’s a constant state of change,” chimes national team skier and Yo-Yo master Devon Kershaw. With the athletes either going up or going down, “packing and unpacking, training, eating, sleeping, and driving.”

On the seventh day of the camp, whilst his fellow nordic mates were resting, Kershaw was compelled to hit the dictionary and research other definitions of “Yo-Yo” and was amused to identify with both “a thing that repeatedly rises and falls again” and a less formal notation “insane or unpredictable person”.

“Yo-Yoer’s unite!” declares Kershaw.

“Regardless of sun or hail, up or down, we’re laughing, yelling and having a demented great time. We’ll be Yo-Yo’ing well past this year’s main objective in Vancouver!”, Kershaw claims.

“Ask any one of us and we’d answer in unison; that there’s nowhere else we would rather be — or anything else we’d rather be doing!

“Insane and unpredictable?” Works for me.”

What is apparent on this national ski team is the continual cooperative and upbeat vibe that exudes from this group. Despite spending six days a week together, they still chose to hang out on their one day off.

2006 Olympic Gold medalist Chandra Crawford is starting to wind up her incredible engine again after a season lost to injury.

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The cross country team enjoy a few hundred calories at supper time after burning a few thousand during the day.

Coaches Dave Wood (left) and Inge Bratten evaluate Ivan Babikov’s blood lactate levels on the Haig Glacier.

Yo-Yo master Devon Kershaw enjoys a chalky chocolate recovery drink at the end of another day at the office.

Staying together at the Haig Glacier where the athletes assist staff on an extensive communal work list (for example dinnertime dishes on this evening for gold medallist Chandra Crawford). “It is a team building opportunity where athletes need each other and learn from one another,” tones Bratten.

Bratten communicates very effectively at the camp with his new team. He was the head coach of Norwegian and Swedish teams during their respective glory days in the 1990’s before moving on to broadcasting and media marketing projects, and was only recently lured back into coaching by his long time friend Wood. Subsequently, Bratten has almost rock star like credibility in the nordic realm. But he walks softly and quickly, speaks wisely with individuals, rarely addresses the entire throng, and there is no big stick in sight.

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Coach Wood also enjoys a familiar, consistent rapport with the athletes and comedians on the team who know they can rely on his calm demeanor at crucial times.

He also knows from years of experience what works for Canadian skiers and isn’t trying to emulate their European counterparts. Indeed a backcountry training camp situation like this Winsport-owned facility might not be possible with European superstar skiers, who might be more inclined to ride a gondola down from the glacier and check into five star hotel room by themselves after a team meal.

After dinner, I asked coach Bratten to compare this Canadian team with the great Norwegian and Swedish team’s that he coached to incredible Olympic success. “This is more of a team than other teams,” Bratten suggests. “They are closer (and) it’s especially noticeable at a camp like this where everyone is together all the time.”

Obviously Olympic medals are not awarded for compatibility in sport, but these athletes and coaches are hopeful that this Canadian climate of cooperation, gleaned on the Haig Glacier — could very well Yo-Yo them to success at the Games of 2010 Winter Olympiad, right here at home. SRC

2010 OLYMPIC PREVIEW: NORDIC

CROSSCOUNTRY

By Tom McCarthy ross-country skiing was contested at the inaugural Olympic Winter Games in 1924 and has been a part of every Winter Games since. But though it is one of six sports that have been contested at every Winter Games, it’s not your grandma’s sport anymore. It is powerful and exciting, with lots of sprint action, fast corners and aggressive tactics — definitely worth checking out. Cross-country events have been dominated by the Nordic countries and other European powers. While that is likely to continue in Whistler, there are reasons for optimism in North America. Every cycle of Olympic Games rotates the technique used for the various events, except the pursuit and relays. Half the events are classic and half are skating, and they switch back and forth every Olympics.

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WOMEN A number of unlikely countries have produced at least one skier on the women’s circuit who can challenge on any given day. On the distance side, the resurgent Marit Bjoergen, a big star for the Norwegians, will be looking for some Olympic glory after flaming out in Torino. Charlotte Kalla, a young Swede, has earned her stripes in the last few years and will be hunting for a medal. Perhaps the strongest skier on the women’s side since the last Olympics has been Finland’s Virpi Kuitunen, a classic specialist.

Look for her to dominate the 30-kilometer classic, the last race on the women’s schedule. Two all-rounders, Petra Majdic, who is a national hero in Slovenia, and Justyna Kowalczyk of Poland, last year’s overall World Cup and distance World Cup champion, will threaten in virtually any race. Majdic, in particular, is a dominant classic sprinter.

The Russians and Italians will look to challenge in the sprint, a specialized event, with Alena Sidko for Russia and Marianna Longa on Italy’s side. The Swedish women, though, have a terrific sprint squad, led by Lina Andersson and Anna Haag. They captured two of the three medals at the last World Championships.

The traditional four-person relay, with two classic legs and two skate legs, will pitch the Norwegians against the Finns and Russians, all of whom have consistent teams. The team sprint, in only its second year on the Olympic

DYNAMIC DUO: Devon Kershaw (above) and Chandra Crawford (left) are both medal contenders in the team sprint free event.

Photo: John Evely

SRC PODIUM PIX WOMEN’S CROSS-COUNTRY 30 KM, MASS-START CLASSIC Gold: Virpi Kuitunen, Finland

agenda, will feature the Italians, Swedes and Russians. Canada’s best medal chance is in the team sprint, which is skating technique this time around, and so will showcase Chandra Crawford’s strong technique along with team veteran Sara Renner, competing in her fourth Olympics after taking a break to become a mom. The Canadians have to be considered a longshot in this event and would have to be very lucky in any other event. But hey, Crawford was a longshot in the sprint in 2006 and ended up playing air guitar to “O Canada” on the podium. Don’t ever count her out. SRC

15 KM PURSUIT (7.5 CLASSIC+7.5 FREE) Gold: Justyna Kowalczyk, Poland WOMEN’S INDIVIDUAL SPRINT CLASSIC Gold: Petra Majdic, Slovenia TEAM SPRINT FREE Gold: Italy *Best Canadian chance: Chandra Crawford and Sara Renner 4X5 KM RELAY CLASSIC/FREE Gold: Norway 10 KM INDIVIDUAL FREE Gold: Charlotte Kalla *Best Canadian chance: Sara Renner

2010 WINTER OLYMPIC EDITION

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AN OLYMPIC FAMILY

THE UNFINISHED STORY OF PIERRE AND ALEX HARVEY

BY TOM McCARTHY 8

2010 WINTER OLYMPIC EDITION

short history of Canadian cross-country skiing goes like this: Before this decade, there were very few Canadian skiers who made a blip on the international radar, and really only one worth mentioning — Pierre Harvey.

The huge talent from Rimouski, Quebec, put the spotlight on Canadian cross-country skiing in the 1980s. Then darkness descended on the Canadian nordic ski world with lackluster results until Salt Lake City in 2002, when ever-smiling Beckie Scott came along, grabbed Canadian skiing by its spandex collar, and pulled it back into the spotlight.

The Canadian women promptly followed Scott’s lead, with Sara Renner and Chandra Crawford winning Olympic and World Championships medals in 2006 and 2007. Then the men started moving quickly, and in the last two years have worked together to build a team that will challenge for medals in 2010. There’s Devon Kershaw, the leader of the team, Ivan Babikov, the gutsy new Canadian, and George Grey, the seasoned veteran. And then, at 21, the youngest athlete on the men’s team — and arguably the most talented — Pierre’s own son Alex.

The genetics are on Alex’s side, without question. The Harvey family story provides unique insight on intriguing questions in sports: What determines talent, and how can you predict success? Is it about who your parents were, or is it about the environment you grew up in?

Pierre started his career in road biking, racing to 24th place in the road race in his first Olympics in Montreal in 1976. He was part of the team that boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics and became the first Canadian to compete in both summer and Winter Olympic Games in the same year, in Sarajevo in 1984. He won three World Cup races in the 1980s, including one of the world’s legendary ski races, the 50-kilometre Holmenkollen marathon in Oslo, Norway.

Pierre finished his Olympic career in Calgary with a best placing of 14th. But the Olympics were never where

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Alex Harvey celebrating a third-place finish in the men’s pursuit at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games test event at Whistler Olympic Park in February 2009.

Photo: Paul Morrison.

Pierre shined. Those were the days when doping was at its peak, and other athletes — outclassed regularly by Harvey in the weeks before the Olympics — made massive improvements at the Games and leapfrogged him on the results sheet.

There’s a famous poster of Pierre at the 1988 Olympics where he’s flying around a corner at the Canmore Nordic Centre, both skis airborne, eyes wide, gunning it toward the finish. This poster defined who Pierre was, and defined Canadian nordic skiing for a generation.

Alex shows a similar genetic aptitude. Born in 1988, the year Pierre closed his Olympic career at the Calgary Games, Alex attended two World Junior Championships in mountain biking, with a top result of 23rd in 2006. But his cross-country skiing always held a slight edge. “Until I was (17), it was pretty equal in my mind,” Alex said.

“Then I got my first medal at World Junior Championships in 2007 and it was a natural choice for me. I’m a perfectionist and I want to win. I was close to being world junior champion in skiing, so it was easy to quit biking.”

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Alex Harvey has benefitted from the Canadian team leadership of veterans such as Devon Kershaw, right.

Photo: John Evely

But the question of nature versus nurture has no simple answers. While his father may have a Hemi-sized athletic engine, Alex grew up in an environment perfect for skiing, the picturesque and aptly named village of Saint-Ferréol-lesNeiges, east of Quebec City. It sits at the base of Mont Ste-Anne and boasts some of the highest snowbanks and nicest ski trails you’ll find in Canada. Pierre introduced him to skiing, Alex said, but never forced him into the sport and didn’t put any pressure on him to compete. “At first,” Alex said in an interview this summer with Fasterskier, “he brought me to the sport. Where I live, everyone is a skier, either downhill or cross-country. When I was young, I’d downhill ski on Saturdays and crosscountry on Sundays. The competitor was always in me — I always wanted to win for myself.”

Alex also might possess a technical advantage, having sat behind his father in the baby-glider then having skied behind him as a kid, absorbing technique tips the whole time.

But not so, said Alex. “I skied with him on weekends, but I don’t think he was a great technician as an athlete. Everybody said that he

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had a huge engine, but he’s not a technical skier,” Alex said.

So if genetics don’t account for Alex’s long, relaxed classic stride, the endless skating glide and the effortless-looking power, what does?

“One of the reasons I ski well today is all the hours I spent looking at World Cup races on the computer, and at video of myself. I remember all the technique sessions we had in the sport program at high school. I guess it paid off!”

Surprisingly, Pierre never coached Alex. The younger Harvey’s local club has a strong tradition of coaches, and he worked very closely with Les Parsons and now Louis Bouchard, the coach for the appropriately named Centre national d’entrainement PierreHarvey. Before races or throughout the year, Pierre would give him small tips, or help him with mental preparation. Alex said he still does that, with a quiet word of encouragement leading up to a big race.

Perhaps the biggest races of Alex’s young career were the test events at the Whistler Olympic Park last January. Everyone in the stadium heard the tension, the breathless

excitement, and then the sheer joy in Pierre’s voice as Alex sprinted up the finish straight in the team sprint to lunge in for a surprise third place, his first World Cup medal and a guaranteed spot on the start line in the 2010 Olympics. Pierre was trying out as the stadium colour announcer. Pierre might not do stadium commentary for the 2010 Games — he will likely stick to French-language television coverage — but he’ll certainly be there on the sidelines to watch Alex step up to the start line and continue an Olympic legacy.

Pierre had some very good Canadian teammates in the 1980s, but he was the only one who broke through to the top ranks. When Alex toes the line in Vancouver, he’ll be alongside the strongest Canadian men’s team ever. Canada’s top guns boast recent World Cup medals and can challenge in all the events.

The relay team has a great medal shot.

Perhaps the best lesson Pierre has given his son is also one of the simplest. “He’s always said,” remembered Alex, “that the day you don’t have fun is the day you’ll no longer be great.” SRC

VENUE GUIDE: WHISTLER OLYMPIC PARK

ross-country skiers will compete at the Whistler Olympic Park, located in the Callaghan Valley about 18 kilometres south of Whistler. A temporary stadium holds 12,000 spectators at the $119-milllion venue, which will also host biathlon, ski jumping and nordic combined. The venue consists of 14 km of crosscountry skiing and biathlon trails as well as two ski jumps (90m and 120m) that will be immediately visible upon entering the venue. The two square-kilometre venue also includes three separate temporary stadiums (for cross-country, biathlon and ski jumping respectively) located about 500m apart. An additional 20 to 25 kilometres of recreational nordic trails will cover cross-country ski terrain next to the Olympic Games core area. A 10,500 square-foot day lodge will be part of the athletes’ compound.

After the 2010 Games the Whistler Olympic Park will be owned and operated by the Whistler Legacies Society, which will also operate the Whistler Sliding Centre and part of the Whistler Athletes’ Village. VANOC has set aside $110 million for venue legacies as part of their venue budget.

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CROSS-COUNTRY

50-kilometre race, the athletes will climb approximately 2,000 vertical metres (more than twice the vertical of the men’s downhill course at Whistler Creekside). The winning time for this race is expected to be around two hours.

One of the five-kilometre loops is intended for the skating technique, and one is intended for the classic technique. It is not the hardest course on the World Cup circuit, though it flows extremely well and has a lot of fast downhill corners. The classic course has a long gradual uphill that could separate people and the skating course has a number of shorter, steeper climbs, which will be challenging. The sprint course loops above the stadium, and features two very sharp corners that will provide lots of racing excitement.

The cross-country venue includes a 6,000 squarefoot technical building, 10 kilometres of competition trails in two distinct five-kilometre loops and a 150-metre-long stadium area. Athletes will ski at an average speed of 25 kilometres per hour during cross-country ski races, reaching maximum speeds of nearly 60 kilometres per hour. Over the men’s

WHERE THE RACES WILL BE WON:

The cross-country courses do not feature any long, steep hills where an athlete could break

away early. The long, gradual classic course on the uphill could separate the contenders from the pack, but is unlikely to determine a winner. Most of the races will likely be won on two short, steep uphills 500 metres from the finish, within full view of the crowd in the stands.

BEST SEAT IN THE HOUSE:

The best place to be is in the standing-room area opposite the stadium seating. From there, you can grab an up-close look at the athletes as they climb the final hill, see them come directly at you as they whip around the first tight sprint corner, and then watch them come barrelling down the stadium straight-away. Plus, tickets are only a third the price as the stadium seating. SRC

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CROSS-COUNTRY

COMMENTARY By Tom McCarthy

THE GEAR you need to win races

Sara Renner knows that value of good equipment. Photo: John Evely

he mere title of this article is misleading. Gear is never going to win you a race — winning is up to you.

But it sure can lose you a race.

Every skier has countless stories about terrible wax, slow skis, or a busted pole that cost them a medal, a championship, or club glory.

In my last race as a junior, I was on track for a medal in the national championships 30km — there were three of us out in front. Then, with one hill left to climb, I stumbled slightly and my boot separated from its sole. Fourth place, just like that, and a new pair of boots from the company (who shall remain nameless) after I told them my story.

When the gear works right you hardly notice it. Skiing feels natural, the kick feels solid, and everything is where it’s supposed to be.

Here are some different things that high-performance nordic skiers look for in their gear:

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POLES Under normal conditions, the key criteria for poles are control and swing-weight. A pole should feel like it is an extension of the arm, so the strap is very important. The strap should eliminate the need to hold the pole directly with the hand — most skiers I know only use the hand to loosely grip the pole, which allows for a more relaxed upper body.

Swing-weight relates to the shaft and the basket. The goal of every shaft is to reduce weight as much as possible while maintaining stiffness so that power applied down the pole transfers to the snow, rather than bending the pole. The lighter a pole is nearer the bottom of the pole, the lighter it’ll feel when it swings.

Poles get tricky for sprinting, or when it’s a soft-snow day. Sprinting involves a lot more contact, so many companies now make a sprint-specific pole that sacrifices some weight for more strength, particularly in the bottom third of the shaft, where a pole snaps easily if kicked. On a snowy day, the very small baskets that reduce weight will go right through the surface, so high-level racers usually cart around a pair of big baskets to slam

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on if it’s a soft, messy day. There is nothing more frustrating than having your pole-plant collapse into soggy snow.

BOOTS AND BINDINGS Boots and bindings are lumped together here because they usually act as one system. Classic boots are pretty standard across companies — a simple, low-cut boot that flexes through the forefoot. Skating boots are a bit more sophisticated — the challenge is to provide optimal control and underfoot power transfer while also providing for maximum forward ankle flexion. Most skating boots have a cuff that supports above the ankle, but some elite skiers now prefer very good lower foot control, so there are some skating boots out there without an ankle cuff.

The key in boot/binding technology recently has been the bindings. There are two main

systems. SNS Pilot, the proprietary Salomon system, uses two pins (at the front of the boot and at the ball of the foot) as the contact points from ski to boot. NNN3’s technology relies on two plugs — one in front and one behind the pin as well as, in the last three years, a binding plate (NIS) that adjusts up or down the ski depending on the skier or the conditions. A recent addition to most elite racers’ stables has been the skiathlon boot, which is built for both classic and skate — but not perfect for either, lacking stiffness for skating and being a bit restrictive for classic.

The two competing technologies are both great, but they have different strengths. My preference is for the NNN3 system, which I think offers better control due to the wider binding plate and slightly retracted front pin. The NIS plate system is a very secure system, and the ability to optimize the balance point is a nice touch.

CROSS-COUNTRY

By Tom McCarthy SKIS Skis. They’re important. Each ski brand has a different personality — Madshus are smooth and forgiving, Rossignols are bouncy and lively, Fischers are stable and smooth, and the list goes on. To answer a popular question, though — no, the skis you buy off the rack are not the same skis the World Cup athletes are using. They are, however, very close, and occasionally an athlete will use an off-the-shelf ski if it has the right characteristics. Everything about a store ski is the same as an elite ski, usually, except for the base — each company takes special care with World Cup skis.

They pick the best skis off the factory line and give them different base types for specific conditions. You’ll only ever see two of those base types in a store — a cold base and a ‘zero’ or wet-snow base — but the elite guys are on lots of different types.

Key advances in recent years have been a new double-camber construction for classic skiing — which results in a higher grip zone while gliding, but keeps the grip easy to put down when force is applied – and, more generally, swing-weight reduction through the use of carbon at the tips and tails. Another specific advance is in classic grip zones, with the introduction of better structured bases or chemical bases.

A word on ski gimmicks: they usually fall short of a good, stable, well-built ski. Many of the gimmicks come from the downhill world. Fischer brought a ‘side-cut’ skate ski out in the late 90’s to great fanfare, but all the pros hated it so they built normally shaped skis and put the side-cut graphic on it for them to race on. Atomic’s signa-

ture ski is a Beta Cap construction — the current one worked. The old one was slow.

This year, Fischer has a ‘hole ski’. I’ll reserve comment.

WAX AND SKI PREP Of the three key determinants of ski speed on any given day, most people don’t realize that only one of those — the ski’s camber — is integral to the ski. The other two are the base structure of a ski, created through grinding, rilling, or brushing; and of course the wax. The grind is the most often neglected by citizen racers, but many World Cup teams bring their own grinder to the biggest races, to grind for specific snow conditions.

Some teams have had testers developing grinds and waxes specific to Whistler Olympic Park for over two years. If you’re not at the World Cup level, there are a few professional grinding gurus around North America, including the aforementioned Boulder Nordic Sport.

Ski waxing for elite –level racing is one of the most complex, magical and mysterious technical aspects in any sport. The number of waxes is overwhelming , and the number of factors to consider in choosing the right wax – and the right wax process, for often it is HOW the wax is applied that makes the difference — is mind-boggling. The best technicians are worth a tremendous amount — it is an all-consuming, highly committed career. The best advice for any elite racer is simply this – find a good team with a good technician. If not, you’ll be looking at a lot of spandex skiing away from you. Good luck with your gear! There will be days when you’ll need it… SRC

COMMENTARY

McCarthy’s Tips

1. Ensure you’re on skis that fit your style of skiing. Are you a powerful skier with a short stride, or long and smooth? That will have an impact.

2. Get skis with good bases. Some companies are more consistent with factory quality than others – Fischer is second to none in that respect. Ideally, you’ll have a ski tech at the factory picking skis out for you – this is possible with some operations in North America, such as Boulder Nordic Sport (www.bouldernordicsport.com ).

3. Know your skis better than any other athlete knows theirs. Everyone says this, but there’s nothing more important. Owning 4 pairs of race skis is better than owning 20 pairs of race skis, if you trust those 4 pairs and know exactly which ones will work in what conditions. The best way to do this is to number or label your skis and keep a notebook of how they perform each time you ski – or race– on them. Don’t dismiss your old skis. As skis get older and are waxed and scraped more and more, they lose all their base substructures – which is great in soft, cold-snow conditions. Old classic skis are comfortable, and a pair that is slightly too soft for you will be fast to ski on for years, particularly in long races where your kick gets tired. My favourites are a 1997-vintage Fischer RCS classic ski.

Tom McCarthy is a former national-level cross country ski racer and the lead XC writer for SRC. Retired from serious racing, he remains fully plugged in to the scene as a race organizer, wax tech, and former board member of Cross Country Canada.

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AT A

GLANCE

EYE OF THE TIGER: George Grey makes a

move at the 2009 World Cup race in Canmore, Alberta.

Photo: John Evely.

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FAST &

By Marie-Hélène Thibeault

CRAWFORD: Work your mind, body and skis

FEMALE

Chandra Crawford (right) with her Fast and Female crew during the Fit and Fun series.

or many young winter sport athletes Fall not only represents the excitement of the pre-season, but a return to the fine balancing act required to accommodate school while maximizing training.

“Balancing school and training for me was about managing my energy, prioritizing, and choosing the things I most wanted to do,” said Chandra Crawford, cross-country skier and 2006 Olympic Gold medalist.

How to fit it all in? Not always an easy task, but in order to play hard, one must

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work hard and it is important to establish a balance as early as possible to ensure the attainment of your goals.

Setting certain expectations for yourself in academics and sport and tracking your progress in both will keep you in check and ensure that you are not falling behind. A sport can be a great motivational tool during the school year, but only after you’ve established clear priorities.

It is also important to communicate openly with parents, coaches, and teachers, as

these will serve as your support system. Involve all of these people in your goal setting, which will not only engage your mind to the upcoming season but provide inspiration for working your body.

And just like going back to school requires attention to homework, sport also demands a bit of homework with regards to equipment.

One of the most important things you can do this pre-season: waxing.

“Hopefully your skis had travel wax on them all summer. If not, give them some serious TLC and a few coats of hot wax. That is so key to keep the bases from drying out,” said Crawford.

“When I was younger I took responsibility for my sport, from my body, mind, and all the way to my equipment. Waxing my skis diligently gave me the extra edge to perform.” SRC These tips are offered by Fast and Female presented by Best Buy, which is a not-for-profit organization started in 2005 by Olympic Gold Medal cross-country skier Chandra Crawford.

The organization’s mission of “Empowerment Through Sport,” is achieved by hosting sporting events where girls and young women, ages 9-19, focus on building confidence and leadership skills.

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OFFICIAL SPONSOR OF CROSS COUNTRY CANADA At AltaGas we understand that success doesn’t come easily m it takes hard work, dedication, and a commitment to excellence. That’s why we’re one of Canada’s largest and fastest growing energy infrastructure organizations. And that’s why we proudly sponsor Cross Country Canada.

www.altagas.ca