First Day

First official practices yesterday - finally! We jumped right in with a strength workout in the morning and threshold skate intervals in the afternoon. This was my first chance to see how our skiers look in training - I was impressed. Lots of raw talent in our first-year group. Good fire, too - a few of the guys couldn't resist chasing Nat during the intervals - they went a little harder than the workout called for, but it's good to see people pushing each other. Speaking of Nat, he looks like a whole different skier this year - amazing what happens when you spend the summer rollerskiing instead of bike racing. The bar is being raised again - it's an exciting time around here.