Summer Recap

Well, the semester is underway and students have been back on campus for several days, so I guess it's time for me to stop slacking and start updating this blog again. So far the year is off to a great start. Over these last few days, I've talked to most of our skiers, and I've been really impressed by the quality of training that people have done. Some people have been training by the book, while others have been doing less structured stuff, but almost everyone appears to be in great shape. Here are a few of the highlights:

Spencer spent the summer in Truckee training with a group of EISA skiers led by former Bates assistant Martin Benes. He racked up a ton of high-quality training with a good training partners - an ideal situation. He also got quite a bit of on-snow training in June, and he's had a lot of time to do focused technique work.

Erin was on campus for the summer - she did a lot of running, but also mixed it up and took advantage of the college resources by swimming, erging, and lifting quite a bit. I was happy to hear that she incorporated some speed work into every rollerski session she did this summer.

Kaitlynn spent a few weeks at home in VT doing great work with the Craftsbury club. This stint was bookended by a trip to England where she seemingly ran, walked, and hiked all over the country, and then a lengthy backpacking trip to the Sierra Nevadas.

Wilson worked as a raft guide in Glacier National Park. He did a decent amount of hiking and trail running and an incredible amount of paddling. I'm going to have a hard time challenging him with specific strength work this fall.

Chris taught ski lessons at the Snow Farm in New Zealand. He accumulated a massive amount of training through a regular routine of a morning trail run followed by a ski before work, and then another trail run in the afternoon. He did several races, including a great performance at the 30k Kangaroo Hoppet. He also was able to do regular technique work with Alexei Sotskov, coach of Vermont Academy and also the NZ National Team, and he's super excited about the progress he's made.

Steph and Riley both worked on trail crews. Steph was in Idaho - she reports that she carried a 70 pound pack and 20 pounds of tools while hiking several miles a day to and from the work sites. Riley was in New Hampshire. He came back to campus with a mohawk and quite a bit more muscle, so he's actually kind of scary right now - I think I'll be a little nicer to him this year.

One last thing - we revived a tradition I'd hoped would stay dormant when incoming first-year Shelby Aseltine separated her shoulder in a bike crash. That makes 4 first-year arm injuries in the past 4 years, all right at the start of the school year. Fortunately, she's making a quick recovery and should be back to full strength soon.

Overall, I'm extremely happy with how the summer went - I think the team's fitness is higher than it's ever been at this time of year. These guys have gotten me incredibly excited about the season, and I can't wait to start working with them in October!