We've just wrapped up our team training for 2015! It's been a great fall - nothing but hard work and positive energy from a very fit and focused group of athletes. Our final practices of the year last weekend were no exception. On Saturday, we drove up to Waterville to ski on a 200m scrap of snow at Quarry Road - kind of absurd, but at this time of year we'll ski on anything! We joined Colby for a skate sprint relay - 2 person teams, alternating for 6 laps total - except in this case, 1 "lap" consisted of 3 times back and forth on the strip. With 12 or 13 teams on course at once, it was a bit chaotic, but it ended up being a really cool workout. Relays are always exciting, and everyone was fired up to represent their team as well as possible. After the initial cluster sorted itself out, people were pushing hard and making aggressive moves - great practice for the real thing coming up in the Colby Carnival next month! I was really pleased with how well our team skied. Ellie and Tess gave Colby's top women's team a good run, finishing just a few seconds behind two of the league's best skiers. Our second team of H. Marshall and Emma finished neck and neck with Colby's second team. Colby's men were a bit too deep for us, and they put their top 2 teams ahead of Sean and Marshal, but it was a back and forth battle. Since we had only 3 men present, August teamed up with a Colby skier and gave a good account, sticking behind some of the top teams for a good stretch. Overall, everyone had a lot of fun and got a legitimate race effort in the bag. Can't wait for the real thing in just a few weeks!
The next day, we wrapped up the semester with a great OD ski from campus to the Torres household in Yarmouth - a fun change of pace from our usual rollerski loops. The sun came out, the air was mild and pleasant, and the Sunday morning traffic was pretty reasonable, so we had a great workout. Once we arrived, Joan and Jon Torres served us a fantastic brunch - almond crossaint French toast, baked eggs, home fries, and more. What a great way to finish our fall practices! Every year I remember how lucky we are to have such a generous and supportive group of team parents - many thanks to Joan and Jon for making this a really special day for the team!
Meanwhile, a few of our skiers were off having a different adventure - Mac, Jake, and Sam journeyed to VT for "Man Camp." First stop was the Miller household, where they welcomed H. Miller home from Svalbard and skied at Craftsbury. After that, they descended upon the Groves household to ski on what little snow was left at Rikert. Preliminary reports indicate that it's been a very successful and very manly trip, featuring knitting, trail running, Mitt Romney, man vs. egg battles, and even a little skiing.
So that's that - a few more days of exams and everyone is out of here until 2016. Here's hoping that next semester will be just as great as this one!
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