Ladies after the race. L to R: Jari Kirkland, Sari Anderson, Lindsay Plant, Jessie Young
I thoroughly enjoyed the suffering of coming back to my first skimo race of the season yesterday at Sunlight. It’s not always fun to push that hard for over two hours, but yesterday was different. Racing along with friends makes the suffering more enjoyable.
I worked hard to race my own race and stay within my limits. With work and coaching, I’ve spent more time on my skate skis this season with some skinning sessions in between. I had no idea where my fitness was but figured the race was the best way to find out. I was pleasantly surprised with where I’m at in January and am motivated to get out for more training.
Jessie Young came from behind for the win with Lindsay Plant close behind in 2nd and myself in 3rd. I’m looking forward to another battle next weekend at Powderhorn.
Just two weeks ago, as I mentally prepared to go in for another small surgery on my ankle, I got a call from Jari Kirkland asking me if I could go to Ecuador for an adventure race. I told her that I was nowhere near trained for it. Of course, I really wanted to go. I talked it over with the guys from the team and told them that I might be a liability—they didn’t care. Ian told me that sure, it might not be prudent for me to race, but how often do you get a free trip to Ecuador. So, 24 hours later, I decided I was in for the Nonstop Ecuador Es Tu Cancha race.
I’m very excited to get out for another adventure race and to see Ecuador. My training has been upped significantly, adding some night riding and paddling.
Heading out for a night ride in Moab
Summit of Mt. Sopris. Round trip of 3 hours 34 minutes and elevation gain of 4,390 feet
Ian and I at the top of Searle Pass, 12,034 feet, on the Dirty Copper Triangle
Ian traversing between Searle and Kokomo Passes
Kokomo Pass, 12,027 feet
Follow the yellow brick road
I have a few more weeks squeeze in some training, especially at elevation (Quito is at over 9K feet!). I plan on running the Four Pass Loop this weekend and getting out on a few long rides. This race will be a wildcard for me, but I’m excited to have a goal to work towards and it’s motivated me to be as ready as possible.
As I continue to recover quickly, I am reminded how blessed I am. While in the Outer Banks last week, Ian and I got out for some great road rides, swam in the Atlantic and walked on the beach.
Wright Brothers Memorial, Kill Devil Hills, Outer Banks, NC
Rushing back to Colorado for a very special wedding in Crested Butte, I stopped at home and grabbed my mountain bike. The Tall Boy LTC had not been touched since I crashed three weeks ago. Unfortunately I didn’t have the chance to hop on the bike while in CB due to rain, however I attempted a run…and succeeded. My Saturday run on the Caves Trail in CB South was slow but I was super excited to be running.
Running in the rain on the Caves Trail, Crested Butte South
After a fun night of celebrating two of my favorite people in the world, Jari Kirkland and Troy Hiatt, I wasn’t sore from running the day before so I jumped on the opportunity to run with friends. Stevie Kremer and Sarah Stubbe took me on a fun run that had me ecstatic that I was really running again.
I still have some pain when I twist the wrong way but for the most part I feel great (other than my quads being ridiculously sore from two runs). With a trip to Sun Valley coming up this weekend, I spent the evening getting my bike rideable again. Thankfully my bike did not sustain any major damage from my crash – just crooked handle bars, torn grips and some scratches. With recovery moving in the right direction, I’m trying not to fall again or do too much but it’s hard to hold back now that I feel so much better.
Chris Miller put together this terrific video from the North American Ski Mountaineering Championships in Crested Butte a few weekends ago. The video includes some awesome footage from Guide’s Ridge, reminding me just how scary it was. I’m easy to pick out in the video with my hot pink POC goggles and look of terror on my face…
Team Crested Butte, with Brian Smith, Jon Brown and Jari Kirkland will be competing again at the Teva Mountain Games in Vail this weekend. Smithy and Jon are doing the Ultimate Mountain Challenge, battling out with Luke Nelson and Marshall Thomson among others. Rumor has it that even Mike Kloser is coming out of “retirement” to race. It’s going to be epic!
Last year at the US National Ski Mountaineering Championships in Jackson Hole, I had a disappointing race because of equipment issues – I didn’t manage my skins properly. I’ve been looking forward to coming back to Jackson ever since. I’ve been training hard despite the lack of snow in Colorado and felt ready going into the weekend. My parents graciously volunteered to watch the kids so Ian, Jari Kirkland and I could drive up to Wyoming on Friday.
Despite my preparation, I felt nervous on Saturday morning and began to doubt my fitness. As the gun went off, we all started fast as usual. I took the lead for about three minutes until Gemma Arro Ribot passed me with Stevie Kremer and Janelle Smiley on her tail. I tried to fall in behind them, but I couldn’t hold the pace and I fell off the group by a few minutes. Feeling a bit frustrated, I decided to race my own race, knowing I was going as hard as I could and there were three more hours to go.
Towards the top of the first climb, about an hour into the race, I was beginning to gain on the lead girls. I passed last year’s national champ, Janelle Smiley, in the first transition as she struggled with a broken boot (impressively she was able to get a strap and finish the race) and gained more time on both Gemma and Stevie.
At the bottom of the second descent, I passed Stevie Kremer in transition and started to feel like my training was paying off. I was feeling strong – eating and drinking well.
I passed Gemma on the second-to-last descent and never looked back. With one more fast transition, I was in and out before Gemma arrived. I concentrated on form and managed to pass about three or four more men on the final climb. I skied the final descent fast, but with a bit of caution to ensure I didn’t get sloppy and crash. As I tucked into the finish I was finally able to breath a sigh of relief. I finished in 3:04, about four minutes faster than last year. My training paid off, and my decision to stick to my own race plan proved to be the right call.
Stevie Kremer finished in second with Gemma Arro Ribot in third. My La Sportiva teammate Luke Nelson took the win for the men with Scott Simmons and Jason Dorias finshing second and third respectively. Full results can be found on the race site here. Photos from Kevin Krill here. A bunch of photos that Ian took are below. Thanks for reading!
Start of the 2012 Ski Mountaineering National Champs at Jackson Hole
Men’s national champ and La Sportiva athlete – Luke Nelson
Cary Smith with the Grand Teton in the background
Stevie Kremer and I finishing the first bootpack
Sari & Stevie again. We go faster when we drop our heads.
Brian Edmiston rips skins for the short descent down Coombs Couloir.
Jen Gersbach rocked her first skimo race.
A good day for for Sportiva! Sari & Luke happy to be national champs.
Sari & Stevie at the finish. Women’s #1 and #2.
(L to R): Stevie Kremer 2nd, Sari Anderson 1st, Gemma Arro Ribot 3rd
SariAnderson.com 