The
month of March had been filled with long travel days and intense racing. I am
currently in Truckee, California training with my MWSC teammates for the US
Supertour XC Finals. These races will be
my last of the 2012-2013 season. My endeavor began in Fort Kent, Maine with the
US National Biathlon Championships. As usual the organizing committee and
community of Fort Kent came together to pull off a stellar event. I skied and
shot well enough to win all 3 competitions. The highlight of the series was Mass
Start race, where I sprinted for the victory against my good friend Casey
Smith.
Immediately
following the racing in Fort Kent I began my journey west. My first stop was
Whistler, British Columbia, host to the 2013 North American Biathlon
Championships. I met up with a number of my fellow US Biathletes in Seattle,
and under the guidance of Methow Valley Biathlon coach (and Casey’s mom) Betsy
Smith we made our way north. I experienced every condition during my time in Whistler,
including by not limited to: rain, snow, sun, sleet and clouds. The senior men’s
field was very competitive due to the presence of a number of Canadian national
team athletes. I had a decent race in the Sprint, placing 7th
overall with 2 misses. In the following pursuit race I posted a lifetime best
shooting score with 19/20, good enough for 3rd place. After a day of
easy training and sightseeing in Whistler Village I was well prepared for the
Mass Start and Relay races to come. I held strong with the leaders for the
first few laps of the mass start, before untimely standing misses moved me
back. During the second to last loop I followed a strong move by fellow
American Bill Bowler and regained contact with the podium group. I took full
risk in the final standing and tried to shooting fast and clean. I misses two
and left the range in 5th. On the final loop the travel and racing
of the previous weeks caught up to me and I found myself struggling in for
another 7th place. I did my best for my team in the scramble (1st)
leg of the relay, but fatigue was still dragging me down and I failed to tag in
a good position. My time in Whistler was incredibly valuable and I was lucky to
spend it with a great group of up and coming American biathletes.
After
the relay my friends Casey, Mark and Corrine loaded into Casey’s Subaru for the
long drive to Mammoth Lakes for the Mammoth Winter Biathlon Festival. I have
attended the event in Mammoth for the last two years, and I had another great experience
this season. Warm sunny weather dominated our time there. It was great to
reconnect with the enthusiastic Nordic and biathlon community in Mammoth, and
do some fast fun racing; well, as fast as racing can be at 9,300ft!
The
altitude and racing in Mammoth Lakes has put me in a great position to perform
in the upcoming XC races here in Truckee. I am excited to get down to racing
next week.
