Fall into Winter

Tomorrow is October 1 and a new season is getting so close. There are signs of it everywhere - the leaves are slowly starting to shed their green and change colors, pumpkin spice lattes are back at Starbucks and Panera, the weather is starting to cool down which means that in New England it's getting really cool, especially at night. Another sign is that we got an early look at the Appalachian Series schedule for the winter. The big news there, at least for us, is that there will be a bx race at Massanutten again and the timing is such that Whitney will be home from school on her first spring break (or is it her winter break, I'm not sure). Whitney has already registered with USASA again and has made some big changes. She's moved up to the Open class and she also switched to the Maine Mountain Series. The good news is that since she's the Jams Champion from last season, she has an automatic invite to Nationals this year.

Another sign of the coming season is that dry ground training has started up in Maine. Whitney has had several meetings with the ski and snowboard team at school and they've started running and working out. She said that the other day they were playing football. Not sure how exactly that gets them in shape for skiing or snowboarding, but it sounded fun.

The snow is going to start falling in Maine pretty soon and they'll be able to start making snow there long before we have a chance to here in Virginia. Here's to an awesome season!

Making Progress Towards the Season

Winter is getting closer. The weather may not feel like it (it was still hot and humid until yesterday) but the calendar, my email, and my Facebook feed say otherwise.

Signs of the coming season -

• Whitney registered yesterday with USASA for the new season. She's moved to the Maine Mountain Series and to the open class. Should be a challenging season for her. {we'll miss the Appalachian Series}
• Whitney has a meeting with the UMF ski and snowboard team in a couple of weeks.
• I've seen postings on Facebook from the Appalachian Series director that she's been making phone calls about the new season. That means that she's calling resorts to set up the competition schedule. She can't say anything yet, but I sure hope there's a race at Massanutten.
• Also on Facebook I saw a posting by Whitetail about getting ready for winter.
• I had an email today from Copper Mountain that they are opening on Nov. 6. Yes, they're in the Rockies but that's soon! Hopefully Sugarloaf, which is where Whitney will be this winter, will be opening soon after that.
• Bob and I have been talking about which ski passes would be best to get this year. We'll have to take a look at our options and figure out when we'll be down at Massanutten. We also need to decide if Sarah is getting skis for Christmas or if we're going to rent for her again. 

I'm looking forward to winter. Once I see Whitney's schedule I'll make some plans to head to Maine and watch her race. I'm not sure what I'm going to with all my free time this winter; for the first time in four years I won't have to take her to practice or races.

A New Season, Just Around the Corner

It's getting towards the end of August and a new season is just around the corner. No, really, it is. USASA is opening it's early registration for the season on Sept. 1. I just saw something today on the Appalachian Series facebook page about training for coaches. All the snowboard gear has been pulled out and weather reports are already being checked. OK so the gear was pulled out to be packed in the car to make the trip to college. Exciting times! Whitney's plan is to compete for the University of Maine at Farmington while working toward her bigger goals. Being on the team will push her, she's not used to strength and condition training, working out before the season starts, and I'm sure the practices will be more than she's used to doing. Hopefully the coach will know something about boardercross and will help take her to the next level of competition. Lots of unknowns right now. If you're interested in following her adventures this season her instagram and twitter feed can be found at whit_lemay.

What Was I Thinking??

I haven't been on my bike all summer. Just wasn't interested this year. But did that stop me from signing up for a ride that was today? Nope! What was I thinking?? I even signed Bob and I up a month ago for this 25 mile ride, had the date in the back of my head, and did nothing about getting on my bike. So last night Bob and I went out for an 8-mile ride, just to take my bike for a spin and so today wouldn't be my first time in the saddle. Good thing we went out! Found out my rear break wasn't working at all. When we got to our turn around point, he messed with it and got it fixed. Better last night than this morning. So this morning we were up early and out the door by 7 to get to the start by 7:30 to meet my friend. We were on the road riding just before 8 and finished in 2 hours, 15 minutes, pretty darn good for not riding at all. I was happy to finish before it got too hot. I'm still in one piece, I'm just going to have a sore tush for a few days. And now my bike is back in the garage, we'll see if I pull it out again this summer.

The End of Another Season

The end of another season has come around and it's been a really good one. There were some pretty awesome race days, like the snowy day at Massanutten followed by the beautiful sunny day after.

in the start gate at Massanutten

the snowy race

the beautiful day after

There were some ok race days, like at Blue Mountain which took forever. Even though it lasted way longer than we thought it would, the racing was really good; Whitney beat the boys!

the neon orange really helps her stand out

Whitney's skills improved this year, she was stronger, racing faster, and had a better grasp on the technical side of racing this season.

Of course, Nationals was the cap to an awesome season. Heading out there, confident but not overly so, having her coach out there again as well as a couple of teammates really helped. The weather was beautiful, the course was good, and the racing was even better. To finish the season as National Champion was a major goal reached and exceeded.

Whitney and Chad, a relaxed moment in the start gate

the National Champion

It's the end of the season, but it's also the end of our time with the Massanutten Snowboard team. She'll be heading to college in the fall and will join the University of Maine, Farmington ski and snowboard team. It's been a really good experience at Massanutten, although it had it's frustrations. I'll miss going to all of Whitney's races next year as it's a long drive to Maine, but I'll try to get to some. Hopefully there will be a race at Massanutten again next year and if the timing is right, she'll be home on break and can race there again. Huge thanks go out to Chad, Target, and all the other coaches at Massanutten that have worked with Whitney over the last four years. Thanks also to Ellen and Mark, directors of the USASA Appalachian Series for their help and friendship the last couple of years and the hard work they've put in getting races set up for the kids (and adults). One chapter ends and a new one begins.

Race day, Part 2

What an exciting day! The way things went, I'm not sure she's stopped smiling yet!

Whitney went out to meet Chad early to get her board and put it back together (he had waxed it and sharpened the edges but she had the bindings), then the two of them headed up to the race course. Bob, Sarah, and I went out later, took a few runs on the easier slopes then went to the bx course. We got there in the middle of time trials which was good timing. The way they ran things for Whitney's group was practice runs, time trials, then they set up the brackets. There were only 10 girls in Whitney's age group so the seven fastest moved on to the semi-finals, then there was one bracket of the other three. The top one from that race moved on to the semis. They ran four girls at a time in the semi's (two brackets) and the top two from each moved on to the finals and the bottom two went to the consolation bracket.

Whitney was the top ranked girl there in her age group so she got to go first in the time trials. That's not always a good thing, but here it was. They had waited a long time already so going first meant not having to wait any longer and having the nerves build up more. Whitney had the fastest time of her group, not as fast as she would have liked but it was a good time. This meant she was the top seed and had first lane choice. That can be key to winning or losing a bx race and it seemed to be on Wednesday.

In her semi-final race she picked the far right gate. I'm assuming a consultation with Chad went into the decision and while it didn't look like a good choice at the start it turned out to be a very good one. Chad and I were standing just below and to the left of the start gate so had a good view of the first elements and most of the course. When they were off it didn't look good for Whitney; she was the third over the first element but because of her gate choice she was able to ride high on the turn, stay out of the fray, pass the other girls and get ahead. A bit further down they spread out more and Whitney was in charge and the first over the last jump and across the finish line.

She had a short break while the other races were going on, long enough to let a few nerves build again, then it was time for the finals. Since she had been first in her semi race she had first gate choice again and again it was the far right. I wasn't sure this was good but she knew what she was doing. Again, she was second or third going over the first element but went high. By this time it had warmed up some (although not as much as earlier in the week) and the other girls weren't used to the soft snow and two wiped out pretty quick. Whitney took advantage, passed them, lengthened her lead, and went on to win the race. It was amazing watching her race! She said later that early she could hear the clatter of the other boards behind her then as she got further ahead it got quiet, eerily quiet. The girls actually ended up spaced pretty far apart by the time they crossed the finish line.

It was SO exciting! All her hard work this season (and seasons past) came to fruition. Her goal at the beginning of the season was to make the podium. As one of her coaches said "you have certainly done that and MORE!!...You are literally the best!" We went to get her USASA Nationals sweatshirt and her original thought was to get the first place logo on it but they told her that they had "national champion" she could get and that's what she went with because she is the National Champion!

Race Day, Part 1

Race day is finally here. I think the longest wait has been this week. We got here Friday afternoon, she had her practice on Saturday afternoon, so she's had a lot of time to think and wait. She was up early, meet Chad to get her board (he waxed her board and sharpened the edges), put her bindings back on, and now they're off to the course. Race day is a lot of hurry and wait.

The last few days I've had the chance to watch the half pipe which was fun. I enjoyed watching the little kids, most of them had a hard time getting very far up the sides of the pipe. They also generally didn't do much in the way of tricks.

Super pipe

Yesterday was the group with the teen/older guys. Some of them were really good! A few had great runs, then fell at the bottom.

Whitney and I went out Monday together. It was the first time I'd been skiing in Colorado. Lots of fun! The lift to ski ratio here is great. They have high speed lifts which is good since they are long, then it's a long way back down. It's been warm here so the conditions have been icy in the morning and slushy (mashed potatoes) by mid-morning. It's just what Whitney and other East Coast riders are used to riding on so is no big deal for them but other riders are complaining. We'll see how it plays out today.