Another day, or two, in the cold

The trails were in beautiful condition at the 10th Mountain Ski Center for the
North American Cup #3 held this weekend in Fort Kent, Maine

As the season continues, winter seems to getting it's grove back up here in Northern Maine.  Fort Kent was home to the North American Cup this past weekend and winter was in full force.  I love winter and I love racing, but waking up to

 -23 F temperatures Sunday morning did not make me want to run to the start line.

In the end I didn't let the cold get to me, not to mention it thankfully  warmed up quite a bit by the time we raced.  An hour delay for both Saturday and Sunday's races allowed plenty of time for the sun to work it's way over the horizon and warm things up.  

The folks up in Fort Kent did an amazing job putting on this event, with endless volunteers, great organization, beautifully groomed trails and even lunch and hot drinks for everyone afterwards.  Hats off to everyone who helped put this great event on, with a special thanks to Nancy ;).  

Racing in biathlon for over ten years now has brought me all over the country and the world.  I have been lucky enough to race as so many venues in so many cool places.  And I absolutely love it all.  That being said, there is also something pretty cool about being able to sleep in your own bed the night before a race, even better sleeping in your own bed the night after your race.  I enjoyed doing just that this past weekend.

North American cup #3 was a two day event, starting with a two shooting stage, 7.5km sprint race on Saturday followed by the 12.5km, four shooting stage mass start race on Sunday.  Consistency was the name of the game for me, placing second in both events!  Despite the cold, slow snow, skiing continued to feel pretty good.  I was a bit tired on Sunday, but held in there and was happy to walk away in second place for the second day in a row.   I was even more excited to feel my shooting become more and more solid with every race.  

That is it for racing I will do close to home for the year, which is actually more than most years.  I am excited to be traveling to some other great events in the weeks and months to come.  Next weekend I will be visiting our friendly neighbors to the North. I'll be competing in North American cup #4  in La Patrie, Quebec.  After that a little rest and a short training block will lead into a few Nordic races in the Mid-West.  Snow permitting, I'll be going the distance in the Mora Vassaloppet, then shortening things up a bit in Madison, WI for the Capital sprints and will wrap things up with the American Birke!  It'll be my third year racing the Birke and I am really starting to believe that third time really IS the charm.  It's going to be a great one.  Now we just have to send more snow to the Mid-West! Keep doin' the dance. Winter isn't over yet. We still have the whole month of March too!

Cheers, BethAnn