My Season Part II

It’s been over a month since my last ski race, so I should have had enough time to reflect on it to publish something on the second part of my season. The problem with waiting so long, is that you always think of a certain way that you should talk in your post and because you spend so much time thinking about what to write, you sometimes end up with too many things on your mind and get a bit more detailed than you expected. Here is my best attempt at grounding all of my ideas and making a comprehensive package for you, the reader. So here goes...

After the Fis race in Stowe, at the beginning of February, there was a large gap until Nationals. Just over a month where I would be doing nothing but local races. I would have loved to have flown to the Midwest and done some Supertours, or even better, gone to Europe. Europe of course, was out of the question and Supertour races would have been difficult trying to find support, as club support was non-existent for such a far away set of races. Ultimately, I decided to stay at home and work my training the best I could so that I could peak for Nationals in Whitehorse. In a nutshell, Nationals was a bit disappointing. Me and my brother Patrick put together a solid sprint relay race in a tough open men’s field to finish seventh, then there was the 10km classic race where I finished 2nd junior, in what felt like a pretty average race, although I was very happy to get my first ever Nationals podium! The most disappointing race was my 15km skate race. The first two 3.75km laps went really well, I felt awesome and in control, but I really suffered in the final two laps, and I wasn`t even tired. I realised afterwards that I hadn`t had enough for breakfast and I ended up bonking really hard the last times around. I finished 5th junior, thoroughly frustrated that such a dumb mistake took place. My skate sprint sucked, but I was saved by the rounds, finishing fifth again and my classic mass start race suffered from wax that was slowly wearing off, compromising my technique and causing me to fall back again to fifth. My goal for Nationals was to win a race and finish top 3 overall. Because I was consistently top 5, I finished 2nd overall, but I never came close to winning a race and was a bit disappointed by this. I was lucky enough to be able to share my first time in Whitehorse with the rest of my family, as all six of us took a vacation up there. My dad was waxing our skis, my mom was spectating and giving feeds and me and my three siblings were racing! To top it off, all four of us won an individual medal!

Pulling out the beast at the 10km race in Stowe, where I finished 2nd

Leading places two through five in last race of Nationals in Whitehorse

I decided that the best way to get back after a disappointing Nationals was by doing well in the last races of the year, the Super Tour Finals in Fort Kent Maine. Only a couple of days home from Whitehorse and we were on the road again driving eight hours to Maine. Our first race was an 11km classic race mass start! It started with a 1km lap, which featured a 200$ prize for the first across this marker, followed by three 3km laps of a totally glazed (picture skating rink) course. To make matters worse, there was a 180 corner about a hundred metres in and I was seeded pretty far back (about halfway through the 100 skier field). As predicted, the race started really fast and the field spread in no time. I worked hard every lap, gaining places and ended up finishing in 27th, and third junior against some really fast Americans. Honestly, I was pretty happy just to stay on my feet, as there were falls all around me, threatening to take me down! The next day we were scheduled to do a classic sprint. My sprints this year have been a bit disappointing as I have always qualified really badly. Fortunately, I pulled out my best sprint of the year and qualified 26th in the Open Men category! I was not expecting to advance as I had both Torin Koos and Len Valjas in my quarter, but my goal was to gain some places. I had a great heat and ended up 4th which although was not enough to move on, made it so that I finished 18th overall and again third junior!

11km "sketch fest" in Maine

Finally, the last day was a short skate race pursuit start based on our two previous races (bonus seconds were awarded for the sprint) to make the three race series a Mini-Tour. Although only 6km long, this skate race featured a difficult climb of about 130 metres over a 1km section, going up an Alpine hill, Tour de Ski style! I started number 20, just 8 seconds behind the first junior. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my best race and fell back to finish 29th overall and 5th junior. Looking at the results, most of the Canadians did not do very well in this race and I think that we were all a bit tired from our Nationals.

Reflecting on my season, I realise that there is lots to learn about the mental approach to racing. Out of the 20 high level races that I did this year (includes Super Tours, Nor-Ams, Nationals and Quebec Cups) I finished 12 times on the podium and 18 times in the top 5. The two times I didn`t finish in the top five happened in the three first races of the year, meaning that I finished in the top 5 in every one of the last 17 races of the year. After the pursuit race at World Junior Trials, I really put things into second gear. I started working harder during races and was able to push myself and get into the race “zone” much easier. I found that no matter how bad I felt that morning or had slept the night before; I was always able to push my hardest and achieve good results. I am not claiming to be the most focussed or mentally tough skier, because I know that I’m not! What I can say for sure is that I significantly improved my focus and threshold ability during races compared to past seasons. Consistency has been improved significantly this year thanks to improved focus. I honestly think that what separates the best skiers in the world isn’t necessarily just speed, but more so their mental abilities, their ability to dig deep and desire to win at every occasion. I know that I have come a long way, but I also know that I still have a ways to go if I want to achieve my full potential.

Andrew

A book I highly recomend, it has helped me a lot this season!

p.s. I was very happy to be presented with Male Athlete of the year by Ski de Fond Quebec as well as Athlete of the year by Nakkertok ski club, I am truly honored to win these awards!

Holding my Male Athlete of the Year Award at the end of year banquet.