Snowshoe Championships

"The National Snowshoe Championship on Saturday, March 6th was one of the toughest snowshoe races I have ever done. The field was the deepest talent that I have seen at a snowshoe race and the pace was hot from the beginning. Scott Gall wasn't going to leave anything to chance and he pushed the pace from the very start. The two of us had a gap on a very strong second pack before the first mile. Scott kept the pressure through the first 3 miles and I moved into the lead but couldn't shake him. The snow was so soft that every step was a struggle. I kept working every part of the course and every change in terrain looking for an advantage. Finally I was able to put just a small gap during a long climb around mile 4. I attacked every climb over the second half of the course and a couple seconds here and a couple seconds there added up to just enough to secure the win.

I think of snowshoe racing as a pure test of fitness. There were several athletes in the race that were faster road runners than me but that's not the only factor in snowshoe racing. I think that is where my triathlon training and altitude training becomes an advantage. Anything that slows the race down benefits me and the hills and soft snow in New York were the perfect recipe. I had two knee surgeries in November and just started running a little in February. I was a little worried that the pace would be too fast for me right now but I was ok.

The real advantage though is when athletes come to race me at altitude. Sunday was the Jeremy Wright North American Snowshoe Championship which starts around 10,000 feet and goes up from there. After such a tough race in New York the day before and a long day/night of traveling I wasn't sure how I would respond. fortunately I felt more comfortable and 'at home' in the Beaver Creek race and was able to build a very big cushion of almost 2 minutes. After the National race in New York I think everything is going to feel a little easier for a while."