Race Day aka Nordi-madness

Lined up next to Tony Knowles (no. 685) at the start

Although originally signed up for the 25k Tour of Anchorage, I decided to try the longer 40k leg of the race. I had yet to ever ski 40k. Conditions the day before the race were marginal - 40 mph winds and blowing snow. On Sunday, however, the sky cleared and winds calmed. Temperatures were in the upper teens, but rising with the morning sun. The snow was firm. Great conditions for racing. As Meghan and I hurried to the start (a tad later than I would have liked) we avoided a bull moose crossing the highway. We made it to the start with little time to spare. I quickly took a warm up lap around the starting area and lined up with my wave. Soon after the start of the race I found myself all alone at the front of the wave. I then realized that with little to no experience in longer races I had not considered a strategy at all. I got nervous. My skis felt fast, however, so I decided to continue with a brisk pace. I soon caught the wave in front of me and within 10k had made it to the front of that wave. I was able to ski several kms alone moving from one group of skiers to the next. As the course wound its way through Anchorage I soon found myself on familiar terrain - the 8 kms that I ski to and from work - and skied past Meghan and friends cheering from the park in front of our house. With 10 km to go I decided that I had enough in the tank to make a sprint to the finish. I knew that 4 kms of hills guarded the finish line at Kincaid Park so bonking was a very real concern. The hills were a challenge, but I felt strong through the end of the race. Forgetting to start my stopwatch I only had an estimate of my time. Only later, via a text message form Eric G., did I learn that I had won my age group and received a medal (race results). The experience was fantastic and I am now hungry for more. Alas, the 50k course will give me all that I can handle if I ski it next year.

Nerdic skiing?