Tomorrow is the annual "World Famous Osceola Christmas Race" in the Tug Hill Plateau north of Syracuse. I'm not sure that it's world famous, but it is a very well attended race in New York State and is typically the first JO Qualifier, so there are always a lot of high school racers out. The other reason that it might not actually be World Famous, is that no one actually calls the race the World Famous Osceola Christmas Classic, it's simply called the "pie race".
The race is always held the Saturday before Christmas, is 5km for all classes regardless of age, and the winner of each category receives a homemade pie. The top 3 in each age group also receive homemade pottery and the proceeds from the race benefit the Camden High School Ski team. Chad has won this race five years in a row or something, and swears by the homemade chocolate pie that he brings home to his wife every year. It's definitely a cool tradition and RNR is bringing a big squad up there tomorrow to hopefully come home with some pies, pottery and podiums!
I've done this race a couple times in the past, but this year will be a classic technique race, so it will add a different twist. Hopefully my race re-cap is more positive than that of my last classic ski race. The first race of the year is always a bit of a crapshoot to know what to expect, and when you factor in that it's my weaker technique historically and will likely be the shortest race I do all winter, I'm not sure what to expect. However, doing a low-key race like this is much more relaxing than, for example, having your first race of the year be in the Olympic Trials (as was the case last year). If I come away from the race and my technique allows me to push my aerobic capacity (i.e. if I'm able to get my heart rate up where it typically is in a skate race), then I think I'll get a decent indicator of the improvements in my classic skiing that I've been trying to make, and wherever that leaves me on the result sheet will also be a good indicator of my fitness level. So thats the goal for tomorrow - to get some feedback.
Speaking of goals, I'm going to try to approach every race this season with a specific goal for that race. For some races, this might be winning, or top ten, or good shooting, or skiing uphills strong, it depends on the race. The reason for this is pretty simple - I would like to get to the end of the year and not look back on 15 races and just see where I placed in each race and not be able to clearly see what I need to work on and what areas need more focus. Results can mean many different things, for example, I would say that last year the Lake Placid Loppet (7th place) or the NorAm Cup races in LP (8th and 9th place) were my best races of the year and the NYSSRA championships (5th place) may have been my worst. If I only look at the results sheet, I don't get an indicator that will help me improve as a skier.
I feel pretty good about the training I've put in through the fall and especially the past month, so it's time to see what's under the hood so to speak and stop speculating on this blog about where I'm at, time to do some fact-finding.
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