Pictures from Stowe and some huge races this weekend

Here are some pictures from the few days that Nancy and I spent in Stowe after my races over the holidays.

Nancy and my buddy Lucas both came to my last race, after which, we headed for Stowe (about 45min from where I was racing). The following day, Nancy and I went up to the Trapp Family Lodge, which, according to Cross Country Skier Magazine, is the oldest nordic ski facility in the US. The trails were absolutely amazing. After 3 straight days of racing, going on a nice easy ski and enjoying the beautiful scenery was exactly what I needed.

Here's Nancy making her way up to "The Cabin."
Success, Nancy after reaching the Cabin, which is on top of a very large hill (we were skiing uphill for almost an hour to get there).
This was taken on the way back to the lodge, nice backdrop! Over my left shoulder is the downhill resort at Stowe, but it was tough to get a picture through the trees.

Erica and Joe made the trip up from New Jersey to hang out with us for New Years and do some alpine skiing. This was taken at the Shed restaurant and Brewery in Stowe, where we had dinner on New Years Eve.
Nancy and I at dinner.

On Thursday of this week, I'm headed to Lake Placid for the SuperTour races there. The SuperTour is the XC ski race series for elite domestic ski racers. Basically, there is the US Ski Team that competes on the World Cup, and then everyone else that's aspiring to be at that level races on the SuperTour. Since US XC Nationals were in Rumford, Maine last week, many of the top domestic pros will be racing in LP this weekend. The Northeast hasn't hosted a SuperTour weekend in two years, so it's a great opportunity to get a real measuring stick against the top skiers in the country. In addition to the SuperTour, the races also serve as a college carnival for the eastern Division 1 colleges and as a Junior Olympic Qualifier for New York and New England. They are expecting over 500 skiers, many of whom are currently training full time. There will be several former Olympians and National Champions in the field and I'm sure a whole bunch of very fast up-and-coming young skiers. These are surely the biggest XC ski races that I've competed in. Friday will be a 10km classic and Saturday will be a 15km skate. I'm not sure what to expect, so it's difficult to set goals as far as placement goes, but I am pumped to race, especially for the skate race. It'll be an experience in any event. Full race report to follow.