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Sometime during last race season, I decided it was time to try to live and train outside of vermont. For the past four or so summers, I have based my training out of home sweet Charlotte Vermont, where I have had an occasional ski camp, rare and miraculous alignments of schedules with noah, and some visits with/to friends. Despite skier's close proximitys in NE, i did most of my training alone. I think it was in Alaska that I made the decision that I wanted to go to sun valley, which was likely heavily influenced by the lack of sun and sub zero mornings...

So, for the past three months, i have been living and training in sun valley, ID, the home of our favorite taytay. I moved into the loft of a good sized condo/apptment unit with corinne, and got two jobs. The less exciting job was as a busser at a local grill, which I deemed not worth the part time, and quit after a few weeks. My primary job was working at YMCA, where i was the rock climbing wall supervisor/part time camp leader/instructor/etc. I loved the job: it was relatively easy, I met some really neat climbers from town/around the world (in particular, a German man missing two fingers due to frostbite on everest..) For some reason, I also liked working with the families that have no idea whats going on, and have to learn everything. The fact that I got this job was kind of amusing, because before day one, I knew almost nothing about climbing.... i don't know if my boss just assumed I knew what i was doing since I applied, or just turned a blind eye.... but it really wasn't a difficult job, I just put harnesses on people and made sure they didn't drop their friend (which actually did happen once on my watch.. oops... not my fault..)

As for training, SVSEF has a really great group of athletes, ranging from middle schoolers to Olympians, Simi Hamilton: i was pretty surprised just at the sheer size of the program. As they broke down the skiers into groups though, the size was very manageable. As a guest PG athlete, my coach was Chris Mallory, formerly of vermont and UNH, but I also worked a lot with Travis Jones, who I had known from a previous ski trip to estonia. We did good amount of rollerskiing on bike paths, but we also did a lot of RUNNING and TRACK INTERVALS! One of my big things is trying to run more, and I certainly did that. I even ran around a track every week or so. Some other highlights were summiting some sketchy (for me) peaks with monster cliffs on either side of you, and discovering mountain biking- so much better than road biking. Another highlight was coaching at the J2 junior national talent camp in houghton MI, which was a great time, I got to coach under Rick Kapala, and learned a ton from him.

Other summer highlights include two country concerts/music festivals, which might have been the best two nights of the summer- those country folk, cowboy hatted bull wranglers- know how to have a good time. So much america happening at once, especially at the 4th of july concert.. whoa. I also joined a coed soccer league, and am officially over basketball, and turned onto soccer. Oh my gosh, soccer is too fun. Thank you noah for the white and gold ronaldinho cleats, i looked very fast. and thank you cate for the david villa jersey, i love him.

Going to Sun Valley was a great decision- I met a lot of really cool people from all over the country, had some really solid training, and have more experiences than can fit in a blog. That being said, I miss the Midd team a ton, and I can't wait to see you all sunday: we have a ton to look forward too all fall and winter.

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I am enjoying the last few days of another fabulous summer in Ketchum, ID. I have two great jobs – One, at an outdoors store called the Elephant’s Perch, and the other at Cristina’s Restaurant: a great little place to grab a tasty, yet costly meal. Blah-blah-blah, so I guess we’ll get down to ‘the deets’ on the new boytoy… It shouldn’t surprise anyone, as it is old news – but yes, the rumors are true! My romantic endeavors have fizzled into a blossoming relationship. Unfortunately, I have been so love-struck for the past few months that I forget everything that has happened…

…Only kidding. I do recall driving 3,000 miles by myself to get out here. But it feels so long ago! (It’s amazing what happens when love takes over…)

In just a couple of weeks after my arrival, my lovely Ma came out for a little visit to check out the digs. While the timing couldn’t have been worse (I had just started training at my new waitressing job, as well as dating Josh), we still managed to fit in a few hikes and other adventures that mothers love to do with their daughters. Surprisingly, she approved of our (Chazz and my) reckless lifestyle and returned back to the homestead in Pennsyltuckey thanks to the reliant J.B. Airport Shuttle.

July was a great month, minus working throughout the entire 4th of July weekend. I do regret missing out on unforgettably fun activities, (such as seeing Reckless Kelly in Fairfield, ID) but I did manage to squeeze 40 hours of work into a long weekend. During that week I truly lived up to the motto among the Sun Valley locals – “my life is your vacation”. But hey, make money get paid.

After an intense few weeks of employment, I was happy with my numerous paychecks and was over working and missing out on fun. So, I spontaneously decided to escape this horrible valley (not true) and make a romantic getaway to Josh’s pad in Portland, OR!

There I was toured around Portland via bicycle while weaving around city traffic, desperately trying to stay upright at every other red light. We hiked and ran around some of the trails in Forest Park and took some great make-out pix in the woods! So much fun! I was even coaxed into racing in the ‘Portland Tuesday night crit-series” and rode my bike around a speedway track for an hour and a half with a bunch of Master-Blasters and full-time businessmen who have way too much pent up competitive aggression. (Oh, and they were definitely ALL riding Serottas, Noah.)

A few weeks after this fun excursion, I was informed by my mother that a lovely little letter from the Portland Dept. of Transportation had arrived in VT with photographic proof that I had ran a red light while driving downtown and must pay $286. Damn you Portland and your sneaky hidden cameras.

The extra bunk bed in our Krystal Villa Kondo got a lot of use in July and August. My old Burke Mtn. Academy teammate, Lucy came for an extended visit and enjoyed all the wonderful things Ketchum has to offer. Then, just a couple days later, I dropped Josh off at the Hailey Airport following a tearful and heart-wrenching farewell. He was off to Durango for a training camp. It was an emotional time for me. Not to worry though, in just two weeks I drove down to Park City to watch him race in the Tour of Utah.

While he was gone, my brother Miiiiiiitch came to visit and I taught him how to drive standard! It’s a miracle that my car still runs after being brutally tortured by his lack of coordination. After over twenty stalls in the Dollar Mtn Parking lot, he was brave enough to drive through town and we only got flipped off once from holding up traffic at the stoplight! If you’re ever looking for a good bonding activity with a sibling, definitely try that one.

While I was watching Josh in Park City, Big Daddy Chazz departed, and I have to say, our bumpin’ pad just isn’t the same. I did have a few visits from the plumber, only to find that it was just a quarter and lots a lime peels that had jammed the garbage disposal. Phew! We just might see that security deposit again.

I move out this weekend and will start the trek back east on Monday. It will be a good four or five day trip, but luckily I’ll have Josh to keep me company. It’s coming down to the wire – time to get in school-mode! Can’t wait to see you all so soon!

P.S. Could proceeds from the team fundraiser go towards a … ?

http://www.carstache.com/products/classic-black-carstache

P.P.S. Get excited for some team SKIDA schwag coming soon…!!

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click to enlarge Sophie & Cass in their travels.

For a while I have been out of synch with the team. I took last winter
off because of a torn ACL and spent the time in Vail. I had an awesome winter thanks to the Bruntz family, the crew at the Vail Nordic Center, the Homegrown team, and Starbucks. Yes, I did work at Starbucks for a couple of month and yes, I can now make a mean double tall, non-fat, bone dry, one-pump mocha cappuccino. I am not going to lie and say it was easy especially since I had the pleasure of dealing with Vail Resorts finest. However on the upside, I made enough money to fund my two-week trip to Europe in May. With a hop skip and a jump I crossed the pond to London. From there I took a train to Paris where I spent two days with a former ski team member, Cassidy Edwards, and some other Midd students studying abroad. Then I skedaddled back to London and spent the weekend catching up with a childhood friend over tea and crumpets. After five days in Europe, I caught a plane to Athens to meet up with another friend from Middlebury. I left her to finish her finals, while I toured the Greek Islands. I got to
spend a couple of days on Santorini, watching what is known as the “most
beautiful sunset in the world”. My main mode of transportation on the island (because the bus schedule was unreliable) was scooters and ATVs that reach a max of 10mph on the uphills and 40 mph on the downhills. When my friend finished her term, she met up with me to take up arms for the Greek cause…Whatever that was, I forget. When things got rough we escaped to the Southern coast. From there I managed to take a roundabout way home with a fabulous 40 hours dedicated to traveling. Fun. I had a wonderful time and remain intact with all parts working, an achievement I’m particularly proud of. As nice as it would be to continue traveling around Europe, it is good to be home in Keene Valley for the summer. I have been lucky to have a good crew around to train with this summer, including Lucas Milliken, Caitlin Curran, and my cousins, Megan and Janey. I should probably include my brother Scotty who likes to think of himself as our head coach. On the side I have been working part- time at various places in the valley, filling in here and there. Recently I had a babysitting gig that involved leading five kids, ranging from the ages of 7 to 9 years, 5 miles with a vertical ascent of 4,673 ft. to the top Mount Marcy, (the highest peak in the Adirondack at 5,343ft). The entire hike took us a total of 10 hours. Let’s just say that I learned how a little bit of motivation and candy can go a long way. It has been a busy summer and it is going by fast, but I am gearing up for the times ahead. I cannot tell you how excited I am to be back on the team. Being away has only made me realized how much I miss being a part of such a crew.

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Although it's been a hot summer, I think I'll take heat over the incessant thunderstorms we had last summer. I've spent the summer at home in Rutland working a bit at the golf course, training and playing some golf. I got out on some good hikes and bounding workouts early this summer, summiting Pico, Killington and Shrewsbury a number of times. Unfortunately, I probably did a little too much and wound up with some knee problems, but that's been coming around over the last few weeks. Add that to my bad back and I'll be signing up for AARP in a year or two. The golf has probably been some of the most consistent, solid play I've ever had in a summer, so it's been a lot of fun. I'm ready for a bit of a break right now after 4 tournaments in the past month.
I'm excited to get back to midd with the team and also check out some of the trailwork/design for Bread Loaf. I've spent some time down at stratton training with Sverre's crew and keeping an eye on incoming freshman Austin Cobb. I think we've got a great group coming in and it will be a good year.

Links and Resources

Head Nordic Coach

Andrew Gardner

Gardner enters his fourth season at the helm of the men's and women's nordic ski teams. He came to Middlebury from Colorado Rocky Mountain School (CRMS) in Carbondale, Colo where he was Nordic Program Director. Since coming to New England, he acted as the wax tech for the 2008 Junior National Team, a coach at regional development camps and serves on the U23 NENSA board. Gardner is the coordinator for sustainability in athletics, serving on the college's environmental council. In the summer he enjoys road racing for the MetLife cycling team.

agardner@middlebury.edu

o: 802.443.5963

Assistant Nordic Coach

Patty Ross

Now entering her 23rd year as a full-time coach of Middlebury nordic skiing, Patty came to the College after four years of world-class competition. She was one of five American women nordic skiers to compete in the Sarajevo Olympics in 1984; she also competed internationally with the U.S. national team from 1983 to 1986. Patty graduated from the University of New Hampshire, where she was an All-East collegiate skier and captain of the Wildcat team. While at UNH, Patty competed in the World University Games in Sofia, Bulgaria. As a coach for the International Special Olympic Games, Patty received a Distinguished Service Award in 1984. She acted as a coach for the U23/ World Junior Championships in Italy in 2008.

o: 802.443.5006

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