Since first donning AT gear a few seasons ago, I've been immersing myself in the numerous (and they are numerous) internet outlets of others who spend their days journeying in the backcountry. Needless to say, this community is enthusiastic and friendly, even if folks aren't always eager to reveal their secret pow stash or favorite hidden line. More than that, I've been repeatedly impressed by the accomplishments of many who seem to push the boundaries of what can be accomplished on skis, all the while maintaining a day job and family. It seems every week I come across someone going longer, faster, or father in a single push than I would have thought humanly possible when I first entered this game. I find myself inspired by these folks as I read the accounts of their adventures.
What seems to bring all of these people together is the ability to go uphill fast and for long periods of time without stopping. Which brings us to skimo racing. Without fail, each of these people spends a significant amount of time training and racing in their local randonee circuit. It's no surprise, really, the people who can take first in a skimo race are the same who are putting in long hours in the backcountry. Though I was (and maybe still am to some extent) reluctant to bring competition into the light-hearted world of backcountry skiing, it has become more and more apparent that racing might be the means to my desired end. In other words, to train for extended time in the bc, I'm going to train for a race.
To cut my teeth in this spandex-clad world, I have my sights set on a classic New England ski run turned skimo extravaganza - the Mt. Greylock race. Adding incentive, the Mt. Greylock randonee race will take the place of the annual Thunderbolt Ski Run, a historic and lively event that is run by the Ski Runners of the same trail. Greylock is the only entirely backcountry race in the New England Skimo Race Circuit (and maybe in the Northeast), making it a tour and competition in one. Additionally, I chose this race because it doesn't require and boot packing, something I'm not familiar nor entirely equipped for in racing format, and the distance and vertical seemed like a worthwhile goal. Finally, I know this race will bring out a good lot of bc'ers, with whom I hope to meet and someday be able to keep up with.
Coming from background of field sport, most of my training and conditioning has revolved around getting strong and quick, but never on going long. At one point, more than 100m was an endurance race for me. Needless to say, it's been a learning experience to dive into the go strong, go long world. While skimo specific information is somewhat lacking (though Skintrack.com recently released a pdf specific to this subject), there's no shortage of data for trail running and cycling, most of which seems to translate. From all of this I came up with a few overarching notions:
- One, most of your training should be in your competition modality. Rob Shaul of Mountain Athlete talks about this extensively - while having an aerobic base helps, fitness is very specific. Running on the street doesn't necessarily translate to better uphill skiing times. Most of my time would need to be on skis. In the strength and conditioning world, people often talk about "Time Under Tension", well, in this case, we're looking for "Time On Terrain"
- Two, and perhaps most important, most of the training should be "easy". Many sources indicate that the ideal training zone for almost all of your endurance work should be in the Zone 1 "comfortable" range. That means lots of skiing at conversational pace whenever possible, with a modicum of harder stuff thrown in there.
Before ski season started, I put in a solid 5 weeks of sport specific strength. This essentially boiled down to hammering my quads 2 days a week with heavy squats, lunges, and plyometrics. I dialed back on most of the upper body lifting I was doing and really focused on getting my legs and lungs ready for ski season. Once the snow hit, my plan was to loosely follow this training plan:
- Two days a week (typically T and Th) - skin at my local resort, 1-3 hours.
- One day a week (Wed or Sun) - intervals, either on skis or running if necessary
- One day a week - strength work, usually on the interval day, but can moved around.
- Weekends - go out and have fun, get some long tours or hikes in, enjoy the outdoors with friends.
We'll see how it goes in the end. There's a chance I'll try for a another race or two, depending on where my training takes me. Most importantly, I hope it will get me in shape for when conditions really ripen this spring.
Think snow!
