Relay Question:
Klister or Hairies?
By Steffen Hoos, Toko Race Service Manager

Februray 25, 2010 - In the Callaghan Valley the men's cross country relay was held. There was a special excitement today as the conditions were 0 (F) and falling snow which can make things difficult. Of course, everyone had Sweden, Norway and Germany on their list of favorites, but there were two teams that surprised: Czech Republic and France. The Czechs and Swedes skied together with Sweden for a long time and were in the lead. But 600 meters before the finish, the extraordinary Norwegian superstar Petr Northug flew by and grabbed silver for his team.

For classic waxing, the question was to either go with klister skis and a sure kick or no-wax skis (hairies actually) that offered a less secure kick, but a far faster ski on the downhills. For some the waxed ski worked well but overall the hairies were better. Lukas Bauer for example dared to go with the hairies and had missiles below his feet and brought his team back up to the top group

Both the Alpine and the Nordic venue are calming down slowly. Many of the smaller countries that do not compete in all of the events have already departed. At the beginning of the Games, we supplied approximately 80 teams or suppliers with wax tips and weather reports. Now there are half as many.

The athletes and technicians are already four weeks on the road (or more). It is difficult to maintain a high focus for such a long time. When a large team is together for such a long time in a confined space, it creates a tension that can't be allowed to escalate. Here, good team leadership is required. Shopping or sightseeing trips to interesting places that offer something different for the head can be a helpful and well needed break.

In the Toko Team, everything is still running satisfactorily, and the cabin fever has not yet happened :-)