Cross Country Skier MagazineCross Country Skier magazine is the Journal of Nordic Skiing. Published three times during the ski season (November, December and a January/February issue), each issue includes feature articles, destinations, helpful information from a variety of columnists, training and technique tips, ski club and event features, and racing the more competitive members of our audience.
Features
U.S. Women Rock the World CupOver the Thanksgiving holiday, four American women gave fans of World Cup skiing another reason to celebrate.
In the opening weekend of World Cup skiing in Gaellivare, Sweden, Kikkan Randall, Jessie Diggins, Holly Brooks and Liz Stephens scored the U.S. Cross Country Team’s first FIS World Cup podium finish. Competing in the 4 x 5 km team event the quartet of American women outsprinted the Norway II team to capture third place.
Holly Brooks, first in the relay, finished her classic leg, 11.2 seconds out in 8th place. Kikkan Randall, reigning World Cup sprint champion, followed with the fastest classic leg of the event and vaulted the American team into second place, trailing first place Norway by just 8.2 seconds.
Taking the third leg, Liz Stephens’ freestyle performance cut Norway’s lead in half to 4.2 seconds. In the exciting anchor leg, Jessie Diggins held off a hard-charging Norway II team and sprinted to the finish putting her teammates on the podium for the first time in FIS World Cup history. Diggins finished 8.8 seconds behind second place Sweden and just .5 ahead of 4th place Norway II. For more information about the American team’s first podium finish and the World Cup season visit www.usskiteam.com.
Kikkan Randall (Anchorage) and Jessie Diggins (Afton, MN) made U.S. Ski Team history on the streets of Quebec City on Friday, December 7, taking the first ever American team event win. Diggins skied a masterful final lap to put the USA into the lead, handing off to Randall who held off a hard-charging pack for the win. Kazhakstan took the men's victory.
Diggins came from behind on her third and final leg to survive a near crash and charge into the lead. Randall maintained the lead on the anchor leg, holding off charges by Germany and Norway.
This is not the first time this dynamic duo have visited the podium together. Last January, Randall and Diggins teamed up to finish a then record second in a freestyle team sprint in Milan.
USA 2 with Ida Sargent (Orleans, VT) and Holly Brooks (Anchorage) also qualified for the finals and finished ninth.
Randall commented, “We just wanted to go out and execute a nice smooth race plan, build our way up through the field, stay out of trouble and I think we executed it just like we wanted to today and It's nice to make that happen.”
“It's a great reward to be able to win in front of friends and family. Everyone traveled really far to come out and support us today so we wanted to go out and do our job and put on a good show and the atmosphere here was fantastic today. It's so cool for us to see the American flag and hear our names called out. I'm glad we put in a good performance. I'm excited that I felt strong today, with this course and with the conditions, anything can happen but tomorrow I hope to put out a good performance like I did today.
Jessie Diggins agreed, “It was overwhelmingly awesome to be here and win with a crowd so close to home and to be sprinting with the girl who has been my mentor and who I've looked up to my entire life. All of the wax techs and coaches did their job perfectly and that made us do our jobs perfectly! I'm happy I stayed on my feet!”
Features
Club membership comes primarily from the Salmon Arm area and the Okanagan valley, and includes a lot of young
families, which supports a strong JackRabbit program (Canada’s equivalent of the Bill Koch Youth Ski League) that numbered 118 last year. Larch Hills Nordics has several levels of membership based on the ... Read more >
Web Only FeaturesOn December 24, 2012, Condor Capital releases a forecast on the remainder of the 2012/2013-ski season. As the season unfolds, snowsports brands and winter sports enthusiasts are worried about a repeat of last winter when sparse snowfall across the country led to a 15 percent decrease in ski visits.
Although the economy is improving and consumers appear willing to spend on new equipment, apparel, and travel to ski destinations, the wild card is always the weather. Meteorologists have been challenged this year with long-term forecasts. In recent years forecasts have been influenced by El Nino or La Nina weather pattern, which typically brings fairly predictable patterns regarding temperatures and snowfall in various parts of the country.
With more uncertainty in forecasting models, Ken Schapiro, president of Condor Capital suggests skiers track shorter-term forecasts and to take advantage of good snow conditions when they arrive.
Although the 2012/2013 season has started slow, snowfall totals in the western-U.S. and Pacific Northwest have improved. In Colorado, Vail has received several feet of snow since early-December, with more in the forecast. At Canada’s Whistler-Blackcomb resort, managers have noted that the area had the deepest snow base at that point in the season in 10 years.
Northeastern resorts continue to struggle with a lack of snow and warm temperatures that hinder snowmaking efforts. In many locations, poor snow conditions have pushed back openings at some resorts and left others operating with limited trails.According to Schapiro, early reports from retailers and resorts have been mixed. Although season pass sales were tracking 17 percent ahead of last year early in the season, Vail Resorts recently reported that season pass sales are now up just 5 percent year-over-year. Schapiro suggests that pent up demand by hardcore enthusiasts drove the initial pop in sales, while other skiers, with last season's disappointment still fresh in their minds, may have waited for more-tangible signs of a good snow season before making their decision to commit to a pass.
Skiers have also taken a wait-and-see approach towards booking ski resort vacations. According to The Mountain Travel Research Program, which collects data on Western resorts, bookings for this season are down 3.9 percent year-over-year. Schapiro notes that even in normal years less than half of bookings are typically made by this point in the season. If snow comes, mountain resorts still have time to enjoy a successful season.
Booking trends have been widely varied with December down double digits but February showing some gains. Schapiro attributes this to skiers focusing their trips on the "core" of the season, rather than taking a chance that resorts will be fully open during the early- and late-season months. For snowsports enthusiasts, resorts may begin to offer discounts and package deals to turn intention into purchase.
From the perspective of snowsports brands, last year’s dismal season has significantly slowed sales of new equipment. Amer Sports (parent of Atomic, Salomon, Arc'teryx) recently reported a 15 percent decline in sales in its winter sports equipment segment. This was driven primarily by a steep decline in retailers' preorders and later delivery schedules, as many stores remain saddled with excess inventory left over from last season.
In a report by the SnowSports Industries America (SIA) the Leisure Trends Group estimated that inventories were up by 30 percent in the apparel and equipment category at the end of last season. However, after strong pre-season sales, inventories for the category are now tracking just 11 percent ahead of last year.
Schapiro believes that if weather conditions improve, an improving economic situation will ease consumer’s previous reluctance to spend on new equipment. Schapiro notes, the national labor market has seen slow, but steady, improvement since the beginning of the year. Over this time frame, the unemployment rate has declined from 8.5 percent to 7.7 percent and the private sector has regained nearly 1.7 million jobs overall.
If Mother Nature cooperates, Condor Capital expects overall skier day numbers to improve compared to the 2011/2012 season.
Nordic News
