At the time of this blog post, it is 47 degrees at my house in Gilmanton. Today I raced at my old stomping grounds at Gunstock in what were easily some of the worst conditions that I have ever skied in: puddles, rocks, many loops of a 1.6k course, and huge gobs of klister. To think that just over a week ago I was skiing on VR40, and had bomber kick and glide. I remember thinking as I was driving home through the snow from the Trapp Family Lodge after the Eastern Cup opener, "well, we should be set for a little while."
What a difference a week can make. So what happened? Conditions were still spectacular at Gunstock on Tuesday! But then came the rain on Wednesday, and cold again for Thursday and Friday, and then more rain, and heat over the weekend. Any Nordic skier reading this blog will commiserate with me here. The temperatures we had today are the kind that make you feel sick to your stomach when you walk outside on a December day. It was 65 in New York City, which ties the previous record high for this date, and believe me when I say that it wasn't much colder in New Hampshire. The two feet or so of snow that we had last week evaporated faster than you could say "thaw."
I suppose I should be pulling my hair out right now... but I'm not. Why? It's December in New England, and one doesn't have to look far into the forecast to find reason to hope. Chance of a little snowstorm for New Year's Eve? Chance of a BIG snowstorm on Friday? Give it another week, and I bet we'll be skiing on VR40 again in perfect tracks. All we have to do is train hard, keep the fire burning, and all will be well.
Keep on keepin' on, and pray for snow!
-Sam EB
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