This is a message to the U.S. Cross Country Ski Racing Community. If we want to win medals internationally two basic things are true and vital. One – this task rests on us. We are the solution; there is no one else. Two – Now is the time. There is no tomorrow; it is all about what we do today.
The U.S. Ski Team has solidified its plan for the year. We have two teams. One team is focused on international success now – the World Cup team, the other is focused on more long-term goals – the Continental Cup team. These two teams fulfill the two top levels of the U.S. development pipeline.
We are also expanding our efforts below the continental cup team. While there is overlap and partnerships between the USST and the community at all levels of the pipeline it is the work below these levels that require more focus. There are athletes on the USST who are also members of other teams. This gives us a great opportunity to work together at the World Cup and Continental Cup level with other teams, coaches and athletes in the community.
Beyond this the USST has for over 8 years been attending Regional Elite Group camps as its key grass-roots effort. At many of these R.E.G camps we’ve done additional coaches education workshops and clinics. Every other year we also run a national coaches conference. To kick off our education material efforts we have created a technique video. We view this video as the beginning to the development of our education materials and program.
(look for the video and other great education videos at http://shop.usskiteam.com/store/home.php?cat=251).
While we continue to develop all these programs we felt it was necessary to make one thing very clear and address it immediately. Our youth athletes must raise their level of training in the most basic way: they must train more. The best junior women in the world took medals at both Junior World Championships and at Senior World Championships. These juniors are training over 600 and even over 700 hours of good, quality cross country ski training a year.
While the U.S. Ski Team has been stepping up it programs at all levels Team Today too is hard at work. Team Today’s first step in this direction was hiring Jonathan Rova as its new leader. Jonathan has been busy restructuring Team Today as well as working with the USST coaching staff on developing a program aimed at addressing our very basic junior training needs as well as helping bridge the gaps between the USST, junior clubs, coaches and athletes, the ski industry and ski supporters.
This program is the Team Today U.S. Ski Team Club Kilometer Contest. The goal main goal of contest is dangerously simple: reward those who train the most. I say dangerous because more isn’t always better. And in some cases more is worse. Skiers and coaches must monitor themselves and their athletes for over-training, raise training volume correctly, skiers should generally take one day off per week, skiers must monitor their diet and sleep and make sure they are maintaining the appropriate weight for short and long term health... AND, this is the simple part, if they want to win Olympic medals they had better train at least as much as their peers. Please read below for more information on the contest.
All are invited to participate in the contest – clubs, coaches and athletes can measure themselves against their peers, and step up their training. They can also get info on training from the USST as well as their peer coaches, industry can volunteer donations for the winners of the contest and supporters of U.S. skiing can donate money or miles to Team Today and/or the U.S. Ski Team.
Boulder Nordic Sport (www.bouldernordicsport.com) has already pleged a donation - we are underway! Why don't you be the next?
A light bulb must go off above all our heads simultaneously. BING! We are all where the buck stops. BING! Now is the time. BING! We must prepare to win!
Lastly – BING! Our energy use is affecting our weather and our planet. Besides the much grander environmental, health, social, political, economic and even national defense reasons to cut our individual energy use we need snow to ski on! That is no joke. As another part of this contest we are asking each of you to swap out at least one inefficient light bulb in your home for an energy efficient bulb.
No one but us will do it. And tomorrow is too late.
Lets do it today.
Sincerely,
Pete Vordenberg
pvordenberg@ussa.org
Club Kilo - inspiration and perspiration as a measurement for success.
Shaping the future of our sport, on and off the snow.
SNOW COUNTRY, USA – May 2nd, 2007 – Making training hours count. Team
Today and the U.S. Ski Team announce the 2007 Club Kilometer Competition for all junior skiers in the nation. The competition runs from May 28th to November 30th, 2007.
With spring having arrived and the warmth of Summer on the way we are already looking to the return of snow.
“Today gives us our first and best opportunity to succeed. Preparation is the key to success and what is considered the off-season for cross country ski racing is actually the preparation season. Proper preparation means training appropriately and resting adequately. Appropriate training means training well but it also means training enough.
Generally speaking our junior skiers train less than our European counterparts leaving us at a deficit that is hard if not impossible to overcome. This contest aims to reverse that generality. We’ve got to prepare at least as much and at least as well if we are to have a chance at winning. Today is the day.”
With that in mind Team Today and the U.S. Cross Country Ski Team have teamed up to inspire our young skiers to shape the future of our sport by their weekly preparation off the snow.
After a rough season of skiing conditions and the rise of Global Warming as an issue we are reminding the younger members that they have role in the future of skiing by what they do every day. Specifically in their training, and by changing a light bulb. The competition specifies appropriate training activities chosen by U.S. Ski Team coaches to best prepare junior skiers for the coming season and to develop them as healthy athletes. These activities are kept track of in terms of hours. It also asks them to change at least one light bulb in their house (see below). Both are logged in and then calculated on the Team Today website.
Skiers compete with their training hours as teams or clubs, with the teams or clubs with the highest average number of hours through November 30th awarded prizes for their combined efforts. Changing a light bulb is a challenge to the ski community as a whole.
Both show how the little things can add up in shaping our future.
The U.S. Cross Country Ski Team has recently wrapped up a successful and historical season.
Team Today is a non-profit organization with the goal of raising the level of cross country ski racing in America to Olympic medal heights by educating and inspiring the US ski community.
Replace a regular incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb (cfl)
CFLs use 60% less energy than a regular bulb. This simple switch will save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. If every family in the U.S. made the switch, we’d reduce carbon dioxide by more than 90 billion pounds! (see below for more environmental info)
2007 Club Kilo Contest Guidelines
How the Contest Works.
(Contest rules will be included with the club packet.)
Junior athletes turn in the hours that they have trained at the end of each week to their coach/facilitator. In turn, the coach/facilitator submits a weekly summary of their athletes to Team Today.
Team Today maintains this record and a running tally of hours for the participating clubs/teams, as well as for top male and female athletes, all of which will be posted on our site. So check in often. www.teamtoday.org
The contest begins on May 1st (although you may enter at any time after that) and ends on Nov. 30th. The club with the most number of recorded hours of specified training per athlete will be announced the winner. In addition, the leading female and male athlete will be named as individual winners. Awards for clubs/teams will be donated to the top seven teams and further awards will be given the top three male and female athletes as well as to participants chosen in random drawings throughout the contest. So check in often.
There is a nominal entry fee of $5.00 per individual, which should be included with the contest waiver required of each individual. Both waiver and entry fee should be included with your club/teams full registration sent in by your coach/facilitator.
A T-shirt will be included for each individual with the club packet as well as an inspirational gift (sometimes referred to as a goodie.)
Guiding Principles
Preparation as well as Results.
By emphasizing preparation in this contest, rather than just results, we will reward those who are preparing the most
Quantity as well as Quality.
While “most” does not mean “best” it is a good step in the proper direction, generally speaking our European counterparts are training more as youth athletes, so count ‘em up.
And remember to think in terms of hours.
Honesty.
Need we say more. To cheat in this contest is to take a step in one direction while the rest of us head in another. Besides cheating yourself you are cheating your club, coach, teammates, parents, supporters and country.
Training and competition is all about honesty.
Enjoyment
While workouts may be fun they also produce a large amount of joy, of which satisfaction, pleasure and inspiration are all apart. Enjoy the whole experience.
Training Activities acceptable to log as hours of training for this contest.
Ski = to glide over the surface of snow, preferably with power, focus and efficient, effective technique.
Rollerski = to glide over a surface of asphalt, again with power, focus, effective, efficient technique as well as caution, and ALWAYS wearing a helmet.
Run = to move rapidly on foot so that both feet are momentarily off the ground with each step.
Ski imitation = dry-land activities that closely imitate skiing such as ski bounding and ski walking.
Strength = activities aimed at building muscular strength such as weight lifting, circuit strength, plyometrics, etc.
Cycling = to ride somewhere on a bicycle. It is an excellent cardiovascular workout, but it isn't weight bearing like skiing or running, so it doesn't invoke the same training load as a weight bearing activity would. Biking is not allowed to comprise more than 3 hours a week of any individuals training hours for the purpose of this contest. More cycling can of course be done – just not added to your contest total.
Further Questions? Contact Team Today
www.teamtoday.org team_today@mac.com
Team Today P.O. Box 1404, Grand Marais, MN 55604
Jonathan Rova? That’s right Jonathan Rova is the new leader of Team Today. Head USST coach takes too much of my time and energy to run Team Today and I wasn’t doing a good enough job. Jonathan Rova is our new Team Today leader.
Jonathan is From Minneapolis. He took to skis at age 2 ½ and ever since has loved ski adventures. He is married to Nancy and has a son named Paavo. He also loves coffee and paddling, running and biking. He lives on the shore of a lake outside of Grand Marais, MN. He also lived on an island on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for 4 years. He has a Master of Divinity and works as a pastor and
carpenter. He wants to see an American on the podium in Vancouver.
We’ll learn more about Jonathan as we move along. I am very glad to have Jonathan on board. He has already been working behind the scenes restructuring Team Today financially and organizationally and he is very motivated and organized.
Change a light bulb? That’s right. How important is this? No matter your political leanings this is affecting us right now and that’s for real.
http://www.climatecrisis.net/thescience/
What role do you play?
http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/whatyoucando/
What else can you do?
http://www.climatecrisis.net/pdf/10things.pdf
http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/whatyoucando/index5.html
http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/becomeactive/
Only us, only now. Lets do it.
Thank you for your support,
Pete Vordenberg
pvordenberg@ussa.org