Thanks to everyone who made the 2011 NCO auction a success. The NCO parents put a huge amount of work into the auction to support their kids ski racing and this year the items were some of the best we've had to date. Big thanks to Kevin Pidgeon for doing the live auction. Perhaps you've found your new calling?
You can still bid online and lots of deals are available. The link is on the side bar.
In other news, two NCO members were honored at the recent Ski Quebec gala in Montreal. Coach Powers was recognized as Coach of the year for Quebec and Mikaela Tommy received the Ski Press rising star award. Coach Powers is in his 8th year with the NCO, and Mikaela after 1 year on the FIS team has moved up to the Quebec Provincial team. Here they are with the hardware.
Otherwise, the team is taking part in workouts both with team coaches and individually. Next stop in Panorama BC, November 20th.
Grip it and rip it!
October 21st, 2011
The auction is only days away. The lineup of items looks really awesome this year. You can take a look at the list on the auction blogspot page. Big thanks to all the parents putting everything together.
Thanks for your help in developing great athletes and great people!
October 10th, 2011
We're back home after a fantastic camp in Chile. Although Chile had less snow than usual, the quality of snow and training were still brilliant. The pistenchef Diego and his staff did some incredible things to make sure the teams training at Valle got good training and minimal damage to skis. For us, knowing that the snow would be thin towards the end of the camp we did our GS volume early on and finished with slalom, mostly on the lower mountain where slope access is far less sketchy.
Diego and his crew even groomed out a new slope, "Luna". We were the only team to give it a try and i'm glad we did.
I was very pumped after inspecting the slope the day before. "Luna" is all pitch, very consistent and you can see the whole thing from the top and bottom. One of the more enjoyable environments to work in, our own little slalom arena. It was not the longest slope, but every turn you have to work for and with the steepness and slick snow you have to be on your game.
We had two courses setup. A stubby course for some trajectory and basics and a full gate course with timing. It was a rare opportunity to really groove the athlete's skiing on a pitch. The drill course was extremely round to promote the strong and mature positioning we are looking for from the kids.
What is that? Clouds? For the 1st time all camp we had weather cut our session short. Visibility went to 0 after about 10 runs of training. Despite the arena session being cut short I feel really positive about the work done this camp. 16 days on snow, and the best quality prep period training i've been a part of.
Good to be home, but can't wait to hammer in Panorama!
October 5th, 2011
A little video from the FIS team in Valle Nevado Chile:
Training is epic down here with one great session after another.
A few days left, with slalom on the program.
Keep checking facebook and @ncofis on twitter for daily updates.
September 24th, 2011
FIS update from Valle Nevado, Chile
Just amazing conditions here in Valle Nevado for the FIS team. The team has had 5 days on snow so far and now on a day off. It is quite busy here with other teams, mostly from eastern Canada and US. GMVS has their entire school here, about 100 kids and staff. Recently the Ontario men have arrived and also both Skibec FIS and K2 are here. Also a good number or world cup athletes training speed here at the moment. The German men and US women are just finishing up their camps here at Valle.
While the snow is a little thin on some of the cat tracks, the slopes are ideal for training. Coaches are on the lift just before 7:00am to setup the environment, and athletes soon after at 7:30am to take advantage of the firm conditions. We're at incredibly high altitude here, so the volume is quite a bit lower than in Mt Hood in July, but the quality of training is extremely high.
After 1 day of freeskiing, we got right into it with the group that skied in Mt Hood. The event focus of this camp is primarily GS, with some SG exposure and some technical SL sessions. With the older group, we've taken the technique developed in Hood and now adjusting the line and trajectory to create a little more speed and more dynamic skiing. We've been lucky enough to have excellent hill space so we can also work with those that did not ski in Hood and the 1st year athletes to address their technical foundation. We've been able to set both a GS environment and a skill based environment on all of our training days. Not sure there is anywhere else on the globe where we would have the flexibility and hillspace to achieve that.
This block we also got 2 excellent sessions on my favorite slope, "Momia"
That's right, double black! The top pitch is quite steep, but the rest, fairly moderate. We just don't get this type of width and consistency anywhere else.
GMVS took the day off, and ON team was freeskiing their first day, so we had the upper mountain to ourselves. Just epic GS.
We even got the sun mid session. You can see the width i'm talking about. We were able to run a high quality GS environment, while doing some freeski progression with the young guns.
Besides the killer skiing, we've played the GMVS PG boys in volleyball, and we seem to have quite the rivalry building. Kate, Sam and Max have all played competitive volleyball so they have been carrying us.
We are back at it tomorrow on Diablada for some GS till 10:00am and a short SL session afterwards.
More to come from Valle!
Chris
September 13th, 2011
NCO Auction 4 Alpine coming up this fall. Here are the details:
Wednesday October 26th, 2011
Doors at 6:00pm, live auction 7:30pm
Special guest Auctioneer: Kevin Pidgeon
Check the Auction website where you will soon find a list of items:
http://ncoauction4alpine.blogspot.com/
See you there!
June 15th, 2011
3rd annual NCO Classic
What a huge day! Perfect weather and a great turn out from the Ottawa ski community. Your generosity will help us develop the next generation of Ottawa ski racers and continue the legacy of developing fast skiers with a lifelong passion for the sport. Thanks to all the parents for their time in planning, countless emails, and executing a first class event. Mike Tommy and the crew at Edelweiss did a great job preparing the course and as always, grilling the steaks to perfection at the dinner.
The auctioneer was very special also. Definitely the most animated I've seen. Thank you Kevin Pidgeon from T&L. You are the man.
The sponsors that made this day possible, thank you all for your support:
Major Sponsors:
Tommy and Lefebvre
O'Leary
NorthRoad Management
Cart Sponsor: Dynamic Funds
Lunch Sponsor: Fidelity
RBC Asset Management
Perley - Robertson Law Firm
Renaissance investments
World Exchange
Picton - Mahoney Asset management
R.O.I Capital
Marler & Associates
Nuveen Investments Canada
Sullivan Group Consulting
Rogers
POC Canada
Paralel Agrifood inc.
Membrane Process and Controls
AGF Management
Mountainview Turf
Mont Ste-Marie
National Capital Division
Capital International
Gordon Mott Remax metro city realty
Foyston, Gordon and Payne
Bisset - Templeton Investments
Chris Moore Legal Services
Connor Clark and Lunn Investments
Assurance Mallette McLenna
C.I. Investments
Colliers International
C.I.B.C
T.D Asset management
And of course, a great celebration of Ron "The King" Cole and his dedication to ski racing in the NCO Region. Here is the King, once again putting it on the green.
June 7th, 2011
Here is a little edit put together for the NCO Auction back in October. Mostly pictures but some good video as well. Enjoy!
May 24th, 2011
Spring update
Big news from last week, 2 athletes from the team have made the jump to the Quebec Ski Team.
Mikaela Tommy and Chris Steinke qualified for the Quebec Team after great campaigns. While we are sad to see them go, we are proud and wishing them the best in their quest up the ski racing ladder, and lots of fun along the way. Here is the SQA press release:
Otherwise, the coaches are hard at work planning the upcoming season. The team will be going once again to Mt Hood Oregon in late june after exams to take advantage of the great snow this year.
If you haven't already, get registered for the NCO Golf Tournament. Lots of fun and a good way to support local athletes. All the information you need is on the right hand side of the home page.
Also, the NCO is now on Facebook make sure you search National Capital Outaouais Ski Team and "Like" us. Or click on the link below. .
In other news, Coach Joey Lavigne recently received a Lifetime Achievement award from the National Capital Division. Joey joined our staff this season after a long stint as Alpine Ontario Athletic Director. He has has worked at every level in the system and has been fully committed to the profession of Ski Coaching. We are lucky and proud to have you Joey, congratulations.
April 17th, 2011
K2 Selection list posted. Congratulations to those athletes meeting the criteria.
We barely got the races off, but thanks to lots of chemicals and a little elbow grease, the races did happen.
This year was a different story. Possibly the best spring series conditions, ever.
There was some serious skiing going on. We hadn't seen this type of freeze thaw snow since Chile in September. Great for all the young kids to punch in some results at the end of the season.
Nice shot of slalom winner Kevin Drury, getting himself a nice FIS pt results to finish his season. That is a piece of broken gate in the air behind him. I have never seen so many gates broken in 1 day. The surface was THAT good.
Mikaela has a nice little series with a couple podiums and 2 FIS pt results.
3rd in slalom
And top J1 in GS! Clearly, she is happy about this one. This kid loves to compete.
Eric Stewart also podiumed on last day, 4th J1 with a good performance on a tough 2nd set.
Chris nailed down a career best SL result of 35, Ian a pb GS result of 40. Scotty broke through the 100 barrier in GS and also got a SL result. Alexis nailed down a 2nd sl result, Patrick a PB GS result of 69. Nicholas also came out with a GS result. Sam also came away with career best in SL and GS. Productive few days for the team.
Here's a few favorites from March Madness out west:
Taylor and Simon in Nakiska. We worked together a bunch. Great guys.
Slalom hill at Nakiska.
Will St Germain, QC team
Nice morning shot on the warmup hill.
Chris S
March 25th, 2011
March Madness takes a western swing
What a hectic month, and still lots more to go. We are well into our final push and everyone is working hard through the accumulated fatigue of a long season on the circuit. I am now in Nakiska, AB at the Senior Nationals where our boys in the start house with the WC guys.
We've had perfect conditions for DH training. The track is very simple and short but still a few little tricks. They've added some rollers, which at 100km/h you have to work. It's one of those tracks that's really fun and easy but it's tough to be fast. Every detail has to be covered and you need to execute.
Nakiska is the best for views on good days. It is notorious for being a nasty mountain weatherwise, but we have been very lucky so far.
Before coming out here we were in Whistler at noram finals. Races went off, but unfortunately not the best snow for ski racing and moving up on the results.
Raven Pitch for the GS. SOO soft!
Checking out the GS, then off to do a powder run.
Stay tuned for more
March 1st, 2011
Cruising down Main Street
At Stowe...
The training grounds of Mount Mansfield Ski Club and powerhouse NCAA team Univ. of Vermont. What a slope, and what a day!
After running the slalom portion of the SC on Monday in fog and ice pellets, we had 2 runs of SG for the men on the schedule for Tuesday, so potential for 3 results. One guy who took advantage, was our own Chris Steinke.
The US has been good to Chris this season. 1st place at Sugarbush, best GS results at Stowe back in early February, and today was huge. 6th in the SC SG, 8th in the SC, and a 2nd place in the second SG!! The field here is strong with all the top guys in the east.
Way to go Chris!!
Tomorrow is the Men's GS, Ian and Chris will be competing. Mikaela is coming up for the women's GS on Thursday.
Feb 28th, 2011
March madness
It starts a little early for ski racers, especially in the east where snow becomes thin it seems earlier every season. The training is done, hay is in the barn, now it's time to let your ponies run! It all starts with the K2 provincials in QC city. NCO boys kicked it off with a bang with a 1-2 performance in the first of 2 slaloms. Raf Quenneville 1st Jeremie Lacasse 2nd. Showing that we have not only speed, but depth. Great job boys! Their performances during the week have earned them a trip to the K2 Nationals in Collingwood. Raf also podiumed in GS with Jeremie in 5th. Full report and pics to come soon.
As for the FIS guys, they spent last weekend at Fortune for the Miele Cup slaloms. The races are also in honour of Ann Heggveit, Canadian ski racing icon. She was on hand to present medals and hang out with the kids. The fields were small, but strong, and the local boys did not disappoint! It was a proud weekend for the team as every athlete had good things and results to show for it.
Day 1
Patrick 1st, Alexis 2nd and Sam 3rd. All boys scoring big personal best point results and sweeping the J1 podium, wow!
Chris along with boys from UNH and Dartmouth on the overall podium, and of course Ann! Steinke got a personal best point result and showed he's got more speed in him. March madness is time to step it up!
NCO alumni and ON team member Randa took the girls overall after taking a big first run lead. Ottawa kids on fire! Steph Gould from MSM and Quebec team also making an overall podium appearance out of the J1 category.
All business during March madness, time to throwdown. Coach Scott knows.
Coach Powers just hanging with MVG, no big deal at all. All the stars were checking out the action.
Day 2
Scott was rocking the pitch, came away with a nice result on Sunday!
Not another J1 on the left, that is NCO alumni and World cup racer Dustin Cook! Dustin back in his old stomping ground sharing some love and supporting the kids. Pat 1st again, Max 2nd, Stewart 5th, yeah boys.
Overall podium action for the boys also, Chris 3rd, Ian 5th. Another good team day. Although Charlie Kidd stole the show, absolutely dominating the race.
A new overall award this year, and beautiful silver plates for the winners. Chris was 3rd overall for the weekend and steps up on the podium.
Stay on the gas pedal and hammer down team. Good luck to Charlie, Kate and Justin in Thunder Bay this week, as well as the entire NCD delegation.
Feb 21st, 2011
Next level
We will fast forward a bit from the last update and bring you up to speed with the latest. Both K2 and FIS teams have been on training camps getting ready to peak for the next races. K2s are off to provincials the next two weeks (ON and QC) and the FIS guys have GM cups at home and back in Collingwood.
A few other things on the go; Mikaela is on the east coast right now getting ready for Canada games. Her first race is tomorrow with a GS. We wish her all the best. She has been charging hard and a little banged up after a spectacular crash at the Grand Fonds, but reports are positive from the crew in Halifax on her health and skiing. Good luck Mikaela!
To prep up for Canada games and the next stretch of races, the whole FIS gang was in Grand Fonds for some GS action. We combined with DLS, Tremblant and Estrie for a great camp.
Great to work with these guys and exchange ideas. Not to mention the athletes pushing hard against each other all week. Mid season camps like this are key to reach that next level for your end of season races. Very important to take time away from racing and re focus on technical skiing for a few days, followed by some timing sessions.
Awesome slope at Grand Fonds and all ours! Great for figuring things out and good preparation for any GS track we will see from now until the end of the season. We had 4 solid days of training out there, as well as some great hockey to stay fresh and fit.
We ended the camp with a little GS elimination tournament. What a battle...1 run seeding, and then 3 elimination runs, best time head to head. Pressure was on!
Following the hockey/skiing camp, we ended up at Cascades to reunite with the K2s for a regional race. We do not get together very often so we took advantage and took a nice team snap shot. Awesome to be back racing at home with the K2s.
With family day monday on the calendar, we thought we'd hit Fortune to start preparing for the 4 starts at home on the horizon. I have to say, the slope is as good as I've seen it. Very hard and great width.
Full length and great snow. This track is as challenging as they come and what a session we had on Monday. 2 runs, video, 3 run lunch and video and 2 runs. Boom!! Instant feedback and a great environment. Thank you Camp Fortune!!!
A little action
Over and out, make sure to come check out the Miele Cup races at Fortune this weekend, and GM Cup next weekend also at Fortune. See you there!
Feb 10th, 2011
The wood - young Blardone
The beginning of our last stretch took us to Collingwood and the private clubs of Alpine and Georgian Peaks. Both clubs put on great events and we enjoy going back every year. We came away with quite a few point results and several podiums. Ottawa kids in general were on fire, with alumni Graham Scott and Randa Teschner pulling in big results.
Patrick over there in 5th place J1, great FIS point result for him and his maiden FIS podium! 17th overall from 68. Nice move buddy!
Maxime was not far behind in 24th. They were 3rd and 5th 1995s respectively.
Chris Steinke also reached the overall podium on this day alongside ON team members Megarry and FIsher, former National team member Scott Barett and Brendan Sutton from the Alberta Ski Academy.
Course setting was good at Alpine and allowed for most of our 15 year olds to score some point results and work their way up the ladder to better start positions in future races. On the girls side, mikaela was in podium position after both first runs, however could not convert. It wouldn't be her last chance..
She reached the podium in GS! After dominating the first run by .50, she had a mistake in 2nd run put remained on the podium, J1 and overall.
and the overall podium with Randa in 4th!
Steinke continued to push and came up with a big result!
Booya! 2nd place for Steinke. Weather conditions did not allow the usual podium ceremonies. Inside the Peaks lodge would have to do...3 Provincial team guys and Will from Estrie to round out the podium. Ian Mott also put in a brilliant 2nd run, to punch in an 8th place result and career best point score. Reports say that Mott was like a young Blardone dancing from arc to arc. Beautiful skiing boy.
Again, lots of positive things for the whole gang. Everyone is starting to race how they train and throwing down. Georgian Peaks you have no choice. Although it is short, the first 6 gates on the pitch are as intense as anywhere. Sidehill, super steep and fast. Tricky and challenging.
More and more to come, stay tuned!
Feb 10th, 2011
K2 camp update from Edouard
On the ski side of things the track here is great offering a pitch, compression, rolling flats and a jump feature. All of the athletes have been very successful in achieving their personal level of comfort with the speed being acquired and the terrain thats available.
The coaches here from the DLS and Estrie are working with us to maintain a safe environment for the athletes with most of the run B-netted, the track dyed for visibility and coach's strategically placed along the track. We are working with most of the athletes on improving their tactics - timing and line, and when and how much to pressure to apply in the turn. We have had approximately 15 runs in the course.
Today we played soccer against the Estrie team for dry-land. We will continue to train SuperG tomorrow morning and Slalom in the afternoon with the Estrie group.
Feb 8th, 2011
Here is a season recap up till now from the K2s! They are currently training up north getting some SG in before heading back for the ATM. Keep up the good work guys!
GRAND FONDS
The NCO K2 Athletes rung in the new year just North of Quebec City in Mont Grands Fonds skiing super G, GS and Slalom. The focus of this training camp was to prepare the athletes for race type situations as the race season was upon us. They athletes practiced inspection techniques, pre-race routines and were setup in a timing environment in all 3 disciplines. The track was over a minute long in GS and offered great terrain for Slalom. The conditions were superb a successful camp.
TASCHEREAU
The NCO K2 Coaches were pleased to have the entire K2 squad participate in the Taschereau Cup at Mont Tremblant, QC. This race showcases the best in Ontario and Quebec making it a great event for our local athletes. We were very pleased with the performance of all who participated. Most to All of the athletes had at least 1 of 4 runs where they could match up to the best the East has to offer. The results below were exceptional and deserve recognition:Charlie Keenan (1st place in SL and 3rd Overall); Jeremie Lacasse (9th in GS; 7th in SL; 8th Overall); Monica Slobozianu (11th in SL; 17th overall); Taylor RIopelle (17th in GS).
LOCAL RACE SERIES ASM -SL /MSM-GSThe local K2 Races started out at Camp Fortune with a slalom hosted by ASM the NCO K2 squad had a strong showing with the following results: Charlie Keenan 1st; Jeremie Lacasse 2nd; Raf Quenneville 3rd and Justin Haineault 5th. On the female side of the board Kate VanBuren finished in 1st place and Monica Slobozianu 2nd. Proceeding the ASM slalom was a GS race hosted by MSM. The NCO K2 team continued their strong showing at Mont Ste Marie. They battled the -40 conditions to come out on top. Kate VanBuren and Raf Quenneville won the race. Taylor Riopelle finished 4th place and Charlie Keenan placed 2nd; Jacob Beumer placed 4th and Jeremie Lacasse 5th. Other strong showings were Rowan Courtenay 6th, Justin Haineault 7th and Tyler Gray 9th.
EDE- SL/ASM-GS
Our second weekend of racing took place at Edelweiss and Camp Fortune. At Edelweiss Jeremie Lacasse topped the podium for the boys and Kate VanBuren continued her winning streak through the Slalom. Charlie Keenan placed 2nd and Tyler Gray rounded off the podium placing 3rd. Monica SLobozianu placed 2nd and Taylor Riopelle finished 4th. The ASM GS track was a challenging course for the K2 field traversing Upper Canadian into the Chute onto Lower Canadian. Jacob Beumer placed 5th, Jeremie Lacasse placed 4th,Raf Quenneville placed 3rd and Charlie Keenan placed 2nd. On the girls side Taylor Riopelle placed 5th, Monica Slobozianu placed 3rd and Kate VanBuren placed 1st. The NCO has currently topped every podium in the local series. We look forward to the next race weekend the Art Tommy Memorial Classic to be hosted at Calabogie.
SPEED CAMP
The Elite level K2's across the province are currently in Lac St Jean at Mont Edouard. The NCO is participating with Skibec, DLS and Estrie in a province wide speed camp through SQA. The track offers a variety of terrain that will challenge the athletes to push their comfort levels on steeps over jumps and rolling flats. The main purpose of this camp is to bring the elite teams across the province together to collaborate and improve the confidence of our skiers but also to prepare for the local super combined races and the provincial speed events. The athletes are constantly pushing themselves and there are many personal improvements daily. Pictures from this event to come...
Feb 6th, 2011
Wow, 1 month has passed since the last update. It has been a crazy month filled with racing, training, tuning, driving and some rest. We have just come off a stretch of 12 races in just over 2 weeks with the FIS guys and we are tired. A little rest this week and time to balance our lives and then back at it with some good training.
Although we have been slacking in the website department, there is lots to report and lots to show. Here's some highlights of the last month.
We were lucky enough to have Pat Biggs join us to training at Calabogie Peaks. He shared a couple secrets of the pros and let us chase him around for 6 runs. Nice to see Patty giving back. Apparently the training was good as he went on to win 2 races in Collingwood the next 2 days.
Next stop for the "old guns" was Val St Come for Noram action. We had epic conditions and weather to compete with the very best in North America. Being exposed to this caliber of skiing really takes your own skiing to a new level. Just the warmup is super intense and gets you pumped.
You certainly learn alot more from chasing guys like this around. Great learning experience for the boys, and they all fought hard enough to get a 2nd run! This is Phil Brown ripping the natural injection at ste come.
Next up was the NORAM GS at Garceau. There is a good flat at the bottom, so we decided to cook up some fat burgers to help us out. These turned out great.
The slope was beautiful at Garceau and the surface as good as it gets. These guys ripped it to shreds! I encourage any young racer and coach to go check out this level of racing first hand. Video is one thing, but seeing it in front of you and feeling the speed and crisp arcs, nothing like it.
Decent
Carrying that speed to the flats. At this point of the course we really focus on having the pressure above the fall line and being dynamic, moving with the increase in speed. Gravity has to be your best friend.
All in all a good noram series. We learned a ton and the boys were really motivated by their skiing. Now it was time to see how they stack up back at FIS races!
Next up was Sugarbush VT for 2 FIS GS races on the Inverness trail, home of GMVS, the famous ski academy. The trail is long and constant, a good hill for young skiers and for your fast guys to charge!
We got a big of snow and had to lower the start. Racing in the states is different. Very few volunteers and huge fields! Coaches all worked together to get this race off and the track ready.
We were happy to come away from Sugarbush with a win! Chris Steinke won his first FIS race with a great 2nd run. He won the first run day 1 and Dnfed 2nd run, so some good redemption on day 2. Shout out to our friends from Estrie who also kicked some butt out there. Will was 1st and 2nd day 1 and 2.
Good team results also. Eric charged from 54 bib to 5th in the first run day 2, Ian has two solid top 10s. Pat and Sam got their first taste of US racing. Way to go boys!
Then the road trip continued....Next up, Bromont, Collingwood and MSA. Update will come soon.
Jan 5th, 2011
Eastern racing action
While the "old guns" stayed out west, the "young guns" were racing at Val St Come for the opening slaloms on the Super Series circuit. Some excellent results were had by the team and personal best point results.
Eric Stewart reached the J1 top 5 podium in both slalom races. Maxime moved up from 112 to 31st position, showing he is in the top 1995 boys. Mikeala had a couple hot 2nd runs scoring her first FIS points. Overall day 1 was a little bit of a let down, but the whole team came back strong on day 2.
Then the old guns returned and everyone met up in Tremblant for 2 GS and 2 SL.
I was at Mt Blanc with the boys and it was a total rut fest. Here is Felix during tear down standing in the rut that got him in the 2nd run.
Despite the tough snow and deep ruts, Ian Mott put together a big move up and personal best result! Otherwise the 1995s fought it out from the back and there was some encouraging skiing. It was a mix of bump skiing and slalom skiing, not exactly what we trained for, but you never know.
There was however some good skiing to watch, if you were starting in the top 20. These guys had it easy!
Semple
Drury
Next up was tremblant!
I was lucky enough to set the 1st course. This is what it's like at 7:15 at the top of Tremblant. Luckily I didn't have any snow gun clouds to deal with. It's nice to see at least 2 gates down when setting.
Beautiful day at Tremblant! It never really gets sunny there at this time of the year, only foggy or overcast. Nice swingy course to kick off the GS series.
US Ski team member Thomas Biesemeyer came out ripping and threw down a fast 1st run.
Donaldson is always on his game at Tremblant and arcing with early pressure.
Mott, Steinke and Rubinoff all had personal best point results, despite some shady skiing. Still not seeing the same level of attack as in training, but good to know they are progressing but still have something left in the tank. Stewart had a great 1st run, but fell inside run 2.
Mikeala had the move up of the year so far going from 89th to 5th overall! good enough for 3rd J1. Great job in her first FIS GS.
The 1995 boys had some strong showings as well, expecially on day 2 with Max and Pat leading the way. We have prepared well in GS and the boys showed that.
More to come. Next from norams in ST Come/Garceau
Jan 2nd, 2010
Still catching up on photos taken out west. Here's some good ones from the Lake Louise Men's World cup. For a full compliment of photos make sure to check out the photo gallery.
Perfect day for racing at Lake Louise. We made the trip up from Panorama to catch the men's SG.
"Les bleues" in the crowd, we came prepared and showed our support for the athletes. Along with a few plugs for the NCO and T&L!
Not bad signage for a bunch of ski racers.
Apparently the girls didn't sleep the night before and constructed the ultimate finish area sign. Check out the detail!
No voices left at the end of the day.
Nice new threads for the Austrians this year. Here's Walchofer commenting on his winning run!
Nick and his freshly worn world cup bib!
Olympic GS silver medalist Kjetil Jansrud sporting the new Yniq goggle from Jon Olsson. Looking good.
The view doesn't get old. See you next year!
Dec 25th, 2010
Race season
Athletes on the FIS team have now competed in both NORAM and FIS race competitions. The initial preparation phase is complete and now it's time to see how you stack up. This is what ski racers live for. The feeling in the start gate right before you throw down and put it all on the line.
Start house in Panorama. What an incredible view before a full length intense GS.
We managed to squeak in a great SG session at Nakiska before heading up to Lake Louise.
Usual perfect surface at Nakiska. No wind and -5 to go along with it! You cannot beat the training here.
Map maker.
Next day was 1st DH training run at Lake Louise. Here is tickety chutes.
Coming out of Wiwaxy into coaches corner.
Nice sidehill landing off the jump on coaches corner. This begins 25 seconds of action! You have to be on your game to get down here.
Top part of the pitch. Big right footer is called fallaway.
We had perfect weather for this series (except for the SG which got snowed out) very warm and obviously hard snow thanks to the water injection. The surface was like nothing else we had ever seen. Even in comparison to the injection at Nakiska and Panorama. It made things incredibly challenging and very, very fast!
Nice morning sky at Lake Louise.
World Cup athletes get off easy. We got to tear down all that net!!!
Much much more to show and tell, but that will have to wait. Time to enjoy Christmas!
Happy holidays to all, see you on the slopes.
Dec 2nd, 2010
Every session counts
Many can plan training days, but it comes down to how you execute. Panorama has made it very easy for us to put together the best possible sessions for our athletes so they can push their limits and continue their progression.
It's all about the environment. Something we strive to never compromise.
Old timer GS hill, is everything you want in GS and SG. Terrain, steeps, flat, breakovers, length, width. We had many solid sessions on the track.
Max in GS
Ready to rip another session at Panorama, all smiles until...
The clock tells you where you really stand!
Today to end the camp, the FIS team guys competed in the first annual "NCO Shootout". The format is best 3 of 4 slalom runs, 2 different courses. We made a point of throwing every possible race day distraction at the athletes; timing delays, schedule changes, non maintained warmup course, sanctions, etc. This began the night before where we laid out the schedule, rules and start list.
So important to go through the race day routine, before you actually race! The athletes need comfort and confidence in this environment, that is why we simulate in training.
We had a beautiful morning for the Shootout, the stage was set and it was an excellent day.
Eric Stewart was 1st in men, Mikeala took home the ladies title. Hot chocolate was the top prize.
You may have noticed Chris and Ian absent on the start list. They were training on Old timer with USSA western region, Nella, Halbert from CAST and some Burke guys in SG. Chris and Ian are getting tuned up to race the norams at Lake Louise and Panorama.
Will try and post some more updates, including Lake Louise World Cup photos and more training reports. Better internet here in Canmore.
Pray for cold in the east!
November 22nd, 2010
5 days into the camp and a day off on the horizon tomorrow. We had planned to take this day off since the beginning and coincidentally, temps are dropping to arctic levels for the day and getting warmer on Wednesday. Although we accept we are competing in a winter sport, training in -30 weather is far less productive than a balmy -10 or -15.
Snow guns are still blasting away out here, the piles of snow accumulated in only a few days is incredible. They quickly opened Old timer and now looking at opening another trail, Showoff on Wednesday. Luckily the resort is blowing the snow strategically as to not interrupt the athletes visibility while training, with the exception of the top where we had a slalom course Sunday..
Good training for early season Tremblant races!
We had slalom courses all over Hay Fever. One at the top until the Hay fever/old timer junction, apex stubby course on the pitch and another slalom course at the bottom.
Apex brush drill from a few days ago. Though we are training FIS athletes, still lots of development you can do on a pitch like this. The job is never done!
Snowy panorama mountain village.
dryland is happening daily from 330 to 430, and we've also done some morning activation workouts prior to our mid day SL gate session. Again so important to maintain the athletes overall fitness while on camps. Here's a little yoga after slalom sunday.
Today to end off our first block of training, we had an early morning GS freeski session on Old Timer and SL in the PM. Athletes get to know the terrain before some more intense GS and SG to come later in the camp and the hill is wide open so you can really rip at your GS skis.
Snow guns are still going at the top.
A good example of the width on Old Timer.
There were also 3 slaloms on the hill, which are not visible. Plenty of room for everyone.
Mikeala getting the hips to top of the new turn.
Alistair breaking it down for Scotty B
Thank you Spyder for the warm parkas!
This afternoon we ended the day with an race simulation type slalom session on Old timer. 55 gate SL with timing. A big part of this camp is narrowing down pre race routine and finding what mental state enables each individual to perform at their best. The role of the coach is to create to appropriate environment for the athletes to experiment with this. This starts the night before, setting the tone and getting the athletes thinking about their preparation and feeling some heat for the session to come.
No pics from the SL, but I assure you, it was a "banger session".
Stay tuned
November 19th, 2010
So far so good here at Panorama. Many teams are arriving this weekend, so the staff here is working hard at opening more terrain. The last 2 days everyone has been on a trail called Hay Fever. This slope is the one used for the NORAM slalom races and also the women's world cup held here a few years ago. The snow is fresh and quite forgiving right now, probably a good thing early on in the camp. You need to be on your game to ski well here and if you're not, with the right progression you can really improve your positioning and stance on a slope like this.
The top part of the run here gets you up to speed very quick and you can feel the steepness increasing as you get closer to the pitch.
The pitch is long and relentless. 1 very sharp breakover to bring you in and another break before the last steep part then leading you onto a fast flat. It's key that the athletes maintain their turn shape right to the bottom of this pitch. No room for complacency on this sucker.
Day 1 was a bit of a treat. We got 20cms of fresh, dry snow, good way to get your ski legs back.
Eric, showing some powder angles.
Only 3 small teams on the hill. We took advantage and skied lots!
Otherwise, Panorama has a great setup for us here. We are really enjoying the dryland room they have provided and allows us to keep our athletes fit, strong and ready to rip..
We've done some agility and quickness to get everyone lively for the slalom action in the coming days. Core and flexibility are on the daily menu as well.
Over and out for now, hope it's getting cold back home.
November 17th, 2010
Hello from Panorama, BC! Back at it here on snow, and ready to rip. We received a warm welcome here at Panorama, they even gave us all these nice belt buckles! Off to a good start I would say.
Lots of time has passed since our last update. We have been very busy preparing for the season and enjoying our time at home before heading back into ski mode. This update is dedicated to our big sponsor, Tommy and Lefebvre. Their commitment to ski racing is incredible and they are a critical component in achieving our objective; to send more athletes to the provincial teams and beyond.
These guys are so into ski racing, they even put us on the wall! New store in looking great and has a big ski racing presence.
The grand opening was a huge success. The event was also to raise funds for local World Cup athletes Ryan Semple and Patrick Biggs who are chasing their dream of world cup success and another olympic birth is Sochi, Russia. Other national team athletes were attendance, including Erik Guay and his little friend....
That's right, World Cup SG crystal globe, hanging out on the bench in T&L. No big deal..
Downstairs, the Montana Crystal Glide machine is pounding out fast grinds as usual. We have also programmed a new race edge program which gives you a razor sharp finish, ready for those Outaouais natural injection days.
Fresh grinds looking fast. All the wax in the world is no good without a good structure and good brushing.
Ski shaping is the other key component of the ski prep. Without good sidewall and top sheet removal, you will not get the most out of your skis and not get the desired edge bevel. These tools will help, along with some practice on your old skis.
While the skis are getting ready, so are the athletes. Some hard spinning sessions to get us primed for hard days at Panorama.
Ready to rip! You don't get fast skis, you make fast skis.
All stickered up. Lets get it on!
October 21st, 2010
In search of qualtiy training
Why is it that so many teams are training in the southern hemisphere and europe during the fall and summer months? Is this really necessary? In Canada can we make up our lack of time on snow with more sport specific training off snow?
Many questions come to mind when planning camps abroad and justifying the extra cost of the sport to your program and athletes. One area where we cannot compromise is the availability of quality training in the preparation period. If we believe that athletes are a product of their preparation then we must seek out the best options for training our athletes, finding the best quality training environment to increase our athletes skill level and increase the time on task. Physical training is of the utmost importance, but nothing can replace working on skiing skills with repeated action and deliberate practice.
Success in skiing, and any sport for that matter, is no accident, those with effectively planned and well executed training will systemically increase their skill level and progress. Each training session has to be meaningful, have a purpose and be part of the next step of the progression. Next level!
Here are some examples of what we found in Chile:
Good snow is the first part of the equation, they had plenty, and know how to prepare it in Antillanca.
Our first GS course of the fall. Moderate slope with a ridiculously fast turn around. 20 gates of simple rhythm to groove GS movement pattern and get comfortable in a gate environment. We were getting 15 runs in the course plus freeskiing. Big volume days.
Upper portion of the mountain, 35 gates of constant GS, on repeat.
Sam arcing it up on the long GS course.
Beautiful, long, steep pitch with GS rhythm. Taking our work from the flat stuff to the next level. We saw some excellent skiing here. Snow was epic and athletes could arc back and forth with some heat!
The top of another slope, very steep top section, into a compression which shoots you into a tough bottom section. This was 50 secs of action! Slope too steep and hard to leave skis lying around as you can see.
Another steep slope we were sharing with the Eastern Townships. After an intense morning GS session both teams went back to some technical work. We are in the double panel apex drill, challenging the athletes to have more pressure in the fall line.
A low light day, but with some dye and team work, an epic session with Team Estrie again.
October 18th, 2010
Back on home soil! After 28 hours of travelling from Osorno to Ottawa, the team is back. We have logged some serious volume in the last 3 weeks and we are all excited for the down time before heading into our next training block in Panorama BC at the end of November. Now that we have good internet, look forward to some photos from Antillanca in beautiful Patagonia. Today i'll show you some of the SG jump session.
Antillanca is known for some rainy weather, I guess we got lucky, often.
Team shot on the last day. Lesson learned, don't leave the team picture for the last day, take your window of Blue sky.
Coach Lavigne painting the jump. Our dye mixture a little off but it worked. We first practiced on the jump and gradually progressed our starting height and speed. Our last jump session we integrated the jump into and SG course. Very intense and demanding.
Chris showing us how it's done going for 25m flight into some steep and bumpy SG turns.
Mikeala sharpening her jump skills, volcanoes in the background.
Ian sending it during the first practice session. Our dye color worked out a little better on that day.
Maxime showing us how it's done, this big boy can fly!
Teaching the art of jumping. Coach Lavigne keeping it simple, getting it done. Lots of reps, simple focus.
Bigger than you think. It was a little intimidating, but with a little practice, confidence was high.
Shoulders down Scotty!
October 1st, 2010
Hello from Chile! We are currently here in Antillanca, Chile, training for the upcoming season. Antillanca is a new destination for the team due to snow conditions being too thin at our usual location in Chile. Definitely no lack of snow here and we could not be happier with the training. The FIS crew has been on snow 6 days and plan on skiing another 2 before taking a day off. Our plan is steered somewhat by the weather out here, as it can be up and down. Day 2 and 3 were quite soggy but still extremely productive with the quick turn around here, lack of people and appropriate training environment and outerwear. The last 3 days have been blue sky and world class GS training. The weather looks good for another 2 days and every day the guys are skiing better so we will keep going. Energy level is good and the enthusiasm is high in the group. The repetition here is unbelievable and the turn around the quickest I have seen. With the moderate elevation, we are getting huge amounts of volume and fast recovery from the athletes. Our highest has been just over 20 runs of GS in one day, 225 GS gates and the rest freeskiing and drills. This morning was as good as it gets. 6 runs full suit on a 50 sec GS with intervals and perfect snow. The slope had two main sections with a nice pitch at the top into a big 90 degree "alta badia" turn, leading you into a beautiful long rhythm section on a steep pitch. We were going for more after our lunch break but the clouds moved in and we had to call it quits for the afternoon.
Outside of training, this place is very quiet and cozy. We basically have the place to ourselves except for a few tourist along with the Eastern Townships zone team. The food has been excellent and diverse. Although a traditional canadian breakfast would be good right about now. Internet here is slow, which makes it difficult to load pictures. I will try and make that happen as the views here are spectacular and the slope are beautiful.
Ciao for now!
Al and Chris
September 7th, 2010
Dryland is in full swing! Here is the crew working out over the long weekend. The team is preparing for their next training camp towards the end of September in Chile.
August 10th, 2010
Here is a little taste of what we are up to with our video analysis. With Dartfish we can break down a technical concept into a sequence of skills and identify exactly where the athletes can improve. We use the video both in introducing concepts to our athletes and then to review after a day of training. This is called 'stromotion'.
August 2nd, 2010
NCO FIS and K2 athletes were in Mt Hood, Oregon this June and July preparing for the upcoming season. This is the time of the year to develop skills, acquire new
feeling and test equipment.
Incredible amount of snow for June 23rd! Would never know this is early summer in North America.
Showing our pride on the mountain.
Oregon is probably the best place for dryland. Coach Lacaille approves of one the 100ft waterfall. Athletes are cooling off in behind the thundering glacier water.
Ripping through July! Makena showing us how it's done on upper Palmer. Quiet day in between camps. 55 gate brush course, 15 turn drill course and free skiing below. Quality reps!
May 31st, 2010
We are accepting applications for coaching positions at both K2 and FIS. Check out the job ads and send in CV by June 11th.
The 2nd annual NCO Classic Golf Tournament, happening June 8th 2010 at Edelweiss Golf and Country Club. Celebrate this season's builders award recipient and enjoy some time on the links with the Ottawa/Gatineau ski community.
Online sign up with be online soon, check back for more details.
New videos including Cook and Janyk tactical analysis.
January 30th, 2010
Photos updated and K2 Team headshots. Both FIS and K2 Team are racing this weekend, FIS in Mt Ste Anne, Quebec, K2s at Cascades.
November 23rd, 2009
Added the Twitter link for frequent updates from training and races. Updated the Calendar also. Both teams are travelling to Alberta/Bc this week. Lots more news and pictures this week from training at Norquay and Panorama!
October 30th, 2009
Auction items are posted! Come support ski racing development in Ottawa and get some great deals while your at it.
