A blog by first-year skier, Leah Finnemore (Hartland, ME)
January 22, 2010  (2nd from the right)

There are a few things to be expected in your first Carnival race as a Nordic skier. First, it’s undoubtedly going to be a learning experience, potentially accompanied by some level of disappointment in your performance. Second, you are introduced to a whole new world of hurt, with full-body muscle ache and stiffness shortly following your finish. Third, the realization that training DOES pay off, even if it’s not overwhelmingly evident right out of the start gate. This is the story of my first Carnival 10k skate race, which took place beginning at 10:25:00AM and was completed a brief/excruciatingly painful 1:01:00 later.

Following last week’s Saint Lawrence University (SLU) Carnival in Lake Placid, New York, I was filled with a greater resolve to compete this weekend at Saint Michael’s Carnival in Sleepy Hollow, Vermont. I had been having some issues with my boots and how they were affecting my right Achilles tendon, so I did not participate in either race at the SLU Carnival. On Wednesday, following our practice at the Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle, I swung by our friendly neighborhood retailer, MOJO, to hook myself up with some new boots. Thankfully, Joey Bard found me an awesome deal in a pair of Atomic combi boots that had been kicking around the store for a while. As of 1:00PM Thursday, as we departed Presque Isle, it looked like the weekend was going to go well!

Our drive to Burlington, Vermont took us through the great and vast land of Canada, which was an adventure in itself. I thought we generally stopped for gas quite a few times on our trips to Carnival races, but it was impossible to find a gas station in Quebec that would take our method of payment! However frustrating the situation was, it was also comical at our collective lack of French-speaking ability while trying to converse with the store attendants. Finally, with vans gassed up and our bellies full, we arrived in Burlington around 12:15AM on Friday morning. As many of you are thinking, this isn’t an ideal time to be arriving at your hotel the night before a race, and you’re right. The lengthy van ride definitely set us off on the wrong foot in terms of preparation for Friday’s 10k skate for women, 15k skate for men.

Since this was going to be my first Carnival race of any sort, as I am the newest (and least experienced) skier on the team, I was eager to get it started (and over with)! I was happy to at least be familiar with how Carnival weekends go, since I assisted Alexei with waxing at the SLU Carnival and mostly observed the goings on of various athletes. Essentially, as I was attempting to stay warmed up while standing in line at the start gate, I just mimicked the racers around me, while trying to focus on my personal goals for the race. My goals were the following: finish, crash less than three times (the downhill corners were particularly icy), and finish. You might be saying to yourself, “Does she realize she has ‘finish’ listed twice?” The answer is “Yes”, and to make a long story short…finish, I did. It [only] took an hour to drag myself through the hilly 10k course, complete with an unscheduled feed of warm Gatorade, much encouragement from my teammates, and three “brushes with death” or crashes. 

To briefly surmise my race, I use these three words: exhausting, worthwhile, and phenomenal! I have never been so elated to finish last in anything, despite having been passed by each and every competitor that started after I did, because I FINISHED. Considering the expectations I had, it’s safe to say that I definitely learned a LOT, my entire body STILL hurts after one day of rest, and according to my finish results, I improved 20 minutes over my previous best 10k time.

As a team, the men’s 15k and ladies 10k skate races were not our best performances to date, but we know full well that there is always room for improvement. Each of the skiers from UMPI finished their race, and as I write this we are on our way home after yet another great Carnival weekend. It’s safe to say we’re all excited to be staying in Maine for this coming weekend, as we will be in Rumford, and we’re excited for a continued season of great racing!

For complete results from the St. Michael's Carnival (January 22-23): www.eisaskiing.org