Chandra's Update

Europe and area

December 21, 2007

Hello Ski Fans,

After an exciting 4 weeks on the World Cup circuit I am Canmore-bound for Christmas. This Saturday, Dec 22nd at 1pm there'll be a town get-together at the Civic Centre as we're going to hang my Olympic medal up there to be shared with the town for a while. Come on down for some hot chocolate, cookies, and Merry Christmas hugs. Without further ado, here are the photos from this trip...

In Kuusamo, Finland I was frustrated with a 40th place in the classic sprint. After another summer of relentless work to improve my weaker technique I was hoping for things to 'click' today. In this photo I resort to asking the track directly "WHAT is your secret?! HOW do I...?! argh..."

This friend of winter has got it figured out. Why get all stressed out about ski racing when there are such delicacies as pine-cones to obsess over?

From Finland we travelled to Davos where the sun replenished our depleted vitamin D stores. Sara Renner and family were there and despite coming down with a cold the day before the race, our Rockstar Renner was 38th and just 30 seconds from the illustrious "red group" (top 30). We are all looking forward to her comeback and little miss Aria (who turns 1 year old Feb 1) keeps everyone smiling.

In Davos even Santa hits the slopes.

Onward to Russia where we flew on a charter with the rest of the world cup to a military base in Yaroslav. The 75 000 fans were completely amazing and made for an unforgettable energized atmosphere in Rybinsk. Devon had his best ever distance result, placing 12th in the 30km mass start skate race. He was just 5 seconds off the lead and if another racer hadn't fallen in front of him on the crucial last climb who knows what could have happened in a sprint finish? Very exciting to watch. I watched the first hour of the race on tv in our nearby cabin but when Devon was still in there with 5kms to go I sprinted to the finish. He's now in Davos for the final prep for the Tour de Ski which starts December 29th. Keep an eye on the results at www.fis-ski.com

Touring the city with our attache Svetlana was a highlight. On the subject of the populairity of pelts as clothing she told me "It's not that we don't like animals, it's just that it's really cold in Russia and sometimes your fur will be the only thing that saves you." With the bone-chilling humidity from the Volga, Russia's National River, I would probably need some fur to survive more than an afternoon there. In Russia I was heard to remark "I wish Dasha (my teammate who emigrated from Russia as a teenager) was here!" about every five minutes.

In the sprint race I was third in the qualification round against the clock. One of my best ever qualifications and an auspicious sign of fitness. Things were going perfectly in my quarterfinal until my final pass was just not quite aggressive enough and in the finish I was all over the map trying to get a lane. In the end I lost out in a photo finish and the potential for greatness on this day slipped through my fingers like a fistful of sand. Time to take home the lesson and get ready for those Canmore World Cups Jan 22-26! www.albertaworldcup.com

With incredible focus and speed my friend Kikkan Randall from Anchorage, Alaska won the thing and claimed her spot in the history books by becoming the first American woman to win a world cup EVER! After training with Kikkan as much as possible and especially on intensity days these past few weeks I was stoked to see her living the dream. Not only that but I have one seriously high calibre training partner as we continue our bid for what Kikkan has dubbed North American Domination. Lots on this at www.fasterskier.com

And after all this hard racing it was time for a holiday. With Kershaw staying over for Christmas in preparation for the Tour de Ski, some recovery and de-focus time was needed. For a few days we hung out in Zermatt, Switzerland taking in the scenery and delicious cuisine of this stunning mountain paradise. Here's just one of the 3856 photos we took of the Matterhorn.

The Matterhorn is always up for it. First thing in the morning or bathed in moonlight the classic peak is a sharp, isolated rock pyramid that always looks good. Unable to deal with the jetlag incurred by going all the way to Disneyland's Matterhorn-Land, we had to settle for the real thing.

The steinbock has for a long time been regarded as a mystical animal; almost all of its body parts and its excrement were sought after as cures for various illnesses and as ingredients for magical potions (wikipedia). Personally I'm just looking for friendship.

Some x-c skiing in nearby Tasch? Why not. In fact after a day of riding the lifts I appreciated being on the move in nordic style even more. Not to mention the fondue tastes better when you've earned it.

Keep up with the Kershaw at www.devonkershaw.com

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