Laughs
So, my nephew Till and son Wolf decided to compete in a cross-country ski marathon. The catch: neither of them has ever cross country skied before. We are keeping a real time diary of their 10-day-effort to compete in the 53rd Engadin Ski Marathon without any prior experience.
- Related: From Zero to Hero, a Real Time Experiment: Can You Train For a Ski Marathon in 10 Days? — Day 1
This is day 2 and we are making steady progress. After yesterday’s fail, when he came home dripping in blood, Till learned to wear gloves and long sleeves, despite the warm weather, to keep scrapes from falling to a minimum.
Day 2: Technique
Today we headed to the airport near St. Moritz which is a fairly flat run with little undulation and without any angled tracks. In short: it is perfect for working on technique.
We focussed on the pushing technique today, extending your arms all the way back. Till caught on quickly. There were about half a dozen stacks, but no blood. We’ll chalk that up as a win. Thanks to Till mastering the right pushing technique, he was soon flying past me.
”Just go ahead, I’ll catch up to you” — “…!”
Till being a 20-year-old triathlete was quick to catch on and was soon flying down the flat bit along the St. Moritz airstrip, leaving me to suck jet fuels on my own. My only comfort is that I did not fall, which gave me a chance to catch up to him.
Meanwhile Wolf had school all day, so no training today for him. He will have to make up for it tomorrow. While he has great balance, his aerobic fitness level is not the same as Till’s, so this could be interesting.
Day 2: Training Summary
Distance: 10 miles (16 km)
Pace: 6:44 Minute/Mile (4:39 Minute/km)
Elevation Gain: 121ft (37m)
Damage: bruised hip from falling
Lessons learned: Gloves and long sleeves work to prevent scrapes (but will not stop bruising…)
