Pros of solo training!

Hey Friends.

I would like to begin by saying I think it is hardly fair that I, the other Alaskan, is writing directly after Jack: the Alaskan with the obviously better photography skills. (Great post Jack)

This summer I have been training mostly by myself and I would like to take this time to recognize and appreciate the pros of solo training. Shockingly, they do exist.

1. I have found I am much more observant. For example, today I observed 1 porcupine, 3 moose (meeses, mooses or what have you), 1 regular-sized squirrel, way too many tourists and one crazy badass looking beast (me).

2. I have had a lot of time to reflect. Mostly because I find myself repeating in my head, "Wow this hurts, why am I doing this?". There are many reasons why I am hurting on purpose! I'm really excited to be back with the team in the Fall and bond over our painful yet adrenaline filled and empowering adventures.

That's about it for pros of training solo. I tried being positive but truth be told I am very much looking forward to being back with the team in the fall.

Now here are some photos of my adventures:

A maggie and her spinach-berry smoothie. Enthusiastic yum!

A romantic sunset 

A romantic-er sunset

A Maggie dancing in neature

2 fuzzy, 1 not fuzzy animals

A Maggie trying to remember how to ski at Hatchers Pass the first day she got back to AK

One more Maggie dancing in neature

Can't wait to meet the twins when I/we get back to Williamstown. Sending lots of love to everyone!!

-Mags 

TWINS! Ella Anne and Cara Joy

I hope everyone is having an awesome start to summer. These two little blessings arrived on Friday 6/22. I think this dad's heart is going to explode!:)

Class of 2040?
Ella on the left, Cara on the right

Gratuitous Alaska-ness

Hey folks, Jack here.

Since leaving Williams for the summer I've been mostly working on my tan, which strangely apparently involves running around in the mountains for hours every day... who knew?
On the first mountain I scrambled up after getting back, there was a nice lady at the top with a phone who offered to take my picture, and of course I couldn't say no

Me on my very first mountain

More mountains were climbed, some sketchier than others:

I wish there were more mountains

It's hard to justify running when you aren't running to something cool, so my friend and I ran up onto and inside a glacier. I then realized I hadn't done strength in a months so we decided to whip out a little workout while we were there. See below:

After climbing every single mountain in Southcentral Alaska, I decided I needed a change of scenery so some friends and I headed down to Juneau for a week. After crossing into Canada and enduring some constitutionally questionable searches of ourselves and the truck by border patrol, we finally made it to Juneau and out to my cabin. 

Tracen getting some much needed rest time 

Cooling off after running from bears in the morning

And finally, congrats to our head coach Jason on his new twins Ella and Cara!

Cheers,

Connie

Three Ephs Spotted in the Valley of Sun

Hello Williams Ski World! I arrived in Sun Valley last week to join Lucy and Jenae for another summer of beautiful adventures. While Sun Valley may not be Norway, it's definitely right up there in terms of prime ski training destinations. I am lucky enough to be living with the lovely Alexander family again, which means that Lucy and I can get up to our usual shenanigans. I'm spending my afternoons working as a staff intern at the Sun Valley Writer's Conference, and Lucy is doing some top secret antibody research at Idaho Bio Science.  Here are some highlights of our last week!

1. Waking up to loud "bahhing" the other day only to realize that there were herds of sheep running down the main road. Still not exactly sure what that was about, but it was definitely memorable.

2. Getting to mountain bike on these breathtaking trails again, which of course came with the obligatory "fall-down-go-boom" moments but also sweet views.

 3. Meeting Jenae!!!! And having a delicious Sunday brunch with other SVSEF gals.

 4. Spending quality time with this lil nugget. (Update: Lucy has now graduated from peaches and peanut-butter waffles to kiwi and peanut-butter waffles....let me know if you think she needs to be stopped...)

5. Having one of the first all-rainy days I have ever experienced in Sun Valley, except the sun was out the whole time while it was rainy?!?!?! It was wild. The sunshine really refuses to go away here. 

6. Getting to try the rollerski treadmill for the first time!!! So fancy and technique tips for dayssss. 

7. Getting creative with dinner thanks to the fabulous Mama Alexander. Below is one of our recent masterpieces: Baked burritos with spinach, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, black beans, and garnished with pumpkin seeds, avocado and spicy things (Found in the How Not to Die cookbook given as a senior gift to legend Sarah Becker). Overwhelmingly yummy to say the least. 

8. Exploring the land on beautifully paved bike paths. a rollerskier's paradise. 

Ok, that's all for now folks! Missing the rest of the ski squad very much, and hope everyone is having a great June :)

Skiing in June (On a Budget)

After saying goodbye to our seniors at graduation I headed out to Lillehammer for the summer. I'm staying with some other EISA skiers I've trained with for the past few summers. We choose Lillehammer in part because its only 3 hours away from the famous Sognefjellet summer snow fields. We couldn't quite afford staying in the lodge so we decided to camp nearby and cook on our assortment of camp stoves. While tents did not offer the luxury accommodations of the lodge, it did have its perks:

There was about 6k of skiing that was groomed and salted twice a day. The track was surprisingly firm for 80 degree temperatures:

After skiing all day we would reconvene at the campsite for some much needed calories. Sweet potato burritos turned out surprisingly well:

For dessert we had scenery like this:

Hellooo from Idahooo

I'm back in Idaho for the summer and things are beautiful as ever. The mountains are greener than normal thanks to the nonstop rain throughout May that my mom and I got to experience in full force on our drive from Boise. Incoming first year Jenae is also here and it's been awesome training and hanging out with her! Here are some photos:

Ingrid (from Utah), Jenae, and me smiling after a hard day of intervals and strength! Lots of jumping to be had in the new summer lift. 

My new breakfast of choice: waffles with peanut butter and peaches. Not as strange as some of my other concoctions but just as good (who knows, maybe I'll try a sprinkling of rice next time for a tasteful garnish).

My mom enjoying the views on a lovely mother-daughter mountain bike ride.

Turns out Jenae had the same idea! We saw her fly by us and were able to get a picture at the trailhead. We definitely will be going on some rides together. (Not shown: the collection of wildflowers peeking out of her back pocket). 

So prettyyyyyy

Carmen arrives tomorrow night and I am of course very excited to see her. We already have a bucket list of adventures that we need to complete so you will surely be hearing more soon.

Keep rockin' the cow.

Boston Squad

This Sunday I had the pleasure of meeting up with some alumni in the area.  We had a great time biking and running in the Blue Hills outside of Boston.  Pictured below Josh ('16), Liv, ('16) Vanya ('15) and myself ('19).  The highlight was the donuts Vanya brought for afterwards.  Luckily, Josh has long arms.

Class of 2018

On this Graduation Day, I decided to dig deep into the blog archives and resurface some freshman year throwbacks for the Class of 2018!

Schrupp testing out the Williamstown pavement back in Fall of '14... I think he likes it.

Women's team - all alums!

So no one ever forgets the long hair era.

Heidi getting used to some brisk temps at Prospect.

Sarah sending it in her first Schnell.

Some highlights from Elowyn's sophomore year. Older and wise than her classmates as freshmen.

And of course, the iconic snowflake pajama ski suit.

Game face. Trapp's ain't got nothing on this hometown hero. 

Sarah in the Canadian Strength Test, taking a quick breather after her 117th push-up.

Congrats to the seniors on graduating! We will miss you all and look forward to regular visits back to the Purple Valley.

Back at home and up at the cabin

Here are a few photos from the last couple of weeks since I got home from Williams:

Finding fresh asphalt with my training buddy Kristine who is on the ski team at UNH

Hanging with my friend Hannah at our cabin near Hayward, Wisconsin (home of the American Birkebeiner!)

My thumb after I ravaged it with a bread knife while trying to recreate my Sunday Driscoll brunch bagel sandwich

It was oppressively hot and humid last week in the midwest (over 100˚ F!) and here I am feeling the heat and contemplating the sweat in my thumb wound

I managed to convince Adrienne to come visit me in Minneapolis on her way to Colorado from Williams! We went on a big bike/rollerski tour around Lake of the Isles, Bde Maka Ska, Lake Harriet, Minnehaha Creek, the Mississippi River, and the Greenway. We also went for a little run through the sculpture garden with the Cherry and the Spoon and finished at the best ice cream place, Sebastian Joe's. Adrienne said, and I quote, that she could see herself living in Minneapolis one day, which is from the girl who once asked Elowyn whether she lived on the east or west coast, so we're considering the trip a success and everyone should come to MN! 

Adrienne and I admiring the Mississippi River from the Lake St. bridge

Spoon and cherry!

Stay cool and rock the cow!