Craftsbury Marathon: What we loved and learned from sub zero skiing

When we walked to breakfast the SWIX thermometer said 15 Below Zero.  Breathing in felt crispy as the moisture in our nose and on our face quickly froze.  This was my 10 year-old daughter and my second Craftsbury Marathon and despite the cold we were both very excited to ski our best and have fun. The moon the night before had been the brightest all year, the sun was bright and beautiful blue skies told me this was going to be a great day.

At the common dining room where we have had many wonderful hearty meals and delightful conversations over the 11 years we have been staying at Craftsbury, we met a woman who recognized my Ciclismo Classico wind jacket and said that she dreamed of taking one of our bicycle tours with her friends. She also shared that she has been involved with the repurchase project of Windblown Cross Country Ski Area, a project that I have pledged my interest in with a "$250. Yes Count me in" vote of approval. Another serendipitous meeting of the mind experience that comes out of just doing what you love.


Layering would be tough today. How many layers do you wear when it is below zero? We knew we would warm up a lot while skiing but it was still tricky.  We both ended up putting on several thin wicking layers and our jackets.

The night before we had our TOKO friends put on the magical mix of green klister bind and several layers of highly buffled mint green wax but while we had Wax Peace of Mind, we had them rub in a couple more layers of Blue.

At the starting line. I kept asking myself:  Warmer Hat? Glove liner? More energy drink? Carrying too much food? What about that wax? By the time I could circle back with that thought the cow bells rung and we were off dashing down the track sharing the 12KM loop with hundreds of the nation's best skiers as well as passionate amateurs like Valentina and I.  Lesson Number 1. Be Ready.  The best skiers and likely winners most certainly were

By KM 3, our hands were frozen but we also had one too many layer on and were carrying too much stuff (camera's snacks, etc). Since the next check point was not for 8KM we would have to do our best feeling a bit hot and overloaded.

Althought it was a bit slippery, the course was beautiful, just the right flow of flats, ups, downs and rolling. There were lots of fast skiers too so while we could look ahead, we had TRACK yelled at us throughout the race ( a request to get out of your track and let the faster skier behind you have the track). Personally I like the on your left command in cycling a bit better

At KM 4 we took off some layers and got a bit more wax since we were slipping. We skied off with Valentina always in the lead!  At KM 6 Volunteers shouted out HEED ( a performance drink)and GOO which most just grabbed and whizzed by. We stopped,  enjoyed 2 cups of Heed and Valentina has her first try of sticky GOO. Here we met up with Ciclismo Classico alumni Caroline Mock who had won our FREE Ciclismo Classico Spot in the Marathon.

Off we went again. At KM 7 we had a more serious problem. Valentina had gotten GOO in her glove and when she took it off and then put it back on, the glove lining remained inside out and she could not put the glove back on.  We struggled for ten minutes but the glove was rendered useless. I gave her my glove and then tried to figure out how I would ski 5KM in sub zero temps without a glove. I managed a combination of pulling my sleeve over my hand, skiing one handed and mind over matter until we got back to the center and I could switch out gloves. Lesson Number 2: Watch the Goo, bring extra gloves and Mind over Matter is more powerful than you think (at least until real frostbite hits).

By halfway through the race, we both got everything right. Layers were good, extra weight was off, bellies had the right mix of food and water, wax was the best it would be for the icy conditions. We were off to ski the remaining 12K faster than the first 12K.  I tried to savor every kilometer, enjoying rolling track on pristine farmland, curvy descents through birch groves and appreciating that my own strength was making it happen. Certainly I could train more but I was also feeling enormously proud of my daughter who was skiing beautifully,  confidently and without complaints---by next year just might be flying ahead of me so I had better start training now. I could not ask for more. Near the end she said "pretty soon we will be in a nice warm hotel mom," but I responded that I kind of liked it right now, right here! Valentina beat me over the finish line and cheered me on as I double poled one last time on the 2010 Craftsbury Marathon. We finished the course strong and with two very large smiles. Lesson Number 3: The Stars do align more often than we think. We are blessed

At the awards banquet after the race, we discovered that Valentina had come in first for her age group. It was a nice surprise, she won her hand made bowl but the satisfaction was still in completing this event together and that it hopefully will continue to be a mother daughter tradition for many years to come (or at least as long as I can keep up with her). Lesson number 4: Have fun, love what you do. The reward will come.

As a final treat: As one of the GOLD sponsors of the event, Ciclismo Classico donated a trip to the raffle. As Valentina read the number, a young man walked up to claim the 6 DAY Piedmont Biking Tour. I congratulated him and he said to the crowd that he would give it to his mother, the same woman who I had met at breakfast who was dreaming of the tour. I love when that happens! Lesson Number 5: Share the dream and be nice to your mother!