Germany: Day 6: 15 km skate

Today was a very pretty and warm day here in the Black Forest. We had our long-distance skate race. I finally had a great race today. After the short sauna and some rest yesterday, my muscles felt like new instead of feeling tired and being full of lactic acid like before. We did 4 laps 3.75 km each. It was a tough course with a very long gradual climb, some wicked downhill corners and a very steep coulple of uphills just before the stadium. But this is a World Cup race after all! I actually didn't find the long gradual hill to be such a big nuisance - I train on those all the time up in the Gatineaus - it was the shorter steep ones that got me every time. And I've realized that I really need to work on those hairpin corners, because I'm too chicken to step-turn them, even though I know that in therory I can do it. I have exactly 18 days in Ottawa before I have to head out again for Nationals and the Paralympics (assuing I get to go) to work on some of that stuff.

Robert and I tried using the two-way radio headsets that the Vancouvver gang has been racing with in the last few years. We really liked them for a race like today's. They allow me to communicate with Robert if I need to tell him to slow down or to let me know about something, and they allow Robert to not have to yell over all the noise of the race and the distance between us. I can hear every word he says through the earpiece.

As for my result, even though I came in 9th and second last and was just 1.1 seconds out of the World Cup points, I'm still happy with it. I have never been anywhere near points in a long race before. And had I been my old classification, a B2, (they've just reclassified me as a B3 God knows why), I actually would have gotten quite a few points. I know this is too technical for you non-paranordic skier readers, but just know this: today was the best long-distance race I've ever skied!

Oh, official results can be found here.

Well, it's getting pretty late and I'm really sleepy, so I'd better go to bed. Tomorrow's the last World Cup race of the season, and it's a short bithlon, just like the first race we had in France. If I shoot clean and ski fast, maybe I'll get some points tomorrow. I certainly hope so. I also hope to go into Frieburg tomorrow after the race, since I still haven't done any sightseeing in Germany. We start late again tomorrow, so who knows. Then we get outta here early on Monday morning. So if I don't get a chance to update this tomorrow. I will see y'all in Canada and hopefully write from there. For now though, good night again from Oberried deep in the Balck Forest of Germany.