Norway - what I have learned and where we are going

As many of you know my team and I recently returned from our month long trip to Norway. It was an incredible experience, something I will never forget. Incredible enough that I believe it is worth sharing (more importantly, worth reading) what we did, how I am reflecting on it, and the direction it has set me on. 

Also, just a heads up, my English courses in school have really thrown of my natural flow of writing – so bare with me if my expression of organization of wording is more awkward than usual.

We were based out of a small cabin (aka a miniature troll house) in Sjusjoen, which is about 30mins out of Lillehammer. With 9 of us packed in along with a kitchen about the width and length of a manatee… well, lets just say it took some getting used to for the first few days. It was interesting to recognize though that after a few days it began to feel normal, just as a learned in my cognitive science class that people adapt to living space and circumstance quite quickly and come to neutral point of comfort despite the luxury of the living scenario they are given. An off topic point, but interesting! 

Home for the month

Typical morning view

So just 3 days after arriving in Sjusjøen we were departing for the first races of the trip in Bietostolen. Bietostolen is the season opener for the Norwegians and is an opportunity for some of them to qualify to start world cup. Since all of the best in Norway attend the event, a lot of extraordinary competition gathers. In my opinion it is an equivalent level to a World Cup, or very close to it. Starting the season off with the most competitive race most of us have ever competed in was certainly an experience – (we got our asses handed to us). The first race was a huge eye opener for pretty much every one of us on the team. We knew the competition here was going to be intense, but then when you actual are in the race and are getting passed like nothing and cannot manage to pass a single person, it’s a little demoralizing. I remember checking the results sheet and seeing that I was 130 something out of 140 or so racers, that was a tough reality to register for me. I mean, it was not my best race, but regardless it was clear I was out of my league. That evening Coach Ron gave us a very real talk, an angry talk, but it was real. Essentially making the important point that yes, we got our asses kicked – but that is not why the day was a disappointment. We lost that day because we got our asses kicked and instead of jumping up and swinging back, we ran off and whimpered about our failure. I mention this because for me, this was the turning point of this trip and my approach to world class racing as a whole. Recognizing that losing is all part of the process, and if I didn’t fail as hard as I did I never would have learned this lesson. You know, it’d be difficult to become a successful boxer if you whine and complain every time someone punches you in the face. As it is difficult to become a successful skier if we whine and make excuses for ourselves every time we lose a race. So – what did this mean for me in my approach to the races to come? Approach every race attempting to have the best possible race I can and to learn from the inevitable mistake and misfortunes that arise. Understanding that a result does not necessarily define a good or bad race. 

I believe that every race from this point on was an improvement. Just the next day in the 15km skate I made a recognizable improvement. I skied 10km of the race with these other two Norwegians who ended up placing the 60s and 70s. I did not beat them, but I felt like I was actually racing. I think I wound up 100^th or so on the day – still not an all star; but the difference in how I approached and executed the race vs. the day before felt like a whole new level. From this point forward I continued to work on this process and progression. 

We returned to Sjusjøen for 4 days of training before heading off to our next race weekend in Gålå. The Norwegian Cup consisted of a classic sprint and a 15km interval start classic. I was pretty stoked going into this weekend since from this point forward I would be racing in my Junior category (1997 & under) – giving me an opportunity to focus on competing again skiers my age. Nonetheless the junior category is still no joke, and I was aware of this going into it. Also, due to Canada having ridiculously high points, I was seeded in the top 10 for almost all of my races in the junior category. It was really cool to start with some of the best juniors in the world, but it also was a bit of slap in the face/reality check as well. In the classic sprint qualifier, the skier stating behind me passed me while coming into the finishing straight (15s interval start) … it was not a nice feeling. Although he was one of the top qualifiers on that day, it still was an eye opener to see how much more I have to improve. I didn’t end up qualifying on that day, I was 46^th (I think), just a few seconds off the top 30. I reflected on the mistakes I made in the qualifier and the things I did well and used it to prepare for the 15km the next day. Now this 15km classic may have been one of the mentality toughest races I have done. Again I was seeded 8^th or something ridiculous like that, and therefore I started 8^th last (literally 8^th last since junior men was the last category of the day). The fact that the 7 skiers that started behind were some of the best in the world did not help, I ended up getting passed by every single one of them. Asides from the one other skier I passed close to the finish, I was the absolute last skier on course. It was a bit of a tough pill to swallow, I was aware that there was no shame in losing to these guys… but I still wasn’t racing them. I didn’t care about the results I just wanted to feel like I was a serious competitor in the race. So with the second weekend of racing completed, it was time to refocus on training – and continuing failing forward. 

Gålå 15km Classic (photo: Pat)

Gålå 15km Classic (photo: Pat)

A very important part of the second race weekend is despite my disappointment, was that this time I understood what steps I needed to work on to move forward. Taking technical and mental shifts to work into this next block of training. We had the next weekend off racing so we had about 10+ days of a lot of really high quality training. For this period of time I just crushed some good hours and spent it dialing the technique changes I had discussed with Coach. Which completely changed my skate technique for the better, I am super excited and proud about this technique gain.

We also got to watch the world cup weekend in Lillehammer, which was super cool, especially since we raced pretty much the very same courses the weekend after in the Scandinavian Cup. 

Train/spectate weekend

Going into the final weekend of racing, I was ready to race fast. I was pretty tired from the steady hours, but it was time to show myself the improvements I had made in the past month. The weekend consisted of a classic sprint, a 10km skate interval start, and a 20km skiathlon. The classic sprint may have been the best sprint qualifier I have ever done. I can think of 2 points in the race where I could have improved my time in a technical aspect, but everything else I think was very sharp. I was so confident with my qualifier that I was certain I had qualified when I crossed the finish line. I soon discovered I placed in the 50s… over 20 spots out of qualifying. Initially the result was a shock and a bit of an upset, but when it was broken down – I was right there. I was 2 seconds out of qualifying and 13s off the fastest qualifier. Despite the disappointment of not being able to race heats, it was valuable to see that I have potentially to be in the running as I improve more and more. And the most important lesson of the day – the result did not change the fact that I had a stellar race. 

The 10km Skate was a solid race, a great progression forward. 

The highlight of the weekend, and likely my whole trip was the 20km skiathlon. My plan was to try to stay with the leaders for as long as possible, regardless of how hard I would blow up. But this was hands down the most aggressive mass start I have ever participated in. The combination of everyone fighting for the best position and the track being next to non-existent, it was a real free-for-all. I got pushed around a little and wound up getting trapped in the 20/30 positions for the classic leg. I felt so rough – I was battling negativity in my head but I just really wanted to quit. But I repeated in my head “keep fighting, keep fighting, just keep fighting”. Switching over to the skate leg is where everything changed. I put on my skate skis and felt like I was starting a completely different race (which surprised me since I expected to be far stronger in the classic). I went out steady and began passing people one by one. After a huge dig in the last 10km I made my way into 19^th place by the finish. To crack the top 20 in a field at a Scandinavian Cup was a huge step forward for me. The best part was that I got to show myself and other people that I was a legitimate competitor. I wasn’t the joke that showed up in Bietostolen and got stomped on; I was what I would expect Rj to be. 

20km Skiathlon Mass Start (video: Coach)

Skate leg push (video: Coach)

And with that, we packed our bags that night and began our trip back to Canada. The Norway experience had come to an end.

Now this is the part where I look back on the trip and take a look at the big picture, see what I’ve learned and where I go from here. I know that this post is already lengthy, but I feel that every part I included was important. This is because of the biggest lesson I learned – it’s a process. In trip summary I just explained, none of the events would have happened without the other. I wouldn’t have raced in Bietostolen is I didn’t think I was as good as I would be in Lillehammer, I wouldn’t have approached Gålå the same if I didn’t experience Bietostolen, and I wouldn’t have performed like I did in Lillehammer if I did not experience both races and the month leading up to it. Understanding the process can be broken down to the short span of a month or expanded to understanding in the sense of my career/life. Being a successful skier is a long process of making progressional gains workout by workout, day by day, month by month, year by year. People (including myself) get the idea in their heads that they put in the work and expect immediate results. When the reality is that there will always be huge pockets of failure or static results in pursuit of anything worthwhile - but that is not to say the work will not pay off later down the road. So before I confuse myself, the simplicity of the lesson I learned is hard work, better work, and patience. 

When I watched skiers around my age making huge leaps ahead, I used to get frustrated and not understand how it was possible. But now that I understand the process and how it is different for every individual, I can see how becoming one of the best is possible. And sure, there are extraordinarily talented individuals; and maybe I will never be as good as some. But damn, if that's enough to call it quits then I should have packed my skis in for good after World Juniors this past year. I am still a big believer in the little guy, the concept that work ethic and persistence beats talent at the end of the day - even if that doesn't mean standing on top on the podium. 

So I am currently finishing this post from Utah as we prepare for World Junior Trials this coming weekend. Taking everything I have learned, I believe I am ready. More important than any of the literal lessons I have learned, my most significant source of feeling ready is reflection. Sometimes I just kick back, relax, and look back at where I was a year ago. Looking back on how I approached trials last year, I realized the contrast. Last year I had a lot of exterior negative events an energy surrounding me in my life, I seriously considered not attending trials because I wasn't sure if my goals and circumstances aligned. And I state with a hint of regret that I used a lot of negativity to fuel me for my races early-mid last season. But that's why this year is so different, I feel very much surrounded by positivity and am positively driven. I've got a lot of great people supporting me (maybe you're one of them if you're reading this far... this blog is going a little longer than anticipated) and have a clear head going into these races. This year I can confidently say I'm racing and working for these people, myself, and the ideas I stand for. Now bring on trials, win or lose I am ready to show everyone my best. Lets go. 

Thanks for reading if you've made it this far, I hope you learned something or that it sparked some thought - or that you just enjoyed the read. 

Best,

Rj