Simplicity

Nov. 1, 2010

Training: Recovery Day. Total Time: 0hr

     I love it when one of your childhood heroes continues to blow your mind even years later.  Since I was a kid, Thomas Alsgaard was my favorite skier and I followed his results and accomplishment more than any other skier. He was a man that to me always seemed to have a fight in him when racing. Some of the best ski race finishes I can remember involve the towering Alsgaard obviously digging down and narrowly beating great competitors. In fact, when I was racing in high school I would write motivational phrases or names on the back a big orange vest I skied with and "Thomas Alsgaard" was for sure one of the most motivating for me.  I was excited to find that fasterskier posted an interview with Thomas today. Here are a couple excerpts:

FS: The U.S. has made great strides in recent years, with top skiers like Kikkan Randall, Andy Newell and Kris Freeman posting strong results.  But there is still a long way to go.  What do you see as the most important considerations for a country like the U.S., where skiing is not a mainstream sport?

Alsgaard on his way to gold in 1994

TA: You have a lot of talents, and I think all of the cross-country world would like to see the U.S. with even stronger results. I don’t know much about the philosophy of training in the U.S., but I think you have all you need. Just make everything simple. Forget all the tiny little details, and focus on the hard work

FS: What is it that separates the greats like Bjorn Daehlie, Petter Northug, and yourself from the rest of the very good skiers?

TA: A lot of skiers train basically the same, and are equally strong during summer and autumn. Still, it can be a huge different between them in a very important race. So maybe it’s not the fitness but the head that makes some athletes winners?

     I agree with Alsgaard in both responses. Although I do believe that technique work is always needed, there is a point where you just have to put your head down and just go train. To be out on your feet and to simply get fit. There are all sorts of different training philosophies out there on how to get fast and reach a performance peak and I'm sure most if not all work in one way or another. The "little details" though are what bog some skiers down. Those details will differ from one person to the next, but I feel like for some skiers, the bombardment of technique work, nutrition, etc.. takes away from the whole experience of just putting yourself out there and making it hurt. I am reminded of the movie "Rocky IV" where Rocky flies out to somewhere in middle-of-nowhere Russia and just trains super hard. He removed the distractions and simply make himself tough. Even if it was just a Hollywood ending, the idea is there.

     "So maybe it’s not the fitness but the head that makes some athletes winners?". I like this quote because it makes sense to me. The mental game really is a big part of competition at all levels. Competing for jobs, women (or men depending on the reader), friends, fights, etc. Those that are tough upstairs are always hard to beat. Im not the toughest, but I like to think that I am fairly stable mentally.....at least when it comes to racing. I rarely lose my cool in races which is perhaps why my good and my bad races don't show significant variances. I am though always trying to find ways to make myself mentally tougher . There is always room for improvement at any level. I haven't won a World Cup medal or even made an Olympic squad yet, so there is definitely room for improvement here. More training doesn't always do the trick either although for some it might, but sometimes you have to search elsewhere for it. For me it was the Trans-Alps.
     You can pull from other aspects of your life too. I love the pain I experience during mountain races and I like to transfer the mental toughness to my ski racing. Posting solid times on climbs each year here in Alaska does a lot for me. Reminding myself that I run up mountains and occasionally win gives me plenty of draw even with ski races. It simply makes me feel tough. Thats all its takes sometimes to make a win or have a great result. If you feel like your tougher than your competitor is next to you, you might be compelled to dig further and hurt more.
     There are ups and downs with everyone during a race season... or in life for that matter, but its constantly finding things to keep the mental toughness up and motivation high  that creates the successful individual. I'm not perfect by any means, but I'm still here racing and finding better results each year. I'm happy and thankful that i'm at least still moving forward.