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People (Interviews)

Andreas Steindl Sets a New Speed Record on Matterhorn

September 13, 2018 By Stano Faban Leave a Comment

On August 27, Andreas Steindl set a new speed record for going up and down the iconic Matterhorn (4478m) from Zermatt via the Hornli Ridge route.
Andreas is a 29-year-old Swiss mountain guide and a member of the Swiss National Ski Mountaineering Team who is known for his speed mountaineering abilities.

Photo by Samuel Anthamatten.
Photo by Samuel Anthamatten.
» Back in July, another Swiss mountain guide, Dani Arnold, set a new speed climbing record on Grand Jorasses.

Matterhorn FKT via Hornli Ridge – August 27, 2018

While Kilian Jornet holds the speed record for a round-trip on Matterhorn from the Italian side (starting and finishing in the town of Cervinia), Steindl now holds the record on the Swiss side starting and finishing in his hometown of Zermatt.
Andreas’ took 2 hours 38 minutes to ascend the 2860m to reach the summit from the church in Zermatt, and after running down this iconic mountain he stopped his watch at 3 hours 59 minutes 52 seconds.
Kilian’s route via the Lion Ridge from the Italian side is a bit more difficult than Hornli Ridge but has more fixed rope sections. The elevation gain for ascend via the Lion Ridge is also less, at around 2500m. However, Kilian took only 2 hours 52 minutes for his round-trip. He set this record in August 2013.
Video from Andreas’ record day:

Video from Kilian’s record day in 2013:

Five 4000m peaks in a day by Andreas Steindl – 2015

Back in August 2015, Andreas set an outstanding record for linking up – by running and speed climbing – 5 peaks going from Zermatt to Saas Fee. He covered a total of 31km and ascended just over 4000m.
He needed only 7 hours, 45 minutes and 44 seconds to complete this difficult route.
Here is a really good 25min video from that day:

 

Filed Under: News Shorts, People (Interviews) Tagged With: Andreas Steindl, Kilian Jornet

Dani Arnold's New Speed Record on Grandes Jorasses and Beyond

August 18, 2018 By Stano Faban Leave a Comment

dani-arnold-grandes-jorasses
Dani Arnold has been rising up as a speed climbing star following Ueli Steck’s path and over the last couple of years he has accumulated a number of record achievements.
After Ueli’s accident and death on Everest’s west peak, Nuptse, in May of 2017 it was another Swiss taking over the speed climbing world.
Just like Ueli, he has now climbed all three big north faces in the Alps in this unique style.
Dani Arnold was born in 1984 (8 years later than Ueli Steck) and is a Swiss mountain guide.

Grandes Jorasses – July 27, 2018

While the news and video broke to public only recently, it has been almost a month since Dani Arnold climbed Grandes Jorasses in 2 hours 4 minutes via the famous Cassin route (also know as Walker Spur).
The 1200m route is a rock climb starting at 3000m. Its difficulty is rated at around 5.9 (UIAA VI). Apparently, he climbed it without wearing a harness or bringing a single carabiner.

Matterhorn – April 22, 2015

Dani Arnold’s second speed record in the north face trilogy came in 2015 when he successfully climbed the Matterhorn’s north face in a new record time of 1 hour 46 minutes.
His time was 10 minutes faster than Ueli Steck’s in 2009. Dani climbed the Schmid route, same as Ueli, but with a different variation higher up the mountain.

Eiger North Face – April 20, 2011

After Ueli Steck’s unimaginable speed record on Eiger’s north face in 2008 via the classic Heckmair route – he climbed in 2 hours 47 minutes – it was Dani Arnold’s time to try in 2011. Choosing a period with more traffic on the route than during Steck’s attempt, Dani climbed it in 2 hours 28 minutes.
In 2015, Ueli Steck “The Swiss Machine” came back and took more of Dani’s approach and reclaimed the record by about 5min, which is standing to this day at 2 hours 22 minutes.

 

Filed Under: News Shorts, People (Interviews) Tagged With: Dani Arnold, Ueli Steck

Mike Foote Interview: 24 Questions For The New 24-Hour World Record Holder

March 23, 2018 By Stano Faban 4 Comments

We are super excited to bring you this detailed interview with Mike Foote today!
We will talk about his training, preparation, nutrition and the 24-hour attempt itself.
For those that don’t know… Mike became the new world record holder to climb 61,200 vertical feet or 18,654 metres in 24 hours on skis. He chose to do it on a fairly short climb – 1020 feet or 310 metres – which he lapped 60 times. And all of this at his “home” ski resort Whitefish Mountain Resort in Montana, USA.

About half way through his attempt.
About half way through his attempt using The North Face custom race suit.
For many, Mike might be unknown but in the endurance trail running world he has achieved some incredible results over the years such as a podium at the famed Ultra-Trail Du Mont Blanc and 3x second place at Hardrock 100. Mike is also The North Face Athlete, member of the US National Ski Mountaineering Team, raced Pierra Menta in 2017 and placed 26th in a vertical race at the 2017 World Skimo Championships.

The Interview

Q1: First of all, huge congrats to you Mike!
On Sunday morning of March 18, 2018 you had finished a massive effort to set a new world record in the most vertical climbed and skied in 24 hours.
How, when and why did you come up with an idea to try this?
I first came up with the idea after running the Hardrock 100 last year. I love longer and lower endurance events like that which take around 24 hours, and there was nothing in the skimo world, which compared. So I began wondering if I could run 100 Miles in a day, what could I do on skis in 24 hours.
Q2: What was the previous record? How did you realize that you might have a shot?
An Austrian named Eckhardt Dolshlag did 60,000 feet on the dot in 2009 in Austria at a 24-hour event at Bad Gastein Ski Area. Then the famous ski mountaineering racer Florent Perrier did 59,893 feet in 2011 in his home town of Areches, France in the Alps.
These were the two efforts that felt like the benchmark for me. I didn’t know if I had a shot, but I did know that if they could do it, I may be able to as well!

Split times for each of Mike's 60 climbs.
Split times for each of Mike’s 60 climbs.
Q3: What was the weather like during your attempt? Seems like it cooperated well.
The weather was really nice. Sunny and warm during the day and mid 20’s (F) at night. This however made the surface conditions of the snow really bad due to melt-freeze which plagued me most of the night with really slippery skinning.
Q4: This is going to be a longer question but perhaps the most interesting one… Let’s talk about selecting the right conditions and venue for something like this:
Can you elaborate on how crucial the right angle and length of the slope is, I know that you switched to a less steep climb from the one you originally wanted to use?
Why did you choose only a 310m climb (1020 feet)? How steep was it?
Altitude was not a factor, right?
And while all the above is important, I have a feeling you didn’t choose Whitefish Resort only based on calculations.
I’ll say it right at the beginning that I chose Whitefish because I have a community there. And I knew I would need support to pull this off. I used to ski patrol there. It’s also the place where I began uphill skinning. Lastly, one of my biggest inspirations in the skimo world was a friend Ben Parsons, who passed away in an avalanche in Glacier Park last year. The uphill route on the mountain was named after him, and there was nowhere else I wanted to try for this record.
As for slope length and angle, I’ve thought a LOT about this. I think something in the 32-34% grade range that was very consistent and was about 1500-2000ft in length would be perfect for something like this. Also, to have a lit on-piste run to ski down is really helpful.
Q5: Did you use any special gear, or your usual skimo racing equipment and clothing?
I used my normal skimo gear – Dynafit DNA skis and Pierre Gignoux boots. It’s what I know and train on and I didn’t want to mess with it. The North Face and I worked together to design a ski suit with some textiles often used in the bike racing world. The first time I used it was on the day of the attempt so I was quite nervous, but it ended up working great.
Q6: What did you eat and drink during the 24 hours? Did you have a specific fueling schedule? Did your tastes change at any point?
I just planned to eat a little bit each lap, and I totally stuck to that plan.
I had a wide variety of food such as Gu gels, sweet potato and bacon rice ball, corn cakes, drink mix, maple syrup diluted into a water bottle (I drank almost an entire quart!).
Towards the end I was also drinking warm soup broth and coke. I was eating around 400 calories per hour, which is insane! In training I often don’t eat at all or only about 200 calories an hour. It was working though to eat a lot so I kept eating!
Q7: Do you know how many calories you burned overall and how much did you drink?
I don’t know. Maybe 15-20,000 calories burned? I drank a lot of liquid. Every lap. And I may have been over-hydrated because I had to go to the bathroom a lot towards the end!
Q8: How many people did you have helping out during your attempt, and what were their roles? How many pacers did you have?
I had a HUGE support crew!
I had friends feeding me and giving me drink, and drying gear, and switching skins at the bottom. I also had friend at the top taking a picture and documenting my times for each lap.
In the second half of the day I had friends swapping out and pacing me for multiple laps trying to keep me on target for the record. It was a total team effort and I’m so lucky to have had the all time crew that I did. I would not have been able to come close to my goal alone.
Mike's amazing support crew. We are proud to call many of these people friends as well.
Mike’s amazing support crew. We are proud to have many of these people as friends as well.
Q9: What was your pacing strategy for the 24 hours? Most of the time, were you ahead of the world record schedule, or where you behind at any point?
You knew you would be fading slowly but it seems like you were able to have some surges.
I made a decision early on in the day to go by feel and not get too lost in numbers. I looked at my watch only a handful of times over the course of the 24 hours.
With that said, I was hopeful to build up some padding in the first half of the day without blowing up too much. I was able to ski about 33,500 ft in the first 12 hours and then skied about 27,700 in the second 12 hours. It was much slower but still enough to get the record.
The surges came with pacing. I just kept trying to hang onto the back of Luke Nelson’s skis the last 6 hours. Some laps I could do it and we would post a really good time. Other times I could barely stay focused and I really slowed down.
Luke pacing Mike in the early morning hours.
Luke pacing Mike in the early morning hours.
Q10: When did you have your toughest moments? How did you push through?
The hardest part for me was the first 5 laps. I didn’t feel great, and I was feeling negative and not confident. I was worried that so many friends put their lives on hold to help me out and that I was going to fail. However, I just kept reminding myself I had a long day and that giving up wasn’t an option. After 7-8 laps I began feeling better and was able to fall into a really good rhythm.
Q11: How did you take care of your feet? Or your training prepared them for it?
Umm….I didn’t take care of my feet. I planned to switch boots and socks to dry them out but never did. And I paid the price. They hurt!
Mike's feet after 24 hours of skiing!
Mike’s feet after 24 hours of skiing!
Q12: Do you feel like that you reached your life-time best fitness? Or do you think such a long endurance effort is highly dependent on one’s mental state and overall mindset?
Definitely the latter. I know I could do better.
I also know that conditions are really important as well as mindset. I would like to think I will keep getting stronger every year at least into my 60’s 🙂
Q13: Something tells me that the 24h record attempt was only a very small portion of the whole project, so let’s talk about your training and preparations now…
Obviously, you are a very fit athlete year-round so you didn’t start from zero, but when did you specifically started to train for this?
I started training specifically for this late last fall around November.
Q14: Did you design a whole training plan towards your 24h attempt, or did you come up with a couple of specific key workouts and just plugged them into your usual schedule?
My training plan was specific to the attempt for sure I still wanted to race a bit, but my priority was to be the best prepared I could be for the 24 hour attempt.
I worked with Scott Johnston of Uphill Athlete and we devised a plan together that naturally focused a lot on volume and vert. The biggest thing to work on was to be really good at doing long slow days that weren’t too tiring so I could go out and do them again the next day.
It took work, but I had to get really good at operating at really low output in training so that I could boost my aerobic capacity which paid dividends once it was time for the 24 hour effort. My body was very used to “Race Pace”, which is slow and steady, by the time of the attempt.
Q15: Since you live a little ways from bigger mountains, and being a runner, how much were you running still? What other activities did you use for training?
I pretty much just skied. I have a couple areas I can drive to within 20 min from my home and we had a great winter, so I was lucky there.
I ran about a day a week for an hour. I also did some easy afternoon 1 hour spins on the bike trainer, and went to the gym 1-2 times a week for some light-to-moderate core work. I did harder gym workouts in the fall, but once the season started I backed off of all hard leg workouts in the gym.
Q16: While the focus was on volume during your training, I am wondering whether you incorporated also some higher intensity intervals, apart from jumping into few races?
Pretty much I just did 4-5 races, and then a handful of Zone 3 longer workouts – I would do 3x 20 min or 4 by 10 min at about 80 percent effort.
Q17: In the weeks prior, you did a couple of 8 hour ski sessions to climb a lot of vert. How many did you do and how much did you climb?
My two longest days were back-to-back 8 hour days and I did 20,000 the first day and 22,000 the second. Before that I did a handful of 15,000 days and probably 10-12 times 10,000 days.
A "regular" training day.
A “regular” training day.
Q18: I know you were training a lot on the original climb – named Benny Up after our good friend Ben Parsons – in the Whitefish Resort. It has some really steep sections so you wanted to feel it out. Do you remember how many times have you climbed it this winter?
Oh man, good questions. I don’t know. Maybe 50-60 times?
Q19: Since there was lots of vertical to be climbed on the D day, every gram would matter. Did you try to loose some body weight, or you were not too concerned about it?
It’s something that’s always on my mind and causes me concern at times. There is no debating the physics of hauling mass uphill.
I’ve tried losing weight in the past and have failed to do so. What I’ve realized is that it’s healthier for me to focus on being strong, healthy, consistent and injury and illness free. I’m better at those things than a lot of people, so if I’m a few pounds over my goal weight it’s worth it to me.
Q20: Was this the most challenging athletic thing that you have ever done? How would it compare to the battles at Hardrock 100 trail race, or some of your other adventures?
In many ways this reminded me of running 100 miles, but it was much harder because all the pressure was on me. I had no competitors. It was a clock, a mountain and me. I’ve never experienced that.
Also, it was up to me to set up the logistics of the event with the venue and to get all my friends to volunteer their time. There were many added stressors, which made the experience as a whole both more challenging but ultimately more rewarding.
Mike racing Pierra Menta in 2017.
Mike racing Pierra Menta in 2017.
Q21: Having this amazing experience under your belt, what would you change that you think could have made a reasonable impact on your performance?
I will start by saying I wouldn’t change my experience for anything. With that said, a longer slope that was extremely consistent at 32-33% grade would be perfect. Also, the melt-freeze conditions were hard for going up AND going down. I would have loved to have had some nice new snow for this attempt!
Q22: What would you recommend universally to an athlete that might be thinking of doing this? Or is it too person-specific?
I would say to anyone to let go of your preconceived notions. You would be surprised what you can accomplish just by walking uphill all day!
Q23: Coming from the trail running background, what first steps would you recommend other trail runners to do if they are thinking to pick up skimo?
Do a race. They aren’t as scary as you think. Also, buy the SkinTrack Manual For Ski Mountaineering Racing. I did and loved it. It’s a great resource!
Q24: You now have collected some great achievements in trail running and skimo. What are your future personal and athletic goals?
I am always working to just enjoy the process. I like mixing up my goals and sports. This has been fun but I am excited to get back to big mountains and racing next winter.
I will be running the Hardrock 100 this summer and will likely have some big running adventures planned before and after that to.
I am just going to do what inspires me, even if it’s a bit out of the ordinary. That strategy worked really well for me this winter as I really enjoyed preparing for the 24 hour attempt.
Thank you very much Mike for your time with these questions!
Stano

Filed Under: People (Interviews), Skimo Racing Tagged With: Mike Foote

In Memory of Ben Parsons: A Good Friend and an Athlete with a Big Heart

January 5, 2018 By Stano Faban 2 Comments

gfm-logo-single-2016Please consider donating to a fundraising campaign started by Ben’s friends. All proceeds will go to support his son Rowen and wife Jen. Thank you!.
Ben-Parsons-Portrait
Update – January 5, 2018:
I can’t believe it has already been a full year since the world lost such an incredible human being…
Benny, wherever you are, know that we are thinking of you and your family. You have always been a great example and showing us all how to be!
Original post from Jan 6, 2017:
When my phone rang last night and I saw one of my best friends name on the screen I got happy and excited. Sadly those feelings didn’t last long…
I learnt that Ben has passed away just couple of hours ago, after being involved in a large avalanche in his home mountains.
Yesterday, the North American skimo racing community lost one of its nicest, most genuine and humble people. Ben was from the “previous” generation of the NA skimo racers and reached as high as top 40 at the famous Pierra Menta race, with his good friend Brandon. They were from Montana but Ben often joked he wanted to be on the Canadian team. He liked us and we liked him.
I first met Ben in 2008 when he showed up at a race I was organizing in Fernie, BC. He got lost mid-way while in the lead, because of the winds blowing course flags around, but he was still grateful for the experience. From there on, he and Brandon would regularly come up to our Canadian races to kick our asses and take our prize money. Not that there was much of it but it still hurt. They were keeping us honest.

Ben dropping into a descent at 2015 Canadian  Skimo Champs in Golden, BC.
Ben dropping into a descent at the 2015 Canadian Skimo Champs in Golden, BC. (Photo Malcolm Taylor)
My personal favourite skimo racing moment of all time is not from Pierra Menta or World Championships but from a battle with Ben on his home turf at Whitefish Resort. Both of us were “diesel engines”, as he would often say, and after dropping others we were trying to figure out how to drop each other. I knew that from bike racing he was tactically as smart as it gets and true enough he surprised me with a full out running sprint two minutes from the line (the finish was uphill). He won by a couple of seconds and we both collapsed at the finish line. Then the first thing he did was to give me a big hug and he wouldn’t stop telling me how well I raced. Next day, fifteen of us went for a tour.
Stano Faban with Ben Parsons at Whitefish 2013 skimo race
Skimo racing is simply a friendly sport although it hurts sometimes.
I know that Eric had similar racing moments with him and both of us held Ben very high for all of his qualities.
He was an absolute class, full of passion and had a such big heart.
I would like to express my deepest condolences to Ben’s wife and my friend Jen, and their little son – I am very sorry for your loss. Also, my condolences to Ben’s parents and thank you for raising such an amazing person.
Ben, thank you for all the great memories and leading by example. Keep up your big smile and never fading enthusiasm.
We will keep doing turns for you!
Stano

Filed Under: People (Interviews) Tagged With: Ben Parsons

Interview with the New USSMA President – Ram Mikulas: National Team, Youth Development…

December 27, 2016 By Stano Faban Leave a Comment

logo
The US Ski Mountaineering Association (USSMA website) recently announced a changing of the guard with Nick Francis and Chad Brackelsberg stepping down from their positions as President and Vice-President. Ram Mikulas of Summit County, Colorado and Matt Hickey from Colorado Springs (originally from Minnesota) will be taking over their roles effective immediately.
Nick and Chad will continue in a support role while the new duo finds their legs. We reached out to Mikulas Ram to get some more information on the new President and where he hopes to take the USSMA under his leadership.
Q: How long have you been ski touring and ski mountaineering racing?
I grew up recreational hiking, climbing, and kayaking. After a shoulder injury I begun mountain biking a lot, fell in love with it and got involved with racing. That let to road racing, trail running, and finally skimo. I started off skinning resorts with friends 6 years ago and jumped right into racing. I loved how dynamic ski mountaineering racing is and was quickly hooked!
Q: What do you do for work when you are not out skiing?
Ram SunlightI worked in the corporate finance world in Denver, where I’m from, for many years. My wife and I had a weekend mountain getaway and played the weekend warrior game for a while, but made a change and moved up to Summit County 11 years ago. I work year round at Copper Mountain Resort as an eCommerce Manager. Awesome mountain, company, and people.
Q: What inspired you to go for the USSMA president position?
Whatever I’m involved in, I like to immerse myself and learn as much as possible and be involved below the surface. I quickly became passionate about the sport and wanted to find ways to introduce it to others and help it grow.
A few years back I worked with some other racers in Summit County, CO to help start the Summit Skimo Club. I’ve been acting as VP and have been leading a program we have to introduce new people to skimo and provide clinics for all abilities. I’ve had some great communication with Nick and others involved in the USSMA over the years. So, I suppose my passion for the sport and community has inspired me.
Q: What skills are you bringing that you believe will help you in leading the USSMA?
Organization, leadership, and communication which will be key moving forward.
Q: What are your primary goals to accomplish over the next few years?
The Vision of the USSMA is to expand the sport of Ski Mountaineering throughout the United States, with a current primary focus on developing the association into a fully functional national sports organization.
My goals will be to establish formal structure and process within the association and to become financially viable and appropriately resourced. With the recognition of the IOC and looking toward inclusion in future Olympics, I will strive for an enhanced focus on fundraising and developing athletes.
Q: Will the US develop a standing ‘National Team’ separate from its ‘World Championship Team’ similar to Canada and other countries?
This is a direction the USSMA would like to move toward as we focus on developing athletes. As for when and to what extent will need to be determined by available resources.
Ram Sunlight 2Q: The US has large participation numbers for skimo. Why do you think this is?
Awareness and access to uphill skiing is growing and resorts are beginning to embrace this new demographic. SIA (SnowSports Industries America) data reports strong growth in the backcountry / uphill sector. I think the bottom line is that the word is out and people are trying it, which leads to more people participating at a recreational and competitive levels.
Q: How can the USSMA encourage more US athletes to race on a world stage (World Cups and Grande Course events)?
As the USSMA builds resources and a National Team is developed more awareness, exposure, and support should be available to assist and encourage US athletes to race abroad.
Q: How does the PRO2022 program encourage athlete development?
jackson ram booterProject 2022 is a concept to identify up and coming skimo athletes that the USSMA can help develop into future Olympians. PRO2022 Camps will be put on throughout the country in skimo hot spots to identify talent, coach the coaches, and build the foundation with the under 23 (U-23) age group.
Instruction is built around the ISMF Sprint Course (likely Olympic event) and designed to “shortcut” American skiers’ path to elite skimo technique. The first camp was held a week ago in Summit County, CO and was a big success with many U23 athletes and coaches. Plans are underway for setting up additional camps this season. More communication to come.
Q: Right now a focus is on ‘coaching the coaches’, what does this mean and how is it being accomplished?
The focus is to build a coaching and support structure to develop athletes. PRO2022 Camps in 2016/2017/2018 will include “coach the coaches” to train regional coaches on the US skimo coaching methodology.
Call for Comments & Suggestions
What questions would you pose to the new USSMA leadership? How do you think skimo racing could be progressed in North America?
More reading: Interview ISMF President
The above interview was second in our “presidents interview series” so if you would like to know more about direction of skimo on the world stage read Interview with ISMF President about Skimo & Olympics and Anti-doping Efforts with Armando Mariotta.

Filed Under: People (Interviews) Tagged With: ISMF, Mikulas Ram, Olympics, USSMA, World Cup

Interview with ISMF President about Skimo & Olympics and Anti-doping Efforts

December 2, 2016 By Stano Faban Leave a Comment

With many things going in the right direction for the sport of ski mountaineering racing, we reached out to Armando Mariotta – the president of the International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF) – for an interview with 10 questions we were curious about.
We divided them into two sections – Future of our sport and its place within Olympics, and ISMF’s anti-doping efforts.

Armando-Mariotta
Armando Mariotta enjoying some quiet time in a skin track.

Future of Ski Mountaineering Racing & Olympics

Q: By IOC recognizing the ISMF this summer, skimo racing is one step closer to be an Olympic sport. What are the things that still need to happen for skimo to truly be in Olympics one day?
ismf-logo-300x120Just to be clear: the IOC recognition has been for the ISMF and not for skimo as a new Olympic Sport. With the full recognition we can now ask the IOC to accept our sport into next Olympic Games.
Q: Do you think skimo racing as a sport will be included in Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics? Also, would it be officially called “skimo racing” or “ski mountaineering racing”?
Our first effort is to enter the program of Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne 2020 and then we could ask to enter Beijing.
The name of the sport is clearly ski mountaineering.
Q: Which skimo disciplines are the most likely to make it into Olympics?
The first step will be to have an acceptance by the IOC for a new sport into the Winter Olympic Games and then we’ll discuss which discipline(s). As you know for example sport climbing had all the three disciplines but only one medal.
Q: ISMF recently renewed its media contract with Infront Sports & Media – a big sports media company that represents all seven Olympic winter sport federations, manages media rights for the FIS World Cup Events, and even represents big football/soccer teams. What does this mean for skimo?
The contract will give to the ISMF and to our sport many new possibilities to grow in the international TV visibility, a space to the organizers for their sponsors in the TV area range, some money to the ISMF and the possibility to have a Press Agent (Lucia Galli) for the institutional and sport press releases.
Q: What is the ISMF’s plan to encourage more youth participation in our sport? And what are your thoughts on growing our sport as a whole?
With the limited resources we have we are working for youth. For example, thanks to the collaboration of DAV and OSV from 8 to 11 December we are going to organize a youth camp in Austria for aspirant young athletes. In view of the work for the YOG we have new ideas and projects.
Q: Is it true that most of the ISMF personnel (staff, referees, committee members, etc.) are volunteers and receive no money?
You are right. All the members of the Executive Board, Management Committee, Commissions are volunteers as well as the Referee Manager and the Referees.
The only people paid are the Secretary (Giulia Avagnina), the director of the Sport Department (Rebecca Vernon) and the technical director (Gil Orriols).
You can completely read our 2015 accounts revised by the auditor on our Website www.ismf-ski.org – official documents section.

Anti-doping Efforts and Latest Doping Cases

ISMF has accepted WADA anti-doping code couple of years ago, thus, I would like to ask a couple of questions regarding anti-doping efforts in our sport.
Q: During World Cups and World Championships, does ISMF test athletes directly or does it coordinate the testing with a national anti-doping body in that country?
sportaccord-logoThe ISMF some years ago decided to sign an agreement with SportAccord as service provider for the anti-doping tests, so they organize directly all the controls.
Q: How many in competition and out-of-competition anti-doping tests does ISMF (on its own or through its partners) performs every year?
In the average the ISMF through its provider SportAccord does:

  • 28 In-Competition tests (28 Urine tests)
  • 81 Out-of-Competitions tests (36 Urine tests + 3 Blood tests + 42 Blood tests included the Athlete Biological Passport)
  • 17 Out-of-Competition blood tests covered by National Anti-Doping Organizations (NADO) as part of Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) sharing agreement

Moreover, the ISMF includes at least 10 top-level athletes in the Registered Pool Testing (RTP) every year.
Q: Were there any positive doping tests in skimo in the last 5 years? Where does ISMF publish this information?
There have been two Adverse Analytical Findings in skimo in 2015, if we consider the past 5-year-period: one RTP athlete in World Championships in Verbier, and one popular athlete in a La Grande Course race (long distance teams race).
Information about the first case was officially given with the press-release on 3rd December, 2015 which can be found at www.ismf-ski.org – News section.
Concerning the second case, another official communication will be published always in the news section of the ISMF website in the near future.
Q: How many Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) applications does ISMF receive every year? What percentage does usually get approved?
The 2016-2017 season will be the first one with the management of the TUE for the ISMF. In the past, it was a management of national federations, so we don’t have this type of information.

Our Thoughts

From one of the answers it is very obvious that our sport is still small despite so many great races and its history. It seems like the only way to grow is through becoming an Olympic sport because TV rights are where the money is – we wrote about this in regards to skimo two years ago.
With potentially more money coming into the sport in the future there will likely be a rise in the number of doping cases. This is just a fact and not only in sports but sadly in society in general. However, we believe that skimo will continue to be one of the best sports to put your children in.
What are your thoughts? Or questions you would ask? Please share them in the comments section below. Thank you.

Filed Under: People (Interviews), Skimo Racing Tagged With: Armando Mariotta, Doping & Anti-doping, IOC, ISMF, SportAccord

Interview with Michelle Katchur Roberts: From "not belonging in sports" to Canadian Skimo Team athlete

July 29, 2016 By Stano Faban Leave a Comment

Only few years ago, I remember Michelle crossing the finish line at Canadian Skimo Nationals a long time behind the fastest women and being somewhat terrified whenever a race course featured more technical descents. Since then she has made lots of progress. Her passion for our sport fueled her focus on learning and steadily improving to become one of the top Canadian women.
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In this interview, we will find out about her road to skimo and how exactly she keeps improving every year.
Q: Michelle, which sports or activities were you participating in on regular basis before zooming in on skimo racing? And did you compete before skimo?
This is a question I get asked all the time. It’s quite interesting because I grew up hating phys ed class and what I learned from school was that I am not an athlete – I don’t belong in sports. From that, I can tell you that skimo was my introduction to competitive sports. I dabbled a bit in hiking, rock climbing and ice climbing. Once I finished university I bought a backcountry setup and a season pass at Sunshine Ski Village to learn how to ski. My first race was my third day on touring gear!
Q: What skills did you have to learn when coming to skimo and what aspects of the sport were the most intimidating?
Well, obviously I had to learn to ski, both uphill and down. As you know, the downhill component has been the most intimidating part of racing for me. It still continues to be an area that I need to improve upon, but each year I get a little better.
One big lesson I have learnt from skimo is knowing my body – listening and responding to it. I have learned how to pay attention to my heart rate and my muscles and have discovered not only how to pace myself but also how to push my limits beyond what I thought possible. It is so exciting for me to attempt new personal bests.
Q: Are you learning and progressing mostly on your own or do you have a coach or group of friends that help you out?
michelle-roberts-interview-2My learning and progression has been a mixed bag of frustration and help from peers. I do not have a coach and before the SkinTrack’s Manual for Ski Mountaineering Racing I found it super hard to obtain any information on how to train for skimo.
I based my training models after cycling books. I feel lucky to have had you, Stano, as a support in watching me and giving me feedback. My teammate Travis has also given me tidbits of information during our training sessions.
But I would be lying if I didn’t disclose that I have had a lot of challenging days. Being at the back of the pack it is hard to observe skimo technique and race strategies when the only athletes are ahead of you and out of sight. I certainly learnt a lot through trial and error and failure.
Q: Now, as more a mature athlete, what do you find the most rewarding about our sport? What keeps you attracted?
Oh my gosh! I believe skimo is one of the most rewarding sports for too many reasons to state.
I imagine, just as athletes are attracted to triathlons, I too am fascinated with the multi-faceted components of gear, technique, cardio, endurance, and the outdoors. To be successful in skimo you have to excel in not only in downhill skiing, but also in fitness and mastery of your gear.
One other aspect that sets skimo apart from other endurance sports is the sacred experience of pushing your physical and mental boundaries in some of the most stunning landscapes. There’s a feeling of art as your skis carve lines on the mountain canvas, even if for only a moment in time.
Q: In recent years, you competed at World Skimo Championships. What was your experience like?
World Skimo Championships was a plethora of emotions. Given that it was my big goal, I had originally thought I would simply be satisfied to just “be” at world champs. However, once I arrived I wanted to do my absolute best and represent my country well. I wasn’t intimidated, but I was overwhelmed.
The competition is a massive step-up from North America and at times I felt like the underdog in Disney movies. My ending though didn’t come with a cheezy trophy finish. World Championships taught me a lot about racing and has given me new goals and new levels to grow towards.
Q: Let’s talk about training now. With summer in full swing, how does your training look like? Which sports or activities do you do? How much do you train? Do you race as well?
Recently, summer has been a challenge for me to get in quality training. I’ve been guiding backpacking trips, which gives me time outdoors with a backpack but the pace is often slow. I try to fit in mountain running and interval training whenever I can.
This summer I’ve registered for a few running races in the 50-60km range. I believe the races will help me to achieve new levels for endurance and hopefully help me maintain speed.
I also continue to love rock climbing. The focus has shifted a bit more towards mountaineering. I believe this is good cross training for skimo with the vertical miles as well as the endurance and mental training. If I can spend 10-15 hours on a rock with limited food and water I should be able to get through a 2-3 hour race.
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Q: Then during winter are you able to get on skis for majority of your training or are you mixing in other sports?
In the winter, I focus mainly on skis and the strength training in the gym. On work days, the gym provides me the opportunity to build strength and power. I’m lucky enough to work in the mountains and can often get in a few ski days during the week as well as a good session with my team mates on the weekend.
Q: You are a vegetarian. What is your most favourite dinner meal during big training weeks? And what do you eat during long training sessions?
I love food! I enjoy eating many meals as long as they are fresh and full of spices and whole foods. As much as I love to eat, I view food as my fuel and look for food that is filled with nutrition.
My meals cycle and change with the season and my mood. Often I enjoy Chic pea curry with spinach or falafel loaded with greens and hummus. Lately, I am on a cold noodle bowl kick adding as many yummy vegetables to spring rolls and rice vermicelli. I do have a sweet tooth and I enjoy making a lot of yummy desserts as well.
Q: How do you balance work, training and life? How does your typical day look like?
Don’t know how to answer this question right now 🙂
I have to say that at times it is really hard. The past two years my employment has been erratic and not reliable. Sometimes I’ve worked 2 jobs and 12 hours a day totaling 60 hours/week, at other times I might have a 30 hour work week.
Q: Just like I asked Kylee Toth in her interview, I want to ask this wide ranging question: You have been involved in our sport as an athlete, ambassador and with the Canadian Skimo organization for a couple of years now. Based on your experience and point of view, what do you think can be done to attract more women into our sport? Why should they try it?
More women should try it because skimo is an incredibly empowering sport. Skimo cultivates abilities, confidence, and an improvement mentality that translates to all areas of life. I have formed some of the best friendships through skimo. I view my teammates and training partners as my second family. Once fall arrives I can’t wait to spend more time with my skimo “family.”
I think more support will attract women to the sport. It’s a big initial financial investment. I also perceive that women are intimated. I know I speak for Kylee as well that we would both like to see more mentorship opportunities.
Q: And one more question – If you could do a big backcountry ski trip, where would it be and why?
I would love to ski in South America one day. It seems so wild with its high peaks and big lines. Also the combination of culture and skiing appeals to me.
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Filed Under: People (Interviews) Tagged With: Michelle Roberts

Interview with Kylee Toth Ohler: 2016 Canadian and North American skimo champion

July 14, 2016 By Stano Faban Leave a Comment

kylee-toth-interview-4Besides being the current Canadian Skimo Champion and the North American Skimo Sprint Champion, Kylee Toth Ohler is a mother of two and one of the nicest and most smiling people you can meet.
I have known Kylee for about seven years and have seen her race skimo before her two boys and to return after – stronger and faster than ever before. And because of that, I would like to introduce her to you.
Photos credit: All taken by Kylee’s brother Kent Toth.
Q: Kylee, you were a very fast short track speed skater way before you started racing skimo. How did your training and life look like back then? What speed skating accomplishments are you most proud of?
I started short track speed skating at age 5 and raced until I was 22 so for 17 years. I started in a high performance program at the national training centre at age 13. We trained six days a week often twice a day – weights, road biking, running, dry land and skating of course! I have always loved training and the comroderie with teammates and really enjoyed that time in my life.
I am most proud of my result at the Junior Worlds in Korea when I was 18-years old, I came 5th in the world in the 500m and 8th overall.
Q: What habits, skills or knowledge from speed skating are translating for you well into skimo? And what did you have to unlearn?
kylee-toth-interview-2I think what is translating well is having a huge base from years of training, a love the discipline of training and knowing how to push myself.
What I had to unlearn was my outlook on training, I always believed more training was always better. When I skated I would add volume to my programs, go hard all the time because I thought that equated with success. I have had to rewire my thinking to training smart, respecting programs, heart rates and my own body.
Q: What skills did you have to learn when coming to skimo? Were you skiing or ski touring a lot before or not?
I started down hill skiing at 18 months so I definitely knew how to to ski. But, if you can believe it the very first time I tried ski touring gear was in a race, Mountain Storm at Fernie! I put it on, got a quick lesson from Steve Sellers and away I went. It was a punishing and hard experience but I liked the challenge and movement and so got into more races and more backcountry skiing.
Q: What do you find the most rewarding about our sport?
I think we have one of the best sports in the world. To be able to run up mountains in the winter and the summer and call it “training” is amazing!
kylee-toth-interview-5
Q: Since returning to racing after giving birth to your two sons you have made great improvements. How are you able to do that because you are obviously juggling lots of commitments?
Yes, it isn’t always easy but you choose where you spend your time. Exercising to me is a priority, it helps me be a better wife and mother because it gives me energy both mentally and physically. I go to a gym that has childcare, I have a supportive extended family, I teach exercise class and whenever I have personal time I spend it training. Some people read books, scrapbook, cook, shop, woodwork I choose to train 🙂
Q: Which sports do you most incorporate into your training in the summer? And do you race in the summer as well or only have fun through training in the mountains?
I run, mountain bike, do body weight bootcamp style workouts, scramble and hike. I follow a training program which Eric Carter from Ridgeline Athletics (and SkinTrack) helps me with. I do a few running races of various lengths from 10km in road to 50km on trail. For me the focus is always on enjoyment and having fun because I find that very fulfilling, energizing and motivating.
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Q: How does your typical training week look like in the winter, about 4-5 weeks from a major race? How many hours and how much rest?
Surprisingly I am only on snow one to two times per week because I don’t live directly in the mountains. I try to get one longer day in at lower intensity and one day of intervals in. The rest of the time is running and strength training. I usually work out 6 days a week and have one day off. I really try to make my workouts matter because non-snow days I usually just have one hour of childcare. I always aim for quality over quantity.
Q: Could you elaborate on your diet. Do you have any self-imposed restrictions such as being vegetarian, paleo, or do you eat everything? What do you eat during long training sessions?
No, I eat everything and enjoy food. I try to home cook almost all my food and moderation is important to me. I want to model healthy eating for my boys and to me that is not restrictive eating. During long training I eat whatever I feel like, mostly carbohydrates but I also try to have some protein and fat, homemade protein bars, fig newtons, chews, sometimes chocolate bars 😉
Q: Let’s switch gears now a bit, I want to ask a wide ranging question. For couple of years now, you are involved in the sport as an athlete, race organizer, ambassador and with the Canadian Skimo organization as well. What do you think can be done to attract more women into our sport? Why should they try it? And how it would be different depending on age?
I really feel sports grow from the grass roots level, getting juniors involved, starting clubs, team comroderie and coaching. I think some young people are turned off because it seems dangerous. But, skimo is a sport, it is not the same as backcountry skiing and youngsters can train for it without ever entering Avalanche terrain. So I think better education about what the sport involves would be a good starting point.
Women should absolutely try it, it is an amazing way to stay in shape and see amazing places. I think some barriers to entry are cost of gear, places to train inbounds, being intimidated by either the uphill or downhill component and fear. I think it would be very empowering for women to complete either a recreational or elite course – it’s not about winning, the greatest victory is stepping out of your comfort zone and onto the start line regardless of the outcome.
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Q: What would be your advice for those women that would like to try skimo racing and are coming from different sports?
If you have a good base of fitness and can ski downhill give it a try! My first race was the first time I had ski touring gear on and it was a bit of disaster. It’s okay if you aren’t as proficient at it as you were at your former sport, you have to start somewhere. Be brave, do your best and that’s all you can ask of yourself.
Q: One more question, if you could do a big backcountry ski trip, where would it be and why?
That’s a fun question 🙂
I think I would ski tour in New Zealand. I have been to New Zealand and it is a beautiful country that I would love to explore more. The people are friendly, you can camp, mountain bike, surf and ski who wouldn’t want to go 🙂

Filed Under: People (Interviews) Tagged With: Canadian Skimo Championships, Kylee Ohler

2016 Mount Marathon race: Interview with 2nd Place Nick Elson

July 10, 2016 By Stano Faban 4 Comments

Nick is a La Sportiva athlete based in Squamish, BC. (Eric Carter Photo)
Nick is a La Sportiva athlete based in Squamish, BC. (Eric Carter Photo)
The Mount Marathon Race is one of the most storied of North American mountain running races. It is one of the oldest races in NA (first ran in 1915) and also incredibly dangerous with athletes frequently becoming injured, maimed, or altogether disappearing. Often confused with a race of the marathon distance, the Mount Marathon Race in Seward, Alaska is a total of five kilometres in distance featuring a 921m of elevation gain (3022 ft). For a little more about the race and the atmosphere surrounding it, check out the recent documentary 3022.
Last year on July 4th, La Sportiva athlete Nick Elson (living in Squamish, BC) lined up alongside multi-year winner Erik Strabel (AK), Salomon athlete Rickey Gates (CO), and the man who needs no introduction, Kilian Jornet (ESP). Much debate ensued over weather a non-Alaskan with little course experience could possibly compare to the Alaska hard-man with his intimate mountain knowledge. It seemed that the Alaskans underestimated Kilian, who ran home to a new course record. Meanwhile, the Canadian snuck across the line in 5th position with little fanfare – the announcers didn’t even mention Nick’s name.

The 2016 race rundown

Fast-forward to July 4th, 2016 and the race is wide open. Kilian opts not to return and no clear favourites emerge. Strabel and Gates aren’t quite showing the form they’d had in successful years and newcomers, David Norris and Scott Patterson (nordic skiers from APU) promise to be quick.
A spotlight is shone on the event when Salomon releases their Salomon Running TV episode focusing on the 2015 event.

Nick leading at the Canadian Mountain Running Championships (Squamish Valley Photography Club Photo)
Nick leading at the Canadian Mountain Running Championships (Squamish Valley Photography Club Photo)
Meanwhile, Nick has come off a successful season of ski mountaineering, competing both domestically and internationally on the World Cup and finishing the season as the Canadian National Champion and leader of the national ranking list. Spring rolled around and he increased his running after finishing his first year of law school. Nick capped off his pre-MMR training block by showing a glimpse of his form, comfortably winning the Canadian National Mountain Running Championships in Squamish, BC.
Race day arrives and David and Scott set a hard pace off the line with Nick and Ricky right on their heels. Because the race has no defined course aside from the start, top of the mountain, and finish, several decision points exist. At the end of the road, the APU skiers veer left to ‘the Cliffs’, a steep rocky section, while Nick and Rickey veer right to ‘the Roots’. Completely separated, the two groups can’t see each other and both probably worry that the other is moving faster. The trails come back together and emerge on the upper flanks of the mountain with the skiers ahead and Nick and Ricky trailing. David is looking strong and has a serious gap over Scott, with Nick not far behind. On the upper mountain, racers paddle up loose rocky scree, alternating between running and a power-hike with hands on their knees.
Start of the 2016 MMR (Todd List Photo)
Start of the 2016 MMR (Todd List Photo)
Passing the turn-around point at the summit, each racer takes a slightly different tack to descend the first portion, a large snowfield, remnant from the winter. All of the contenders end up in a nearly out of control butt-slide, jumping up at the last second before plowing into rocks at the bottom. From here it takes just minutes to descend the scree, a creek-bed portion of the mountain called ‘the Gut’ and then ‘the Cliffs’  and a short sprint down the road to the finish line. David holds his lead with a strong finish and a new course record. Nick passes Scott shortly after the snowfield and finishes second (with the third fastest time in history!) while Erik Strabel makes a come from behind attack on the descent to finish third.
For more insight into the race, we asked Nick a few questions. His answers are about as understated as they get. Also, for our American readers, bum is polite Canadian for butt.

The Interview

How was the pace off the line?
Nick: Because the race is so short and intense, everyone including myself seems to be pretty nervous and jumpy off the line. However, after the initial excitement, we settled into a pretty reasonable pace and I was able to cruise along behind Rickey and enjoy all the cheering as we ran to the base of the mountain.
Why did you choose to follow Ricky up the roots vs going with the David & Scott and do you wish you had chosen to go with them in hindsight?
Nick: I don’t think there’s much difference between the roots and the cliff – in fact I still think the roots are slightly more direct if you don’t mind using your hands a bit more. However, I think David and Scott really hammered once they hit the base of the mountain so they had a gap on us by the two routes met up. I followed Ricky because he’s a really strong climber and I hoped he’d have a strong race and I’d be able to hang on behind him. I do wonder whether I might have been able to climb a bit faster had I tried to go with Scott and David, but I think there’s also a good chance I would have blown up.
Where and how did you pass Scott?
Nick: I passed Scott just before where the descent route crosses the climbing route. I actually passed him by taking a better and more direct trail, but he was descending pretty carefully as I think he had some ankle issues. He had 15 starts on the FIS XC skiing world cup last year so I think his priority was probably not to jeopardize his ski season.

The butt-slide (Gregg Brown Photo)
The butt-slide (Gregg Brown Photo)
Did you intend to butt-slide the snow? Got any scars?
Nick: Yeah, we checked out the snow before the race. It would have been better style to boot ski it, but bum sliding seemed faster and less tiring. The snow dropped off pretty steeply right before turning to scree so I had to dig in my heels and my fingers pretty hard to slow down. I got some road rash on my bum and my palms were numb and tingling for a few hours after the race.
How important do you think course and previous race experience is?
Nick: I think it’s definitely helpful to know the course – certainly it would be a mistake to run it without spending some time figuring out the best way to go in each section. However, I don’t think the minute details matter as much as some people think. I think the experience from last year helped me, but mostly to understand the unique demands of the race and how to best prepare for it.
How was your keg stand?
Nick: I was lame and passed out by 3am before the keg stands really got going. However, for some reason some of the guys decided to bring the keg inside the house. The next morning a hungover Rickey Gates was apologetically scrubbing footprints off the ceiling.
Nick on a 'non-traditional' training run on his home peak the Chief (Eric Carter Photo)
Nick on a ‘non-traditional’ training run on his home peak the Chief (Eric Carter Photo)
How did you prepare leading into the race?
Nick: After the ski season I took a pretty unstructured approach to training for a while. However, in the two months leading up to the race, I tried to make sure that I had a bit of a plan for getting in consistent hard workouts. I also spent a couple weeks in Canmore a month before the race which turned out to be a great place to train with lots of steep terrain right above town. After last year, I realized that running the downhill well would require a bit more specific preparation so I actually did some downhill intervals which was a first for me.
What was your favourite workout?
Nick: I didn’t race much this spring or early summer and since most of my workouts are time-based and uphill, it was hard to get a concrete sense of where my fitness was and so I decided to do a time-trial up the first peak of the Chief (a 500m climb near Nick’s house) a month and a half out. I wasn’t too well rested but I managed to run a solid time for me (17:42) which was a good confidence boost. It’s not something I would do very often, but it gave me an idea of what I needed to work on in the lead up to the race.
Nick climbing in the 2016 MMR (Philipp Reiter Photo)
Nick climbing in the 2016 MMR (Philipp Reiter Photo)
Will you be back to try for a win?
Nick: It’s a pretty awesome race and I feel like I still have some room for improvement so I’d like to go back. I’ve got a guaranteed spot for next year which is a valuable commodity – the top bid in the auction this year was $4500!
What’s next?
Nick: The plan for the next little while is to focus on some more technical objectives in the mountains. I also plan to run an ultra or two later in the year.
Keep your eye on Nick, easily the best mountain runner in Canada.
Congratulations Nick and we can’t wait to see you on top of the podium next year!

2016 full race videos

Men’s race:

Women’s race:

Filed Under: News Shorts, People (Interviews) Tagged With: Mount Marathon, Nick Elson

20 Questions for Stevie Kremer: Training, Racing, Plans

July 8, 2015 By Stano Faban 1 Comment

Stevie with Kilian Jornet after winning at Zinal, Switzerland.
Stevie with Kilian Jornet after winning at Zinal, Switzerland.
Stevie Kremer is a Salomon Team athlete, a Crested Butte resident, and currently one of the fastest female mountain runners in the world. She is a skimo racer as well but her Skyrunning achievements brought her the most recognition in the mountain endurance sports community.
Stevie’s racing outfit changes as seasons pass and her ever present smile and white pearl earrings can easily fool anyone into thinking that she’s not a force to be reckoned with. In reality though, they will quickly be surprised.
After somehow not having interviewed Stevie yet, I emailed her with a request just as she was packing for a trip. She kindly agreed, so we are all fortunate to have her share some of her training methods and thoughts on life as a working pro.

Enter Stevie Kremer

Q: Summer is here and you are back to trail running racing. How was your recent trip for a Sky Ultra to Madeira?
My time in Portugal was incredible! Madeira is absolutely beautiful and the people are so friendly and welcoming.  As for the terrain and trails – they are insane! Technical, steep, yet fun and adventurous!
Q: What are your goals for 2015?
I would like to continue to travel and compete in new mountain races around the World.
Q: Every winter, you compete in a number of skimo races but mostly in the US. As fast as you are, aren’t you attracted to compete in Europe?
I would love to compete more in Europe, but because of my work schedule, it is difficult to travel that far.  If I can make it work, I definitely would, and will!
Q: How long have you been trail running and ski mountaineering? What attracted you to start racing as well?
I have been competitively running for about 4 years now.  Although I competed in some smaller mountain and trail races a few years prior to that, I didn’t get really competitive until the summer of 2011.  In regards to ski mountaineering, I have been competing for 5 years.
stevie-kremer-interview-2
Q: You are a teacher but also a Salomon Team athlete. What else defines you? What else would you like to try or do in the future?
Honestly, I would like to continue running and skiing forever 😉 But in between, I would really like to introduce a family to this world 🙂
Q: Today, the North American trail community appears to be obsessed with ultras, the longer the better. You seem to prefer Skyrunning and mountain running races over other the longer events. Is it because you like more technical trails or because racing 10+ hours does not appeal to you as much?
I do not like running more than 5 hours!  I will compete in something around 6h if it’s an appealing course (not too much technical downhill 😉 ) but typically 4-5 hours is the maximum I like to run!
Q: Do you have any plans to run in one of the iconic ultras at some point, like Western States 100 or Hard Rock 100?
I have so much respect for those athletes running these incredible distances and times, but I have no desire to ever do one.
Q:  You won the overall Skyrunner series titles in 2013 and 2014, and a combined title at the 2014 Skyrunning World Championships in Chamonix. Did you live in Europe during those two seasons or were you mostly “commuting” from Colorado?
I lived in Europe (Italy) for the 2012-2013 year to teach at an International school, and moved back to Colorado in August of 2013.  I have traveled for races since then, but have lived in Colorado.

Training

Q: Do you have a coach?
No
Q: Do you follow a strict training schedule or do you “freestyle” mostly?
I “freestyle” mostly.  I just love to run on trails in the mountains, and I think if I had a schedule I wouldn’t enjoy it as much.  Don’t get me wrong, there is some routine to my running, for example I run every morning before school at 5:00 am, but I never know exactly what I will be running, etc.
Here is a short 5min video about Stevie’s life and how she spend’s her days.
Interview continues below.


Q: Do you train with a heart-rate monitor or by feel?
By feel.
Q: How does your summer training month looks like? What kind of sessions do you do? How many hours in total?
A typical “work day” for me is to get up a little bit before 5:00 am, go for about an hour run, I am back by 6:15. Then I get ready for teaching and I am at work (school) at 7:15 am.  School ends around 4:00 pm, so I’m typically back on the trails by 4:30 pm until about 5:30/6:00 pm.
Q: Do you run year-round or do you fully switch to skis for couple of months like Kilian Jornet usually does?
For the most part, I switch sports when the snow starts falling.  But I am never 100% done with running.  In the winter months, I probably run 2 hours per week, not more.
Q: Do you run your high intensity interval sessions on smooth surfaces and non-technical trails so you can go full gas the whole interval, or do you run them on technical trails like you encounter in Skyraces?
I don’t do much high intensity stuff, but when I do, I incorporate them on the trails.  I’ll set out for a typical trail run and in between add some speed work for a few minutes.
Q: How do you practice downhills? Obviously you run down, but do you just continuously run or do you break it up into shorter intervals at maximum speed, with breaks in between?
No, but I should DEFINITELY do more speed work on the downhill!
stevie-kremer-interview-1
Q: What other sports do you practice besides running and ski mountaineering?
I like to play tennis and golf 🙂 And in the winter, I like to downhill ski too!
Q: Do you focus any part of the year on strength training? If yes, what kind of exercises do you focus on?
No, but I should work more on my arms and my core.  I try to do something once a week, but it doesn’t always happen.
Q: For recovery, do you frequently seek a massage? How much do you sleep?
No, I never get massages. I try to sleep about 7 hours per night.
Q: Do you follow any distinctive diet – vegan, paleo, vegetarian, KFC…?
No, I try to eat healthy though.
Q: What mistakes did you do at the beginning when you started training? What should others pay attention to?
I think the most important thing to do in training (something I need to do more of) is speed work.  Speed work is so essential to becoming a faster runner, I think at least 🙂

Thank you

Thank you very much to Stevie for taking time to provide us with answers and I hope you enjoyed it as much as me.

Filed Under: People (Interviews) Tagged With: Stevie Kremer

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Useful Links

Comparing the lightest: Skis | Boots | Bindings

Skimo Training: Training Plans | Videos

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