You know how the snow gets when it's cold but it's been rained on all day, all fresh and wintry smelling? Yeah, that's how it was last night. Temps in the mid-30s, hard wintry mix falling at the pass, but damp and cool at Cabin Creek, plenty of snow on the nicely groomed trail, and the skiing was slickety fast, both in the tracks and in the skate lane. It was another gorgeous night of skiing in the dark, with bright little fireflies of headlamps twinkling in the woods.
Speaking of bright little fireflies, I tried the Petzl Nau headlamp again last night, and I am even more enamored than I was last week. This time I tried tilting the angle of the light, rather than the angle of my head, and it was as if the light could read my mind: it just automatically flicked from low to high and back to low the instant I needed it, without my having to even think about it. Technology is a wonderful thing, and to be able to wear a beautifully-designed little piece of technology on your head, and to have it open up the whole dark trail to brightness, is a pretty cool thing. If you've tried one and want one, they're available at Second Ascent in Ballard and Marmot in Bellevue (these two shops generously sponsor the Kongsberger races), as well as REI in downtown Seattle. If you haven't tried one and you're interested, find me next Wednesday night; Peter will be out of town, but I have his stash of demo lamps.
Next week: something special! As a warmup to the Feb 17 skiathlon at Cabin Creek, and to give you a chance to practice your transitions, the headlamp race will be a one-lap classic followed immediately by a one-lap skate. Measure your total time, including the transition. Sounds like fun! Good luck to everyone heading to Spokane for the Langlauf or to Winthrop for the Derby!
Two Laps |
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Brad Bauer |
39 |
12.35 |
|
Peter Boveng |
54 |
13.47 |
|
John Outterson |
42 |
14.40 |
|
Christopher Fast |
46 |
14.44 |
|
Egor Klivak |
28 |
15.55 |
|
Jeff McGrew |
53 |
16.46 |
|
Max Limb |
67 |
17.52 |
|
Jeff Clark |
59 |
17.58 |
|
James West |
44 |
18.01 |
|
Ian Whyte |
50 |
20.15 |
|
Peter Turcan |
55 |
20.17 |
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Dale Bohm |
54 |
20.24 |
|
Don Brooks |
62 |
20.34 |
(classic) |
Joy Cordell |
58 |
20.43 |
|
Debbie Kolp |
59 |
27.49 |
(classic) |
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One Lap |
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Jonathan Loeffler |
27 |
6.55 |
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Garrett Stout |
17 |
7.14 |
|
Oliver Isik |
17 |
7.59 |
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Finley Terlin |
16 |
8.03 |
|
Camille Moore |
14 |
8.47 |
|
Benjamin Cape |
15 |
8.58 |
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Just Skiin' |
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Brian Palm |
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Jason Paur
and 7 more Bush School kids (besides the ones who timed in the one-lap above) |