Wow, that feels so nice to be able to say! I can’t imagine a better season; it’s been so much fun being on the road with great teammates, coaches and friends. Thanks to everyone who helped to make this year the adventure it’s been!
Painfest! With Liz and Holly chasing me down (picture from Elizabeth Simak)
Wednesday we had the hill climb up Jay Peak, and it was absolutely brutal. It felt really good in that sadistic way after you start to feel your legs again, but there was a lot of bodies in the snow right after the finish line. In 1.8 kilometers, we climbed 1,079 feet and some of the pitches were so steep that I just started “coach skating” and hiking. It took me 15:13 minutes! Liz posted the fastest time of the day, just motoring up the mountain. I was the first to cross the line which gave me the SuperTour Finals mini-tour win, and the Overall Supertour win. It was a great end-of-year present! Then we got one day off to prepare for our last race of the year.
The mass start went off without a hitch (all photos from the 30km taken by Adam Martin)
Today we finished the season off with the 30km skate mass start – 20 laps in the sun with some amazing, talented girls. It was a little crazy going in so many small circles, but also really fun.
Liz, Kikkan, Me, Holly and Chelsea early on in the race
Liz was my hero as she definitely led more than the rest of us, setting the fast pace we held as people dropped off the lead group one by one. I would lead until my legs felt too painful or I couldn’t keep up the pace in the front, as it was much, much harder to lead into the wind.
The hill got slushier as the sun warmed it up...harder every lap!
Kikkan reminded us all why there’s a crystal globe in her suitcase as she sprinted it out for the win, and I finished second with Liz third. There were so many people out cheering, and I heard “go Liz!” so many times that I’d be skating up the hill with the chant in my head perfectly matching my tempo! It was perfect.
Sprint finish!
So tomorrow I’m beyond psyched to be out cheering for the men as they race the 50km! Or as Jason Cork puts it; 33 rpm’s (revolutions per man) of the course.
