It was recently suggested to me that I make up a gift guide with all my favorite gear, including a few stocking stuffers. Finding the perfect gift for someone with gear they will actually love and use is actually quite tricky! At the risk of this sounding like a sponsored post (it isn’t, although many are sourced from brands I love and work with, because I chose to work with each of them for a reason!) here’s my hot take on fun presents for the athletes in your life. And a little training update at the end, just for fun!
For the one who’s serious about training:
Nuun podium series, especially the recovery drink mix so those intervals really sink in! I have a picky tummy after hard intensity, and these drink mixes have really worked for me. Find it here (and the small packets make good stocking stuffers)!
For the stocking of the one who would never show up without sparkles:
Dermatone (to make it stick!) and biodegradable glitter. So you can feel good about accidentally getting that glitter everywhere.
For the one who likes to snuggle:
Get them a cozy sweatshirt! There are many styles I’ve loved (and tested out) from LL Bean, but here are my favorites for men and women.
For the one who’s going to ski the Birkie and wants to stay hydrated while doing it:
Swix drink belt!
For the bring-your-own-chair outdoor social gatherings:
Light and portable camping chairs! Find them here.
For the one who isn’t afraid to sweat:
I LOVE Salomon’s shirts; their tanks, their tops, their long sleeves…it’s all good. Just to prove how moisture-wicking they are…I ran in one for 9+ hours in August, in East coast humidity. Yep. The link to the women’s version (but the men’s are up there on their website as well).
For the one whose hands are as picky as mine are:
The JD x Swix glove line. I got to help design everything about these gloves, down to the type of leather used on the palm and the fabric for the snot rag on the thumb (this is more important than you’d initially think). And they’re the ones I choose to train and race in! You do have to order these from your local ski shop, however – they’re not online.
For the one who loooooves a good challenge:
A slackline! This speaks for itself, really. I got mine from LL Bean.
For the one who always freezes their toes off:
Warm socks and toe warmers!
For the seriously rad adventure sledder:
Steger Mukluks, baby. They’re an investment that’s worth it; I’ve used mine all winter for years now and my Mom’s are 10 years old!
For the one who loves to rip on downhills (and needs depth perception to match):
Oakley Radar EV Path frames with Prizm jade lenses.
For the one whose face is getting messed up by mask wearing:
Osmia lip repair and black clay face soap.
For that nerd you love:
Brave Enough (shameless, had to, forgive me for the plug).
For the one who needs a boost and wants to make an impact:
A cameo shoutout! This is how you book me to make a personalized video shoutout for someone’s birthday, a pre-race message, good luck message, or just a fun “HI!”. It’s also a fundraiser I do for the WithAll Foundation for treatment support and prevention of eating disorders, and 100% of my fee goes straight to them. So far, we’ve raised over 3k for them, and I’ve loved every video I’ve gotten to make!
You can book me here.
For the stocking of that adventure runner you know who is ALL ABOUT HYDRATION:
A Salomon soft flask with a filter top, found here.
For the one who races with an open heart:
I used to be sponsored by Ross-Simons jewelry, and I still adore these little open-heart gold earrings. They remind me to race with my whole heart! Found here.
For the one who says “please just donate to something cool”: (ok, ok, busted, this one is actually a plug for my club team).
It’s no secret that I really, really love my SMST2 club team. And I think you’ll love them, too. Sign up for our update newsletter (it’s free) to follow along as different members of the team write blogs, and then if you’re feeling the love, a little donation to help us pay for our awesome coach and race wax! The updates are written by Sverre Caldwell, so you KNOW they’re going to be solid gold.
There are two ways to sign up for the team newsletter:
1. Through your phone by texting smst2 to 22828
2. Through this link.
And just for fun, Our team website.
For the stocking of that cool chick you love:
This is my go-to hair scrunchie. And it’s a fundraiser for one of my go-to girls as a collaboration with Sophie and Skida, so that’s what I call a win-win. Found here.
In other news, we made it safely to Davos, the whole team tested negative on our PCR tests, and we’re riding the line of training hard yet resting enough in this altitude!
We ran a sprint time trial and a 10/15km skate time trial in collaboration with the other countries who also traveled here right after Ruka. It was super cool to have Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Russia and our skiers all working together to push each other and prepare for the rather special pacing that needs to happen in order to nail down a good race in Davos. While we’re not super high in altitude (we’re at about 5,000 feet), the course is a real grinder as it winds it’s way up a valley so you’re essentially working non-stop for the first half. Then on the second half, which “ought” to be a relaxing downhill experience, you need to have just enough energy in the tank to flow through one transition to the next, working every inch of the course. It’s sneaky, it’s tricky, and I honestly love it.
When we’re not training, we’re in our rooms. Wow, that was a short update!
Just kidding. We ALSO sit in the sunshine as much as possible, we marvel at the 2.5-ish feet of snow that we just had showering down on us for the past few days, and we go sledding!
Julia and I decorated our room with items from the Christmas box, a longstanding tradition of leaving a small box of ornaments and stockings (personally, I’ve been unable to stop contributing cutesy things to this box) over in Europe all year long. Then when we get to Davos, the super friendly hotel owners of the Kulm pull it out of the basement for us! Some little twinkly touches really make your hotel room feel like home when you’re on the road for so long. Let me tell you, doing yoga under a strand of lights while listening to John Legend’s Christmas album will never fail to make you feel happier!
So now we’re preparing for our next World Cup races, right here in Davos. Saturday is a skate sprint and Sunday a 10km/15km individual start skate race. All done under some thoughtful COVID guidelines, with masks, hand sani and contact tracing for all. Wish us luck!
