Whitefish to Whitehorse

Hey everyone! Thanks for checking in. I have just finished a 10 day training camp in Whitefish Montana with my team and the Women’s Canadian National Team. Now I am flying home to Whitehorse for a week to do a bit of easier training and spend time with my family and friends!

I’m sure you are all reading this to hear about the exciting adventures and events from the camp so here they are.

So to start from the beginning, we began the camp with a 3 hour combination skate then classic roller ski on our way to Montana. We finished just before Radium Hot Springs. This was my first time ever in the Kootenays therefore my first time swimming at Radium. The springs were really nice after the long workout, then we were off again on route to Whitefish to start our 10 day camp where we did lots and lots of roller skiing and some running too.

core on the dock after our swim workout

One afternoon we also did a swim workout. About 2km in total, we swam from one side of Whitefish Lake to the other, width wise, not length wise and then back. Chris and Scott were our guides on SUP boards so that we wouldn’t risk getting run over by the boats. The best part about the swim was the fact that the coaches rented paddle boards so in the evening as the sun was setting Britt and I took the paddle boards out on the lake and paddled along the shoreline as the sun set. On our way back to the dock the moon was out in full force shining down on the lake giving the water a beautiful silver shimmer.

The girls- post swim

Just one of the many sunsets we witnessed

As I am thinking back on the past week there are almost too many highlights to be able to recap in just one post, Whitefish didn’t only provide a great training location it also had a wonderful relaxing atmosphere that made the camp very easy to enjoy. After every hard workout, be it either a long double pole workout or intensity up the Big Mountain road we would come back to our condos and walk a few hundred feet down to the dock where we could dive into the lake for a nice cold post workout swim.

Out of all our workouts I think these three were my favourites;

1. Going to the Sun- Have you ever heard of Going to the Sun road, if you haven’t I would recommend it to anyone and everyone. Going to the sun road takes you up to Logan’s pass, which is one of the spectacular passes in Glacier National Park. We started the morning near the bottom of the road and classic roller skied up about 16 miles to the summit of Logan’s pass where we switched out our boots for runners and ran the lovely trail network.

Going to the Sun Road

On the climb

Made a new friend while running in Logan’s Pass

View from the Road

2. Run up Big Mountain- The sun may not have been out in full force but the little bit cooler temperature was perfect for our run up Big Mountain, the local ski hill. The views of Whitefish and the lake were beautiful. I think that was the only day that wasn’t in the high 20’s or around 30c but it was perfect running weather.

Looking down from the top of Big Mountain

Britt and I at the Summit

3. Highlight #3 doesn’t have a proper name however the first day of training in Whitefish we roller skied along the country roads. They were fairly flat so lots of two-skate and time looking at nice ranch style farm houses and herds of horses running off as they heard the unfamiliar sound of our poles hitting the pavement as we approached. After that workout I was about ready to pack up and move to Whitefish. It has the perfect mixture of horse country, mountains and lakes, great for summer training and vacationing!

Now I wouldn’t be doing a proper job of reporting on the camp if I didn’t tell you about the Red Caboose. I’m sure you are wondering what is the “Red Caboose”? Well let me tell you, it is the best frozen yogurt shop I have ever set foot in, delicious flavors and a cute café style atmosphere. Words can’t quite describe it so here are a few pictures to give you a feel.

Best Frozen yogurt ever!! (it’s hidden under all the toppings)

Trying to decide what flavour to choose

Along with the frozen yogurt, the arts and craft shop rates right at the top on my list of places to go, it provided us with a good hour of entertainment, painting mugs, cups and dog bowls between us. I painted a mug, so now I have my own tea mug for the cold fall days back in Canmore when I get home from training. I would have like to have had more time to make mugs for all my friends but unfortunately it takes them a week to fire the pottery so they wouldn’t have been finished before our departure. I guess that just means we will have to go back to Whitefish sometime.

Finished Product! Excited to test it out

The camp wasn’t all just fun and games, there was a lot of hard work too. On Saturday we did a 10km Pursuit timetrial. The first half was all double poling, which for me is probably the hardest thing imaginable. I have been working lots on my double pole capacity this summer but I still have a long way to go until I am at the same caliber as my older teammates. The second 5k of the TT was mostly uphill skating, it was really hard but I felt like I skied it really well and it was a good start going into the fall. I am coming out of the camp feeling pretty good, other than my elbows being a little sore from all the double poling work. I am super excited to be going home for a week before heading back to Canmore to start another hard 3 week block which will include my first double pole and prologue tests with the team.

Hope you enjoyed reading about the Alberta World Cup Academy and National Team Women’s training camp, Thanks for reading and I will hopefully write again soon as long as I have something interesting to talk about!

Till next time

Dahria