This morning we got the team together for a jog at 08.00h. It was not totally dark, but it was certainly still before dawn. We're on the edge of the city, so we ran over to the train station and then back home to the warm hotel, and our breakfast buffet.
I've been to Europe a few times, but I'm never quite sure of what to expect of the food in different regions / restaurants / hotels. I think we were all anticipating what we'd find awaiting us as the Best Western breakfast buffet. Once we entered the dining room, it was pretty clear that this is not the same as a Continental Breakfast in the good ole US of A. This was, clearly, intercontinental! It had everything we need, including 3 types of fish -- 2 pickled varieties (which nobody touched) and one other breaded type, which Mr. Vigers put onto his sandwich. Apparently it hadn't been totally boned...Some of the crowd favorites included the cookies (?!), Blaabarsopa (blueberry soup, like they give @ the Vasaloppet), and the Nestle Fitness cereal.
We had a relaxed time eating, and watched as the dawn gradually turned to daylight. We later loaded our 2 Ford vans, and started driving to the ski area. It was only 2-3 km from our hotel to the ski area, so I didn't bother to ask for specific directions. After about 45 minutes of driving, we found ourselves at the trails. A non-English speaking groomer directed us to a warm room where we scraped and applied some cold kick wax. After that, well the pictures are probably better than my writing.
The temps peaked today around -15* C. Everybody has warm clothes and balaclavas (not to mention nice new jackets), and I nobody complained. That's just what we'll have for the next 10 days.
Back home in the hotel, we had our choice of World Cup biathlon from Antholtz, ITA, live on Eurosport, or the classic-Sprint at Finnish Nationals, live on a local channel. We watched Sammi Jauhojaervi win the men's race while at lunch.
Now it's just after 5pm, and we're all just chilling. I just watched some of the Super-G that happened earlier today @ Kitzbuehl AUT, and now its K134 Ski Jumping from Zakopane, POL. It seems to have been a beautiful day all over Europe!
In our hotel lobby, watching the classic-sprint race @ Finnish Nationals:
The sun nears its peak for the day (this is just after noon):
Trail network:
Most of the team taking a break:
Striding towards the big jump:
View down to the Nordic stadium:
The big jumps:
Lahti downtown, around 15.45h:
Some of the gals:
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