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By: Chad Giese
Subaru Factory Team - 2007 US NATIONAL CHAMPION (Team Sprint)
I am in a haze, barely able to see the kilometer markers. My legs hurt, my arms are heavy, my lungs burn, and the trail has gotten flat, very flat. I am almost at the finish. It is a point in the race that I can't wait for - when it comes I wish it to be over quickly. I dig deep and give it everything I have, feeling an intense burn or not feeling anything at all. I cross the finish line. Another Birkebeiner under my belt, I am already looking forward to next year.
I have to be stronger (faster), technically more efficient (faster), able to endure more pain (faster) and better prepared in order to be successful again next year. It is a cycle that has gone on as far back as I can remember. But it is part of what keeps me coming back to the sport I love.
My earliest memory of racing was a Bill Koch race in Mora, Minnesota at the age of 5. I vividly remember classic skiing with my three-pin bindings scraping the insides of the classic track st. They slowed me down and i thought, "I have to go harder." I don't even remember how I did that day, but I knew I wanted to ski again and I knew I wanted to get rid of those three-pin bindings.
I eventually got into some new equipment. I eventually got better. What started as a desire to go faster became a passion for skiing. I took my passion for skiing, training, the outdoors, and being fit and turned it into a ski career that included: a MN High School State Championship, a college education, All-American honors, many top marathon finishes, World Cup Starts, and podium finishes at US Nationals (including a 2007 National Title).
Even without these, my career would have been a success. I have been healthy, spent thousands of hours outdoors in the fresh air training, pushed my body harder than I thought possible, traveled to some of the most beautiful places in the world, and met many honest, fun, and motivated people along the way. I have learned that one cannot define success in terms of results alone.
Whether you start your journey at the age of 5 or 45, take what motivates you and run with it. When working with skiers of all ages and all abilities, we can talk in great detail about training and technique. These tips provide some direction, but it is doing that brings satisfaction.
Doing is also the best way to learn. I have made mistakes along the way. I have traveled too much, trained too hard, and not rested enough. But, I learned what each mistake feels like first-hand. Some may think this is a tough way to learn, but am long time coach, Ahvo Taipale, would say, "You wouldn't believe me if I simply told you."
I often felt like I was in complete control, could push as hard as I wanted, could go as long as I wanted, whenever I wanted. Talk about holding back when times were good seemed foolish, but after feeling a drop in performance because I pushed too hard, went too long, and didn't rest enough, I learned where the fine line was and how to walk it.
Fortunately, the down swings in my career were rare and the mistakes in my training were small. Learning your own system, your own technique, and your own style is the puzzle that takes many years to solve and is constantly changing. I learned throughout this process that hard work and dedication are irreplaceable.
I have found no common prescription for how to train, but the unique part about skiing that has kept me interested is that whether you are an Olympic Champion or a 6th wave skier, everybody is doing the same things to prepare. The volume may differ, the intensity may differ, the skis may be faster, but so often the races are the same distance.
My motivation came early and my goals changed along the way, but my passion for skiing and ski racing has remained a constant through all steps and all levels of racing. It is this passion that I have tried to pass on to other skiers.
Winning is great and always keeps you coming back, but it isn't something you can count on. You must enjoy the steps that lead to success. There is no finish line on rainy Tuesday mornings in October. There is no glory in a 30 hour training week. Nobody sees the last interval of the workout that was faster than the first.
It is the act of doing that keeps me coming back to skiing, and has been my definition of success. My three-pin bindings are long gone, but my passion for skiing has stuck around.
You define success, go out, and achieve it! |
