Dogtooth Dash

Last weekend was the Dogtooth Dash went down, and boy was it a good time. It was my 3rd Dash, and the Dash is always special because it was my very first race.

Engine: I was sick all week, but still persevered through the race, and I really didn't notice that I was sick while racing, but I was coughing pretty good afterwards. I was feeling pretty good, but I had finished a water bottle by the bottom of the last climb, and had to go my reserve bottle to fend off the cramps. There were some solid battles today, and I think this was one of my best races. I was crushing the bootpacks pretty hard. Solid battles, cool to see that the sport is gaining popularity = more motivation to train harder!

Gear: No issues today, I reglued the tails of my skins before the race and I carried a backup set in my pack. My setup was dialed.

Technique: It took me a while to dial in my transitions today, but because I was battling the whole time, it forced me to improve my transitions, even late in the race. My skiing was a little slow, I would lose time to some people, gain time on others. I could use some more days of ripping around ski resorts on my big skis.

Course: This course is awesome: Airy bootpacks, perfectly angled skintracks and fun descents. I am told that it is very "Euro" style, so I am actually pretty pumped to head over there. It was an awesome course in terms of experience, and it also makes a perfect race course.

TSN Turning Point: I was locked in a pretty big battle with 5 other skiers for most of the race, but with 3rd place in reach at the bottom of the last climb, I just was not mentally ready to finish off the battle. Everyone is suffering at that point!

So I think I can pick up a couple of minutes by dialing in my skiing and my transitions.

Everyone involved did an awesome job organizing for the race. Every year, Ian Gale and everyone at Kicking Horse offer an experience that is unrivaled. Bill was regretting that he didn't help out with volunteering as he missed out on some great swag and heckling opportunities.

After crushing the Mexican buffet pretty hard, I enjoyed the relay the next day. Bill and I wore our best plaid flannel and denim (Edmonton Tuxedo?).

I started really fast, blew up, then settled in on my first lap of the short course. I paced better on my second lap. We finished 3rd and collected some awesome Hammer Nutrition swag.