The Relay

Today was the relay. The sun was shining, there was no wind to speak of, and the track was solid and beautiful. For these past few days it has been overcast, windy, and snowy. It was a great change of pace to have a warm clear day to prove our stuff. For information on the Relay format, click the Biathlon tab.

Heading to the start.
Photo courtesy of Judy Geer

I was chosen to scramble (skier terminology for being the first leg of the race). We were seeded at the start in the order our teams finished last year, which means we were number 11. I'm not the fastest starter, but I gave it all I had. I ended up throwing some elbows and having a good time making some countries angry. I’ve approached these races in a more relaxed fashion than last year, and I really think it’s helped with my performance and nerves. Mass starts are very hectic, especially on rally narrow trails, but I had trust in my ability and that of my teammates, and my portion of the race went along without a hitch. I only had to use one spare relay shot, so my shooting was right up there with the best.

I'm not saying I tripped Germany, but that fall did help me get
some room to work with.

Teammate Nick Proell leaving the range.
It was a beautiful day out there. 

We had some issues later in the race, but we all gave our best and learned a lot. The course is identical to the Sprint Competition on Friday, and I plan to apply what I learned in the relay to my advantage. With the Sprint being an individual start instead of a mass start, I will be able to race my own race from the beginning instead of having to worry about positioning around a pack of other racers. Fasterskier.com did another great report on the day. Click HERE for the article.

The view from our condo window after getting
back from the relay. It's great to be surrounded
by such a beautiful area.