November has been a bit slow for getting out in the mountains. Between car troubles and the unending rain with a cold thrown in to mix things up, I have not gotten out much. Snow is just starting to settle into the mountains for real and things are starting to open up. Early in the month, I was limited to hiking high up to the glaciers to get some ski training in. A cold snap and some precip brought snow to the North Shore and the Squamish Valley. We managed a few training sessions up at Red Heather and Cypress.
Last Sunday was the last blue day and Sarah and I took advantage of it by skiing up towards Tricouni Mtn in the Squamish River Valley with a few friends. A bit unsure of the route – we ended up spending most of the day on logging roads looking for the right way to go. Skiing is skiing though so no complaints from me.
Despite the rain this week, I have been getting excited for my first race of the season. A low-key Coast Cup 7.5 K Freestyle at Whistler Olympic Park, I managed a time of 25:10.6: good enough for 1st place in the Open Men category but still ended up 10 seconds shy of the fastest time posted by teammate Rob Ragotte.
Hopefully December will bring colder temps and more snow. The CAC has started posting their avy bulletins, another sign that winter is here. Before I know it, Sarah and I will be off to Toronto for Christmas and then I will be headed down to Jackson for the first Skimo race of the year. Gotta train hard the next few weeks!
Coast Cup results on ZONE4.CA