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I have a lot of respect for the word “Epic.”  It’s not a word I will throw around lightly.  While today was certainly not epic, it was a big day and a great way to kick off my training for the US National Championship 50km skate in Fort Kent, Maine at the end of this month.

Since arriving home, I’ve been out on the Wirth trails pretty much every day–simply enjoying the spring-like conditions here in Minneapolis.  The day started with a jog from my folks house to the trail, skis and poles in hand, boots slipping down the ice over the cold morning asphalt.  My old high school teammate and college competitor Matt Schadow was ready to go when I arrived at the Par 3 lot after a brisk ski across Wirth Lake to make it there on time.

We got in a solid ski around the entire Loppet trail to the interstate and back to the Chalet.  Schadow had to roll out to watch Megan and others dive into a frozen Lake Calhoun as a fundraiser for the Special Olympics.  I picked up the Three Musketeers: Jim, Skip, and Jim for a tour around the City of Lakes Loppet trail as part of the “Re-Loppet.”

(Nobody told me that t-shirts over long underwear were required team attire!).

Skip was psyched to see the ducks heading back North and taking advantage of the open water in a Wirth Pond.  Definitely an early sign of spring, but something tells me winter’s not over yet. . .

Of course, Loppet Director John Munger and wife Diane had kids in-tow (literally) for the Re-Loppet.  What a great resistance workout!  I think Lauren liked the practice for water skiing this summer too. . .

Fortunately, the Three Musketeers are really good at drafting, almost like those ducks we saw in the sky all day, so we flew across Cedar Lake effortlessly.  Somehow, nobody even got their poles stepped on.  What teamwork!

We ended the first half of our workout at Old Chicago in Uptown, where we were treated to pizza by the Loppet Foundation.  Afterwards, we declined the free bus ride back to the start in favor of a retour ski back home.

Some cyclists record “chamois time,” time spent in their bike shorts, as training in their log.  If I were to log “boot time” for the workout today, I’d be over 7 hours–just shy of a full 9-5.  A long day and a lot of fun, but not quite Epic.

I can’t believe it.  No sooner do I get home from Vancouver and I have to head back to school.  That’s right, Meadowbrook Elementary School.  Several classes at Meadowbrook, my alma matter, have been following my Olympic adventures over the past several weeks.  They were well versed on all things Olympics and Nordic.  I was very impressed.

The students got to check out a slideshow from the Olympics and training around the world.  They had a variety of questions ranging from “how many medals did you win at the Olympics?” to “who was your favorite teacher at Meadowbrook?” (my Mom, of course).

The 5th graders got to go alpine skiing at Hyland on Tuesday, so they were especially excited about skiing.  Many of them were inspired by seeing the ski jump at Bush Lake and wanted to try jumping so that they could win a gold medal like Billy Demong.

I’ve done a variety of school trips to talk about skiing over the past couple of years and I’ve got to say, without bias, the Meadowbrook students asked some great, intelligent questions and were very well behaved.  Next time I’d love to get these guys out skiing!  They are the future for Hopkins, the United States, and the world.

Thanks to my teachers Mr. Burmeister and Mrs. Skalicky for their patience and inspiration.

Security at the Olympics is a top priority and in Vancouver, you didn’t have to look far to see signs of the tight security.  We were under a watchful eye for the entire duration of the Games.  Compared to Salt Lake in 2002, where everyone had to take a drink out of every water bottle and take a photo with every camera upon entering a venue, it was a little more relaxed, but not by much.

Caitlin gets ready to go through security for the first of many times during the Games.  According to our bus driver, each bus was equipped with a GPS.  If the bus deviated more than 10m from it’s scheduled route or stopped for an extended period of time, police were notified to investigate.  Upon entering every venue, buses were checked by security using mirrors to identify any potential hazards.

In the athlete’s village, we were always under the scrutiny of the “eye in the sky,” a small blimp with a camera that followed all movements within the village.  Throughout the village, we were surrounded by security guards and Canadian Mounties.

Are there even cameras in that moose’s eyes?  It wouldn’t surprise me!

There was even an eye in the sky at the Nordic venue in Whistler.  Simi and I came across one on the ground during an evening run.  These things are enormous when you see them up close!  After the Olympics, these blimps will be sent to Hollywood for use in the next James Bond movie. . .

In case the athletes ever needed any extra amenities, there was always a helicopter available to drop them off.  Here, the chopper picks up athletes right from the village to go Heli-skiing on a powder day in the Whistler back country.

Perhaps the toughest crew at the Olympics were these guys in the Canadian Army who lived in the woods and kept us protected during the Games.

While skiing on the tourist trails one afternoon, Simi and I came across a troop of 5 soldiers with AK-47’s walking down the trail.  Sim had the audacity to tell them that their green camo didn’t blend in very well with the snow.  I just showed them my credential and told them it was okay for us to be out there!

In the above shot, Torin and I pose with the troop.  “Will you be able to watch tomorrows Gold Medal final hockey game?” I ask.  “We’re not supposed to, but we’ll round up a satellite so we can listen to the game.”  These guys haven’t spent a night indoors since weeks before the Games started.

Of course, Compton makes their day by posing for a photo!

Afterwards, it’s time to pack up camp and head off into the wilderness.  “Sweet ride!” Kuzzy says.  “Yeah, but it doesn’t go very fast,” is the response.  “What, are you guys in a hurry to get somewhere?!”

I arrived home in Minneapolis in time for dinner last night.  It’s been a whirlwind of a finish to the Olympics–working out, attending events, medal ceremonies, packing, closing ceremonies, and traveling.  I realized on my trip home that since November 1st, I’ve spent more time in Canada for training camps, NorAm races, World Cups, and Olympics, than I’ve spent in the US.  It’s great to be back in the Cities now with a couple feet of snow on the ground and sunny skies.  I’m looking forward to kicking back for a few days and enjoying my time at home.

Due to Olympic regulations, there have been a number of photos I haven’t been able to post over the past couple of weeks.  I’ll be posting a few of those (especially race photos) as I get caught up, as well as tales from new adventures.  For now, here are a couple of shots from the Closing Ceremonies. . .

The 1932 US Olympic cross country team prepares for the Closing Ceremonies.  Our teammates James Southam and Kris Freeman were still up in Whistler competing in the 50km Classic while we were staging.

The procession took us through the Vancouver Athletes Village and onto buses into the Stadium.

Vancouver was full of Canadian hockey fans on their way home from the Gold Medal game.  I’m not sure if they’d have been cheering for our bus had the game gone the other way. . .

The procession took us around the Olympic Torch in the Stadium.  In addition to Arritola, I realized afterwards that there are a couple of Nordic skiers in this shot including my buddy Roberto Carcelean, Peru’s first Winter Olympian, and Petter Northug, the 50km’s Gold Medalist from Norway.

TV camera’s roamed the crowd, capturing the reaction of all the athletes.  I even heard from several people that I got a little TV time on NBC.

Here, the crew kicks back with front row seats to the festivities.  Closing Ceremonies was a cool way to wrap up the end of the Games.  Afterwards I traded one of my hats for a Russian “See you in Sochi” jersey.

See ya!

In case you haven’t heard, Billy “Golden Boy” Demong and Johnny “Hat Trick” Spillane built on their silver in the Nordic Combined Team Event and took Gold and Silver in the Large Hill event yesterday.  I was already back home when they raced, but we watched the race in the Team USA athlete lounge in the Village.  Our excitement was off the hook when Billy made his move going up the final climb to pull away from the Austrian and take Gold.  Of course, the whole Nordic team went into Whistler for the medal ceremony to celebrate the first ever Nordic Gold medal in the Olympics for the US!

Billy D on top of the podium.

What a sight.

Todd Lodwick and his wife Sunny were on hand with Todd’s Silver medal.

Yeah Billy!

The band “The Roots” played after the ceremonies to a capacity crowd at the Medal Plaza.  This tuba player was seriously impressive.

I usually avoid taking party pictures, but last night was a pretty special evening.  The US Nordic team took over the Spyder House in Whistler, sponsored by the Alpine apparel company Spyder, to celebrate the Nordic Combined team’s success.  Here, USSA Nordic Director John Farra recognizes the Silver Medalists from the Team Competition: Billy, Brett, Johnny, and Todd.

Johnny Spillane and Andy Newell.  “Hat Trick” Spillane won three! silver medals at this Olympics.  To my knowledge, he and Bode are the only Americans to have won 3 medals at the 2010 Games.

The cross country crew, Andy and Liz.

Billy’s to-do list for the day:

• Win the Olympics.  Check.
• Get named flag bearer for the Closing Ceremonies.  Check.
• Get a shout out from Lance Armstrong.  Check.
• Propose to girlfriend Kate in front of friends and family after winning Gold.  Check.

(She even said yes!).

Billy Demong and Nordic Director John Farra.  Not sure which one is happier!

Liz Stephen checks out Billy’s gold.  “Man, this thing is heavy!”

Sweet!

Word on the street is that today’s 4 x 10km relay will be broadcast tonight on NBC in Prime Time.  This doesn’t happen often for cross country, so be sure to tune in.  Our relay team was made final at the last minute with our two distance skiers feeling a little under the weather this week.  We had a solid group of sprinters on our team that had the potential to take gold if we were racing a 4 x 1.5km relay.  As it was, we were a little further back, but had a lot of fun out racing.

The forerunners had their work cut out for them today and skied almost constantly around the course in small teams in front of the leaders, making sure the snow was out of the track for the racers coming through.  They were a little extra motivated as the Canadians had a strong start in their classic legs.  Andy Newell kicked off the race for our team.  He said the pack took things out pretty slow and he was able to maintain contact with the lead pack for the majority of his leg.

Some of the biggest snowflakes I’ve ever seen started falling during the 2nd leg of the relay when Torin got the tag from Andy.  Andy and Torin both skied on “Zero” skis (best at Zero degrees Celsius when the precipitation is between snow and rain) with a synthetic cork and rubber base in the kick zone, which offered the best kick and glide during the race.  Torin made a valiant effort to catch up to the Kazakh and Russian teams, but eventually paid dearly for the effort and lost a bit of time on his final lap.

I got the tag from Torin who came in with an Estonian skier.  The Estonian took off like a rocket from the start.  I figured he’d either catch up to the group in front of us (not likely) or he’d blow up and I’d catch him (very likely).  Sure enough, around 5km into my 10km leg I caught him.  I sat in and drafted him for a little bit, but he was skiing pretty slow.  I took the lead and made a hard pull to make up some ground on the guys in front of us.  While I wasn’t able make up a lot of time, I did maintain the pace and tagged off to Simi right with the Estonian.

The snow stopped and the sun started to shine for the final leg of the relay

Simi skied a smart race.  The gap was too large for him to make up time on the next pack, so he sat behind the Estonian and got in a good draft.  Sim’s skis were blazing fast and he was able to stand up and rest behind on the descents.  Finally, sprinter Simi put the hammer down going up the final climb and came into the stadium with a comfortable lead.  It definitely wasn’t the final result we were hoping for, but we had a good battle out on the trail and had a lot of fun.

Simi and Andy, all smiles at the finish line.  We’re definitely looking forward to seeing the next generation of skiers (or ourselves) battling with the leaders in the next 4 x 10.  The US cross country program is definitely stronger than we’ve showed at these Games, but I’m confident we’re taking the right steps.  We need the US junior programs to continue working hard and the elite and masters skiers to continue to provide support and coaching for the younger generations.  I’m looking forward to watching the United States win the gold medal in this event and I think it’s going to come sooner than later.

Simi in the “Mixed Zone” fielding questions from the press after the race.  I’m now finished with my racing at the Games.  I’m looking forward to getting into Whistler and taking in some of the festivities, as well as watching more events during the final days of the Olympics.  It’s been a great experience.

Thanks for following my adventures on garrottkuzzy.com.  I hope the site has provided a little break to your work day, given you some extra motivation for your Birkie training, offered a little insight into the life of an Olympian, or gotten you a bit more psyched to get outside and enjoy winter. If you’ve been enjoying the regular updates (I sure hope you have!), please consider making a small donation to help keep the posts coming.

Thanks for your support!

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In other news, I just got the thumbs up to represent the US in the 4 x 10km relay tomorrow!  Andy, Torin, Simi, and I – more of a sprint crew than distance – will be toeing the line at 11:15am Pacific.  This is the race I’ve been looking forward to the most in the Olympics and I’m stoked for tomorrow.

I watched some of the jumping for the Nordic Combined team event this morning on my way home from training.  Our men jumped well.  Simi, Kris, and I are watching the cross country leg of the race live on TV now.  It’s got the making of one of the most exciting races I’ve ever watched, especially as an American.  Be sure to tune in when NBC shows the race in prime time.

Stay tuned for tomorrow!

Today was arguably the most exciting day at the Games, especially for the US cross country team.  Both the women and men “cruised” through the semi and into the final.

The forerunners are definitely my favorite group of volunteers at the Games.  They’ve been valiantly skiing the course before the racers, making sure everything is fast and ready to go as soon as the top skiers go out of the gates.

I’ve got a special connection with these guys, as I was a forerunner as well, back at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City.  In fact, I’ve run into several other forerunner alumni, like Jenny Hamilton and Jenny Abraham, here in Whistler.  The forerunners have the best job, because they basically have to just ski around the course and get the crowd fired up. . .and these guys are doing a great job!

In the pits at the team sprint are our wax technicians, Peter and Joachim, working hard to keep the skis fast between relay legs.  Chris Grover stands guard with his radio and spare poles, providing tactical information and encouragement to racers during the race.  The exercise bike is for spinning to clear lactic acid between rounds.

Caitlin Compton stands ready to hammer in the A Final of the women’s team sprint.  Hat’s off to Kikkan, Caitlin, Torin, and Andy for a solid day on the trail!

Dear Governor Pawlenty:

Garrott Kuzzy here, writing from Vancouver as a Minnesotan representing the United States at the 2010 Winter Olympics.  I am a Minneapolis/Golden Valley resident and grew up 3 blocks from Wirth Park.  I’ve witnessed Wirth improve significantly over the past couple of years, becoming a much safer, more beautiful, and more active park.  It is my primary training location when I am in the Twin Cities.

I am writing to urge you to support the Winter Training Center at Theodore Wirth Park in Golden Valley.

This project has state-wide significance. The Winter Training Center will allow Minnesota to attract national and international events like:

The United States Ski Association’s (USSA’s) Junior Olympics (1,000+ people for 10 days each year)

USSA’s Senior Nationals (1,000+ people for 10 days each year)

World Masters Championships (1,500 people for 10 days)

These events will have a dramatic economic impact on the Minnesota economy. The 2011 Junior Olympics alone will have about a $3 million impact – with about $1 million in hotel stays alone.

Some of the United States’ top Olympic skiers – including myself and my teammate, Caitlin Compton – train at Wirth Park. With infrastructure improvements, Olympic-level athletes will continue to train and compete in Minnesota – with the chances of Gold Medal performances significantly enhanced.

This project fights obesity among our youth. By providing high level and reliable infrastructure, the Winter Training Center will encourage and inspire regular physical activity in young people from throughout the state and the region.

With $1.2 million in matching funds, including $300,000 in direct private contributions, the Winter Training Center leverages significant community support. Moreover, because of this private support, this project is ready for short-term action and the state’s investment will yield both immediate jobs in construction and good longer-term jobs in tourism and servicing of the facility (jobs that will be paid for through use fees rather than ongoing tax revenue).

The Winter Training Center is the unique project that pays for itself through economic impact to the state while at the same time fostering other state-wide benefits like long-term jobs, Olympic-level facilities and a reduction in obesity.  The environmental benefit of having World Class trails right in heart of the city allows more skiers from the Twin Cities to get outside and enjoy winter closer to home.

I urge you to support this project as part of the upcoming bonding bill.

Sincerely yours,

Garrott Kuzzy

Conditions continue to be ideal here in Whistler.  I’m hitting the hay early after a busy weekend, getting ready for another busy week ahead.  Kris and James hammered out a hard 30km Pursuit on Saturday in warm, soft conditions.

I got a chance to catch up with my CXC teammates Brian Gregg and Matt Liebsch before breakfast this morning as they were relaxing between sprint heats at the Winter Fest in Madison this weekend.  Congrats to Rebecca, Maria, and Audrey who took over the women’s podium.

The Sprints in Madison are one of the highlights of the race season every winter.  Snow is trucked onto the streets surrounding the Capitol building.  It’s a busy weekend and there are events on the snow almost constantly.  Nice to see the CXC women “own the podium!”

While my CXC counterparts were ripping around the Capitol, I was hammering some pretty hard skate intervals on the 4 x 10km relay course.  There is no official word yet, as to whether or not I’ll be skiing the relay on Wednesday, but I’m preparing as if I’ll be racing.

Our two sprint relay teams should be exciting tomorrow, with Kikkan Randall and Caitlin Compton pairing up for the women and Andy Newell and Torin Koos going for the men.  I’ll definitely be up at the venue watching these guys go out and hammer.  For now , it’s been a big weekend and I’m looking forward to a good night sleep to get ready for the week ahead.  Stay tuned!