A Different Kind of Fall

Hello from Vermont! Most of the SMS T2 team is in the process of returning to Vermont after Park City camp, but I've pretty much been here since New Zealand. Skipping Park City camp was a hard decision to make, but after a quick turn around between New Zealand and PC camp, getting very tired at altitude last fall, and doing some tests this spring that confirmed training at high altitudes can make it very hard for me to recover, I decided to stay in Vermont this fall and try to put myself in a place where I feel well rested and confident going into the season rather than risk digging myself into a hole of tireds. I love Park City camp, seeing my U.S. Ski Team teammates, and taking an annual mini trip to the desert each fall, but this year is an important one, and I figure if there is one year to be smart about it, this is probably it. And honestly, it's been really nice! It actually only ended up being about two weeks of training without teammates, and I wouldn't want to do anymore than that, but training on my own schedule, at my own pace, with my own thoughts was pretty darn nice for a couple weeks. It didn't hurt that the weather has been pretty perfect back east and with the exception of a couple rainy days, I've still been enjoying t-shirts and sunshine.

Cat time

Running on the AT

Hiking in Stowe with Mae

Apple picking

Running through the leaves

Boston Ski Ball with Ida and some young fans

Summit selfie on Monadnock on the way home from Boston

Foliage left and right

I did sneak in a quick trip out to Colorado to visit Simi and his family and go to one of our friend's weddings. It was the perfect fix of mountain adventuring and spending time with CO friends to last me until spring. Paddy and his girlfriend Anne came and visited for a day and we hiked Paddy's first 14er (my second) and got to romp around in some early season snow.

Lost Man Loop with Sim

Hiking up Castle with Paddy, Anne, Linden, and Sim

Golden Aspens covered in snow

Heading up!

We leave for Europe in just under a month and I'm looking forward to having most of my teammates back in Stratton. We have a couple more weeks of solid training in Vermont and then we are going to head up to Quebec to get on snow for a few days in the beginning of November. After that, we have ten days to prepare for another winter in Europe and before we know it, we'll be racing!

My favorite season in Vermont

Lunch in downtown Peru with Mae