Invitation to the IAWLS 2010 General Assembly
February 3, 2010
Invitation to the IAWLS 2010 General Assembly
15:00 Friday, March 5, 2010
Restaurant Kaprys
ul. Jednosci Narodowej 12, Szklarska Poreba, Poland
Directions: It is the center of Szklarska Poreba. Not far from the Restaurant Kaprys there is a parking place for cars. Last year it was the place, where we could receive the bibs. You can find the place on google (kaprys Szklarska Poreba).
The following documents are attached for your perusal: Agenda, President’s Report and Treasurer’s Report.
The Executive Committee hopes that you will be able to attend. Should this not be possible please complete the PROXY that was emailed to you and return it via email to bengt@worldloppetskier.com at least 2 weeks prior to the assembly, not later than February 20, 2010
We remind you that as per the statutes, only those whose membership was approved by the Executive Committee at least 2 weeks prior to the Assembly will be able to participate in the meeting and vote on any motions which are presented. If you have colleagues who are interested in IAWLS, they are welcome to attend the meeting as observers.
Dolomitenlauf 2010
January 28, 2010
Lienz did not have enough snow and Dolomitenlauf on January 24 was moved to Obertilliach, where the CT race Dolomitenclassicrace took place on January 23. The same 42 km course was used on both days. It was changed from last year. The 25 first km was the same, from the biathlon stadion down the valley to Untertilliach with numerous zig-zags on the first 15 km in the meadows below Obertilliach, and back to the stadion along the river. After passing the stadion the track went only about 2 km further up and back on an easy course. Last year’s upper loop was longer and included a hard climb. In the biathlon stadion the track used the tunnel and passed the start area, then followed the same course as in the first loop during about 11 km, which included most of the zig-zags, and finally returned on a 2 km connection track to the finish at the biathlon stadion.
It is obvious that the length of the course in previous years was considerably less than 42 km, but on the other hand the new course was easier for citizen skiers. The Silver races on Saturday and Sunday measured 25 km, i.e. they used the 25 first km of the Gold races. They were considerably more challenging than the previous year’s classic 20 km, or the 25 km race in Lienz.
The tracks were in excellent conditions on both days.
In the Dolomitenclassicrace on Saturday January 23 the weather was sunny and the temperature around -12°C at the start. In Dolomitenlauf on Sunday January 24 there were clouds and the temperature a little warmer.
Dolomitenlauf offered again a nice party with snacks and drinks, at the bib pickup location in Lienz.
We give hereafter the results of IAWLS members.
Dolomitenclassicrace, 42 km
Winner’s time 1.59.21
609 finishers
| John Plaice | AUS | 4.26.42 |
| Helga Nagl | AUT | 5.27.17 |
| Lois Nagl | AUT | 4.03.34 |
| Anrej Mindzac | CZE | 2.52.35 |
| Radek Ondryas | CZE | 3.21.04 |
| Mart Puusepp | EST | 4.51.30 |
| Aivi Tarvis | EST | 3.13.29 |
| Peeter Travis | EST | 2.45.35 |
| Kari Laaninen | FIN | 4.09.15 |
| Niko Meritahti | FIN | 3.25.58 |
| Jacques Broussou | FRA | 3.44.30 |
| Hervé Courtine | FRA | 3.16.13 |
| Hannes Larsson | FRA | 4.11.38 |
| Maurice Merle | FRA | 4.39.47 |
| Boris Petroff | FRA | 3.21.04 |
| Patrice Turlan | FRA | 4.15.17 |
| Berndt Bellmann | GER | 4.19.22 |
| Gitta Bellmann | GER | 4.57.06 |
| Mark Davies | GBR | 3.49.44 |
| Corrado Ampezzan | ITA | 4.14.35 |
| Alfonso Marrelli | ITA | 4.15.57 |
| Leo Lansbergen | NED | 2.37.35 |
| Steinar Kvaale | NOR | 2.20.26 |
| Malgorzata Eliasinska | POL | 4.02.33 |
| Sergei Ignatov | RUS | 2.42.56 |
| Lars-Ivar Bergman | SWE | 2.50.33 |
| Larry Larson | USA | 3.31.15 |
Dolomitenlauf FT 42 km
Winner’s time 1.43.17
459 finishers
| René Dufour | CAN | 2.22.15 |
| Radek Ondryas | CZE | 3.10.22 |
| Kari Laaninen | FIN | 3.36.46 |
| Hannes Larsson | FRA | 3.47.05 |
| Boris Petroff | FRA | 3.34.46 |
| Patrice Turlan | FRA | 3.55.46 |
| André Viry | FRA | 4.20.32 |
| Mark Davies | GBR | 3.14.51 |
| Leo Lansbergen | NED | 2.30.06 |
| Steinar Kvaale | NOR | 2.11.29 |
| Sergei Ivanov | RUS | 1.58.54 |
| Eric Zehtner | SUI | 2.45.17 |
| Tommy Berggren | SWE | 2.32.12 |
| Larry Larson | USA | 3.14.22 |
| Joseph Sehnal | USA | 3.26.26 |
| David Spencer | USA | 2.43.43 |
Long distance races in the 2009-2010 season
December 19, 2009
Are you looking for more races? Thomas Huber has put together a list of long-distance races all over the world. Wheather you want more races, variety of races or just something new, have a look at this table.
Inga-Laami ski race
contributed by Kristin Hanson
December 18, 2009
2009 Inga-Laami (Norway) 2009 was the first year for the Inga-Laami to be a part of the Worldloppet Silver medal races. This year there were approx 1500 women in the 30km race. This race was my 2nd Worldloppet race. The day of the race it was about -5C and light to medium snow falling.The Inga-Laami is an interesting race in the fact that all you must do is glide wax your skis and bring them to the start before the race for the Swix wax team to put race day kick wax on your skis. The race was well run for Norwegians and those who speak it but it had very little to no info available in any language other than Norwegian.
At the end of the race we went to get my passport stamped and none of the race representatives at Hakonshall were aware of the fact that the Inga-Laami was apart of the WL. We contacted WL in Italy and had to send the passport to the head WL office to be stamped. This was the first WL stamp for this race in it's inaugural year.
Letter to Vasaloppet
November 30, 2009
Dear Tommy,
Thanks for your answer of June 30, 2009, to our open letter of June 9, 2009. Your answer can be summarized in two claims: 1) The majority of Vasaloppet skiers do not want the start to be changed, 2) VL cannot change the start for technical reasons. Let us discuss these two points.
1) Opinion of Worldloppet skiers
Following your answer, we considered that it was timely to conduct an opinion poll about Vasaloppet’s start. The outcome was an overwhelming majority of 84.5% stating that they were unhappy with the existing start system and wanted it to be changed into a wave start or the “Ideal start”. Full details of the poll are found on www.worldloppetskier.com/.. together with a collection of typical comments from skiers.
2) Making the change
You discussed the problems connected with a wave start and said that it would be necessary to have a total duration of 2 hours for the start procedure. Your mathematics is wrong. We mentioned the 2004 Öppet Spår on Sunday; taking your number of 8000 skiers and observing that the flow of skiers took 45 minutes and no bottlenecks occurred, the extrapolation to Vasaloppet’s 15000 starters gives 90 minutes as a sufficient duration. You can certainly prolong the closing time in Mora by half an hour to 20:30. The elite can start at 7:30 instead of 8:00. A good motivation for this is tradition that Vasaloppet often refers to: the first Vasaloppet in 1922 started at 7:00! And finally, since the last starters do not lose any longer 45 minutes in the bottleneck, there you have more than the needed 90 minutes. With appropriate measures you can even prolong the starts to 2 hours.
You wrote that changing the start would negatively affect the logistics with buses, health care, etc. The transports logistics would be different but rather easier than now. With the 90 minutes duration also the lineups at the toilets would create less problems. Concerning health, a major defect of to-day’s start system is the necessity to sprint the first km. No medical expert has contested our claim that such a sprint, when you are not perfectly warmed up, is bad for health. Certainly, the presence of medical teams will be required for a longer total duration. So what? And we believe that the cost of extending the length of the electrically lit track is only a small fraction of the budget of 1 million Euros that Vasaloppet devotes to media and public relations each year.
Conclusions
We will not repeat here all the arguments that we presented in our open letter. Vasaloppet’s start system is unsportsmanlike and in breach of the FIS rules and Worldloppet’s high quality requirements. A further advantage of the Ideal start, besides removing the bottleneck, is that the last 86 km are much less crowded. On the top of the hill the time difference between the first and the last skier will increase by 45 minutes (90-45). An overwhelming majority of skiers require a change. It is a question of attitude: Vasaloppet should first recognize that there is a big problem and that consequently there is an absolute necessity to change the start. Then the solutions are found by such a competent organization as Vasaloppet. Final word:
Yes, you can!
Respectfully,
Hannes Larsson, president of IAWLS
Enquiry on Vasaloppet's start system
collected and edited by Lars Vagle
November 29, 2009
Vasaloppet is one of the worlds most popular skimarathons and attract thousands of skiers each year. Still there have for many years been complaints about the bottleneck at the start. Some have liked the start as it is and some have disliked it and want to change it. The International Association of Worldloppet Skiers (IAWLS) wrote in 2009 an open letter to Vasaloppet organizers and pointed out the problem with the start and how it could be improved. Vasaloppet replied but did not have the same opinion about the start. So during the summer and fall of 2009 IAWLS organized a poll among its members about the start.
The poll-participants are what we would call the most suitable experts in this matter that you can find. Among IAWLS member list of 326 members a little over 100 of them replied to the “Vasaloppet Start-system Poll”. The experience of these skiers are impressive. The average number of Worldloppet races done by them are 30. This makes them experienced Worldloppet skiers and capable of comparing races and telling what is good and what is not so good.
The questions of the poll were the following:
- How many times have you participated in Vasaloppet? (number)
- What wave do you usually start in?
- How many Worldloppet races have you performed? (circa number)
- Are you satisfied with today's start system of Vasaloppet?
- Do you prefer that Vasaloppet changes the start system and adopts a time interval wave start or the so called "Ideal Start"?
The numbers are clear.
As many as 84,5% do not like the Vasaloppet start as it is. They are not satisfied. From another poll-question we see that 84,5% want Vasaloppet to change it’s start into a timed interval wave start. 3% are not sure if they want a change and they are both supporters and not of today's solution. Each poll-entry is verified against IAWLS member list. Spams, fakes and duplicated entries have been removed.
To look deeper into the results we present some more “pivot-tables”.
Table 1: This table shows answers to question 4 and 5. The rows show if skiers were satisfied with the start system and compares this with the columns that show how the skiers would like to change the start system.
Table 2: This table shows the relationship between skiers start wave in Vasaloppet (shown in rows) and their opinion of changing the start system (the column headers). That’s question 2 and 5 combined.
Table 3: This is a bit more complicated table. The columns headers first show if the skiers are satisfied with today's start system (yes,no). Below each of these “Yes” or “No” we can see the opinion about changing the start, relating to the previous yes or no answer. These columns are then compared with the row headers that show how many times a skier has skied Vasaloppet.
There does not seem to be a correlation between the skiers' experience in VL and the way they answered. 85% of the 48 skiers who had skied only one VL wanted a change and 83% of those 6 skiers who had skied more than 13 VL wanted a change.
Bottom line:
This poll is a clear proof that a large majority of skiers are not satisfied with the Vasaloppet start and they want to have it changed.
Comments.
On the poll the participants were able to give their comments about the start. Here are some of those in an unedited format:
- The only WL race I did not complete. I will not return to race the Vasaloppet again unless the start is changed.
- I haven't done the Vasaloppet but I dearly hope they fix it before I do!
- Because of the congestion in Vasaloppet, I have decided to do the open track event in the future. This past season, I did both the open track and the Vasaloppet and found the open track to be much more relaxed.
- All the big races evolved in the sense of the quality, except the vasa which gives the impression of a event of the last century. The tradition costs only if it adapts itself to the modernity.
- It is time for a change.
- Wave starts have been very successful at the American Birkebeiner for years. I fail to understand how the organizers of the Vasa are unable to visualize how much more smoothly their event would run utilizing an 'ideal start' system. I will be hesitant to make the long journey to Sweden from America until a better starting system is adopted.
- I think, a start system like "Birkebeinner in Norway , would be better.there is approximately the same number of skiers(14000)
- I have stopped participating because of the ridiculous start. I raced the Oppet Spar once and enjoyed it tremendously. Unfortunately it cannot be done anymore because it is on the same days as the Finlandia OR no time available to travel from Finland to Mora. For me Sweden/Vasaloppet is one country not on my list anymore. In 1986 I was in wave 4 and estimated it cost me 15min on my predicted time <5:30 . I only just made the gold medal instead of comfortably.
- A lot of my fellow Swedes think that the frustrating queues are part of the experience and "charming". I think they are stupid.
- I skied the Open Track Vasaloppet race to avoid the start problems with the Vasaloppet.
- It's possible to start at 7h40 - 7h45 instead of 8h and to have 18 waves
- Next time I will do óppet spar
- The stand after the start make cool and nervous
- I've done the Oppet Spor instead of the Vasaloppet because of the problems with the start.
- I would participate more frequently if the start system were improved.
- The current system appears to be largely a revenue raising exercise for the race organisers from those who start in the last wave as few can hope to complete the race within the time limits
- I won't participate again to Vasaloppet as long as the start will not be changed... even if I was very proud to participate to this well-known race of the world !
- I defenitely would prefer a wave start similar to the Marcialonga. Great solution ! Best regards Jochen (1 vasa 3 øppet spor)
- I my experience of almost 20 worldloppet races, I was most disappointed in the start of the Vasaloppet. The Vasaloppet to me is the pinnacle of cross country skiing and world loppet and thus my expectations are high. Having a bottleneck so close to the starting line doesn't make sense and as has been recorded elsewhere concern. I am even unsure if the "ideal start" would be sufficient given the proximity of the bottleneck to the start. Perhaps move the starting point.
- I was greatly impressed by the fluid start and easier hill climb of the Oppet Spar in 2004. The start and hill climb of the Vasaloppet definitely need to consider the participants in later waves. Happy skiing.
- One VL race only as I usually do Oppet Spar to avoi bottleneck
- I would like to do the Vasa again using a wave start. In the meantime I will do the oppet spar at least once. Subject to that experience i will decide my future trip plans. I will not do another Vasaloppet unless the system improves.
- I have participed at the oppet spar and I think that is a good formula to avoid the traffic jam. We can inspire it.
- Going a long way to that sport event (cost & time), and especially at my age (59) I have also to consider it as a party and a friendly event. So I consider that spending hours in the departure area is quite unfair!
- will not do the race again until they change the start system to the "ideal" or Italian system. I was at the Marcialonga the first year they used it and it was really good. Great way to start a race,
- I take part in the Oppet Sp¨¨or just to avoid the Vasaloppet's bottleneck
- I participated in the Oppet Spar in 2006, intentionally avoiding the Vasaloppet due to all the bad stories of other skiers I've talked regarding the start.
- There are multiple reasons to change the start of the Vasaloppet. The inability of the racecourse to accomodate the thousands of skiers starting at once causes a notorious back-up; creates frustration and hostility that is counter to the spirit of Worldloppet; and causes skiers to become cold while waiting and potentially injured; as well as damage to equipment -- I had a ski pole broken by another skier stepping on it in my very first Vasaloppet.
- The problems at the start are the only thing that keeps me from returning. Other than the start this is the best citizen race in the world
- The present system is unfair to all beginners in 8-10 groups who have a 30-45 minutes delay standing in the first hill, and can hardly improve the seeding to better groups!
- As a small female I find the current vasaloppet start system threatening. I just try and survive without getting run over by the enthusiastic skiers behind me who are able to sprint short distances to the hill but then end significantly slower than me by the finish of the race. Marcialonga and Birke starts are significantly less threatening and allows me to go at my own pace from the beginning to achieve my best result.
- Make the start as in Poland 2009 it was perfect
- I have not yet done the Vasa but the change seesm to make sense.
On the other side. This are some of the comments from the skiers satisfied with the Vasaloppet start:
- I'm an Elite skier, but, it's unfair for non Elite skiers to start in wave 10. Even wave 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2 blocks up on the long uphill 1km after the start. The waiting and extremely slow progress on that long and interminable uphill is not fair. I know about from friends who aren't seeded up front. It's Vasaloppet biggest turn-off.
- I feel that each Worldloppet Race has its own character, which is what makes doing the Worldloppet so interesting. Therefore, I think the Vasaloppet should continue with its present start system.
- Today system is part of Vasaloppet its unforgetable.They have also very good seeding system what helps a lot.
- I think it's part of the tradition and 90 kms is long enough to let the race sort itself out.
- C'est parfait....
- I only participated in the short Vasaloppet race (the Kortvasan) & generally happy with the organisation.
The Lapponia Week 2009
by Hannes Larsson
October 23, 2009
I had heard enthusiastic descriptions about this event over a number of years, by skiers from France, Germany, Italy, USA and many other countries, but paradoxically, I hade never experienced it myself. This shortcoming in my XC skiing career was at last repaired in 2009.
The Lapponia Week takes place, as one can guess from the name, in Lapland, Finland. It takes place end of March/early April and consists of three races: 60 km on Monday, 50 km on Wednesday and 80 km on Friday. The location is in Muonio, not far from the Swedish border and 200 km north of the Arctic Circle. Springtime in Lapland is nice with long days and no bitter colds as in the middle of the winter. Snow is abundant.
This year the races were on March 30, April 1 and 3. The weather was fine with temperatures a few degrees below freezing, except the last day when we had -12°C at the start. In daytime the temperatures approached 0°C but the snow remained a pleasant powder snow, no need of klister for classic skiers. These races are FT races, a classic track was available for CT skiers. It is to be noted that this year, for the first time, the organizers had planned to repeat the same program one week later as purely CT races. But the CT week was cancelled because of too few registrants.
We had a fine weather during the whole week with light snow fall a couple of times. The first race day was cloudy but a radiant sun made the second and third days unforgettable experiences on the Lapland hills called tunturi. We are here in the area of the West Lapland tunturis. They are round mountains, sometimes isolated, sometimes grouped. Although they are not very high (the highest point is around 800 m a.s.l.), they rise 300-400 m above the tree limit of the relatively flat surroundings and their treeless tops are visible from far away; similarly, the view from the tunturis encompasses a wide area.
The 60 km race on Monday is called Keimiön Kiekerö (circle around Keimiö). It starts and finishes at the Olos hotel. The course is mostly in forests, with some nice climbs. It includes a couple of lake crossings that may become boring after a while and you welcome the variable terrain when you at last reach the other shore.
On the second day skiers are transported by bus to the start area of the 50 km race called Himmelriikin Hiihto (the race of heaven’s realm). This race (as the two other races) starts across a lake; that gives enough space for the mass start and allows the line of skiers to extend, avoiding bottlenecks along the course. It is the shortest race but just after the lake there is the biggest climb of the whole week, about 300 m on a distance of 2 km. After the top (breathtaking views), you enjoy the biggest descent of the whole week, a couple of km on the other side of the tunturi. Finish at the Olos hotel.
The third day is the 80 km Karra Huikonen. Karra is a saame word meaning hard. Huikonen is a popular word meaning something like Odyssey or challenge. Skiers are transported by bus to the start area. After some 10 km of variable terrain, begins a long but progressive climb to the tunturis. At one point you ski in a canyon-like section after which you reach the treeless area that you enjoy for at least 10 km. From far away, skiers preceding you or behind you look like ants. A long, fast and easy descent leads you back to the forested area. The track joins the course of Himmelriikin Hiihto 30 km from the finish.
Attached are four pictures showing:
- Renzo and Stefano Perfumo (ITA) 15 min before the start, Himmelriikin Hiihto
- Finish at the Olos hotel
- The “canyon”
- The tunturis
In the 2009 events about 450 skiers finished the race each day. Around 15 % of them were women and approximately the same percentage were foreigners. In addition half distance races were available; these attracted about 30 skiers on the two first days and 80 the third day.
The best place to stay is the Olos hotel, 5 km from the centre of Muonio. Cheaper accommodation is available nearby. From southern Finland it takes a full day to drive to Muonio. Many skiers fly to Kittilä from where buses take you to Muonio, distance 80 km. Lapponia’s website is www.lapponiahiihto.fi (you can choose an English and a German version); it includes a video.
My conclusion is that the Lapponia week is a must for serious XC skiers.
The No. 1 Worldloppet Lady
October 3, 2009
Blanka Nedvedická (CZE) obtained her 6th WL Master at Bieg Piastów in March 2009. For several years Blanka and Lludmila Kolobanova (RUS) had the same number of Masters, however in 2009 Lludmila finished her season with 9 stamps in her sixth passport. But she plans to get both the 6 and the 7 next year. Since Blanka also plans to achieve her number 7 next year, we will observe in the coming years a fierce (but friendly) competition between the most assiduous female WL skiers.
Blanka, born in Rakovnik (CZE) in 1962, is well known to WL skiers. You have seen her helping with translation at the famous Jizerská Padesátka pasta parties, and in the Bedrichov tourist office that she managed during several years. In fact, her responsibilities included the biking/ski trail network in the whole Jizera area, and raising money for the maintenance of the ski trails (200 000 Euros each season). She planned and realized the connection between the ski tracks of the Czech Jizera mountains and those of the Polish Jizera mountains. Connecting people! If you skied last March the Bieg Piastów race, you probably ignored that you passed very close to the easternmost point of the Czech race. Blanka was co-founder of the registered IAWLS association and acted during several years as a committee member.
Blanka is a fast skier and has obtained top rankings in WL races. In 2003 she won the Dolomiten Champion title – Dolomitenlauf and Dolomiten Radrundfahrt combination. In 2006 she won the ladies’ 50 km CT race at La Transjurassienne. She has also won the combined ski/mountain bike event in her home country and obtained the Velká Královna (Great Queen) prize. Hard to believe that she was asthmatic as a teenager!
But all that is maybe only the visible part of the iceberg. Blanka is also an alpinist. In her twenties she made with another Czech girl the first winter ascension of Torre d’Aleghe in the Civetta north face of the Italian Dolomites. And she was member of the first woman team to climb the Freney Route on Mont Blanc. Connoisseurs are dumbfounded by these exploits. Blanka participated and summited in three Czech expeditions to over 7000m peaks in Asia. Once, while climbing Annapurna she was buried with her climbing partner during 5 hours under an avalanche from which they escaped miraculously by digging their way out with bare hands. With three Polish girls she participated in an all female expedition that created a new climbing route to the north summit of Huascarán (6662m) in the Andes.
After several years devoted to family, Blanka made a brilliant comeback to alpinism in 2008 by climbing with a Czech colleague Zdenek the Denali (Mount McKinley, 6194m). Denali is not very high but it is a dangerous mountain that has cost the life of more than 100 alpinists. It is located in Alaska only 3 degrees south of the Arctic Circle and the weather on the mountain can be very bad. After the summit reached on May 22, on the way down Blanka and Zdenek had to spend three days in a tent in a storm blowing at 150 km/h, at a temperature of -45°C (data recorded by the rangers). The temperature inside the tent was -15°C. During those three terrible days Zdenek froze his fingers. For non-experts it is difficult to imagine the difficulties of such an expedition. For example, one may wonder why the tent was not blown away, gone with the wind. Well, the answer is that Blanka had carefully planned all the details of the expedition and the equipment. They surrounded the tent by a snow wall. But the Denali snow is not the snow you have in your backyard, or on WL tracks. They had of course a shovel but it was unusable in that particular place, so they cut the snow with a snow saw, an indispensable tool for candidates to Denali! Why did they not build an igloo, since everybody knows that the temperature inside igloos is 0°C? Blanka explains that you can make an igloo in good weather conditions, not in severe frost when a strong wind is constantly blowing. Zdenek was transported from the camp at 4300m by a small helicopter to a hospital and his fingers were saved. Blanka descended in two days 50 kg of climbing equipment to Kahiltna Glacier and from there back to civilization. Two pictures from the Denali expedition are shown here: the Kahiltna Glacier and the ridge of the west buttress.
17th Edition of 100 km Rucksacklauf Black Forest / Germany.
by Thomas Huber
September 27, 2009
Saturday 14.02.2009 was for many skiers the day of winter 2009. After 2 years cancellation, the 17th edition of the traditional 100 km Rucksacklauf could start again. This is the heaviest one day cross country race. Here are some points which underline that statement.
- 100 km from Schonach to Belchen.
- 7 am start in darkness.
- Each skier must wear a bag with 4 kg.
- Only 2 official food stations along the 100 km
- Parts between which are not possible to prepare with machines.
- Some street crossings, often put ski in the hand and cross streets.
- 2300m to climb up.
- Lowest point 800m, highest point 1450m, different temperatures, snow conditions.
- Longest uphill with 600m after km 60.
This is not a normal ski race, this is kind of adventure, finishing is the goal. There is the choice to stop at 60 km, this is the old distance of the Black Forest marathon. Possibility for the ones who are not so fit and for the ones who miss time limits.
This year 330 started. 15-20 cm new snow in the morning did harden the race. Deep and soft tracks on the first 35 km, And it was really slow snow. Hard work and it was clear that not more than 100 will reach the finish after 100 km. Style is classic, that make sense in that difficult terrain. Winning time of 60 km was 4.06 hour, average under 15 km/h, no more comment. Seven from my ski club started, but six didn't reach 60 km before the time limit or were not able do continue the last 40 km. So I was a lonely fighter. After problems on the first 30 km I got better and better, also my skis. After 4.20 hours I passed km 60. Here I was on place 20. I decided to rewax ski with warmer wax for better grip on the following 13 km long uphill to Feldberg. It was a lonely race against wind, no company and thousands of thoughts and questions. It was my 4th time. Over the mountain Feldberg is the hardest part, sometimes just walking, no running. Sometimes you don’t know how to ski. In the partially hand-made track you cant go up with V-style (to small), poles are going 1 meter into the snow (Feldberg area has nearly 2 meter of snow this winter).
I passed some more skiers and I felt good. Without any falling I reached after 7.55 hours the finish on place 16. About 40 min. behind the winner. I was happy, but I realized again my limits. 93 men and 2 women reached the finish with in the limit of 10,5 hours.
More information under www.schonach.de/fernskiwanderweg/
Rain and Thunder on Kangaroohoppet 2009
September 7, 2009
Kangaroohoppet is different from other Worldloppet (WL) races. What a joke, you may think: it is the only WL race in the southern hemisphere. That is not what I mean, of course. Kangaroohoppet is different because of the peculiar weather conditions in the Australian Alps. Usually there is a lot of snow and Kangaroohoppet is one of the very few WL races that have never been cancelled. Conditions are extremely variable in this area (even in Melbourne it is said that you can have four seasons during the same day) but the organizers have a series of variants to replace the normal 8-shaped course in case of problems. Skiers with a long memory state that they have skied at least seven different courses over the last 10 years.
This year abundant snowfalls had provided an over 1 m thick base. However, in August warm temperatures and heavy rains had strongly reduced the layer and especially the passing of creeks posed problems. During the week preceding the race that took place on August 29, we had rain, snow and wind making training painful. Two days before the race the organizers announced the decision: because of the predicted weather, it was impossible to go up on the high plains. The race was shortened to 25 km consisting of three loops:
Start in the Nordic Bowl as usual, the 7 km Sun Valley loop, crossing the dam wall on the water side, the loop to Watchbed Creek with a return on a slightly higher track with some small climbs and descents, crossing the dam wall on the valley side and passage at the Nordic Bowl (here the 14 km Silver race Birkebeiner finished), a climb to the Pipeline road that was followed until a point situated just above Windy Corner, from there a climb to Mc Kay Road and finally a second Sun Valley loop with finish in the Nordic Bowl.
Kangaroohoppet started at 9.30, followed by Birkebeiner at 9.40 and Joey Hoppet at 9.50. The latter was the usual 7 km course with only one Sun Valley loop. Conditions were as predicted: above 0°C, rainy, windy and foggy. Visibility was limited with the worst conditions occurring on the return track from Watchbed Creek where one could hardly see the track. Here small invisible bumps and troughs led to many falls, without gravity. About 1h 40 min after the start a thunderstorm hit the brave citizen skiers who were struggling on the second Sun Valley loop (while the elite skiers had finished the race in less than 1h). At one point one had to lower the head to avoid being whipped in the face by big ice-cold drops catapulted by the storm horizontally. At the finish, the boots said flip flop and the clothing was soaked.
The organizers were sorry for the bad weather conditions. Indeed, it was a pity that Europeans and Americans who had travelled halfway around the world could not enjoy the blue skies that we have often reported in the past. But the weather is not under the control of the organizers. They showed again a remarkable flexibility and took the right decisions. The track was as good as it could be and every detail of the organization worked perfectly. Participants took the adverse conditions with humor. For example, when preparing in the hotel room the items to be carried to the start, I showed my sun cream and said that we presumably will not need it. My roommate Lino said: “maybe it will be useful on our bald heads to make the rain flow over it”. Those who finished the race can proudly state that racing 25 km in such adverse conditions proved that they are fit for any long WL race in normal conditions.
The 2009 Kangaroohoppet attracted a record number of participants.
A nice reception with wine and snacks was offered to WL passport holders.
Here are some results of IAWLS members'
Kangaroo Hoppet 25km, 353 finishers, 271 male and 82 female:
| Judy Barnes | AUS | 2:18:59 |
| Rod Clutterbuck | AUS | 1:33:58 |
| Marg Hayes | AUS | 1:44:32 |
| Doug Jackson | AUS | 2:06:50 |
| Micheal Leaney | AUS | 2:03:58 |
| Susan Luscombe | AUS | 2:29:40 |
| Robin McLennan | AUS | 2:04:45 |
| Diana Patterson | AUS | 2:37:38 |
| Mark Purcell | AUS | 1:33:58 |
| Bruce Wharrie | AUS | 1:59:52 |
| Grant McLeod | CAN | 1:57:11 |
| Robert Palliser | CAN | 1:41:36 |
| Hannes Larsson | FRA | 1:58:03 |
| Boris Petroff | FRA | 1:39:11 |
| Isabelle Petroff | FRA | 2:27:40 |
| Andre Viry | FRA | 2:24:38 |
| Mark Davies | GBR | 1:59:22 |
| Berndt Bellmann | GER | 2:18:44 |
| Ira Bellmann | GER | 2:48:18 |
| Akina Isomura | JAP | 2:04:21 |
| Minoru Matsuyama | JAP | 1:47:26 |
| Ingebjorg Nordby | NOR | 2:37:17 |
| Richard Lovik | SWE | 1:40:33 |
| Torgny Nordstrom | SWE | 2:26:45 |
| Paul Reznick | USA | 2:15:04 |
| Jay Wiener | USA | 1:54:32 |
Birkebeiner 15km, 243 finishers, 133 male and 110 female:
| Bob Cranage | AUS | 0:58:57 |
| Naomi Shipperlee | AUS | 1:37:26 |
The No. 1 Australian, John Miller
August 26, 2009
In February 2008, at La Transjurassienne, John Miller obtained his fourth Master and became the foremost Australian. Who has not seen the jovial John at some Worldloppet race? Indeed, John is also a Global WL Skier; he is listed as the 30th skier in the world having accomplished all WL races.
John was born in Melbourne in 1930. It would be too long to give the full list of John’s academic and professional achievements. He first became a certified accountant at the age of 24, later he completed his Ph.D. John started his career as an accountant for the Wangaratta Woollen Mills Ltd. In Wangaratta, the biggest town in NE Victoria, he commenced skiing with the famous Wangaratta Ski Club, one of the first in Australia. Then he lived in UK and Canada for six years and continued his snow romance. Later he has acted as Dean of a Business School that is now part of Monash University - Australia’s largest university.
The rest of his career was in companies and governmental appointments: Director of Consumer Affairs for the Victorian Government, Dean of another business school, CEO of a company etc. Although John stopped full time work in 2000, he has now a portfolio of Directorships from Government and the private sector, concerning mainly water and education. Two of these duties are connected to skiing as a Director of Lake Mountain Ski Resort and Mt Baw Baw.
The photos we have of John illustrate his character. The first two pictures show his sense of humor; a picture from the Kangaroohoppet (the hair is not his own!) and John helping us model the logo of IAWLS. The other two show him skiing in the Engadin valley and in La Transjurassienne.
On skiing John is inexhaustible. Let us listen to his words:
Wangaratta Ski Club has produced four Olympians and consequently we all aspired to do some international events. Del Welsh’s husband Graham and her brother in law Norm Allan were early pioneers of international racing. I was inspired by them. Of course, we all did Kangaroo Hoppet each year. My first Worldloppet trip was in 1990. What a disaster: all races cancelled!
But in 1993 I did the Canadian short races and in 1995 completed my first Japanese race. After retirement from full time work I was able to travel more freely and again met up with friends of the WL races whom I had met in Australia initially - especially Hannes Larsson, Paddy Field, Bengt Karlsson, Robert Palliser and Akira Komori - all who had stayed with the hospitable Del and Graham in their Falls Creek apartment or at Howmans Gap Hostel. I achieved my first Silver Master award in 2003 and the other three through to 2008 when I also got the GWLS. I am now in the schedule to complete #5 in 2010.
I like each WL race because they are all different. But I particularly like those that do a circle route beginning and ending at the same place – thus Koenig-Ludwig-Lauf, Finlandia Hiihto, Japan, Kangaroo Hoppet etc. I also prefer races that are accessible to public transport and have some cultural life, such as Marcialonga. I also like the events that my non-skiing wife Ruth appreciates – she is fluent in French and Spanish and she likes the Engadin and Marcialonga especially! So we go there.
As to keeping fit: walking, swimming, cycling, jogging are mine… and good food…a good reason I love the Transjurassienne, French regional wines and cheeses are tops, as we Aussies love those delicacies…and the French admire our cyclists!
I do not intend to stop skiing…because as I say to non skiers: “If you can walk, you can ski!” The Worldloppet is one of the great things in my life… in addition to 11 grandchildren. It keeps us fit and we have so many friends. Ski the world and see the world!
Race evaluation
January 27, 2009
We are introducing a new tool that should facilitate the way you express your comments and opinions about Worldloppet races. It is a comprehensive questionnaire covering all aspects of races that are of our interest. If you want to criticize, praise or just comment any aspect of the race please fill in the appropriate box and submit it. You do not have to fill in all the boxes, just the item that is of your interest. At the end of the season we shall compile all the remarks and send a letter to race organizers passing on your opinions. Your comments will be of great value to us. Look for the Race Evaluation link at the left of the page.
Communicate
You can write to the Executive Committee, iawls@worldloppetskier.com . All questions, comments and suggestions are welcome. The Executive Committee can read e-mails in 12 languages: Czech, Danish, English, Esperanto, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish and Swedish. We have also main correspondents in Russia who can help us with the Russian language.
This page was last revised on February 5, 2010