Moving East

Hi All, this is Maria Stuber writing my first blog post as a Craftsbury Green Racing Project athlete.  I’m up at the Outdoor Center for my third week of training with the team.  Since I moved out East in January, I have been doing a lot of training on my own and it feels really good to be back in a group.

GRP Newbs, Clare and Maria, climbing Mt. Mansfield on Sunday's OD run

Bryan Cook and I are living and working in the Bennington, VT area and coming up to live and train at Craftsbury as much as possible.  It is the first time either of us has lived outside of the Midwest.  We certainly miss the homeland, but have had an easy transition since the discovery of Kevin’s Sports Pub and Restaurant, a Packer Bar in North Bennington.

I have a full time job at Southern Vermont College as the Cross Country Coach.  Bryan is working at a really nice restaurant called Pangaea Lounge.  We live directly across the street from Prospect Mountain and we can ski and run on trails from our front door.  Although I will always be a Midwesterner at heart, I’m slowly learning to love the Green Mountains and I think I might stay for awhile.  Life is good.

There is always a lot going on at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center.  I’m really looking forward to being able to coach at some of the summer camps here.  The staff is phenomenal.  Lynn Jennings is the running camp director and she is letting me help with the running camps throughout the summer.  There is a Bill Koch League Ski Camp going on all this week that the GRP athletes are putting on, and I’ll be coaching at our new Women’s Fitness Weekend starting Friday.

Thanks for all of my pals at CXC for the outstanding support I have received the past few years.  I will miss you lots.  Thank you also to Judy Geer, Dick Dreissigacker, Pepa, and everyone at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center for the opportunity to continue ski racing in the East and for hosting the GRP.