Austrian National Champs

On Saturday we raced the 5/10km classic at  the Austrian National Championships.  The race was held at  Rettenbachalm, a little ski area in Bad Isch, Austria which was 15km up a single lane snowy road that bordered a steep drop-off into a raging brook.  It was really fun to experience a different kind of National Championships and one that was much more low-key than the races earlier this month in Rumford.   The field size was still relatively large but only because every Nordic skier in Austria, from J5s to Masters put on a bib. We showed up morning of the race and previewed the course which wasn’t closed during the races, raced and then won some local chocolate which we enjoyed with a hearty lunch of goulash soup.

The stadium at Rettinbachalm

Andy Newell and Kris Freeman in a train with some other Austrian skiers.

Chandra Crawford, the Austrian National Champion

Liz sprints to the finish