Eamon Wilson – Update from 6 months in Europe

My time in Europe started with the Nordic Canada Dev Team at the Equinor International Junior Camp. The team spent a week of high volume training with Juniors from all over the world in beautiful Sjusjøen, Norway. I met some great friends from all over Europe as we did long rollerskis through the countryside and run through the bog. A highlight of the camp was the accommodation that had grassy roofs and sheep roaming the property. Outside of training, we spent time doing team building games with the other countries, and learning Norweigan sayings. After a week of great rollerskiing technique, Olympics viewing parties and making new friends, I ended the camp with a 50km long run through the countryside with new Italian and American friends I made. Now, it was time to say goodbye to the team and haul all of my luggage to the arctic circle, and my new home for the rest of the year.

The trip to Sweden started off to a rocky start due to the amount of baggage I had brought, which resulted in my flatmate and I spending a day in Stockholm. All was not lost however as we were able to explore with a new Swedish friend I made on the plane. Eventually Finn and I made it to Kiruna, the northernmost town in Sweden, where we attempted to take the train to Gällivare. It was unfortunately fully booked by a Fjallraven party so we were picked up by our coach instead. Over the next few weeks we settled into the routine of going to the school practice during weekdays and training on our own on the weekends. We explored endless paths for rollerskiing, did disk golf and got to know the members of the team. Pretty soon, our Swedish friends headed to Canada for their exchange where they trained with the BC ski team, and we went to Pitea for our first dryland camp. Pitea is a beautiful ocean town and home of the Pitea Elite pro team. We enjoyed a 70km rollerski followed by sauna near the ocean. The days flew by as we skied, ran, and went to the gym with the team, and pretty soon it was time for our first on snow camp in Voukatti, Finland.

Snow came in early October for us up north, which led to an awkward period of there being too much snow to rollerski, but not enough to get on skis. We ended up doing quite a bit of training on the rollerski treadmill located at the ski stadium, but soon enough we were off on a long drive to Voukatti, which had the most extensive stored snow trail network I had ever seen. After an 8 hour drive to our Finnish neighbors, we shook out the legs with a run before checking in to the hotel near the trails (along with virtually every other skier in scandanavia). During this high-volume snow camp, I focused on getting a feel for the snow and technique development. Our routine was to do a morning ski, go in for lunch and rest, and then get back out on snow for an afternoon session. The track was being continuously expanded and improved on, so it was fun to be surprised each day as they excavated the huge pile of snow and created more trail. Once back from Voukatti, we were faced with some pretty icy conditions as the weather was cold but lacking in precip. Luckily the groomers worked their magic and with a bit of snowmaking, we had a great 3km loop to train on. We needed all the on-snow time we could get, because pretty soon it was time for our first race in Muonio, Finland.

Muonio was the Finnish season opener, which attracted athletes from all over Europe looking to race on snow. We traveled there with our teammates from the school, and stayed in a cabin for the weekend. Arriving at the race site, I was awestruck by how serious the competition was, spotting at double decker wax trailer and full television crews at the site. It was amazing to be in the same races as world cup skiers like Frederico Pellegrino and Iivo Niskanen. We were lucky to have heavy snowfall in the grey north of Finland, which made for quite a slow classic sprint qualifier. That night we used the sauna and jumped in the frozen lake as we prepped skis for the next race. The next race was a skate 10km which I felt went quite well for me. It was interesting racing so early in the season as the track was man-made and a little bit rocky. After an introduction to European racing, we returned to some beautiful conditions in Gällivare and continued to race every weekend.

Our next biggest race was in Idre, a picturesque ski town in the middle of Sweden. It was the first Bauhaus Cup where we would meet many Swedish skiers our age. After a 14 hour drive down south, we were greeted by a sprawling race site and an exciting winding course. The first race was a two-lap sprint race which made for an interesting experience, but my best race was the interval start 10km which I finished 7th in. We then took the long drive back to Gällivare where we had one last race weekend before I returned to Canada. This one was in Kiruna, the northernmost town in Sweden, which also happened to have no sunrise this time of year. It was a cold, dark race, but good practice for Thunder Bay. Back in town we had started Swedish lessons three times a week at the school. As the holidays drew closer, the small town was looking very festive, with a parade of decorated mining equipment rolling through the streets. The team organized some celebrations like secret Santa and a gingerbread house competition before we all left for break. As the daylight faded, I prepared for the trip home.

Back in Vancouver, it was great to be back at WOP and Hollyburn as I did my final prep for world junior trials. I was feeling strong and was lucky to have a bit of snow as a late Christmas present. I met up with the rest of the BC team at YVR and we made our way to Thunder Bay. The snow at Lappe was a little bit thin when we arrived but the organizers and volunteers did an excellent job at making some skiable loops. The first two days we spent doing race prep and testing skis to find the best pair for the classic sprint. The day of the first race was cold, and it would only get colder. The course included two brutal uphills that really burned the legs and made for a tough qualifier. Despite that, BC did quite well, with Finn winning the qualifier which guaranteed him a spot on the World Juniors team. After a quick break, the heats started and I battled my way through the open men’s quarter final, finishing fourth but not being able to secure lucky loser. The next race was the 20km mass start classic, so I spent some time that evening organizing feeds for each lap. The day of the 20km was a cold one, with most athletes wearing double base layers or even two race suits. The race had a chaotic start with over a hundred athletes bottlenecking into two sets of tracks. Eventually the race spread out and a lead pack formed. I held on for dear life as I watched the leaders lap through and grab feeds to stay energized during the race. My wax was holding well as I tried to stride efficiently up the long hills. As we reached the final lap, I gave everything I could to keep my ground as the line came into view. I finished 5th overall and first u20, getting a spot on the World Juniors team. It was an amazing race where almost everything went right, and I am so excited to have the chance to represent Canada in Italy!