Brrrrrr!

           Today's pursuit race got cancelled due to cold weather. Cold weather and Canmore seem to go together like "peas and carrots". Lets go back two weeks, when I was training here before Christmas and the daily high was -25. This cold weather lasted a good 10 days. 

     As I was skiing by myself down the banff trail, ridiculously slow, I started thinking about the Pro's and Con's of skiing in Bitchen cold weather. 

     Here's what I came up with.

       PRO's                                                                                     

                                                         - Waxing?? Yeah right!! I think                                                                                                                   I applied grip maybe twice in                                               

ten days. And I had awesome

grip!

- Ski loops take a really long 

time. I made a loop that took

1.5hr, where usually it takes

under an hour. 1 loop....and

I'm done my workout!!

- I really get to work on my

classic technique,,since that's 

basically all you can do when

its that cold.

- My eyelashes get all frosty,

and I get this sweet

 "Snow Ferry"

look. Ahhh Yeah!

- You get a sense of feeling 

hardcore. Battling the elements!!

- I'm basically the only crazy out

there skiing, so I get the whole 

nordic center trail system to 

myself. Mwa Ha Ha!

-Death to that friggen Pine Beetle!!

- I'm training with probably 20lbs

of extra clothes.

 When it warms up

and I'm dressing normally again, I feel

like I'm flying!!

CON's

-Skating??? Yeah right!! Glide

is non existent.

-Frostbite! If ya don't dress

appropriately, its 

gonna cost ya.

-Intensity and Racing....not gonna happen.

-Brrr! its cold!

        So, as you can see from my list, cold weather really isn't that bad. When it comes to training and racing I just think you have to learn how to dress appropriately. That 

being said, I thought I would share with you all EXACTLY what I was wearing out there in the freezing cold.

Let's start with a pic of all the clothes I wore.

That's a queen size bed...and my clothes take it all up!

Ammar's Outdoor Wardrobe 

- Heart rate monitor and watch

- 1 pair of Homer Simpson Underwear

-1 pink Nike sports bra

-1 pair thick auclair high socks

-1 Craft tank top

-1 Craft long sleeve top

-1 Craft short sleeve top

-1 Craft bottoms

-2 pairs racing bottoms

-1 pair warmup pants

-2 Halti warmup jackets

-1 Halti vest

-1 Sporthill training top

-1 Brooks toque

-2 buffs

-1 pair Adida's sunnies

-1 pair Auclair mittens

-1 Pair salomon boot warmers

- And finally...1 salomon drink belt, for that very important hydration.

          So there ya have it. Bundle up! If you don't, cold weather can be completely miserable. If your not into that, then option 2 is always good- huddle up with a cute teammate!

Stay Hot!

-Ammar