This episode of Extra Blue takes a look at the behind-the-scenes of World Cup ski racing with the support staff. Anna Giguere is a physical therapist and Cada Fabian is a high performance chef. Both are veterans with the USST as they were with the team in the weeks leading up to the 2022 Winter Olympics last year.

This season, they joined the team for the Tour de Ski and are continuing to support through a training camp in Seefeld, Austria as well as Period 3 of the World Cup. Not only do they keep world cup athlete and staff bodies together physically, they are also a huge part of the mental and emotional support system. They are always available for a smile and hug after a race, provide the best cheering, and are HUGE advocates of spa night.

Ben Ogden is a member of the US Ski Team, University of Vermont Ski team, and the SMS T2 club team. Ben is coming off a 6th place finish in the 10k Classic World Cup during the 3rd stage of the Tour de Ski. He is also a regular in the World Cup sprint semi-finals and I am sure we will be seeing this man on a podium in the near future. 

When Ben isn’t traveling around Europe for ski racing, he can be found on the UVM campus working on his masters in mechanical engineering, tinkering with his car, welding in his dad’s workshop, or mountain biking through the back trails of Southern Vermont. Ben brings a great perspective on ski racing; balancing the World Cup schedule with his college studies and competing at the NCAA level too!

Ben's instagram: @ben.0gden

Jessie is a 3x Olympic medalist for team USA. She is an advocate for mental health, eating disorder awareness, equal rights, getting the community outside in the winter and so much more! She uses her platform for GOOD to promote the Emily Program, Protect Our Winters, ShareWinter, and many other impactful organizations in the outdoor community.

Many of you already know her story as she shares on social media, her blog, and in her book Brave Enough. In this episode, we chat about Jessie the person, how she’s feeling about period one of the World Cup season, what she’s looking forward to in the upcoming races, and how she has learned over the years to trust the process.

Jessie's instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessiediggins/
Jessie's website: https://jessiediggins.com/
Brave Enough: https://jessiediggins.com/book/

Rosie is a member of the USST and a world cup podium skier. In this episode, we chat about the road to get there and how it wasn’t always smooth. Rosie has faced many obstacles in her career: knee surgery, her dad passing, mono, underperforming at the Olympics, all of which led to her being named on and off the national team. Despite this, Rosie has learned to process each setback and overcome adversity, while holding a respectful relationship with the national team.

This Klister Konversation is very relatable to me as I have found myself so close to achieving a national team nomination, an olympic team, certain world cup starts etc. It has been challenging over the years to maintain a healthy perspective on the decisions made and with the decision makers. We discuss defining our own self-value within the sport and how we can use setbacks to work toward greater goals.

Last year, Rosie wrote a blog article referenced in the episode: Why My Skiing Age is More Important than My Biological Age: https://www.rosiebrennan.com/post/why-skiing-age-is-more-important-than-my-biological-age

You can follow along with Rosie on her instagram @rosiebrennan.

Megan currently serves as the lead Sport Dietitian for the Craftsbury Outdoor Center, organizing nutrition provisions for the elite club programs of biathlon, rowing, running and XC skiing and supporting the Center’s seasonal dining hall menu development and execution. Megan continues to engage as a member of the USOPC Nutrition team, collaborating with fellow Olympic dietitians and contributing to internal educational documents, dietetic protocols, and performance nutrition best practices. Megan is passionate about using sport nutrition practices to encourage not just peak performance, but also sustainable, positive relationships with food and body image within athlete populations.

Megan believes:

There is no "good food" or "bad food" list, but rather a precedence on the times when making smart nutrition choices has the opportunity to help or hurt an athlete's training goals.

I have personal experience working with Megan; we have worked together to optimize my nutrition efforts around ski racing and training throughout the winter. In this conversation we discuss some over-arching nutrition requirements for winter athlete and then compare nutritional needs for elite, master and junior athletes.

Mentioned in the podcast:
Eat Right (Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics Website): https://www.eatright.org/
Examine (Peer-reviewed supplement/nutrient info): https://examine.com/
Team USA Nutrition Factsheets: https://www.teamusa.org/nutrition

Gus Schumacher is a professional cross country skier for Team USA. Born in Madison, WI but raised in Anchorage, Gus shares a little bit about his life living in Alaska. 

Gus has been on the National team and racing on the World Cup for many years now, but this year he’s sharing a little more upfront about his goals for the season. He recently wrote a blog about it on his website: https://www.gusschumacher.com/blog

Gus also shares his experience with the Men’s USST and how it has evolved over the years. He talks about Protect Our Winters, an organization that he is passionate about and a working advocate for the cause.

You can continue to follow along with Gus’s season on his social media: https://www.instagram.com/gus.schumacher/

This episode is sponsored by Gear West Ski & Bike Shop. Gear West is having it’s 8 Days of Deals sale. Now through Dec 5th you can get 20% off a select collection of items including Swix baselayers, Craft baselayers, Salomon boots, Bliz Eyewear, wax & tools, and so much more! Use the code 8DAYS at checkout when you shop the collection of 8 Days of Deals: https://www.gearwest.com/collections/eight-days-of-deals

On this Women Led Wednesday I welcome Abby Drach to the Extra Blue podcast. 

Women Led Wednesday occurs annually on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. The campaign was launched in 2018 with the intent to bring more awareness to business women and female entrepreneurs through the holiday season. Women are only 25% of executive and senior-level officials and managers, only 20% of board seats and only 6% of CEOs. In 2015 there were more CEOs named John than there were women of any name. If you're interested in supporting Women Led Wednesday you can learn more at: https://womenledwednesday.com/.

Abby is the founder of Indura Athletic, a female owned and inspired company that is on a mission to create ethically sourced athletic apparel that empowers and supports athletic women’s bodies. Rather than asking women to fit into clothes, Indura Athletic apparel fits clothes to women – making space for powerful lats, broad shoulders and strong legs. Through artfully designed, sweat-tested, and well-fitting apparel, women can tackle their workouts while feeling confident in their physique - whichever shape it takes. Abby is the perfect guest for this Women Led Wednesday! You can shop (sale) Indura Athletic at: https://www.induraathletic.com/. 

Julia Kern is a professional cross country skier for Team USA, my own teammate on the SMS T2 Ski Team, and my friend. She has many podiums to her name, from eastern cups in New England, to Junior Nationals, to World Juniors, and even on the World Cup. Despite her many accomplishments in the sport, Julia’s love for sports doesn’t end with skiing - an avid basketball player, surfer, mountain biker, rock climber, backcountry skier, the girl can do it all! On this episode, we chat about her story, growing up in Boston but learning to ski in Germany with her German grandparents. She also tells us about her first international race experience as a 14 year old, the obstacles she’s had to overcome from injuries, the effects of the Covid pandemic, and what she’s looking forward to as the season approaches.

I couldn’t think of anyone I would be more excited and comfortable with bringing on as my first podcast guest. I feel like Julia and I were chatting just the way we do when we’re training, traveling, or just hanging out together…. Please welcome, Julia Kern!

Welcome to Extra Blue! Extra Blue is a podcast about cross country skiing; sharing stories, race results, training insight, innovation in the sport, and inspiration for the next generation. Whether you’re an experienced racer competing at the highest level or a beginner getting out on fish scales, I hope to share with you the passion and love for this crazy sport.