Happy Father's Day, Pops!

From watching fireworks in the park

To taking me to the ball game, both to practice and play or to dream

For helping me find my own wave to ride, even when the ocean was a thousand miles away

You always encouraged me chase the white buffalo, wherever that may lead

I might be across the country now, in the other Washington

But sometimes its the simplest of saying that carry the biggest meaning: Happy Father's Day Pops!

#howibean: Pacific Northwest Edition

The classic L.L. Bean tote (with custom ITA logo, no less)
filledwith shirts for Mr. Haberberger's 6th graders at Orchard.

Outside of the competition arena, perhaps the coolest part of being an Olympian comes in the opportunity and influence you have on the up-and-coming generation. It's for this reason, I have been plenty proud to be a part of In The Arena for the past seven years. Following an Olympiad like Sochi, I feel the power of positive influence is doubly enhanced.

Taking in the final spectacle before turning the Games over to the Paralympians.

During this time, In The Arena has grown in strength, influence, and numbers. During this time, plenty of companies have wanted to join in. But only L.L. Bean and the vision of ITA have met in perfect harmony. I couldn't be happier. I know L.L. Bean from my early days, packing up the groceries in the classic red-handled tote bags. Almost 30 years later, my mom still puts those tote bags to good use.

I've picked up a couple of my own, and have been sporting them as I have visit schools, ski clubs, Boys & Girls Clubs, and YMCA's, from Astoria, Oregon to the Wenatchee Valley, to Winthrop, Washington all throughout May this year.  Now that the calendar turns to June, I've done a little accounting: nine schools in four school districts; two states, two ski teams, two community events. Looking back, I probably could have snuck in a couple more, but I'm proud to say it's been my most productive month ever as a community mentor. It's been a very nice bonus to have L.L. Bean along for the ride.

I was particularly stoked that I was able to join forces with fellow ITA'er Brian Gregg and visit the skiers from the north country in the Methow Valley. Flash, Laura, and Leslie were very positive influences on my early days skiing, and it was great to see the excitement such a small community has for nordic skiing. It's not hard to understand how a valley with 1916 residents produced three-point-five Olympians in Sochi.  

A small collection of the US ladies' infamous storm-trooper
white L.L. Bean boots. Made in Maine, lifetime warranty.
I rock a pair of these as well, only in a more-muted brown.

Go William Go. A kindergartener from Astor Elementary
attacks the post-Opening Ceremony skills session with
some serious skill. No wonder Landon Donovan got
 left off the 2014 World Cup Team.

                                     

To the best of times.
       And those that will be.
                                    -Torin

Rolling

One of the best ancillary benefits of chasing the ski racing dream comes in travelling. Living a little like a gypsy might not always be peaches-and-cream, but it is the perfect way to meet new friends and old, and to broadens one's perspective. Come springtime, I try to take these memories from the races and the road, and pass what I can onto the schools and classes I visit. With this in mind, here is a little intro video I put together to help share in the stories. Put to Johnny Cash's rendition of I've Been Everywhere, of course.

Snowbirds

My last day in the Nation's Capitol was jammed packed. I got up early and got in a run into the Georgetown neighborhood, along the Potomac River, then through the National Mall in Washington DC. Once I got back, it was soon time to head to the USA Today / Gannet Media offices across the river in Virginia. As I was coming from DC, the managing editor of the sports page picked me up right outside my hotel. I couldn't almost believe it, and made for a great way to learn a little bit more about the communication industry. From the managing editor and her team; from the most read section of the most read paper in America, no less.

While at USA Today, I got to shadow reporters as they had their daily meetings about when they expected to write and add articles to their online offerings. Most of the time, though, the conversations centered over what articles, graphics, and images would make the print edition. Between meetings, different journalists would take me aside, and show me what they were working on. Filing open records requests, investigative journalism, determining online layout, editorial decisions, designing for digital readership today and tomorrow were all areas I got to go and peak behind the curtain. Many thanks for Roxanne Scott, Mary Byrne, and many others at USA Today. 

After DC, I headed for Arizona. My grandparents are snowbirds, calling the Twin Cities of Minnesota their home during the summer months, and Arizona their refuge when the cold weather, snow and ice hit their home state. My favorite time of the day in Arizona are the evenings. During the day, the heat just hits you so hard, but the nights are just about perfect. When the sun starts setting, I always head out and do something, be it running a few miles, hitting a bucket of balls, or catch up with friends I haven't seen for far too long on the telephone.

The last day in Arizona, I was helping my Grandma out with some of the ins-and-outs of the digital world. We came along some old photos. Here's one of my favorites, from the late 1950s at Clear Lake, Minnesota.  

To Hab's 6th Grade Class at Orchard Elementary, I'm getting closer to my return! To the best of times, and those that will be.

Life on the Nation's Capitol

So much about sports is the hard stuff, the hours spent running and roller skiing, the tiredness that seeps into the body from all the training, or the feelings of disappointment that can linger when one does not fully reach their potential in a competition. Fortunately, the Team USA visit to the White House is not like this. At all. The US Olympic Committee really takes care of the returning Olympians. I got flown in to the nation's capitol from Zurich, picked up at the airport, and ushered to a Hilton on the Virginia side of Washington D.C.

The first day in the Nation's Capitol, I was whisked away to Capitol Hill. It was fascinating to see the U.S. Congress in action.  While so many times it might not seem like the political system doesn't feel like it's working, I can tell you Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Amy Kobluchar (D-Minn.) were operating at some of the highest levels I've seen in business or politics.

The Hill just hummed with the energy of efficiency and purpose. And what looked like the just about all the young, hungry, over-worked, under-paid interns in America. A peak into a different world, for sure.

Who knew walking the Senate halls I'd run into the moose.  Also interesting, every Capitol Hill member I met not-so-subtlety mentioned that on the close of the business week in DC they were on a plane back to their home constituents. Every week.

Another cool point of mention is how both Team USA and the Olympic movement is the respect of opportunities given to Paralympians. The Olympic movement prescribes to the Greek (and not English) meaning to the prefix para:  "at or to one side, beside, side by side." When you think about it, this is a refrain of the most beautiful quality. 

On April 7th, NBC will play the "Best of US" television special we filmed while on the White House visit. If you tune in, you'll get to hear Paralympian downhiller Mark Bathum (pictured above) give an acceptance speech that should send shivers up your spine. I know it did mine.

For an American writer, I think the most revered recognition of your work would be to have your book in the Presidential library. Every book in there was written by an American, with the exception of the Qiran and the Bible. Maybe it was mostly the setting, but the book I most wanted to pick up off the shelves was one titled "The Making of an American." How can you not but wonder how you'd measure up? 

 I can think of no better ending to this large helping of patriotic words and images than to play for you a little video I put together for Mr. Haberberger's class following the conclusion of the Sochi Games:

                     "Never curb your enthusiasm. Put the whole of yourself into it." -Percy Cerutty

To the best of times. And those that will be. -Torin

Heading to the Bernese Alps: Swiss Nationals in Bex

With the weekend came the opportunity to see a little sliver of the globe I've never been to before, the French-speaking corner of Switzerland. This year the Swiss National Championships were in the very much mountain town of Leysin. I'm pretty sure one day I saw most the kids from primary school walk by for a ski day. Later that night, a group of locals were outside my hotel, putting climbing skins and heading out for a moonlight-and-headlamp alpine tour. The local ski club Bex also is home to two national cross country team members, Erwan Kaeser and Jovier Hediger. In Davos, Jovier lives in the flat right underneath the one I share with Bettina and Mauro.

The first day in Erwan and Jovier's hometown, the view of the multi-summited Dents du Midi was pretty spectacular.

This season, Jovier put up the fastest qualification time on the World Cup, and made a couple WC Finals. Racing on his home course, Erwan won his first national title - at the expense of me trying to take it from the gun before getting spun out from behind on one of the many corners of the mini X-Games like course. It was still a pretty great night of racing though, and I felt a decent satisfaction to stand on the podium with Erwan and Mauro Gruber. As a country, only Norway has more depth in men's sprinting than Switzerland (FIS points). It was also pretty cool, because though I was ineligible to take the medals or cash as a foreigner, later that night 4th place finisher Martin Jager gave me a Swiss Franc handshake, splitting half his prize money with me.

I'd trained a fair amount with Martin, his father waxes my skis when I race in Switzerland, and I have only have the upmost respect for the guy, but I thought this was really a classy move. Thank you Martin!

One day in Leysin, it was +17 Celsius, the other day bombing down snow. The weather in the mountains can be so unpredictable, it's like they are breathing in and exhaling their own high-altitude air. Somewhat surprisingly, both days I raced on the same pair of skis, a new pair of Rossignol X-iums with the white bases and a warm factory grind. When its high humidity, I am now definitely a believer in giving the harder base material a go. Now in addition to classic and skate, flex patterns, stone grinding, wax testing, testing the difference between base material will be a growing factor for racers going forward. The quiver of race skis just grew bigger.   My shoulder hurts just a little now, thinking of having to lug all those skis through train stations and airports in the future!

After the sprint, I raced the three-person relay for the Swiss Academic Ski Club  International team with Finland's Antti Peltonen (guess which ski company he uses...) and Russia's Evgeny Bogdanov. I was the anchor and had my best distance race of the year, bringing us from 11th to 4th, and put up 3rd fastest time of the day (or about 25 seconds back of Toni Livers) . It was a good feeling to have the motor running well again after a long and tiring illness caught at the Olympics. 

The Engadin: In One Photo

I must say, a big congratulations to Tindli on the weekend at the largest skate race in the world, the Engadin Ski Marathon. Win the sprint on Friday night, then one step away from winning the Steinbock and putting your name in the record books.