"The Maine Way"

Northern Maine is unique place, and after spending a few years here with the Maine Winter Sports Center, it is also a place that I am very fond of. I just came across an article by Bill McKibben about the impact of nordic skiing and biathlon on Maine's Aroostook County: "The Maine Way: Aroostook County, Maine Winter Sports Center reawakened a skiing heritage" It offers a good background on MWSC, a glimpse into the inner workings of using skiing as a successful economic vehicle in this part of the country and a taste of the local culture. Over the past three weeks the County has hosted XC Junior Olympics, US Biathlon National Championships, US XC Long Distance 30/50km Championships, and soon the SuperTour Finals. Looking ahead to next February, Fort Kent will host its 2nd Biathlon World Cup.

The 30 and 50km marathons were this morning. As I knew it would be, I really enjoyed racing the 30km. And after last week it was nice to start each 10km lap without a penalty lap handicap. Photos will come soon, as the snow piles up and the wind blows as if it were mid-winter, not the end of March.