Team NordicSkiRacer at the Sapporo Skimarathon

Wed, Mar  4, 2009 - By Allen Sorgenfrei

10 Inches of snow fell overnight, and maybe 3 inches during the race. There was also a pretty stiff wind, which was only a problem the first 2km and the last 4km. The trail was soft, slow, and plenty of places to catch tips and get dragged into the deep snow.

This kind of race is not to my liking, so my placing suffered. Results were 2:51 for the first place finisher, I came in at 3:56.  I placed 105 of 743 finishers, first place American of two.

I can recommend this race. You get to be a bit of a celebrity as there are not very many foreigners there. First wave start automatically.

After the race, it was off for a big bowl of Ramen, and later for some sushi and big time meat grilling.

One of the freebies in the bag was a bluetooth cell phone headset. Now to figure out the instructions.