Ханты-Мансийск (Khanty-Mansiysk)

Following World Championships in Germany, the biathlon circus packed onto 3 different charter planes headed for central Russian and the final World Cup competitions of the season.  I was excited for the chance to see Khanty-Mansiysk after hearing so much about it, but I was also very tired from the previous week’s racing.  I couldn’t help but feel like I traveling  5 timezones in the wrong direction.  However, the racing has been awesome, the temperatures have been reasonable, the food is (somewhat) edible and Russia’s oddities have kept us plenty entertained.

Many athletes haven’t bothered to adjust to the time change, especially since all the competitions are in the evening.  The bright white lights of the stadium extend normal daylight hours and I keeping forgetting that it is well past sunset when I cool down from my races.  Sara and I have watching movies late at night (starting around 11:00) to help us fall asleep and we’ve been sleeping-in until well past 9.

Where in the world are we? At an oil boom town in Siberia

Some of athlete housing: a tropical paradise. I can almost imagine the snow as a white sandy beach.

Adventures at the grocery store, where the vodka aisle is the same size as the vegetable aisle

Hungry? With the wide selection, you should to be able to find some type of canned meat to your liking. I was also very excited to find some white cheddar in the cheese section, but it didn't live up to my high Vermont standards.

Since the tap water is not safe to drink, we've been going through lots of bottled water. Don't worry, we are finding ways to be green and reuse all those plastic bottles. Photo: Sara Studebaker

A fur vendor who set up in the lobby of our hotel

This beautiful church sits on top of the hill overlooking downtown

A familiar face. Posters featuring Russian and Soviet superstars from years past line the road to the venue. Walking by the signs one day, Sara commented "That one looks like Algis!" and it was indeed. Algis Shalna, formerly of Lithuania, now lives in Vermont and coaches many local biathletes, including the Craftsbury crew.

Reindeer and sled on route to the stadium to pick up medalists for a victory loop. Seconds after I took this picture, these animals ran wild knocking their driver off the sled and dragging him into the woods. I started wondering if any of the medalists would survive to race in the next day's pursuit.

For all its quirks, Khanty has one of the most professional and state-of-the-art race venues I have ever seen.

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A Day I’ll Never Forget

I like to describe biathlon as an emotional rollercoaster.  For athletes, the highs are very intense and the lows can feel devastating as we seek to have the “perfect race.”  I rarely come close.   Many different pieces must come together on the same day.  I lucked out on a special day in Ruhpolding, Germany.  Many pieces came together for me when it counted the most and I placed 5th at World Championships in the Individual race.

Racing in Bib #1 meant being alone on the first loop. Photo: NordicFocus/USBA

I usually prefer being seeded about 1/3 of the way through the race field so that I can ski around the fastest competitors.  However, in these Championships I was not destined to have a normal starting number.  Earlier in the week, I started the Sprint last with  bib #118.  For the Individual, I had the opposite  experience and was assigned bib #1.  So much for sticking to routine.  I felt a little nervous, but my Green Racing Project teammate Hannah, pointed out a positive: “you’ll get to be famous, no matter how you race!”

A few of the 30,000 fans packed into the Chiemgau Arena. Photo: Jonne Kahkonen

Despite a few extra nerves, I enjoyed myself at the starting line.  I hadn’t put much pressure on myself for the Individual.  Going into the Championships, I believed the Sprint was my best chance for doing well.  The Individual is usually my weakest race because it is more of a shooter’s race and each missed target results in a costly one minute penalty.  That said, it is a race where anybody can have a good day if they shoot well, and I knew that included me.

My parents, Stan and Judi made it over to Europe to watch. Photo: Chelsea Little/Fasterskier.com

I later heard that the film crews found my parents in the crowd and showed them on the big screen as I started.  Once upon a time, my parents used to cross-country ski race for the University of Vermont.  My father also competed in the ’76 and ’80 Olympics.  Since then, they have turned into elite level fans who will arrive at the venue 5 hours before race start to claim a front row spot along the fence. Over the course of the championships, they befriended (i.e. were adopted by) several other spectators around them. One afternoon they even returned with German flags painted on their faces.  I told them that this was only acceptable if their new friends started sporting stars and stripes.  However, I must give them credit for turning their section of fence into a giant American cheering section.

Cleaning prone. Photo: NordicFocus/USBA

Any serious biathlete can clean (hit all their targets) during practice, even during high intensity workouts.  However with the pressure of a race, shooting becomes a lot more difficult.  I find that the more I want to hit my targets, the less likely the paddles are to fall.  Until a few weeks ago, I had never cleaned a race.  I finally cleaned an Italian Cup Sprint the week before World Championships, which was a huge boost for my shooting confidence.

During the Individual, I felt like I couldn’t miss my targets.  I was very careful and deliberate in the range, taking a little extra time to nail my set up.  Once I was confident it couldn’t be better, I focused on having a smooth trigger squeeze.  During the second stage I missed a single target, which actually shocked me.  The shot looked good, felt good, and I had followed through.

The final loop was all about hanging on. Photo: Chelsea Little/Fasterskier

Halfway through the fourth (penultimate) loop I skied under a jumbotron and heard the announcer mention the “surprising leader of the race so far… American Susan Dunklee.”  Hearing that sent a jarring shock of adrenaline into my system and my heart jumped into my throat.  I had known I was having a good race, but I hadn’t dreamed that I might be leading!  All I could do at that point was put all my focus into climbing the hill ahead of me.  I hoped my head would clear by the time I arrived in the shooting range.  Thinking back, I don’t really member what was going thru my head during the last standing shooting.    I remember feeling completely relaxed and all 5 targets turned white.  It was incredible!

The work wasn’t done.  Skiing was very challenging, especially in the later loops.  Warm temperatures over the past several days had created lots of deep, slushy snow and my legs felt like toast.  On the last loop, all our coaches and staff were yelling that I was in medal contention.  The crowd was roaring too, and I felt blasted by a tunnel of sound with no place to escape.   I tried to ski faster, but I couldn’t find my highest gear.  It still ended up being the race of my life.

At the finish line. Photo:NordicFocus/USBA

I smiled up at the crowd from the finishing pen and they went crazy.  It surprised me to see them so excited.  They seem to like seeing the Americans do well.

A new experience: Sitting in the leader's lounge until I got bumped from the medals. Photo: Chelsea Little/Fasterskier.com

Pat, one of my primary coaches the past several years (and a Vermonter!), watching my last standing shooting with both the video stream and live results. Photo: Pat Coffey

It was really cool to hear how many people had been watching the races live from back home.   Apparently my little cousin Camerin went to school after watching and spent show-and-tell explaining skiing and shooting to her friends.  I was psyched to hear about that.

The evening awards ceremony in downtown Ruhpolding. Photo: Chelsea Little/Fasterskier.com

The race didn’t really sink in for me until I got off the awards stage.  My teammates, my parents, and all our staff were there.  Everybody was so excited and it was very special to share that moment with them.  We had pictures and hugs all around.

This is one of my favorite pictures from the week. Post awards ceremony with teammates Lanny and Annelies. Photo: Chelsea Little/Fasterskier.com

My teammates helped me pick out a souvenir to remember Ruhpolding. I decided on a Dirndl (traditional Bavarian dress).

A couple of months ago, our coach Jonne promised the women’s team that if any one of us placed in the top 10 on a World Cup then we could all dye his hair any color we wanted.  We went searching for cool colors…

Small Bavarian towns don't have a lot of color options but we found something suitable.

We all decided to tag along with some temporary pink dye on relay day. Photo: Chelsea Little/Fasterskier.com

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Ruhpolding through an Athlete’s Eyes

Biathlon World Championships Sprint 2012

A beautiful day in Bavaria!

Behind the scenes: what the team wax cabins and changing areas look like from the outside...

... And from the inside. With about 20 staff and athletes sharing this room, it can get a little crowded.

Race day surprise! I failed equipment control on the first attempt today for too light of a trigger weight on my rifle. (The humidity and warm weather caused it to change slightly since I last used it for the relay a couple days ago.) While Coach Armin (left) quickly fixed the trigger, I took the opportunity to take a couple pictures. Coach Jonne (right) reassured me that I'd still have plenty of time to zero afterwards.

Range officials and coaches preparing for race start.

The post-race exodus of 30,000 fans as seen from a hill on course. Thanks to all the spectators who stayed until the very end of the race!

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