Travelogue

I had a slow day with nothing to do but read and hang out. I drove to both mountains to look at the tracks, got some food, unpacked skis, etc. The temperatures dropped today and are supposed to be in the high teens tonight, so there should be a good race surface this week.

Travelling across the northern plains is an interesting experience, no matter what the weather. The people are amongst the friendliest I’ve met. Once I left North Dakota, I was off interstates and on secondary roads, so got to see lots of small towns and enjoy home cooking at a few “Mom and Pop’s.” All good.

I’ve never driven across Wisconsin and Michigan in the dead of winter. The country’s pretty flat, but the lack of major ski hills doesn’t relegate the folks to the indoors. Snowmobiles are everywhere. People drive them to town, fuel them at the truck stops, park them outside diners. The road shoulders and ditches are so tracked they look as though a groomer came through. And in Michigan they run plastic strips across the roads where most snowmobilers cross, presumably to protect from wear on the skis. Different.

Scott arrived in Burlington at 11 last night, and the team got here around 1:30PM this afternoon. He skied a little this afternoon, which is a good thing. Tomorrow will be slalom on what looks like a good hill.