Golf Tourney Fun!

Matt Liebsch is a member of the CXC Elite cross country ski team and a graduate of the University of Minnesota with a BS in Electrical Engineering.He is an Olympic hopeful and had a very successful 2009 season… 3rd Place at US Nationals, Mora Vasaloppet winner and American Birkebeiner Champion.When Matt is not training and racing he is helping out at Gear West or spending time with his wife, one-year-old son and new baby girl Samantha.

This past Sunday was the 4th Annual Matt Liebsch Golf Tournament. This year we had 45 golfers and many of them were skiers (and they can even golf!). The event raised some money to help fund my Olympic aspirations and everyone had a great time.

Congratulations to the Gear West foursome of Tom, Drew, Speedy and Stu on your 3rd place finish. The Gear West team had tied for 3rd but won in a putt off. I know you guys were super excited to win those Gear West Gift cards=)

This week I am training hard and will run the 1/2 marathon Trail Loppet this coming Saturday. Also, I’ll be in at Gear West for the Salomon SuperFit weekend.

To Ski or Not To Ski: Making the Decision after High-School

Jenny is a junior at Saint Cloud State University and is majoring in communication studies and marketing. She is the captain of the Nordic ski team, and is also a member of the cycling team.

One of the most challenging things for a college-bound, high school athlete to decide at the end of their secondary education is if they want to continue on to compete at the collegiate level. For me there were no questions asked; skiing has always been a passion of mine. I love to compete and plan on continuing for as long as I live.

I feel that participating in a sport was advantageous to me in several different ways.

One of the benefits as an incoming freshman was that I instantly had a core group of people that I knew I had something in common with. It helped in easing the anxiety of being away from home and all of the sudden changes that occur as a result of adjusting to a new life at school.

Secondly I consider having constraints on my time to be an advantage. This may sound weird at first, but having to balance my class schedule with practice, training camps, and race weekends has helped me become very efficient when it comes to time management.

Also, as result of traveling, I’ve found that it is imperative to establish relationships with your professors. By communicating with them, they will be more likely to help you with assignments outside of class time and more understand when you need to miss class for a competition.

Bottom line- if you or someone you know is on the fence about college sports, I say take the plunge, it’s worth it.

- Jenny