Pig Out Sale Events

The Gear West Ski & Run Pig Out Sale is fast approaching and it is the place to be for first hand knowledge and equipment. For 9 DAYS Gear West will be offering store wide sale pricing. Expect to see team pricing on all skis, boots, and poles. In addition to extremely great pricing, Gear West will be hosting a number wax clinics, industry meet and greets, fit clinics, and a book signing. Everyone here is excited about the lineup of events that are schedule and are looking forward to kicking off the ski season the right way.







FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 10TH

MIKE LUNDEEN FROM TOKO

6:00pm Toko Wax Clinic

Mike Lundeen will be at Gear West to answer any technical question you might have about the Toko and Madshus brands. Mike will also be holding a Toko Wax Clinic Friday evening.

Mike Lundeen - For the past 7 years, Mike has been the Midwest Sales Representative for Toko, as well as a Toko Tech Team Member. As a tech team member, Mike has conducted race services and Toko Wax Clinics throughout the Midwest. Mike is also the Madshus Midwest sales Representative.


SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 11TH
















FALL MARATHON TRAINING RUN

7:00am - 8:00am Start

Train for the upcoming marathon season with runners just like you! Bring friends!

The out and back course starts at Gear West and goes down the Luce line. You can start anytime between 7-8:00a.m.

Run as far as you want (6 - 20 miles)
There will be support along the trail (water, energy drinks, etc.) and Aid Stations will be set-up along the course every three miles (bandaids, vaseline, etc.).

Join us for treats afterward at Gear West

If you have any questions about the Gear West Marathon Training Runs contact Speedy:

speedy@gearwest.com 952-473-0377

PETER ASHLEY AND CHRIS HALL FROM FISCHER USA

Peter Ashley and Chris Hall will be at Gear West to answer any technical question you might have about the Fischer brand. They will also be on hand to fit Fischer ski and boots. As you can tell, both are very capable of fitting world class skis. We hope to see everyone here for this event.

Peter Ashley - VP of Nordic Division, Fischer Skis USA
Peter is in charge of the Nordic Division for Fischer Skis USA. Peter's responsibilities include sales, marketing, product and brand management for Fischer cross country skis, boots, bindings and poles through out the US. He has been with Fischer since 1995.

Before coming to Fischer, Peter was with the US Ski Team, serving as the Head Women's Coach for the USST and was on the US Ski Team coaching staff for the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. Originally from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Peter was instrumental in organizing the first cross country Junior Olympics held in Jackson in the late 1970's.

Chris Hall - Nordic Race Director, Fischer Skis USA
Chris is in charge of Nordic race management for Fischer Skis USA. Chris works with US Ski Team and other top US athletes in ski selection and management to equip these skiers with the best possible skis for their racing. He has been with Fischer since 2005.

Prior to working at Fischer, Chris was with the US Ski Team, employed as the Head Service Technician for the USST. He worked at the 2002 and 2006 Winter Olympics for the team and spent 6 years on the World Cup with the USST. Originally from Sun Valley, Idaho, Chris worked for the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation as a coach before joining the USST.






ROBERT LAZZARONI AND CHRIS COOK FROM ROSSINGOL

1:00-3:00pm Chris Cook: sign posters visit with customers

Robert will be at Gear West to answer any technical question you might have about the Rossignol brand. He will also be on hand to fit the new Rossignol WCS skis and boots. If you have any questions about the new Rossignol WC Skate Ski Package, he's the one to ask.

VAN BRINKERHOFF FROM MADSHUS USA, K2 OUTDOORS

Van Brinkerhoff will be at Gear West to answer any technical question you might have about the Madshus brand.

Van Brinkerhoff - For the past 4 years, Van has been the national sales manager for Madshus USA, K2 Outdoor. For over 30 years, Van has been involved in the industry as a Nordic skier, retailer, sales rep. and manager for over 30 years.

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 12TH








ROMAN TOFERER FROM ATOMIC SNOW

10:00am – 4:00pm Roman Toferer: The Gold Metal Slide Show presentation at 1:00 pm with ski fitting before and after

Roman Toferer will be at Gear West to answer any technical question you might have about the Atomic brand. He will also be on hand to fit Atomic skis and boot. Roman is well known for picking top World Cup skis for the “Thin Red Line.”

Roman Toferer - The 2010 Olympics served as concrete proof that Roman Toferer of Atomic is unequalled when it comes to picking skis and making them go fast. The man from the little village of Eben, Austria proved to be a virtual miracle worker on the trails at Whister. If you watched Claudia Nystad take Gold it was obvious her skis were running at speeds far greater than her competition. The Teutonic blonde looked like something out of a Wagnerian opera as she pulled away from the competition. Anna Haag of Sweden had the best races of her career as she dropped the pack on virtual rockets picked and tuned by Roman. And of course, Roman’s close work with Billy Demong, Johnny Spillane and Todd Lodwick led to Gold and Silver medals for America’s best Nordic skiers.


WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15TH






















AUTHOR OF "BORN TO RUN" CHRISTOPHER MCDOUGALL

5:00pm Run from the Bookcase in Wayzata
6:30pm Meet and greet with Chris Mcdougall at Gear West

Meet Christopher McDougall at The Bookcase at 5:00 p.m. for a fun
run (barefoot or not) to the "Born to Run" event at Gear West in
Long Lake. We'll be leaving at 5:15 sharp, following the Dakota Trail
and the Luce Line into Long Lake. Call (952) 473-8341 or (952)
473-0377 with questions or to purchase tickets.

*No day of ticket sales


THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16TH









REX WAX CLINIC

Leena Peltonen and Silvano Barco will be at Gear West to answer any technical question you might have about the Rex brand. They will also be offering a Rex Wax clinic. Interesting note. Silvano is the assistant coach to the Swiss Ski Team and won the 1996 Birkie.


SATURDAY & SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18-19TH








CXC SUPER FIT WEEKEND

2010 brings with it the second year of the CXC/SALOMON SUPER FIT PROGRAM. We want to bring you the latest and greatest technology, knowledge, and skis we can. With Salomon and your local retailer behind us, we are committed to sharing the knowledge we gained. The CXC 3D Flex Mat and Salomon Flex Table will be on hand to help show you how pressure is being distributed to the snow under your skis. Knowledgeable industry partners will be able to answer any specific questions you have, and our CXC TEAM VERTICAL LIMIT athletes and coaches will be around to answer questions and sign autographs.

“SUPER FIT” is a weekend sale program filled with seminars, presentations and store specials. Get your equipment fit by CXC Team Vertical Limit professional athletes and coaches using state of the art 3D ski pressure mat. Bring your old skis to test if they have a good fit for you, and get an independent opinion.

Friday:
10:00AM to 6:00PM - 3D Ski Flex Mat Testing
5:00PM to 6:00PM - Glide and Kick Waxing Seminar (Jason Cork)
...
Saturday:
8:00AM to 9:30 AM - "Tast of Nordic" Free Dryland and Rollerski
Technique Clinic (Garrott Kuzzy & Jessie Diggins)
8:00AM to 9:30AM - USSA Level 100 Coaches Certification Technique Clinic (Jason Cork)
10:00AM to 5:00PM - 3D Ski Flex Mat Testing
4:00PM to 5:00PM - Optimal Training for Maximum Results Seminar (Brian Gregg)

Sunday:
12:00PM to 4:00PM - 3D Ski Flex Mat TestingSee More

Excitement Development Team (CXC Team Vertical Limit): Jessie Diggins, Brian Gregg, Garrott Kuzzy, Matt Liebsch, Yuriy Gusev, Jason Cork

Friday:
10:00AM to 6:00PM - 3D Ski Flex Mat Testing
5:00PM to 6:00PM - Glide and Kick Waxing Seminar (Jason Cork)
...
Saturday:
8:00AM to 9:30 AM - "Tast of Nordic" Free Dryland and Rollerski
Technique Clinic (Garrott Kuzzy & Jessie Diggins)
8:00AM to 9:30AM - USSA Level 100 Coaches Certification Technique Clinic (Jason Cork)
10:00AM to 5:00PM - 3D Ski Flex Mat Testing
4:00PM to 5:00PM - Optimal Training for Maximum Results Seminar (Brian Gregg)

Sunday:
12:00PM to 4:00PM - 3D Ski Flex Mat TestingSee More

Fundraise for Clean Water Project in Kenya

Team World Vision allows runners to dedicate ANY event they run to raising funds for clean water projects in Kenya. We do not have a minimum fundraising requirement, and you can STILL register for Twin Cities Marathon with us! Simply visit THIS LINK and use the code CHPTWV10M to register. Registration CLOSES FRIDAY, SO HURRY!

Visit www.teamworldvision.org/twincities to set up your fundraising page or find out more about Team World Vision. Contact Bradley Hofbauer at bhofbaue@worldvision.org or 612.217.2723 for more details. See you on October 3rd!

Gear West Minneapolis 13.1 Marathon Race Recap

On Sunday, August 22nd, the inaugural Minneapolis 13.1 Marathon was held. The race ran from St. Anthony Main along the Mississippi River down to the finish at Lake Nokomis. Almost 1,900 runners completed the half marathon on a beautiful morning and the winner of the entire race was Chad Ernst of the Gear West Racing Team. Chad, from Richfield, MN, had a great performance leading nearly the entire race and crossing the finish line in a winning time of 1:13:50, a pace of 5:39 per mile. His time was good enough to win the race by nearly 3 minutes over second place!

Lumberjack Days Race Recap - July 24, 2010

Wyatt Doop - Runner/Student/Part-Time Model

This year the annual Lumberjack Days 5K was host to the USATF Minnesota state 5K championship and one of the USATF Minnesota Team Circuit races. The Gear West Racing Team made its debut in the race and performed quite well in its first event. On a cool cloudy morning, times were very fast for everyone in the race.

For Gear West, all 4 runners in the 5K ran new personal best times. Kyle Donovan of River Falls, WI led the team by finishing in 15:38.5 to place 19th overall. Close behind was Matt Liebsch of Orono, MN in a time of 15:40.8 in 21st place. Matt and Kyle went back and forth leading the team throughout the race and both ran their best times by over 40 seconds. Third on the team was Wyatt Doop of Wayzata, MN in a new best time of 15:48.8, good enough for 27th place and the final finisher for the team was Brandon Heebink of Plymouth, MN in a time of 16:43.1 to place 61st overall. In the race there were 1,370 finishers total. The winning time overall was 14:41.4.

Gear West also had one representative in the Lumberjack Days 10 Mile race. Jason Quarford of Rosemount, MN came in with a strong performance of 55:55 to place 6th overall in a race of 1,077 finishers.

The team will be performing next as a full team on Sunday, August 15th at the MDRA 15K in Edina, MN, which is the next race in the USATF Minnesota Team Circuit presented by Twin Cities in Motion. Be on the lookout for the Gear West Racing Team members at this race and at other races throughout the Twin Cities area this summer and fall!

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.

Busy Week by Matt Liebsch

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… 3^rd 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 and one-year-old son.

So this past week was quite eventful. I started the second week of training camp only to get a call from Marybeth after the first workout. She was heading to the hospital with her mom to check things out… she stated that she didn't think she was in labor and said I should stay at camp and finish my second workout with the team… I ignored her and got in my car went to meet her in labor assessment.

Good thing I did because we had a little girl later that evening. Check out my website www.mattliebsch.com for her picture and stats. She is a mellow baby compared to Grant and is very sleepy. Marybeth is recovering quickly and our parents have been helping out a lot… I even got in a few workouts last week.

I'll be hanging low for the next few weeks as our family adjusts to a new little one but then the training hours will get ramped back up. It's not worth training hard if the sleep (recovery) isn't there. Remember it is the recovery that makes us faster and stronger. I learned this the hard way when Grant was born.

Train hard, train smart

Matt

Gear West Duathlon Race Report by Matt Liebsch

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… 3^rd 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 and one-year-old son.

Well, my legs never came back 100% from my overzealous week of training but the race went well regardless.  Race day started out a little hectic; I noticed on my way to the venue that my rear tire was flat.  Luckily, the Gear West mechanics were able to find a tiny tack in my tire and then replaced my tube in short order.  My next item of business was to choose the right clothing… it was a chilly morning and the day started around 32F.  I ended up racing in shorts and a thin long sleeve top and I'm glad because if I had gone in tights I would have died from overheating.

            The first 5k run was great and I came into the transition in 6^th place.  Once I got on the bike, I steadily lost time.  My legs were a little sore from the past week of hard intervals and my dad's old road bike was no match for the time trial rockets that came cruising by me.  Getting off the bike and transiting back to running sparked one of the weirdest feelings… it was as if I was trying to learn to run all over again.  My legs felt like jelly and my hamstrings felt like strings ready to snap.  I thought I was going to be walking it in, but after a mile my legs loosed up a bit and I finished strong in 10^th place.

            Post race has left me with some lingering soreness… having a little trouble walking down stairs.   I did a proper cool down and have been stretching and rolling the last two days but I don’t think I had enough time on the bike to condition the muscles for the abuse I put them through.

            The GW Dualthon was a fun event and I will definitely be back next year to improve my time and place… maybe I'll try to track down some aero bars next time around.

Train hard, train smart!!!

Matt

80th Birthday Party for Bjorn Lasserud

On Wednesday, April 15th, Gear West hosted an 80th Birthday Party Celebration for local skier Bjorn Lasserud. There was over 60 people in attendance for food, drinks, and stories to celebrate this renowned local skier.

A little about Bjorn. He is a World Master Champion many times and National Master Champion. He has lead the Minneapolis Ski Club workouts for decades. With 2 new knees, he is out on the trails every day, every season, biking, roller skiing, pole hiking, and of course snow skiing. ALWAYS with a smile on his face and more enthusiasm than most of us - for sport and for life.

Special thanks to Robin Thomas for the great photos!

Gear West's Dirtiest Event Yet

Earlier this month, Gear West hosted a fantastic Mud Run. 40 brave souls ran through ski trails on a balmy 30 degree April 4 morning and managed to find a bit of mud. Prizes were awareded to the dirtiest female and male runner. This was a low key event and no time were taken (unless you took note of your own time).

Special thanks to Robin Thomas for the great pictures!