Hey everyone, Colin Freed checking in.
Skiing, Red Bull 400, cross-country road trip, and moving to Vermont. It’s been a bit of a hectic last couple of months, but in a really good way. I spent the last four years skiing at Michigan Tech and graduated this spring with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. During my time at. Tech, I had some races I was really proud of, and of course some races that I wish could have gone better, but that’s racing. I am excited to now be racing for the new Mansfield Pro Nordic Team based out of Burlington, Vermont.
Racing the 10K Skate in Anchorage, Alaska at U.S. Nationals
Once this past season ended, I spent the spring chasing crust all over Houghton and the
Keweenaw and spent pretty much as much time skiing as I could. We were lucky enough to be skiing all the way into May this year, with over 320 inches of snow in the winter. My favorite ski from the spring was a 78-kilometer point-to-point ending in downtown Copper Harbor, while skiing to the top of several “Midwest Mountains” and High Rock Bay along the way.
Route of my 78km backcoutnry ski
I had been wanting to do this ski for several months leading up to it, but had to wait for the perfect day with solid crust and freezing temperatures all day. I started out at 6:00 in the morning with Lucy Campbell at Gratiot Lake, which is an inland lake halfway between Houghton and Copper Harbor. Lucy and I skied 800 feet up to the top of Mount Gratiot, and then began making our way over to Mount Bohemia. Unfortunately, a snowmobile track caught Lucy’s ski and snapped it in half, so she was forced to get picked up. We made a game plan, which included swapping pants and jackets since mine were soaking wet from accidentally spilling water from my pack down my back, and then I would continue the ski solo and finish it for both of us. In the end, the ski took me 9 hours and 55 minutes, and was 4,093 feet of climbing and descending through the backcountry on snowmobile trails, lakes, and making my own path through the woods. I would definitely do this ski again with anyone willing to join me, and it really opened my eyes to what cross-country skiing originated as.
I made it to Highrock Bay, 8 hours into the ski.
Skiing with my teammates to a sunrise on top of Voodoo Mountain.
After graduation, I spent a month at home to spend time with my family and to tour around the Midwest. A highlight was competing in the Redbull 400 meter race in Ironwood, Michigan. I got 3rd place in the final, but the best part was doing a backflip halfway up in front of the crowd. Not quite sure how I am going to top that for next year…
Halfway up the Redbull 400 meter race
My next big adventure was driving Brian and Caitlin Gregg’s van out to Spokane, Washington. I was very excited about the opportunity to road trip out West before moving out to the East. My first stop was the North Unit of Teddy Roosevelt National Park in Watford City, North Dakota. I camped overnight near the park before tackling the infamous 22.5-mile Achenbach trail early the next morning. The first half of the run went smoothly, taking in views of the canyon from the ridge. I was making steady progress, but knowing my luck with adventures, it was bound to turn. After crossing the Missouri River with water up to my waist, I entered the wilderness area. Almost immediately, there were so many bison, and they had trails crossing the hiking trail in every direction. I was constantly taking wrong turns and losing the trail. At one point, I was over half a mile off course. At one point, I turned a corner and saw a bison stand up and begin walking towards me. It was no more than fifty yards, and being solo, I was pretty nervous. I slowly backed away, and the bison didn’t approach me any further, but it reminded me that I was in bison country and had to be aware. After just under five horses of running/bushwacking/swimming my way through Teddy Roosevelt National Park, I had an amazing time, but was quite relieved to see the car in the parking lot after running solo through herds of bison.
Sunset in Teddy Roosevelt National Park
Made some new geologist friends in Yellowstone National Park on my trip out West!
After my trip out West, I spent a week back in Minneapolis before finally heading out to Vermont. I’ve now been here for a little over a month, and it has been a fantastic summer of training so far with my new coach, Perry Thomas, and the rest of the Mansfield Pro Team. Been training hard and really excited for a new season with a new team! Thank you to Pioneer Midwest for helping support my adventures and skiing goals.
Double Pole intervals with Mansfield Pro Nordic Team
Post skate intervals
Top of Camel's Hump in Vermont
