Ep 27: Dealing with Injuries with Adam Witkowski and Skylar Patten

Sammy Smith is a member of the U.S. Ski Team, a D1 soccer player at Stanford University, and one of the most exciting young athletes representing Team USA right now. At 19, she’s a World Cup regular on the ski circuit, with a silver medal from the 2024 World Junior Championships in Planica, numerous top-30 World Cup finishes, and a growing reputation as one of the U.S. team’s top sprinters.But her story goes far beyond skiing. When she’s not chasing podiums on snow, she’s competing on the soccer field for the Stanford Cardinal, one of the top collegiate soccer programs in the country, and she’s already represented the U.S. at the Under-17 Women’s World Cup and the Pan American Games.Today, we’re chatting about how she balances two elite sports, at an incredibly high level, with some fierce competitiveness, as well as what she’s learned from setbacks and success, and what it really looks like to chase big dreams in both summer and winter.Link to Go Big Foundation: https://www.gobiginc.com/Link to Sammy's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samanthasmith__7/

On this episode I welcome Adam Witkowski and Skylar Patten. Both Adam and Skylar are new athletes to Team Birkie and recent graduates from Michigan Tech University. Both Adam and Skylar have faced numerous injuries over the years. We discuss how they dealt with training through injury, rehab, and staying motivated and driven throughout the healing process. There’s no easy way to say it, injuries suck. But these two have put their heads down through the healing and rehab process to continue pursuing their goals in ski racing. 

I welcome Team USA ski racer, Luke Jager. Luke is from Anchorage, Alaska where he grew up skiing for Alaska Pacific University. From a young age, Luke stood out as a top American junior and solidified this notion in 2019 when he, was a key member of the men's relay team that won World Junior Championships. An outstanding result at the time and what has really set the bar for Team USA at these international junior competitions. Luke went on to ski at the University of Utah where he continued to balance racing the NCAA schedule along with international competitions, his first world cups, first World Championships, and the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. In this episode we talk about some of these highs and we also discuss how over those years the progress hasn’t always been linear… It’s been both a blessing and a curse to have grown up with such a talented group of other guys. How it’s hard not to compare yourself and your progress to those around you. We talk about how Luke has worked to overcome some of those disappointing moments and at the end of the day keep the focus on his love for skiing. But we also acknowledge through both of our experiences how sometimes that easier said than done!Luke and I go on to chat about what it means to no longer be on the US National team, what that means for him this winter, and what his training has looked like this summer to prepare for the winter ahead. I hope you enjoy this episode with Luke!

On this episode of Extra Blue, I welcome guest, Mary Kate Cirelli. MK and I discuss her experience with disordered eating starting as a young athlete and her path to recovery. We also talk about what it’s like to carry that with you for the years to come. How it’s nearly impossible to never let it affect you again, but that it also doesn’t need to define you. We chat about MK's challenges on another college team and how she navigated that, as well as the struggles that occur when moving on from the sport. I appreciate MK being so willing to share her story on Extra Blue and we both agree that we hope this episode serves as awareness to the realities of disordered eating as an athlete and how a support system can make a huge impact.Resources:Eating Disorder Hotline: https://www.eatingdisorderhope.com/treatment-for-eating-disorders/eating-disorder-hotlinesThe Emily Program: https://emilyprogram.com/Talking to High School Students About Eating Disorders: https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/talking-students-eating-disorders/

From National Champ to World Championships, on this episode of Extra Blue I welcome guest Kate Oldham. Kate had a standout season this past winter, winning her first national title in the 10k skate in Anchorage, qualifying for her first World Cup where she DOMINATED, enough to qualify her for the World Championships in Trondheim, Norway. Although it was a whirlwind of a season, I had a front row seat to watch as Kate handled herself with grace, allowed herself to be patient and strategic, and race with the ebb and flow of a ski season. Kate and I frequently roomed together during our travels this winter and it was super fun to get to know her better and about her journey from Colorado, to Vermont, to Montana. Battling through covid uncertainty, and searching for the right place that felt like home to her. Kate recently graduated from Montana State University and has joined the BSF Pro Ski team in Bozeman, Montana where she is preparing for her first Period 1 on the World Cup come November. 

How to Wax for a World Cup Podium! On this episode of Extra Blue I welcome World Cup skier, Gus Schumacher, along with his wax technician, Chris Hecker. We catch up with Gus about how his summer training is going and how he’s been trying to find as much snow as he can this summer, whether that be in Bend, OR or on the Glacier in Alaska. We also talk to Chris about how he’s working with the US Ski Team this summer to conduct more ski, grind, and wax testing on snow, with travels to Bend, OR, Norway, and the Ramsau, Austria to get on glaciers.Later in this episode we get into the nitty gritty of Gus’s ski fleet and how Chris supports him throughout the World Cup season by managing his fleet, testing skis constantly, preparing them for race day and ultimately working with Gus to pick out the best ski, grind, and wax for each race. We dive into the step-by-step process that went into waxing for Gus's second place finish at the Falun World Cup this past winter.

We launch a new era of Extra Blue powered by Gear West! In this episode, we welcome Margie Freed, Minnesota native, fellow UVM Catamount and now a standout member of the Craftsbury Green Racing Project and the US National Biathlon team. We discuss what it was like for Margie to make this transition from cross country to biathlon, how often she still classic skis, and some of her favorite memories so far competing around the world as a World Cup Biathlete.

On this episode I welcome guests, Zak Ketterson and Quinn McCloughan for a little Q&A on all things related to cross country skiing. I did a full episode with Zak back in 2023 so if you’re interested in learning more about him I recommend giving it a listen! Zak and I welcome Quinn to the podcast as the owner of Bearskin Lodge, a supporter of Team Birkie, and a lifelong ski enthusiast. Quinn runs the Bearskin Lodge up in Grand Marais, MN where he lives with his family. The lodge is open season-round to guests and is just off the Central Gunflint trail. We chat a little bit about Bearskin and how it represents authentic northern Minnesota living. In this episode we flip the narrative and Quinn is the one doing the interviewing! He asks Zak and me questions about life on the road, competing at the World level, and plenty of other ski-related topics.

On this episode of Extra Blue I welcome friend and former college teammate, Lizzie Larkins. Lizzie recently wrapped up three years as the assistant coach at Montana State University. During her time there, she also continued her education and graduated from MSU with a Master’s of Science in Sport and Coaching Sciences. It was during her studies that Lizzie conducted a research project titled: Navigating the Transition: How US Nordic Skiers Transition Out Of Competitive Ski Racing. I think this is an incredible topic that is often overlooked. For many skiers, our self-identity is intertwined with being a ski racer.In this conversation, Lizzie and I talk about what she discovered about this transition, both from her own experience of stepping away from racing and through her research. What she found was that camaraderie is a huge theme for individuals navigating this process and that talking about it or going through it with the safe space to talk about it and feel supported is so important.

Team Birkie is a Midwest-based professional ski team led by Team Director Yuriy Gusev and Head Coach, Julie Ensrud. Team Birkie was formed through a collaboration between the American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation, The Loppet Foundation, and Central Cross Country Skiing (CXC). In this episode, we dive into the history of professional ski racing in the midwest, how Team Birkie got started, and the direction Team Birkie wants to take going forward.  The team supports athletes competing at the World Cup, U.S. SuperTour, and regional marathon levels, as well as biathletes and college summer skiers. Team Birkie is dedicated to advancing skiing in the Central Region. With its home base in Minneapolis, MN, Team Birkie promotes partnership and community engagement, striving to set higher standards in the sport and inspire the next generation of Nordic skiers.