Vakava means “serious” in Finnish – we’re based out of Finn Sisu, Minnesota’s best cross-country ski shop, and we’re definitely serious about our skiing. In the over 20 years we’ve been in existence, we’ve become one of the most successful and recognizable group of skiers in Minnesota.
Vakava meets May through March at 6:30 to 8:00 on Wednesday evenings. Our workouts involve roller skiing, dryland ski imitation, and on-snow skiing, and are generally in St. Paul or Woodbury in the summer/fall and then at Battle Creek or Hyland when we get snow. We get a mix of technique work and physical training, and work hard in both classic and skate techniques.
In Vakava, we improve our technique by working with coaches with many years of racing and coaching experience. We work on both skating and classical technique, building from the basics to the finer points of racing strategy. We use a good deal of video-recording and analysis to help increase skiing efficiency and translate physical abilities into skiing speed.
In Vakava, we improve our conditioning by training and racing with a group of like-minded skiers committed to becoming faster and improving their results. Our workouts help to develop endurance, power, and speed.
Coaching is by Dave Christopherson, Craig Cardinal, and Mark Ahlers, with Ahvo Taipale concentrating specifically on ski technique through video analysis.
Vakava Racing is sponsored and supported by:
