Olympian Marcus Nash is putting on a skate ski clinic at Tahoe Cross Country on Jan. 15.

Nash is a nine-time national champion in cross country skiing, went to the Olympics in 1994 at Lillehammer, Norway, and 1998 in Nagano, Japan. He was a member of the U.S. Ski Team for seven years and is now a pilot for Cathay Pacific Airlines.

Originally from Maine, Nash traveled all over the world in his days as a professional cross country skier, and when he retired, he chose Truckee to live and ski.

His emphasis as a coach are technical development, increasing endurance capacity, and strength training. Marcus has competitive and coaching experience in cross country skiing and cycling.

The clinics are 9-10:30am and 11am-12:30pm.

Cost is $40, which does not include trail pass.

Register by calling 530.583.5475.

By USSA

ADELBODEN, Switzerland  – David Chodounsky (Crested Butte, Colo.) was the best U.S. racer of the day on Sunday, taking 12th place through tough conditions at the Audi FIS Ski World Cup slalom in Adelboden. Michael Ankeny (Deephaven, Minn.) and Mark Engel (Truckee) grabbed top-30 spots to score points.

The weather was inconsistent at Adelboden, with heavy fog rolling through for many of the racers. However, it didn’t seem to bother Norwegian Henrik Kristoffersen, who built a huge lead second run to take the win by 1.83 seconds. Manfred Moelgg of Italy was second, while Marcel Hirscher of Austria was third.  

Chodousnky was eighth after first run, but had a tough second run with fog and ruts.

“I’m actually a little bit disappointed with today, even though it’s my best result of the season,” said Chodounsky. “I’ll take it, but I left a lot out there. You gotta fight and earn everything on the World Cup. It’s not given to you at all.”

Ankeny, who had scored his first World Cup points at Adelboden last season, was excited about making the points, taking 23rd place. But he’s looking for more this season, and knows he can put two runs down to achieve a better result. “I’m super excited to get back in the points,” said Ankeny. “I had kind of a tough December with some injuries to my hip, but came back after the new year super refreshed and ready to go. I think seeing that my teammates Mark Engel and AJ Ginnis pop it in there, really helped me – because we’re all really close in training and so it makes it really feasible.”

Earlier this week, Engel skied from bib 45 to third place in the first run of the Zagreb night slalom. While he crashed second run, Engel got a glimpse of the top and is continuing to attack. “I’m pretty stoked to make it down two runs in a row, but I’m still unsatisfied,” said Engel, who finished 24th and scored his first World Cup points. “I think that I can do better than that. I wasn’t holding back to finish, but this hill is really steep and I’m a lot more comfortable on flats. It was just a little intimidating, but I was trying to go full gas.”

By Judy Lehmberg, CBS News

The beautiful Sierra Nevada’s name translates very literally from Spanish as “mountain snowfall,” meaning snow-covered mountains.  The reason why the peaks are snow-covered and why hot, dry Death Valley is east of the Sierra Nevada range is the same: They are both the result of the rain shadow effect. 

To understand how this terrain-induced meteorological effect causes precipitation to occur in one place and dry, hot deserts in another, a little knowledge of relative humidity is needed.

The Earth’s atmosphere contains water molecules in the gaseous state, and these create pressure; the more water molecules, the greater the pressure. The higher the temperature, the greater maximum amount of water the air can hold, and therefore higher vapor pressure.

Read the whole story

If conditions allow, the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District may conduct prescribed fire operations on Jan. 9. 

Operations may take place near Tahoe City and Incline Village. 

To receive prescribed fire notifications, send an email to pa_ltbmu@fs.fed.us. 

Before prescribed fire operations are conducted, agencies post road signs around areas affected by prescribed fire, send email notifications and update the local fire information line at 530.543.2816. 

Smoke from prescribed fire operations is normal and may continue for several days after an ignition depending on the project size and environmental conditions.  

Grass Lake is a haven for cross country skiers. Photo/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

Keep me away from hills and groomed trails. Flat, scenic and free equals perfect cross country ski conditions.

Grass Lake was serene in late December, as it is much of the winter. The snow could not have been better. The powder was like sugar, so easy to glide through. Others has been there before us so we didn’t have to break trail if we didn’t want to.

Waterhouse Peak (9,497 feet) is the highest, nearest landmark. And while that may sound like it is towering, remember that Luther Pass – where Grass Lake is – is at 7,740 feet.

Renee and Rosemary snowshoe and cross country ski through Grass Lake on Dec. 26. Photo/Kathryn Reed

When there isn’t much snow at lake level, this is an ideal place for cross country skiing or snowshoeing. Plenty of dogs were out getting exercise on this particular day, too.

When snow isn’t on the ground this is a marshy area. It’s not a true lake.

Even though Highway 89 is so close, it’s only noticeable if you want it to be. That may sound odd, but I’m a firm believer people have the capability to tune out at least some distractions. The din of traffic is one of them.

Ironically, the three of us welcomed that traffic when were done. You see, we committed one of the bigger mistakes while playing in the woods. No one paid any attention to our starting point. That meant when we got back to the road we didn’t know which way to go.

The expansive area is ideal for those who don’t want to climb. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Rosemary was right – we needed to keep heading toward Meyers. Renee and I were on the road while she kept skiing, almost parallel to us. We got around a bend and as far as the eye could see there were no parked vehicles, just another bend. We thought we should turn around and head toward Hope Valley.

Then the three of us were on the road. It was time to hitchhike. After Rosemary got in the vehicle with the couple, their son and granddaughter (of course we didn’t know this makeup or that they were super helpful at the time), I asked Renee if she got the license plate number or knew the make of the vehicle. Neither of us had those answers.

We knew Rosemary had been correct after they stopped to tell us they were going to try the other way. Then she came up in her vehicle.

I share this story because combined the three of us have lived on the South Shore for decades. We are experienced at outdoor play in all seasons. We are normally smart women. But for some reason we weren’t that Monday. It was a good reminder that communication is necessary, it’s essential to look in all directions when starting off, and to have a focal point to know what to look for when returning. We were never going to be in danger based on where we were that day, but that might not always be the case.

We were lucky. This was an experience we could laugh about as we shook our heads.

AJ and Jackson have tons of open space to run in. Photo/Kathryn Reed

—–

Getting there:

From South Lake Tahoe go west on Highway 50. In Meyers, go left onto Highway 89. At the crest of Luther Pass is Grass Lake to the right. There are several pullouts for parking.

By Benjamin Spillman, Reno Gazette-Journal

With some rural Nevadans still seething over President Obama’s designation of two national monuments two Republican lawmakers want to restrict the ability of future presidents to create more in the Silver State.

On Wednesday Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., and Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., announced legislation that would make Nevada off-limits to new monuments that don’t have approval from Congress.

The announcement comes in the wake of decisions by Obama to follow the advice of former Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., to designate the Basin and Range and Gold Butte monuments in southern Nevada.

Read the whole story

Incline Village General Improvement District is contemplating building a bike park between the recreation center and Incline Way on about 1½ acres.

IVGID and the nonprofit Incline Bike Project are working together on the proposal. The memorandum of understanding will help IBP beef up its fundraising.

The board this year is expected to move forward with the project.

A bike park in Incline has been discussed in earnest since 2014 when residents formed IBP. The IVGID board has been supportive since then; giving $20,000 in 2015 for planning and $50,000 last spring for construction.

This park would be separate from what is being talked about in the ski resort’s master plan.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

By Benjamin Spillman, Reno Gazette-Journal

Hikers and skiers might want to think twice before criticizing motorcyclists and snowmobilers for disrupting the environment.

Research recently compiled by Colorado State University found virtually every type of outdoor recreation has potential to harm wildlife, with non-motorized activity showing more documented negative effects motorized sports.

The findings were part of a scientific review published last month that looked at the effects of recreation in protected areas on wildlife.

Read the whole story

Crews assess the Jan. 5 avalanche scene at Mt. Rose. Photo/Truckee Meadows Fire

By Scott Sonner AP

Rescue crews in the Sierra Nevada say two backcountry skiers caught in an avalanche escaped injury in the snow slide that closed the state highway between Reno and Lake Tahoe.

Washoe County sheriff’s Deputy Jeff McCaskill says the back country skiers — a man and a woman — ended up walking off the mountain on their own after rescue crews responded about 12:20pm Thursday along the Mount Rose Highway west of the Mount Rose ski resort.

North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District spokeswoman Tia Rancourt says the skiers already were out of harm’s way when paramedics arrived, conducted a medical evaluation and released them. No one else was hurt.

Nevada Department of Transportation spokeswoman Meg Ragonese says the avalanche passed through a few vehicles traveling on the highway west of the summit near an area popular for sledding and cross-country skiing about 30 miles southwest of Reno.

She says at least two vehicles ended up getting stuck in several feet of snow, but NDOT snowplows were able to free them.

Ragonese says the highway would remain closed for an indefinite period Thursday while crews attempt to trigger some man-made avalanches in an effort to reduce the threat of future snow slides.

National Winter Trails Day is Jan. 14.

South Lake Tahoe, U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and South Tahoe High School Generation Green Club is putting a free guided hike at Van Sickle Bi-state Park that day. It will be from 10am-1pm.

Participants will learn about Lake Tahoe’s pristine environment while snowshoeing.

Register in advance by calling 530.542.6059 or email kedwards@cityofslt.us.