While many European skiers have been competing on rollerskis or training in high altitudes, U.S. National Team skiers Julia Kern and Jessie Diggins have chosen to train on snow for the past few weeks at Falls Creek, Australia.

Kern and Diggins have both been training with their club in Vermont this summer, and while some of their national team members chose to compete in rollerski races in Norway at Toppidrettsveka and have a camp using the ski tunnel in Torsby, Sweden, Kern and Diggins decided to head to Falls Creek, Australia, for a full month of skiing while also competing at Kangaroo Hoppet. 

“We were looking for a way to seek a full training block on snow in the summer. In the past, we have gone to New Zealand to the Snow Farm for our USST camp. However, the lodge was still closed due to covid restrictions, so we decided to try something new and go to Falls Creek in Australia. Last year we also tried out the Oberhof ski tunnel, which was great, but is better designed for a shorter 10-day camp instead of a 3-week training block,” Kern explains their choice to ProXCskiing.com. 

Skiing on snow during the summer can provide a variety of benefits for the skiers, both mentally and physically: 

“I think training on the snow during the summer has been very helpful for me. It gives me a chance to reconnect with the feeling of snow and build good technique habits. When I am rollerskiing, it is very hard for me to fully commit to a forward body position, do all out sprints, or finish lunges because of the risk of crashing on the pavement. I also think my body can handle more training and feel better on snow than when I do dry land training, so snow time allows me to achieve more quality and ski-specific training.” 

Kern has also been testing her new equipment as she switched from Fischer to Atomic for this upcoming season, as well as focusing on technical aspects of skiing that are hard to replicate on rollerskis: 

“My goals for this training camp were to get a lot of quality time on snow to work on technique and focus on the aspects of skiing that are hard to replicate on rollerskis. I have worked a lot on classic technique, practicing skiing in a variety of snow conditions, and speed work such as herringbone, starts, and finishing lunges.” 

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They also competed at Kangaroo Hoppet, a 42-kilometer skate race the past weekend that ended on a sovereign win by Diggins, followed by Kern and Australian national team member Casey Wright. The men’s winner was also from the U.S., as Peter Wolter took the win ahead of Australians Campbell Wright and Lars Young Vik. 

While also being a good training, Kern and Diggins saw the race as a chance to practice fueling during a long race: 

“Jessie and I saw the Kangaroo Hoppet as a great chance to put on a bib and practice fueling during a longer race. We only compete in 1-3 longer races per season, so being able to practice our fueling strategy ahead of time will be helpful,” Kern states. 

For the upcoming winter, Kern looks ahead with high expectations despite a rough past month that has been interrupted by Covid and other issues: 

“My summer has been a bit unusual and a bit of a rollercoaster for training. I had a great start back to training in May for our first U.S. Ski Team training camp in Bend, Oregon. My first training block in Vermont with my club team in June went well, but then I dealt with a few medical issues throughout July, including getting Covid, having my wisdom teeth surgically removed, and some foot wounds.”

However, Kern got back to regular training just in time for the camp in Australia, and she is looking to become a regular sprint finalist in the World Cup, as well as setting a high goal for the upcoming World Championships in Planica: 

“This upcoming winter, my goals are to become a regular sprint finalist on the World Cup and try to be in the Top 5 sprint ranking at the end of the season. I also really look forward to the World Championships, with a goal of earning an individual and/or a team medal!”