It’s November and the ski season is approaching fast. Snow is falling several places, so get out and enjoy the first snow! Here are some places that offer groomed tracks already.
Beitostoelen, Norway, is Ole Einar Bjoerndalen’s home turf and winter paradise, and a frequently used test arena for Madshus gear. Beitostoelen already has 5 kilometers of groomed tracks up high on Valdresflya, and 3 kilometers at the stadium, including a full operation biathlon range.
Madshus’ own test lab at Sjusjoen, Norway, will soon have tracks both at Natrudstilen stadium and up on the highlands at Sjusjøen and the surrounding areas. The weekend of November 14-16, Natrudstilen will host the Norwegian national season opener for biathlon. The IBU World Cup gets underway in Oestersund, Sweden, the following week.
Trysil, Norway, has revamped the snowmaking for Nordic skiing this summer, with 6 kilometers of tracks available for manmade snow. The terrain includes both FIS competition standard courses at Trysil Knut Arena as well as rolling terrain along the gold course adjacent to the arena. There will be skiing as soon as the temperature allows for more snowmaking, or better yet: the real stuff falls from above.
In Sweden, there is snow in Gaellivare, the host of the Swedish FIS cross-country opener November 22-23. Bruksvallarna, Sweden, will also host FIS races November 21-23, and Oestersund, Sweden, is the host of the IBU World Cup opener November 29 to December 7.
West Yellowstone, Montana, is gearing up for the North American FIS SuperTour as well as biathlon events starting the week of November 24.
Of course, the glaciers in the Alps are always a sure bet for pre-season skiing, and many of the national teams are currently training at altitude.
So get your gear ready, and get on the snow!