Terje Breivik from Norway calls himself and his buddies "ski nerds" by reason of their love of their sport. When not training or competing, Breivik works as the secretary general for the Liberal Party of Norway.

He and his teammates arrived Feb. 19 to get used to McCall's high altitude and to recover from jet lag.

All live at sea level in Norway. "So none of us is used this altitude," he said.

Fatigue from the eight-hour time difference threw off their sleep patterns, and it took up to five days for the effects of jet lag to fade away. But that didn't stop them from training.

Even the dizziness experienced while adjusting to the thinner atmosphere was no impediment.

Love of their sport kept them going.

"We are more or less ski nerds. We are all addicted to skiing," Breivik said. "For us, it's a great goal to look forward to during workouts in late fall evenings when its raining and windy and its great to think about in March I will go to McCall."

For Breivik, coming to McCall to compete is his vacation. Cross country skiing is his main hobby that takes up much of his spare time. He trains year round using roller skis in the summer.

The first morning in McCall, pastor Charlottie Havlicak of the McCall Community Congregational Church saw Breivik and a few friends on the street and offered them help to run errands. Havlicak cancelled her plans for the day, picked them up, and drove them to their shopping.

"We're very impressed by the local people," he said. "We feel so welcome. Everyone is so kind."