Sunday, October 16, 2011

On ICE.... finally...

After a brief stint in Calgary for some last minute push training I headed off to Lake Placid to begin the season. Usually when we get to Lake Placid it is turning into fall and the cold weather has already begun to move in, but not this time! When I arrived in lake placid the temperature was 80 degrees and felt like it was still summer! I love this kind of weather, but unfortunately it is not good bobsled weather. We were suppose to begin sliding on Monday, but because of the conditions it was incredible hard to keep any kind of ice on the track. The track crew worked around the clock to enable us to take our first runs of the season on Thursday. Because of the warm conditions the refrigeration on the track is increased, but this creates a frost that slows the sleds down. We literally had to hop out and push ourselves across the finish line because the ice was so slow. I was amazed the track crew was able to create enough ice with the conditions they faced to allow us to even slide. Hopefully we will get a full week of solid training this week before our first selection race that is coming up on October 21st.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Back to Business

After a summer of getting physically healthy and training hard in Colorado Springs it is now time to get back to work. After packing up my summer life and moving out of my dorm at the Olympic Training Center, I traveled back home to Chico and have begun the process of packing up my winter life to go on tour.


Each year it gets a little more difficult to leave the comfort of Colorado, the kids at the Boys and Girls Club and all the friends I have made. This year at the Boys and Girls Club I was presented with a huge box of home made cards from the kids. I received many hugs and a lot of questions as of why I was leaving. I plan on keeping contact with the kids throughout the season via emails, skype and postcards. I really want them to feel like they are apart of what I am doing.

I will soon head to Calgary for some push training and then off to Lake Placid for our team selection races. I am really looking forward to the season especially because it will culminate with a home track World Championships in Lake Placid. But for now, I am going to enjoy the few days I have at home with my family and friends