New Adventures

Skiing with Friends - 2014

My family and I would ski ever spring break when I was younger.  It was some of my most favorite times.  My sister and I would take the week to explore the mountain and find the best possible jumps.  We would pick up speed and fly through the air until we gracefully or sometimes not so gracefully landed on our feet.  I felt fearless and free.

Because I have been involved in competitive sports for so long the last time I went skiing I was when I was a teenager.  I decided it was time to get back on the horse (or skis) and give it a shot.  I was not sure if my brain would still be able to connect with my body and remember how to glide down the powdery slope.  I started off a bit slow and cautious.  I was afraid of falling or making a mistake, but by then end of the day things started to come back to me.  Instead of feeling like a toddler learning how to walk for the first time, I was free again like I was when I was a teenager. 

As we drove home I realized that my day on the slopes parallels with the turns that my life will soon take.  Yes, it will be scary at first and I am sure there will be plenty mistakes, but as time goes by I will find my way ,just as I found my way down the mountain.  The landing may not always be a perfect one, but I will always find a way to land back on my feet.



Azevedo Ski Team- 1994

 

Sunny St. Mortiz

Bree and I looked at each other before our second run in St. Mortiz with confidence and a hint of fear.  We knew that this was it.  It all came down this run.  We had fought all season to do something even our coaches had deemed impossible; earn a third sled at the Olympic Games.  All we had to do was stay on the shiny side of the runners and get down the track and that is just what we did.  It was not the greatest run, but it was enough.  As soon as we crossed the line I welled up and could not hold the tears back.  Bree being the competitor she is instead was concerned about our finish, the down time of the run and what place we were in.  It took her a few minutes to understand she, in fact was going to the Olympic Games.  Later that night after our selection committee met to decide the best three brakemen for the Olympics I was also selected.  The tears kept flowing when I called my parents and sisters and told them the news.  I cannot describe the relief I felt when my name was announced.  It was a long fought season, but something Bree and I always believed we could do.   We decided it was going to happen and we found a way to make it a reality. 

All odds were staked against.  It was a simple David vs. Goliath task.  Bree had to not only complete all the European tracks, which she had never been on, she had to be successful on these tracks.  I also had a major task on my hands of proving that I was the best brakeman for the job.  This was no easy task with the pool of talented athletes that there was to choose from.  Somehow, some way we did it. 

This week I am back in St. Mortiz, Switzerland four years later in a similar situation.  Racing and fighting hard to earn a spot on the 2014 Olympic Team.  I can not help but think about all the memories here in St. Mortiz.  This is the place my career began.  During my first season it was in St. Moritz I pushed Erin Pac to an 8^th place finish in World Championships.  It was my first real bobsled experience and ultimately what got me hooked.   The respect for the sport and the deep rooted history this place exudes only leaves me wanting more each time I am here.  If I have learned one thing from bobsled it is to never give up and being here reminds me of the that sentiment and what it can lead to.  

Bree and I after the Olympic Team was selected in St. Mortiz 2010

First Half of the Season Complete!

4th Place Finish with Jazmine Fenlator in both Park City, Utah and Lake Placid, New York

 

 

 

 

Lots to be thankful for

I slowly woke up, reached down to my left hip and felt a bulky brace down my leg.  I immediately started to cry.  Before going into surgery the doctors had told me that if I had the brace on they had to do more work on my hip than they had expected and my recovery time would be longer.   When you are an elite athlete every day counts, especially when you are recovering from an injury.   

After coming off a stressful and exciting Olympic season in 2010 I was struggling to maintain motivation training for the upcoming season.  I decided to enter in a local weightlifting meet.  It was exciting and allowed me to have something other than bobsled to train for.  I learned the lifts as best I could in the month leading up to the meet and managed to use my strength developed from years of bobsledding to complete a decent amount of weight.  It was exactly what I needed to find the competitive fire leading into the next season. 

Subsequently after the meet I started to feel pain in my left hip in the deep squat position.  I backed off on a few of my lifts hoping the pain was muscular and that it would go away with a treatment plan.  Unfortunately it did not.  I quietly limped my way through the following season hoping I could maintain my position and performance.  I managed to complete the season but knew if I wanted any chance of improving and having a chance at competing in Sochi a drastic measure was going to be needed. 

I was terrified this was going to be the end of my bobsled career.  I really did not tell anyone on my team but instead went under the knife four days after returning home from the season to repair a torn labrum in my hip.  Dr. Safran and his team at Stanford Medical took great care of me and managed to calm my nerves with their long history of success stories.   As I laid on the table choosing the music the medical team was going to listen to, I reiterated how important it was for my 'new hip' to be fast (I am sure that did not add any pressure!)

On this Thanksgiving I was able to reflect back on that difficult time in my life and remember how many things, especially my health, I have to be thankful for.  I am so thankful to everyone who helped me fully recover from surgery.  Dr. Safran and his team dutifully answered all my crazy post-operative questions including if I could do pull ups days after surgery.  The U.S. Olympic Committee Sports Medicine team pushed me in my rehab and held me back when I wanted to move forward too quickly.   And of course my family who has always 100 percent supported every decision I have made.  My father helped to comfort me with his orthopedic knowledge and confidence in my physicians.  My mother took her nursing role very seriously and no matter how stubborn I was she reminded me that I needed her help.  I am thankful every day that I am healthy and I am able to continue to compete for my country. 

Ice Queen

Halloween is a time when a mask can be put on and a different persona can be created and lived out.  Whatever costume or personality you can imagine, you can be.  I love being creative and constructing my own costumes on Halloween.  When I was a child I remember how exciting it was to pick out my outfit each year.  One year I was determined to be a cowboy, not a cowgirl but a cowboy.  My mother did not push me to be a cowgirl, but instead allowed me to be whatever I wanted to be that Halloween and in every part of my life.  In the past few years I have not been able to create an outfit because I am usually on the road competing. 

This year I just happened to have some time off to come back to Colorado Springs.  Of course I had to pop back into the Boys and Girls Club and see what the kids came up with for their Halloween costumes.  My favorite costume was a little girl who was a police officer.  She really embraced the identity of a police officer as she cruised through the club saving people and eliminating ‘crime.’  She dutifully made sure everyone waited patiently in line for snack and picked up any trash left behind. For that day she was able to pretend to be something different. 

Just like the young police officer, I morph into a different identity when I am competing.  I put on my costume; my speed suit, bobsled spikes and helmet and become the ‘Ice Queen’.  When I am the Ice Queen I am able to let go of any insecurities or doubt I may have.  I am able to be someone 100 percent confident in my abilities.  The Ice Queen does not care about anything, but pushing the bobsled as fast as she can.  When I am her, I am unbeatable.  Not only does putting on a uniform for a day allow a person to become more confident it also allows them to see what is possible.  Halloween is another opportunity for kids to dream to be something creative, unrealistic or even an Olympic athlete

 

 

Boys and Girls Club interview

1.You are an amazing mentor and leader to kids. Did you have a mentor when you were young? If so, who? Did he/she tell you anything that resonates with you to this day?

I am very lucky to have incredible parents.  Both of them have supported me with whatever I have wanted to do and have always pushed for me to create goals.  They have allowed me to dream big and to recognize that I can do or be whatever I want.  I hope this is something I can also instill in the kids at the Boys and Girls Club.  I want them to know that they can do whatever they set their minds on.

2.You're a very busy individual, and time is important to you. How has spending your time at BGCPPR provided value in your life?

My time at the Boys and Girls Club has helped to ground me and remind me that there are much bigger things in life than training and bobsled.  I spend a lot of time focusing on myself and the things I need to do to be a better athlete, so it is nice to step away from that and spend time helping other people.   I leave the club motivated to work harder in my training.  I want the kids to be proud of what I am doing and I want to show them that with hard work anything is possible.

3.You often talk about the need to "dig deep." What does this mean to you? How does one "dig deep"?

Digging deep is pushing yourself beyond the point you ever thought you could go.  For me, that often means pushing my body beyond its physical limitations and finding a way to convince my mind that my body can be pushed to that place.  This can be applied to any aspect of life.  It is about using your mind to dictate what in your life is possible and pushing yourself past any boundaries.    

4.You started your fundraising campaign with $5 from your sister. What advice can you give for those of us looking for support - not only financial - from our family, friends, and/or community?

I have learned that there are people out there that want to help and want to be a part of something that is important.  It is often hard to ask for help, but you will never receive it if you don’t ask.  My community has been incredibly supportive and is something I am thankful for every day.  It is also important to share your success with the people who have supported you.  I really want my community to feel they are as much a part of the Olympic movement as I am.  

5.What has been one of your biggest disappointments as an athlete? What can kids do to better deal with disappointment in life?

I always wanted to be a collegiate athlete and at the time my passion was soccer.   I did everything that I could do to make that soccer team.  I was one of the last people to be cut from the team.  At the time I was devastated, but I learned a lot from that experience and I believe that it happened for a reason.  I learned that once one path is closed it does not mean that you cannot still complete your goal.  I ended up trying out for the track team and had a successful track career.  It is easy to get discouraged when things don’t go the way you want, but there is always another way to make things happen.  I never would have thought I would be an Olympic Bobsledder, but I always wanted to be an Olympian, so I found a way to make it happen.

 6.What is the scariest thing you have had to do? Are you glad you did it?

 In 2006 I went out to Lake Placid, New York and had my first try out of the bobsled team.  I was terrified.  I had not even considered how the actual bobsled ride would be, but was instead scared of making a fool out of myself.  I was going to be face to face with some of the best bobsledders in the world and here I was attempting to insert myself with this elite group of athletes.  I knew if I did not take the risk and go out to the try out I would regret it my entire life.  I am glad I was able to put my fears at bay and complete the try out! 

Post Card sent on 10/15/2013!

 

Is it worth the cost?

I know many Olympian and Olympic hopefuls that have spent their entire life’s savings and are in significant debt because of the cost of their sport.  This year alone I will have spent thousands of dollars on Ice time, supplements, travel and coaching.  This of course does not include the other unexpected expenses like dental fees or basic vehicle necessity that life will slap you with.  I am one of the luckier athletes.  I may not have dental insurance, but I do have health insurance through the United States Olympic Committee that covers most of my basic health costs and I am fortunate enough to spend my summers training at an Olympic Training Center where my living expenses are covered. 

Not all Olympic hopefuls are as fortunate.  Skeleton Athlete Annie O’Shea just recently turned 26 years old and is now not only faced with paying for her housing to participate in Olympic trials along with her expenses for the season, but is also needing to find a way to cover basic insurance.  Can you imagine sliding head first on ice without health insurance? 

Teammate Katelyn Kelly an upcoming bobsled driver has been in and out of Olympic Training Center housing throughout the summer and has spent countless days staying at a friend’s house and has even been caught in town sleeping in her car.  Both she and Annie have spent their summer waitressing 40 hours a week to pay for necessities to allow them to compete at all this season.  How is an athlete supposed to perform at the highest level when they are not getting adequate training and recovery?

These are just two of the many similar stories of the financial sacrifices made by athletes in hope of earning that elusive spot at the Olympic Games.  As difficult as it may be to shell out the cash each year and how stressful it is to not know where you will sleep it  is comforting to know that each and every day no matter what you do anything you can to get closer to the dream. 

I used to tease my teammates of being frugal, but the reality is we can afford only what we need.  We learn to get scrappy and live on very little means.  I love this sport and that is why I do it.  I have never done it for the pay check or lack thereof.  Katelyn and Annie may have a tougher path because of their financial burden, but like me I hope they think the cost is worth the reward.