Jennifer Rodriguez-

The last World Cup before the Olympics is finally complete. It was here in SLC, so no travel home outside of the hour drive back to my house. That’s so nice!
The World Cup went really well for me and the team. I got 3rd in the 1500m and broke a personal record by half a second and set a new American record! I haven’t even been close to my personal since I’ve been back skating. It was a good race and I was really happy. My 1000m went well also except I had a really bad slip in one of the corners which cost me some time, but the overall skating was what I was looking for. Our women’s team pursuit was also able to qualify a spot for the Games! So, I have now officially qualified in 4 distances for Vancouver...500m, 1000m, 1500m and Team Pursuit!
Now I’m on a well deserved rest week. I’ve been so tired the past couple of days. I think I could quite possibly have been the laziest person alive. I just haven’t had the energy. So while I’ve been lazy, I’ve had the chance to write my Christmas cards and send out the last of my Christmas gifts.
Next week (Dec 26th), begins the trails for those who have not qualified for the Games already. This will be their last shot. Luckily for me, I’ve already earned my spots. I will still have to race, but I will be able to use those races as training.
I’ve also recently signed with Shaklee! I’m very excited. I’ve been using their products for about a month now and have really noticed a difference in my recovery and lack of stiffness after hard workouts. It’s nice to go into workouts and not be sore!
So that’s about it for here. My main focus for this week is to get recovered and get ready for next week. That’s when the last big phase of training comes before the Games.
Ciao!

Jennifer Rodriguez-

got back from the World Cup in Calgary a couple of nights ago. I was actually quite happy with how things went there. It seems as though the hard training I did when I got back from Europe paid off!
I skated my fastest times since I’ve come out of retirement and finally have my personal bests in sight! I was able to get 2 top 10 finishes and things are looking like they’re headed in the right direction. YAY!!!
This weekend is the last World Cup before the Games and its here in SLC. Racing begins on Friday with the 500m, Sat. with the 1500m and Sunday will be the 1k and team pursuit. Even though I skated good last weekend, I still need to race fast this weekend to try and secure my spot on the team.
On another note, we had a monster snow storm the other day and when we got home from Calgary it was awesome to find out our pipes had frozen. I think it’s 5 degrees here or something. That’s really cold for PC!!!! It’s not fun coming home after a travel day to frozen pipes and not be able to take a shower. Yuck! Luckily we were able to crank the heat up and thaw things out for the morning.
Also, I’m happy to say I’m done with Christmas shopping. I’m pretty lazy about it though and do all my shopping online. I stress out with big crowds and try to avoid them at all costs. Online in my pjs is a lot more appealing. I do have the Christmas mess in my living room though with all the boxes, wrapping paper and shipping stuff. I love the holidays!
Be safe!!!

Rebecca Sorensen-

From Torino (where I was 20th) to Winterberg, Germany now. Torino was a huge disappointment. I don’t understand how a formula is working one moment and not working the next. I started this season so strong and now I am just left with questions to answers I thought I already had. I hate to whine in this blog, I guess I’m just thinking it out on paper. Maybe every athlete goes thru this...? I feel like I have it all in perspective, and am still trying to have a good time despite my ranking. Although this sport doesn’t define me, it sure makes me feel and face all of my current fears. Maybe that’s why I am continuing to do it....

Jennifer Rodriguez-

Now that I've back home for a couple of weeks, it's time to head to Calgary for another World Cup this weekend. We are actually leaving tonight and have races Friday, Saturday and Sunday.It's been great being back home for a couple of weeks. I've been able to get some good training in. Actually I'm still a bit tired from it, but I have a good feeling that I will bounce back well once I recover. Thanksgiving was nice. Most of the sprint team (the team I train with) spent the holiday together. Everyone brought something to eat and I think I'm still recovering from all the food. Everything was so good. If you can't spend the holiday with your family, the next best thing is with your close friends. I also had the chance to see New Moon!!! I know everyone is on the vampire kick now a days, but I don't care. I thought it was real good! Even Philip (my boyfriend) liked it. He may have been saying that just to make me feel good, but at least he didn't fall asleep during it.We also went to a new restaurant here in Park City called High West Distillery. They've been a distillery for years and have now opened a restaurant. I'm not a big drinker, but the food was delicious!!!! That's one thing I do love...food! They have the place decorated in an old western style. It was cool!That's about it for now. Like I said before, I'm leaving for Calgary today for a World Cup and then we are back to SLC/PC for the last World Cup before the Games. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!!Take care!

Rebecca Sorensen

Getting to Europe was quite the adventure... We drove to Montreal (almost missed the flight because we were late leaving, stopped for gas and Subway and were stopped at the border for group passport check, a delayed 5 person 16 bag check in, got my luggage searched, customs and...). Flew back to the USA-Washington, DC. And again, had Subway, and a sleepless, overnight, coach seat next to an air marshal flight to Munich. After arriving and getting the rental cars, we packed up, paired up and drove to Igls, Austria to have Thanksgiving dinner with our Luge team and tried to get some much needed rest. The next morning I got in a quick run around the village and a short lift before getting in the car for the 7 hour drive to Sestriere, Italy. I took the first day off from sliding to watch and to try to get my mind and body- one- again. I slid the next day and all seemed to be well. The weather has taken a turn from 50 and sunny to 20 and snowing- overnight.Race is on Friday- check in after that!!!

Nicole De Yong-

Whoa, it is nice to finally be on the road! The past week has been a whirlwind in preparation for leaving Sun Valley for the next 2 months! Despite the business of getting all the odds and ends finished before leaving, I was able to put in some final, quality workouts. My third ski of the season was a 13k skate time trial. The lack of snow and the compact trail made it a little difficult to get stability, but I tried to focus on staying smooth and relaxed. Now that I have been on snow a hand-full of times, I am beginning to feel more comfortable with the longer skis and adjusting to the balance.In addition to getting some quality workouts in last week, I enjoyed spending my last couple days with the kid's at the YMCA. It is hard to believe that I won't see them for 2 months! We had fun playing in the bouncy castle and the second grade girls surprised me by hiding the lockers!

I am currently in West Yellowstone with all the other cross-country skiers in the country! We are enjoying the new snow fall and the great skiing. The energy is high and people are anticipating the first races of the season! With the Olympics just 2.5 months away, you can tell people are more fit than ever.Our race schedule looks like this:Wednesday, November 25- Sprint QualifierFriday, November 27- 10k SkateSaturday, November 28- 5k ClassicStayed tuned for updates!

Rebecca Sorensen-

World Cup number 2 is done. Again, had some really great practice runs and ended up 13th for the race. So the good news is that I moved up 5 spots from last week. I know I can do better. It is just a matter of finding my race mo-jo. Another fun part of the weekend included meeting with hundreds of local school children who came to support the racers. We also filmed Stephen Colbert from the Colbert Report. He tried both bobsled and skeleton. I had to ask him which one he liked better and he said skeleton!!! I had no doubt!!! We leave for Europe and races 3-5 the next week. I’m looking forward to the trip and will be trying to move up the ranks a bit. I’m still fighting for qualifying 3 girls for the USA- for the Games. I’ll keep ya posted!

Nicole De Yong-

Yep! We are officially skiing in Ketchum, Idaho...well, technically we are skiing about 15 miles north of Ketchum. This morning I enjoyed a distance skate ski on well groomed trails with beautiful sunshine and a teamperature of 11 degrees, bbrrrr! There is about 8-10 inches of fresh snow with more to come in the forecast. I am hoping I can put the rollerskis in the closet for good!

We are headed to West Yellowstone in a week to kick off the first races of the season. From there we will travel to Bozeman, Silver Star, Canmore and then up to Anchorage for U.S. Nationals! Cheers!

Jennifer Rodriguez-

Well, I’m back from a 2 week trip in Europe for the first World Cups. It’s a gorgeous day here in Park City and it’s so nice to finally see the sun! We haven’t seen the sun in 2 weeks!!! I went on a bike ride here yesterday and it was so beautiful outside. Yay for sun! Our first stop was in Berlin, Germany and then to Heerenveen, The Netherlands. Lands of the constant drizzle. Yuck!
Racing didn’t go as well as I had hoped. It can be very frustrating at times. Things were going so well before I left for Milwaukee for our trials. It seems like once we started resting in preparation for all the racing, I started to lose my feel a little bit. Unfortunately skating is all about feel. If your off just a little, it makes a big difference in the overall.
I also ended up getting a cold and then the stomach bug while I was over there. It wasn’t much fun. Its crazy, this year I’ve been really good about taking all my vitamins, washing my hands and using that antibacterial stuff and I still end up sick! I guess you never know.
Now that I’m back home, its time to get healthy and get back to training again! I’m excited. We have about 2.5 weeks before we head over to Calgary for the next World Cup. After that, we’ll have one more here in SLC. I’m hoping I’ll be able to get my feel back by then.
Outside of skating, I pretty much have all my Christmas shopping done! I’m doing a pretty good job I must say. I’m looking forward to Thanksgiving next week! I’m not sure what I’m doing for it yet, but Philip will be here so that is something I am thankful for.
And that’s gonna do it for now!
Catch ya later!
pic is of Elli Ochowicz, Heather Richardson and myself in Berlin at the WC.

Rebecca Sorensen-

Just finished 2 weeks of training on the Olympic sliding track. I received 16 runs and got a true feel for the track and the areas in which I need to focus. I can only hope that I will be back here in February to represent the USA. My first ever world cup race is Nov 12 on home soil. My family will be there and I again hope that I will be able to have my best performance on race day. Every race this season will count towards an Olympic qualification on Jan 20. I wish my team members luck with their goals and, perhaps, together, we can get 3 women to the Games. I have learned this last week that life at the top of your chosen activity is not always as one might picture it- the important thing is always to try to stay focused on "your thing" while never negatively affecting those who are around you doing the same. In my opinion, these are where the real medals are won...

Nicole DeYong-

The past two weeks have been chalked full of intensity! Racing season is less than three weeks away and it is time to get fast! Last week consisted of a 3x(4x400m) + 4x200m track workout, 6x4min L4 classic rollerski intervals, and a 2x25min L3 mooshoofing interval session.

I gave myself a full day of rest before I jumped into a strength test the following week. I was happy to produce some improved results...indicating that my time in the gym is paying off. The test consisted of a minute of pull-ups, minute rest, minute of sit-ups, minute rest, minute of push-ups, minute rest, minute of box jumps, minute rest, minute of dips, DONE!!!! My arms were flooded with lactic acid when I finished but I set a new record!

The week progressed with another 3x(4x4oom) track workout and some L4 skate intervals. Whew! its been tough couple weeks but its the best way to get faster!

I topped off the week with a trip to the Sawtooths. I enjoyed a few nights at a friends cabin where I put in a couple hours of wood-cutting, took advantage of a "natural' contrast bath with a river and a hot-springs called the "boat box" and went for a great over-distance hike/run in the White Cloud Mountains! We ran into 1 1/2 feet of snow toward the top! We lucked out with a beautiful, sunny day...but definitely a little chilly.

The count down to the first race in West Yellowstone is 17 days! Lets hope for some snow and we'll be in business! This next week will contain some tough workouts but will be a fairly low-volume week. Time to bring it on!

Chris Cook-

Steinbock HQ, Ready and waiting… C.Cook
Saturday, November 6, 2009

SteinbockRacing has set up shop in Park City, Utah to prepare for the upcoming race season. The first races are only two and half weeks away, which leaves us just enough time to make our final preparations. I’m not going to lie though, I was hoping for a little less 60 degree weather and more snowy conditions, but we will make do. There is no lack of quality training spots here in PC and if the snow continues to elude us we will make our way over towards Vail, CO. It’s already been a success out here, as we got the whole crew together for dinner at El Chubasco so I can’t complain. AJ knocked out a solo TT, I got in a good run, Cory wants to put skis in a hot box, and we still can’t get ZSi off his bike, but you can’t win every battle in the war. Stoke level is definitely high here at SteinbockRacing HQ. Business as usual continues for us though, we have a morning photo shoot tomorrow and then I look to go out and get some training in with the group.Pin it Steinbock.

Rebecca Sorensen-

Traveling light...I have been training up in Whistler on the upcoming Olympic track for the past week. The track is fast and technical right from turn one. Lots of opportunity to loose speed and your sled if you are not careful. It is testing my strength and all of my weaknesses. I hope I will be a better slider at the end of our two weeks of International training here. Life on World Cup is great. A new team dynamic to deal with and daily coaching for one of the first times in my career are all good things. We are a great team and are working well together to keep everyone fast and safe. Till next time...b.

Jennifer Rodriguez-

Well...one step down and the rest to go! I just got back from our World Cup Qualifier in Milwaukee a couple of days ago where things went pretty well. I was able to qualify for World Cups in my 3 distances...500m, 1000m and 1500m. I felt pretty good during the races. I had a little bit of a rocky start but felt better as the races went on. I got the job done, so that’s the most important part!
Now we’re back home for three days before we head over to Europe for the first two World Cups. First we go to Berlin and then to Heerenveen, The Netherlands. It’s a little confusing but this is where we will try and qualify our spots for the Olympics. In the past we would have our own US Olympic Trials, but the ISU (International Skating Union) changed the regulations and now we have to actually qualify spots internationally at World Cups. It will be based off of rankings and times. In total there will be 4-5 World Cups through December. After that, we will know how many spots the U.S. will have at the Games per distance and for the most part who will be going. For those who are not going to World Cups, they will have one more chance to qualify for the Olympic Team at the end of December in SLC during a “skate off” qualifier for the last available position for each distance. Confusing I know but I hope I made some sort of sense. :)
So right now I’m doing the dreaded packing...it’s my worst nightmare! Tomorrow I will be headed overseas with the rest of my team to see what we can do!!! I’m a little sad we’ll be missing Halloween though! It’s one of my favorite holidays!!!!
I’ll be in touch to let you know how things go while I’m across the ocean!
Happy, safe Halloween!!!!
JROD

Rebecca Sorensen-

We just finished our World Cup/Olympic trails on Saturday the 24th. And I am happy to report that I have made our world cup team and will be headed to the Olympic track for 10 days of training before our world cup season starts in Park City, UT.

Thanks for all of your support!!!

Rebecca Sorensen

Okay...so two of our four world cup selection races are complete. I was fortunate enough to have earned two, 2nd place finishes from Lake Placid. I’m pretty darn excited about the way I have been training and hope to keep it up in Park City. The week was filled with lots of planning and detailed preparation in an effort to be at my best. We were up at 6am for the two days of racing and up late most nights. It is always a fine line in balancing all of the elements that we have in our sport of Skeleton. Everything is always ever-changing. So, off to Park City to hopefully make the world team...!!!

Jennifer Rodriguez

I know I missed a week of blogging, so now I need to catch up. Its been a busy 2 weeks! Last night we arrived to Milwaukee and are getting ready for the US World Cup Qualifier/Olympic Trials. We have one week to get used to the ice and the absolute freezing cold in the rink and next Wednesday the races begin! I’m excited! My skating is feeling pretty good and times have been going well. Hopefully I can keep things going in this direction.

Last week, Philip was in town and it was nice to have him around again. I had to go to Vancouver for a Nike media summit for women...Philip was able to come along, which was awesome! It was fun, but crazy busy!!! There was really no time to do any looking around. We were busy from super early morning until dinner. I had to do quite a bit of interviewing and even a long track demonstration. I must say that its not easy doing a LT demonstration. The track is too big!!! When people are sitting on one side of the rink they can’t really see me while I’m on the other side. So, I had to improvise and do a short demo on one side of the track. It was hard but I made the best of it. With all the interviewing though, I was exhausted! I’m a shy person, so talking to a lot of people I don’t know is very hard for me. At the end of a day full of interviews, I’m wiped! Its good for me though. It helps me out of my shy shell.

So right now, I’m sitting on my bed getting ready to watch Monday night football with my Dolphins vs. Jets. At this moment, there is nothing more important! :) The Dolphins are also recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month during this game as well. Pretty cool!!!

GO FINS!!! :-D

The pic is of the Pettit National Ice Center in Milwaukee.

Rebecca Sorensen-

We are right in the middle of our training week as we prepare for the first 2 of 4 Olympic team trail races. I have been training well despite the ever changing track conditions and in going from a night to morning sliding schedule. This last week’s focus has been all about the sliding and equipment for me. The method seems to keep me in the right frame of mind as we head into official training and to the races on the 14th and 15th. A few days ago we had our annual Randy Price Memorial Award and Luggage Lotto. Although the award was not given at this meeting, we continued the tradition of speaking about Randy and what he has meant to those who knew and slide with him and in sharing his unspoken message of strength and courage for those who didn’t. Randy found skeleton in 1999, 3 years into a thyroid cancer diagnosis. Skeleton was one of the few sports Randy could enjoy and control despite feeling ill most of his short sliding career. He would drive over 5 hours to the track just to take a few runs so that he could feel truly alive. He said that skeleton gave him a special gift. What Randy didn’t know, is that he gave us all a special gift by being a true representation of what an athlete should hold as the his or her highest value- do sport a sport because of the way it can change your life for the better- if you just let it...

Jennifer Rodriguez-

Sorry I’m a little late in writing this week, but I have been crazy busy!!! Last Monday Philip went back to Baltimore, but I was still on a hard week of training so I was back to the regular routine. On Wednesday I was off to Chicago for the USOC Media Summit.
The Media Summit is an opportunity for journalists of all sorts to question Olympic hopefuls in all the winter sports. Its 2 days long and pretty much nonstop from early morning until late afternoon. Its actually pretty exhausting, especially when you have to fit workouts in on the little bit of downtime we have. We get some cool gear though and all meals are taken care of, so you can’t really complain. Plus its always fun to interact with the other athletes. Its a rare opportunity to meet and hang out with the athletes from other sports. I like it!!!
After Chicago I went back to Miami for a couple of days to visit my family and brand new nephew. It was nice to be home. I had the chance to go visit my mom, which was tough but important for me to do. When I was at the site, it really felt like it was just yesterday. It had been about 3 months since I was there. It was nice to be home this time for something joyful.
My nephew has got to be the cutest little guy ever! I know I’m biased, but he’s precious! He was born a week early so he’s a tiny little guy, just over 5 lbs. I’ve never really been around babies, so I wasn’t really sure what to do. He seemed so fragile. Once I held him for the first time, my eyes started to water. I loved him so much...instantly! I can’t wait to have one of my own some day! :)
My brother and his wife also bought a new home recently, so it was nice to check that out. We actually were all able to get together to watch the Dolphin game (which was a complete disaster) as a family for the first time in an extremely long time. I enjoyed that a lot. I love watching sports with my family.
Other than spending time with the family, I still had to train. I jumped on the bike a couple of times and went to the gym. Philip came to Miami as well, so he and my dad joined in on my workouts. My dad has gotten crazy about getting back into shape. I’m proud of him. He’s doing real well. It was super nice being home, even if it was just for a short time. One thing I don’t miss is the humidity! Yuck! It’s so sticky! Regardless, I was glad I went because the next time I get to go home is after the season in March or April. By then my nephew should be crawling...I can’t wait!!!
Anyway, I’m back in Park City now and in my own bed. I’m on a rest week, so time to take care of all the miscellaneous nonsense.
Until next time!!!!jrod

Rebecca Sorensen-

Southwest to the NortheastAfter moving out of the OTC in Colorado Springs, I spent a nice long weekend at home. However, it was far from restful with lots of work to do with both the party I planned and the trip to LP for which to prepare. The party was great. All my friends came from back in the day and a lot of catching up was done. Then, my travel to Lake Placid was a dream. Was only charged 50$ for my extra luggage (thanks Southwest) and had a whole row to myself the whole way. Being back in Placid brings back a lot of memories and I’m super excited to start sliding on Monday. Body feels great and can’t wait to see what happens on the track. I’ll keep ya posted!!! It has already snowed.... Sweet.

Annie O'Shea-

This has been a great week of pushing so far. Despite the fact that my legs are still way too sore for my own good, I feel confident. I think I am going to need a heavier sled than I had last year, by about 3kg. I lost a lot of weight over the past month or so, and I don’t know if I will put it all back on or if I want to.

Last year I thought the extra weight was going to be a huge advantage, and I really didn’t find a difference. Now since I got a little lighter I think I’ll just continue to let my body be where it wants to.

There are only 2 days left of pushing here in Calgary. I have worked on a few things, like staying closer to my sled and running in a straight line. It’s a little more difficult than normal since I am not pushing my sled and I keep hitting my ankles with the metal bunks of this sled. Quite painful.
I am getting really nervous and excited for October 5th (the first day of the season) to come around. I have a little bit of a different feeling this year, normally I don’t get nervous when people ask me if I’m excited, but now I am. A lot of the guests at work ask how I am doing and if I am ready to go. I say yes because I am, but then I get nervous because I want this so bad and I stay that way for a good amount of time. Maybe the change is a good thing for me, I don’t want to be too confident that wouldn’t be a good way to go about anything. Annie

Nicole De Yong-

Lake Placid Update

Well it has been a while since I updated! Last update I was just leaving Whistler. Since then, I drove back to Sun Valley and have traveled to Lake Placid, New York for a training camp. Everything seems like a bit of a whirlwind but I have to admit, having these camps gives me a good chance to get caught up with all the little “to do” things, such as updating my blog.
It is always nice to come east and enjoy training in a new place with beautiful fall colors, good roller skiing terrain, and accessibility to a great facility. We are staying at the Olympic Training Center which provides dorm-like housing, cafeteria-like eating, and a great sports therapy. All of these things create a very “easy” environment in which to train. When we are not training or eating, we have time to rest and get the recovery we need.
We have a full week or quality training ahead of us. The U.S. Ski Team along with some other teams will be joining us in the next couple days. It will be nice to have a “crew” out here to train.
I will do my best to update as the camp progresses!

Rebecca Sorensen

Above is a photo from Lake Louise. So beautiful! I really enjoyed my trip to Canada last week. This week’s training was a little hit and miss. On Sunday, the day I traveled home, I met a friend and went for a drive. We ended up finding a great hiking trail and... ending up hiking to the top of this huge mountain. So much for a day off. That meant that my next two days would be a bit off schedule. I had planned the sprinting portion of my Federation’s summer testing criteria to be this week. When the week started, I wasn’t sure if I would be at my best with last week being so hard and the way I was currently feeling. So- I just told myself, one day at a time. On Thursday, a non-regular training partner wanted to join my session and wanted to use the timing eyes for some practice testing. I decided it might be a good idea to run a 15m and see where I was. I ended up being fairly fast and decided to just do my test right there and then. 5 of 8 marks I achieved higher than my goal and the other 3 were withing hundredths, inches and pounds of what I wanted. Looking back, I’m sort-of glad for the interruption in my schedule, you can’t always plan perfect days/weeks, so being able to adapt to different situations and still perform is key. A great confidence boost and lesson learned about how you can still perform when least expected, trust your training and listen to your body and things will usually work out!!!

Chris Cook

Northside Update 6
After a recovery week from the Whistler camp, training has gone into a full blown blitz of intensity. Also with the all the campers for motocross camps and ski camps back in school, I’ve decided it would be a good idea to stack brick… This decision has resulted in a couple of the hardest training weeks of the year to make it to the end. The job has been building a display for a concrete products business, meaning, building a small castle around two sides of the main office building. Pillars, stone walls, raised platforms, cobble floors; this thing has everything except a draw bridge and a moat. It has been a great job, but you add training to the equation and I could barely make it to my bed at night. Here is a snapshot of last week’s training:
Mon: Work 7-5
Tue: AM Intensity, Work 12-5, PM Distance
Wed: Work 7-3, PM Distance
Thu: AM Intensity, Work 12-6, PM Strength
Fri: AM Distance, Work 12-7, PM Off
Sat: AM Intensity, Work 12-5
Sun: AM Distance, PM Off
I have been charging ahead with this type of schedule now for one and a half weeks and I probably have just about another full week of work before this display is finally finished. The only other activity I have managed to sneak in has been some great fall barefooting runs. The weather here in the WI has been the best it’s been all summer, which is real odd but I will take it. Have to get a lot done before I head out to a gnarly intensity camp out in Lake Placid, NY on Oct. 1.
Pin it.

Rebecca Sorenses

Moving out and moving on...This week I will pack my bags and go home for a few days in preparation to go to Lake Placid.A great summer behind, a great goal ahead and just a great time in life.

Training volume is lighter now but still remains at a fairly high intensity. I would like to thank my coach Jon Carlock and all he has done for me this summer. Thanks Jon! He is truly a great trainer, super smart and caring. An athlete can not ask for more than that. Feeling ready and excited makes me think about the future and what it might bring. I find myself getting more lost in those thoughts more often. I have to remind myself to stay in the moment.

Over the last weekend I climbed the pikes peak incline and ran down the 4 mile trail beside it. That was great. I have wanted to climb it since last year. Views were amazing. Then, as if it could get any better, a new friend took me mountain flying. It was great to get up in the air again. I miss flying. We did 3 mountain passes and flew over the sand dunes of southern Colorado.It was a nice escape and a 2 new challenges didn’t hurt either.

Bye for now!!!

Becca

Chris Cook-

Northside Update…
So, I just got back from the soggy pacific northwest, Whistler BC to be exact. I spent the last 12 days there mostly training at the Whistler Olympic Park which will host the Nordic Events for the upcoming Olympics. The camp was fast and furious. No rest days, chucked with intensity, and two a days aplenty. I handled the load quite well and chalked up a 21.5 hour workweek for the books. We got in a classic sprint time trial on the actual sprint course and a 10k uphill skate roller ski time trial, which we ran on the access road up to the venue. I also knocked out some quality speed sessions, a decent mountain bike ride on the comfortably numb trail, and got huge in the gym. Pretty much your standard fall camp schedule. The weather wasn’t all bad either; we got a great stretch of sun for the entire first half of the camp and only had to battle the elements for the last couple of days.
Now it’s back home for a much needed recovery week. In the upcoming weeks the intensity training is really ramping up and will carry right into my next camp scheduled for Oct. 1 over in Lake Placid, NY.

Nicole De Yong-

Whistler Update

Today is the conclusion of our 10-day dry land training camp in Whistler! It has been a tough and intense camp, as expected. We’ve completed two intensity sessions, two time trials, two speed workouts, seven distance workouts and three strength sessions. The first few days we roller skied on the trails at the Olympic Venue, but the venue closed September 1, until the start of the Olympics.

We begin our long drive back to Sun Valley, bright and early tomorrow morning!

Jennifer Rodriguez-

So this has been a very nice and exciting week for me. My man Phil came to visit me the day after I got back from Milwaukee. It was very nice to have him around. I was on an easy week, so we were able to putz around a little and enjoy ourselves. We had some really nice dinners, one at the Sundance resort which was super beautiful. We did the alpine slide, saw Inglourious Basterds, went on some bike rides, checked out Spazmatics and he installed a car stereo for me among other things! I even got him to try out long track speedskating...interesting. :) He’s leaving tomorrow, so I’m kind of bummed. :(

I finally feel like my legs recovered a bit from the hard training and team pursuit camp. I’m now back in the cycle of intense training. We have a couple more weeks until we start our practice races. I’m actually looking forward to it. It will be interesting to see how I compare to last year at this time.

I’m also excited to announce I’m signing with Nike and partnering up with the Lance Armstrong foundation!!! That means a lot to me with the passing of my mom less than 3 months ago. It will be a great opportunity to support cancer survivors and their families. My family has been through so much, I want to do this for my mother’s memory.

The most exciting news of the week is that I became a Aunt yesterday!!!! My brother and his wife gave birth to a healthy little boy, Ethan Emilio Rodriguez! I have never been so happy in my entire life. Since it’s going to be a long while until I can have a kid, this little guy is it for me!!!! I’m going back to Miami for a long weekend to see the little whippersnapper! I can’t wait!!!

This week I’m also going to Chicago for the USOC Media Summit. The Media Summit is held to give all journalists the opportunity to interview and photograph Olympic hopefuls over the period of 2 days. Its good to try and get this stuff out of the way now rather than right before the Games.

Lastly, the short track skaters have their Olympic Trials this week. It should be a very tight and exciting competition. I’m nervous for those guys! They’ve been working so hard all summer and now this is it! I’m keeping my fingers crossed and hoping for the best. We’ll basically know the team by the end of the week!

Anyway, that’s about it! Until next time...

Signing off...

Rebecca Sorensen-

Another week gone- I can hardly believe it... Time flies when you are having fun! So what is it about these adages, why are they all true, and why does it take 1/4 of your life to figure that out? Just try and disprove one- it’s impossible, I swear. Okay, back to the training blog. I finished my lifting portion of my test and got higher than expected numbers. So I’m pleased to have that done and out of the way for now. I will finish my sprint test once I return from Calgary next week. In the mean time- I have enjoyed watching the US Open, have been disputing a few little items on my credit report and thinking a lot about the future. After receiving a bone scan last week, I learned that my T score is 0.0. Totally normal, but it should be higher. I will have a small blood test to see where my Vit D levels are. The movie Blood Diamond is coming on now and time for some randr, so blog ya in a week! Wishing you a happy and safe Labor Day weekend!!!

*Keep asking yourself who, what, where, why and how....don’t be a thoughtless follower...

Nicole De Yong

Since my last blog update, I traveled to Alaska and back and now I am headed to Whistler for a 10 day camp.

I was in Alaska for two weeks, visiting my family and enjoying some fun Alaskan adventures! Twelve hours after stepping off the plane, I found myself in one of the most beautiful landscapes ever!...on Kesugi Ridge. This ridge is located North of Anchorage in Denali State Park and offers amazing views of Mt. McKinley! While the weather was nice, it wasn't quite clear enough to see the entire mountain.

I spent the rest of the week putting in some good training. I did a majority of my training by myself, but it was good to focus on doing the "right" workouts for me. I did a lot of classic rollerskiing and double-poling, giving my legs a little break to relieve some soreness and fatigue that built up in previous weeks. Hopefully with the right training and the right amount of rest, they will be back to normal soon!

My last few days in Alaska brought me South, to Homer and across Katchemak Bay to Halibut Cove. With a recovery week scheduled, I was able to enjoy some kayaking and hiking.

If you ever find yourself in Alaska, I strongly recommend checking out both of these places! They are beautiful!

I am headed to Whistler tomorrow for a 10 day dry-land camp and looking forward to it! It will be a good opportunity to train with new and different people!

All for now!

Rebecca Sorensen

I have been training very well this last week, and getting even more excited to push and slide- if that is even possible. The summer has gone by super fast but it has been the best summer of my life it seems. I had great training, learned more about myself and life and have had some amazing opportunities present themselves!!! T A few things that are notable from last week are my Grandmother’s 87 Birthday, a plan to have party to celebrate the summer and a new season to come, horseback riding in the Garden of the Gods and a USOC sponsor interview in Denver. I continue to work on equipment and the list is down to just a few items to do. Yeah! Big things are coming in the next few weeks including a push camp in Calgary and running and lifting test...

Jennifer Rodriguez

I am officially pooped!!! Our team pursuit camp in Milwaukee has come to an end and it was not an easy one, especially when I was so tired going into it. So much so I had to take some training’s off to make sure I would be able to get through the camp.

Nevertheless, the camp went very well and I think we were able to learn some good things. This time we worked more on strategies vs. skating with different skaters. So we’ll see what the coaches come up with. They’re supposed to narrow down the group a bit to get closer to to picking the skaters who will be going to the Games in the team pursuit.

So like I’ve already said...I’m worn out! Right now I’m sitting at Elli’s house on the lake watching “Pride and Prejudice.” Its a gloomy, rainy day out. The perfect, lazy movie kind of day. We were hoping to take the pontoon for a spin but it doesn’t look promising. Today I’m heading back home to SLC where I will start my rest week. I’m so looking forward to it! I need it big time. This is a crucial time in our training and this time of the year is always the make or break you time. I’d much rather be on the “make” side then the “break” side, so I need to make sure I’m getting recovered.

Also, my boyfriend is coming to town tomorrow for about 10 days, so that will be very good times! We haven’t seen each other for 6 weeks. Long distance relationships are tough, but we’re making it work.

Tomorrow I’m also shooting a spot for Adecco, so I have to be at the rink rather early. I think it will be used primarily for the web. I’ll know more when I get there.

Anyway, that’s about it.

Hasta luego!

Chris Cook- MTB

Northside update 4

So the mountain bike season has come to a close, and I would chalk it up as a success. I completed six races without having a mechanical, knock on wood, but much better than the three I racked up last season! I finished the season at the Ore to Shore in Marquette last weekend. I ran the 28 mile Soft Rock and it could nearly be run on a cross bike if it weren’t for all the nasty sandbox sections. We covered the 28 mile course in 1 hour 28 minutes with an average speed of 18.9mph, which is absolutely ridiculous considering most mountain bike race averages are around 13mph! Running a dual suspension was a bad choice…the battle wagon of choice would have been a hardtail 29er, but I made do. I ended up finishing third in a three man group sprint for the victory so I was happy with the result, and it was a good close to the season, assuming I can’t find one more race to fit into the schedule…

It’s back to training without racing this week. Have to knock out one more large volume week this week then a slight recovery couple of days before I head out to whistler for an intensity camp at the Olympic venue. I am definitely looking forward to whistler to get some hard training in with the rest of my boys. Head to head hard training is really the only way to really get after it.

Gone training. All in.

Rebecca Sorensen- Road to Victory

A poem that hit home...

The Road To Victory

Gazing at the sky, clouds drifting by, all at once the imagination is sparked with the sincere desire to create a legacy that will truly inspire The belief that you reach your destination is the torch that lights the way Through the darkness called doubt, Determination is you companion Let there be no distractions in each of us there is a still small voice that is our guide be watchful, for there will be those to encourage us on They have also traveled The Road to Victory.

Written by a dear friend who published her book with Classic Day in 2004. Pathways of the Soul by Victoria L Heim is a marvelous collection of poems in english and then translated into many other languages for not only a great poetic experince but an educational one.

***The photo is of a favorite rock climbing place just outside of Lake Placid. I really enjoy climbing too!!!

Jennifer Rodriguez- Tough Week

Well I must say, this has been a very tough week! I think Tuesday was probably our hardest day yet! A very tough day on the ice, then in the weight room. Its good though. Its nice to feel like you’ve put some hard work in and you’re actually getting something out of it.

As of today, myself as well as a couple other of my teammates get to back off a little for a couple of days in preparation for our team pursuit camp in Milwaukee. We’re leaving on Sunday and getting back on Thursday. I’m expecting it to be pretty tough. Milwaukee is a super cold rink, so I’m not looking forward to that, but it has been a while since I’ve been there and our Olympic/World Cup trials will be there in October so it will be good to get on that ice.

My hip is doing much better. I still have to do regular treatments on it, but I don’t have any pain while I skate, so I’m real glad about that. I haven’t done a whole lot of starts yet. That might be a little tricky but I’ll deal with it one step at a time.

Outside of skating, my boyfriend is trying to get me to listen to country music. I have to admit I’ve never been a fan, I’m a city girl! But some of the songs are quite catchy. I do like a good western movie, so I may as well get into the whole kit and caboodle. What is the world coming to. :)

Chris Cook-

Northside Update 3

The Northside really provided some outstanding weather for a large volume week, and several times I found myself wondering if it was indeed already fall. So far I have gotten in half my hours for a 25hour volume week and have been able to train in massive cold winds, rain, and high temperatures barely cracking the 60 degree mark. Go Wisconsin. I hear this makes you stronger or more resilient, but it mostly made me cold. Nonetheless I can’t complain though the training has gone well. Knocked out some solid running intensity, rollerskiing speed work, and I got out on the mountain bike for a solid ride.

This coming week I will get a week off from the motocross camps which means, chad and I will have at least one morning next week where we try and destroy each other on mountain bikes. This ride turns into an all out how can I ride the other guy off my wheel for a good hour. It doubles as a great intensity session and you better be ready for it. I just have to make sure it happens early in the week because the Ore to Shore will be arriving next Saturday and I want a podium finish up there. It should be my last Mountain bike race of the season and everyone likes to go out on top.

The last training sessions of the week will entail some skate rollerski intensity along the lines of 5x5min all out efforts and a 4.5 hour road bike epic. Should be a nice little weekend…

Well, time to sign off and knock out a 2.5 hour double pole distance session, temperature 54 degrees, go Northside.

Jennifer Rodriguez- Vancouver Camp

Well, I don't have much to report this week. I got back from my 2 week camp in Vancouver on Sunday. It was a very tough but productive camp and very nice to be back on the ice again. Even though the ice wasn't very good, its still beneficial to be at the venue where the Games are going to be.

This week is a recovery week for my team and it is very much needed. I was wasted after Vancouver! I'm only now beginning to recover and its Thursday! So this week the training volume has been cut way back so we can get ready for the upcoming hard weeks. I'm looking forward to it!

I have to admit that its been awesome sleeping in my own bed again. Not that there was anything wrong with the hotel, its just that there's no place like home...and I'm a homebody. I've also been using this little bit of downtime to catch up on all my other things, like paying bills and fun stuff like that. Its always nice to be on the road because its easier to focus on the task at hand...training, but when you get home there's so much stuff to play catch up with. I'm not complaining, that's just the way it is.

Anyway, that's about it. Sorry I don't have any exciting news. Maybe next week!

Until then...

jrod

Rebecca Sorensen- power time

Training this last week has been great. We are getting into more speed work type workouts with some emphasis on power. Starting some stairs and bounding with starts off the block as well.

I plan to go to Calgary on Wednesday to get in 3 days of pushing on the indoor ice surface.This last week I got to have dinner with The Hartford and hear all the amazing things they have done for athletes over the years. What a great company!!! Well- those are my two highlights.Hope all is well in your world!

Rebecca Sorensen

So I decide not to go on a semi-planned trip to Calgary to push in the indoor ice house. Too much money and time spent for just a few hours on ice. It was my decision and one I don’t regret at this point. Only one woman from our national team went. When that happens, we don’t really get a fair idea of where your training needs to go. We hope that the whole team will be there in Sept. In loo of the trip, I worked on equipment. Sanding runners, re-padding and taping my sled and getting speed-suits repaired and altered. It is always a big job getting everything we need together for the next season. Last year I finally made a list as the season was ending, so I would have exactly what repairs were needed to which items. I’m getting close to being ready to go!!!

In other news... I started reading the book- The Dynamic Path. I have enjoyed how the author ties the sports world and the business world together. A good read so far. The author is: James M. Citrin in case anyone was interested. I think that’s it for now... I hope everyone is doing well!

Jennifer Rodriguez-another week down

This past week has been a real tough one. We upped our intensity and started working on some higher speed stuff on the ice. It was actually fun! Usually the couple of times I try to go fast each year is a complete disaster. I'm out of control and feel like a spazz. This time I actually had some sort of control. Surprisingly enough, my lap time was faster than anything I came up with last year! Granted last year was my first year back after 2 years off, but still...I was happy. Hopefully I can keep things building in the right direction.

This week was also my teammate Nick's 30th birthday. Another one to join the 30 year old club! We all went to a free reggae concert down in SLC. It was a lot of fun and I'd have to say the people watching was even better than on South Beach. I didn't know SLC had such a collection of people. Good times!

Today is my day off and so far its been real nice. I've been so tired and have had some long days, its nice to just sit back, relax and play catch up on a bunch of errands and whatnots. Tomorrow the week starts over again and its going to be another tough one. Next Sunday I leave for Milkwaukee for a 3 day Team Pursuit camp. But first, the focus is this week.

:-)jen

p.s. the pic is of my roommate's dog Hurley

Kaitlyn Farrington- Passes On-Snow test!!

Passed

July 31, 2009 by kaitlyn farrington

Today was the day I did my back to snow test for the second time… I PASSED!!! My knee is all good for snowboarding in New Zealand.I leave on August 8 and won’t be back till September 20. The first 2 weeks I am there I will only be able to cruz groomers just to get my feet back under me. I am really looking forward to being back in the PIPE!

Nicole De Yong- Recovery Week!!

Recovery Week

After a quality week of training in Utah, this past week was a recovery week…a chance to get rested and do different activities! Recovery weeks are not always easy for me; I am one that does not like to take a day off. Instead of filling my recovery week with “off days,” I used “active recovery” to fill those days. In other words, I used low impact activities such as swimming and biking to let my body rest and recover.

Every other day I either swam or biked to allow my legs to recover from the fatigue I’ve been feeling for the past couple weeks. This was a good way to give my legs a break and get them back under my feet.

In addition to doing new and different activities, recovery weeks are a good chance to get out and explore and travel to new areas. This past week I drove through Yellowstone National Park, over Beartooth Pass, and into the Gallatin National Forest in Montana. The drive was absolutely beautiful and I saw several buffalo, grizzly bears, and coyote along with other creaturesJ I went for a run at Insideout Trailhead and explored the beauty of the Gallatin National Forest.

My recovery week also allowed me spend some time at the YMCA Kid’s Summer Camp. We had fun making “kitchen creations” ranging from rice krispies to chocolate covered bananas. We also had fun painting each others faces…although Alonzo wouldn’t let me paint his face after he painted mine!

I feel rested and ready to hammer into my volume week!

Jennifer Rodriguez- In Vancouver

Well, I'm still in Vancouver at my training camp and things have been going very well. Two weeks now on the ice and I'm finally starting to feel normal out there again. Actually I already have a much better feeling on my skates than last year. Speedskating is such a "feel" sport, so I'm glad to be getting my feel back!

My hip is also doing a lot better. I was actually able to do a few starts yesterday. I was very nervous about how it would respond, but so far so good. I think with continued therapy I should be able to get through this season with few problems...I hope.

Last Sunday, I was able to check out a little bit of Vancouver. An old skating friend of mine came to town to visit, so a few of us did a little sightseeing. We checked out some market place, Stanley Park and where the Olympic is going to be. Its still under construction, but it looks nice. It sits right along the river.

The Kazakhstan arrived here over the weekend. I actually have a Russian friend who trains with them, so I'm pretty excited. the Japanese and Koreans are here as well. Its always fun to see the other countries training. Its great motivation, plus since we are a small sport, its kind of like a family environment. We don't actually race one another, we race the clock. So that competitiveness against athletes is not really there like in most sports. We are a time trial sport...it makes a big difference.

Tomorrow we begin the long process of selecting our team pursuit team. We will have a number of camps to narrow down the selection. So we'll see how the first camp goes.

Anyway, I head back to Utah on Sunday. I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed again, but its been a great camp. Its always good for team bonding.

Ciao everyone!!!

jen

Chris Cook-

Northside Update 3

The Northside really provided some outstanding weather for a large volume week, and several times I found myself wondering if it was indeed already fall. So far I have gotten in half my hours for a 25hour volume week and have been able to train in massive cold winds, rain, and high temperatures barely cracking the 60 degree mark. Go Wisconsin. I hear this makes you stronger or more resilient, but it mostly made me cold. Nonetheless I can’t complain though the training has gone well. Knocked out some solid running intensity, rollerskiing speed work, and I got out on the mountain bike for a solid ride.

This coming week I will get a week off from the motocross camps which means, chad and I will have at least one morning next week where we try and destroy each other on mountain bikes. This ride turns into an all out how can I ride the other guy off my wheel for a good hour. It doubles as a great intensity session and you better be ready for it. I just have to make sure it happens early in the week because the Ore to Shore will be arriving next Saturday and I want a podium finish up there. It should be my last Mountain bike race of the season and everyone likes to go out on top.

The last training sessions of the week will entail some skate rollerski intensity along the lines of 5x5min all out efforts and a 4.5 hour road bike epic. Should be a nice little weekend…

Well, time to sign off and knock out a 2.5 hour double pole distance session, temperature 54 degrees, go Northside.

Rebecca Sorensen

Another question that comes up often is how does a skeleton athlete train in the summer. Some folks think that ice still exists somewhere for us in the summer months. Not a bad assumption- with enough money even some ice would be possible during this time of year. But, unfortunately, no ice is available, no downhill wheeled sleds are available and no real sliding options are at hand. So we do the best we can with running, lifting, pushing different objects and sport specific drills. Occasionally, we get to go up to Canada and pay to use their indoor ice pushing facility; complete with timing and the use of a real skeleton sled. I am currently planning a trip to Calgary to push during the week of August 10th. Otherwise, all is well. Training super hard and enjoying everyday!!!

Nicole De Yong- Soldier Hollow training camp

Soldier Hollow Training Camp

I just returned to Ketchum from a 5 day training camp in Soldier Hollow. We took advantage of the great roller ski trails at the venue and used the terrain to work on V1 and striding technique…two things we do not have much of in Sun Valley.

The first day we worked on our hops with plyos: jumping over hurdles, jumping up multiple stairs, single leg hops, etc. We completed the workout with an hour run around the Soldier Hollow trails. I spent the afternoon resting and relaxing, trying to make-up for the little sleep I got the night before. Our afternoon workout was spent doing max strength at the gym. I think everyone is getting pretty strong!

The next morning we woke up to do some 5x4minute level 4 intervals up Hermod’s Hill. If you are not familiar with the 2002 Soldier Hollow Cross-Country Olympic Venue, there is a long, tough hill called Hermod’s Hill. Even though it was a tough workout, I was pleased with the way I held my technique together and completed the workout as it was meant to be done. After watching my technique on video and reviewing it with my coach, I went out that afternoon and skied Hermod’s Hill a few more times to work specific things.

Wednesday morning we woke up bright and early to hike Mount Timpanogos. With 4,580 feet of elevation gain, it took us about three hours to reach the summit. The trail brought us behind waterfalls, across snow fields, along ridges, near lakes, eye to eye with mountain goats, and glissades down snow. All in all it was an awesome hike! To top off the day we spent the afternoon at the water park!

Thursday morning we did a 13k pursuit time trial. A pursuit consists of racing the first half with classic gear and then switching to skate gear for the second half. The classic portion of the race started out really well. I felt like I was able to hold my technique together and maintain a good pace. After switching to my skate gear for the second half, my legs cramped up and felt as heavy as bricks! Ug…a horrible feeling! The long over-distance hike from the day before had done my legs in. I lost a lot of time on the skate portion and was disappointed to end the way I did. I immediately iced my legs after the race by sitting in the 50 degree river! Brrr!

Friday morning we went for a distance classic roller ski, focusing once again, on technique. I received some good feedback on things I was improving on and things I needed to keep working on. That afternoon we made our trek back to Sun Valley. After a long drive and some time spent gathering equipment that fell of the roof rack onto the freeway, we finally made it back home.

All in all it was a great camp!

Rebecca Sorensen- Perks of being an athlete

Perks of my Job...Okay it’s not a “real” job- but, it (training) is what I do all day, every day. So, for argument sake- let’s just call it a job. My week started like any normal week... Little did I know what a great week it would turn out to be. A few amazing perks popped up this week and made feel quite lucky to have the job I have. I got invited to meet with the execs from Procter and Gamble. We had a great lunch and I got the opportunity to thank them for their recent agreement to come on board with the usoc and let them know how much it is appreciate, especially in these economically hard times. That meeting, lead me the following morning into a possible national ad campaign for another usoc sponsor. I’ll be working hard this weekend to come up with the special material that they are looking for. Keep your fingers crossed for me. It is a special opportunity that rarely comes around. In addition to all of that, I will meet with the Hartford group to have dinner and even make a few (much needed) almighty dollars Thank you perks- I really needed you *remember~ when life takes a turn, make sure to have your hands on the wheel.

Annie O'Shea- Working out to music

I love listening to my Ipod when I work out at the track or in the weight room. Although I do need to update my music selection some, and download more music.

I haven't had much time to make good playlists so I have been working out to certain artists. No one would probably guess but I am a heavy metal girl at heart. I'm pretty girly on the outside, don't get me wrong I love pop every now and then when I'm in the car singing with friends, but put me in front of my computer and its metal all the way.

I would say right now I'm on a Five Finger Death Punch kick, but my all time favorite would be Mudvayne. I also love Disturbed, Slipknot, Korn and MushroomHead. On the lighter side I go for Seether, Staind, Finger Eleven, and Nickelback.

Everyone does a double take when I put my music on in the weight room, it makes me laugh and I just start rocking out. I love listening to music it makes me happy. I just thought I would share a little something extra about myself. I might start a fact a week. So this week is I love Heavy Metal!!

Must get ready for work now!

Chris Cook- Recovery Week

Northside Update 2

Another training week in the books… After a couple large volume weeks of hours totaling more than 20, I got a good sized recovery week in. With the training volume down I was able to get out on the boat and do some waterskiing and the woods of Wisconsin actually offered up some warm sunny weather which was outstanding. Got through another week of moto camps and had the campers extremely sore after a solid core strength workout. Each and every one of them had trouble sitting and twisting the next day, which means the workout was a complete success. I have a weekend free of mountain bike racing and rollerski camps so I will most likely get a nice long ride in on the road bike.

A fellow teammate of mine and friend, Garrott Kuzzy, was coming through town yesterday so we hooked up for a nice interval /speed session. We knocked out 3 sets of 6x30seconds on skate rollerskis. The workout intensity was supposed to be a little more controlled but Kuzzy and I were pretty much pinning it for the last set. All in all it was a great workout and good to get an intensity workout with Kuzzy, where we could push each other head to head.

After the weekend training should hit the off day on Monday and knock off a 21 hour medium volume week. Back to business as usual.

Play hard, Train Harder.

Kaitlyn Farrington- Snow Test

Rehab…July 23, 2009 by kaitlynfarrington
It has been a little over 5 weeks since my surgery and I am now just waiting till the day Jess (physical therapist) at the COE give me the okay.
Last week I took my first, “back to snow test” hoping that I was ready to ride at Hood this week… I was mistaken! When taking the test I realized that my knee was not as strong as I thought. So long story short I started doing PT 5 days a week so I will be ready to ride in New Zealand in the beginning of August. Next Friday I will be taking a second, “back to snow test” again, hoping that this time I am ready.

Jennifer Rodriguez - 2010 Olympic Oval

Hey Everyone!

Well right now I'm in Vancouver, Canada at a 2 week training camp with my team. Actually, we're in Richmond just outside of Vancouver. That's where the Olympic Oval is. So far things have been great. I was able to get on the ice once before I got out here, but since we've been out here we've been on the ice pretty much every day.

It's a good and exciting feeling to be able to train where you know you're going to be competing. I'm not going to lie though...the ice is not very fast. It seems like they are still trying to work the kinks out which is to be expected. Right now it feels pretty soft and slow, but we knew that coming here. I think things will be a little better for the Games, but don't expect to see any world records being broken.

The facility itself is very beautiful though and sits right along a river. On one side of the building is all windows so it has a very pretty view. During the Games though they will blacken out all the windows for tv coverage.

Like I said, training has been going very well although I just found out through an MRI last week that I have a torn labrum in my right hip. Its an injury I've had for a number of years, but this year it seems to have gotten worse. When the results came back from the MRI, the news was not good. The only good news is that so far it doesn't seem to give me any pain to skate. Right now that's all that matters.

Dr. Heiden has recommended to me to have surgery done, but that would require a month of rehabilitation which is something I can't afford to do at this time. Since my hip seems to be okay while I'm skating, I will just deal with it the best way we (trainers, doctors, coaches) know how and get the surgery done after the season. I just have to make adjustments with some of my other training. If I have to later in the season I will get a cortizone shot, but I hoping I won't need to.

Other small news...I traded in my car for a 2005 VW Beetle. I needed to save some money, so I got something quite a bit smaller with better gas milage. I'm just curious to see how she runs in the winter time! :)

Other than that, not much else worth talking about. Hasta luego!

jen

Chris Cook- Summer training

Northside update #1

My training continues here in Rhinelander Wisconsin and summer has been extremely busy. My training volume has been ramping up since May and I should hit my biggest month of the year as July comes to an end. So far I have been putting in lots of big hours but I have been getting some quality intensity training in as I have been racing Mountain Bikes nearly every other weekend. The next big mountain bike race will be coming up August 8, Ore to Shore, in Marquette MI. I will be up in Marquette leading into the week to get a little change of training scenery.
To explain why this summer has been so busy, I not only have boosted my training hours this year, but I have been involved with motocross camps and running roller ski clinics on the weekends. Before you wonder how I got involved with motocross camps with no motorcycle skills to speak of I will explain. A long time friend of mine and profession motocross rider Chad Johnson has returned to Rhinelander for the summer to run camps. He asked me to take the campers three mornings a week and take them on a hour long mountain bike ride. He then gets the campers back for the middle of the day to focus on engine related riding and then I get the campers back at the end of the day to go through a core strength session. The camps have been a blast and it’s always great to work with highly motivated kids. The rollerski clinics have been a success as well. So far I have done a double pole clinic and a skate technique clinic, and the improvements made by the end of day has been extraordinary.
So between training sessions and motocross camp during the week, and rollerski clinics and mountain bike racing on the weekends, the summer so far has been nonstop. But as Chad would say you got to pin it to win it!