I thought it might be fun to re-live a few of my past Christmas's and training experiences...so here goes.
This time last year, I was gearing up for working with the High Tech High School Track Team and just coming off shoulder surgery. December of 2009 was filled with a ton of bike workouts and some job searching to help knock off some surgery bills. December of 2008 looked like a fairly good month of training, given that all of November was basically a waste due to a rotated SI joint in my low back. I was also nominated for the December "Athlete of the Month" at the US Olympic Training Center, which was odd because there where no competitions going on at that time, I was told it was because I had the most community service hours ;)
December of 2007...actually December 17, 2007 was the 2nd coolest day of my life to date. December 17 was the day that I had the privilege of training with the Navy Seals. Its ironic, because as of that date this year, 3 years later...I met my neighbor, who happens to be a SEAL and found out that there are 3 other team members on my street. Good company to be around, and I'm sure they will be able to answer most of the questions that I have about my future when I'm done with throwing sticks.
Heres wishing happy holidays to everyone, until next time:
M++
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Déjà vu
... I have the feeling that I have done this before. Yesterday I had my knee scoped...again. I was just thinking shortly after my last blog entry, "maybe I shouldn't be talking so much about how healthy I am...I might jinx myself", oops!
Last Monday I twisted my knee in the weight room while spotting my training partner, Kara (http://karapatterson.blogspot.com/) I heard a pop and some cracking, but managed to continue lifting for about 10min before me knee went into lock-down. After the initial evaluations in the training room, I headed off to get x-rays the following morning and compared the x-rays to the images I had in September...there was 1 glaring difference, a piece of bone almost the size of a dime floating above my knee cap. The doctor said that that fragment was previously stuck in my ACL graph from the reconstruction in 1999 and they couldn't remove it because it would compromise the stability of the graph. It was bound to come out sooner or later, it could have come out in 10 years from now, or in the Olympic year, or this summer...but it was going to come out eventually and I feel blessed to have it out now. The surgery was a piece of cake and I got 12 hours of sleep last night and am in virtually no pain. All good news as far as I am concerned.
My thanksgiving weekend was pretty cool as my parents came out from Texas and we visited Catalina island. I think I can say that it was an experience but not a place we will visit again. The entire shuts down at 4pm and there is no transportation, so if your not where you want to be by then...good luck.
The High Tech High Chula Vista Bruins are still scheduled to resume practice for the 2011 season in January. Time will tell what kind of shape the kids show up in and I'm anxious to get started on Spring workouts with them.
In other news, In the Arena had its 1st couples hook up as Brain Gregg and Caitlin Compton got engadged this weekend. To see more details, photos and a super cool ring, check out his website at: http://xcskilife.com/
until next time: M++
(just some good memories from the past few upgrades ;)
(the infamous shoulder shots)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MifLldmqJLI
The Knee shots
Last Monday I twisted my knee in the weight room while spotting my training partner, Kara (http://karapatterson.blogspot.com/) I heard a pop and some cracking, but managed to continue lifting for about 10min before me knee went into lock-down. After the initial evaluations in the training room, I headed off to get x-rays the following morning and compared the x-rays to the images I had in September...there was 1 glaring difference, a piece of bone almost the size of a dime floating above my knee cap. The doctor said that that fragment was previously stuck in my ACL graph from the reconstruction in 1999 and they couldn't remove it because it would compromise the stability of the graph. It was bound to come out sooner or later, it could have come out in 10 years from now, or in the Olympic year, or this summer...but it was going to come out eventually and I feel blessed to have it out now. The surgery was a piece of cake and I got 12 hours of sleep last night and am in virtually no pain. All good news as far as I am concerned.
My thanksgiving weekend was pretty cool as my parents came out from Texas and we visited Catalina island. I think I can say that it was an experience but not a place we will visit again. The entire shuts down at 4pm and there is no transportation, so if your not where you want to be by then...good luck.
The High Tech High Chula Vista Bruins are still scheduled to resume practice for the 2011 season in January. Time will tell what kind of shape the kids show up in and I'm anxious to get started on Spring workouts with them.
In other news, In the Arena had its 1st couples hook up as Brain Gregg and Caitlin Compton got engadged this weekend. To see more details, photos and a super cool ring, check out his website at: http://xcskilife.com/
until next time: M++
(just some good memories from the past few upgrades ;)
(the infamous shoulder shots)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MifLldmqJLI
The Knee shots
Sunday, November 21, 2010
3 down ... 46 to go!
3 weeks down, 46 weeks left until the Daegu World Championships... I just finished my 1st 3 week block of the season, and this week is a much needed unload week. Good timing for an unload week because of the holidays and my parents are coming back to visit. We have a great weekend planned that includes trips up the Pacific Coast Highway and a trip to Catalina Island. The rest of this week includes meetings with the San Diego Free Divers Association and a few spearfishing sessions in the chilly San Diego water. I checked the surf forecast for this week and the water will be hovering around 58-60 degrees all week...yuk!
The last 3 week training block was very successful and I am enjoying my new schedule and program. The new schedule makes for a very long day, but plenty of time for me to double up on my therapy and rehab. My training partner, Kara Patterson, has been making great strides in her throwing technique even though we are only doing walking throws on the grass. She has a really great chance to be over 70m this year and make a push for a World and Olympic title the next few years. My coach, Ty Sevin, now only has 10 people he is coaching which is better than the last few years so we are enjoying some much needed one on one time. The unload week will be a nice rest but we are all back in the mix for a brand new 4 week training block after the holidays.
Here are a few pics of Mom and Dads last trip to San Diego...until next time! M++
The last 3 week training block was very successful and I am enjoying my new schedule and program. The new schedule makes for a very long day, but plenty of time for me to double up on my therapy and rehab. My training partner, Kara Patterson, has been making great strides in her throwing technique even though we are only doing walking throws on the grass. She has a really great chance to be over 70m this year and make a push for a World and Olympic title the next few years. My coach, Ty Sevin, now only has 10 people he is coaching which is better than the last few years so we are enjoying some much needed one on one time. The unload week will be a nice rest but we are all back in the mix for a brand new 4 week training block after the holidays.
Here are a few pics of Mom and Dads last trip to San Diego...until next time! M++
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Back in the Mix...
...this blog comes to you as the 1st week of fall training is completed. It was a hugely successful week as I made it through healthy! The knee seems to be holding up just fine and after 2 low intensity throwing sessions, the shoulder is in rockin' shape as well.
The week was filled with alot of "back to work" stuff such as testing and measurements and some extremely boring and useless meetings... I did do a new test that I have never done before, measured my resting metabolic rate, or RMR. My training partner, Kara Patterson (http://karapatterson.blogspot.com/) and I both had the test done with the new USOC nutritionist here at the center. Basically it measures how many calories you burn during the day at rest. In other words, if you where to wake up, and lay in bed all day, how many calories would you burn...doing nothing. I was stoked to find out that I burn almost 2,900 calories at rest. I'm guessing that's why I returned from Hawaii lighter than I have been since high school, a whopping 192lbs! That was on Monday and as of yesterday (Saturday) I was already back to 197 so I think it wont be hard to put it back on. My goal is to be at least 210lbs by the time the season starts and keep my current body fat percentage which is hovering around 6%.
I spoke with the High Tech High principle last week about resuming practices at the training center but it doesn't look like the kids will be released for Spring sports until January 2011. Therefore I have some time to get back in the mix of things and get into freak show shape before I start pounding away with the HTH Bruins.
I uploaded a free dive video from Maui that I shot...here it is, enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwmx8ayh708
M++
The week was filled with alot of "back to work" stuff such as testing and measurements and some extremely boring and useless meetings... I did do a new test that I have never done before, measured my resting metabolic rate, or RMR. My training partner, Kara Patterson (http://karapatterson.blogspot.com/) and I both had the test done with the new USOC nutritionist here at the center. Basically it measures how many calories you burn during the day at rest. In other words, if you where to wake up, and lay in bed all day, how many calories would you burn...doing nothing. I was stoked to find out that I burn almost 2,900 calories at rest. I'm guessing that's why I returned from Hawaii lighter than I have been since high school, a whopping 192lbs! That was on Monday and as of yesterday (Saturday) I was already back to 197 so I think it wont be hard to put it back on. My goal is to be at least 210lbs by the time the season starts and keep my current body fat percentage which is hovering around 6%.
I spoke with the High Tech High principle last week about resuming practices at the training center but it doesn't look like the kids will be released for Spring sports until January 2011. Therefore I have some time to get back in the mix of things and get into freak show shape before I start pounding away with the HTH Bruins.
I uploaded a free dive video from Maui that I shot...here it is, enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwmx8ayh708
M++
Saturday, October 23, 2010
1 More Week...
...then its back to work, and I am just about ready. Hawaii has been cool and I have enjoyed the break from training but my body hasn't quite recovered the way it should. I have been doing a large volume of water activity, surfing, diving, spearfishing, boogie boarding, body surfing...you name it, I have been doing it. Unfortunately, I haven't rested quite as much as I would have liked and I'm going to do my best to get back to the theme of this trip which was "do less".
My roomate, Brad Walker, and I relocated to the west side of Maui last week and it was a great move. The water on the west side (Lahina) is much more suited for underwater activities and we have speared enough fish to feed us both every night. Lahina is a tourist town, much like most of Maui... but Lahina is virtually all tourists and resorts so the atmosphere and mood over here is much more relaxed and enjoyable. I have just about had my fill with the local "attitudes" and was delighted to hang out with a more pleasant crowd.
The last week was a whirlwind of activities, with alot of help from the Pacific Whale foundation. The week started off with a snorkel tour of Molikini crater and "turtle town" followed by a dolphin cruise out to the island of Lanai. It was a great tour because I saw all 3 species of dolphins out here, bottle nose, spinner and spotted dolphins. The spotted dolphin pod was over 100 in size and they put on an impressive aerial display, jumping out of the water over 10 feet high. Next was a submarine tour of the bottom of reef outside Lahina at 130ft deep and a para-sailing boat ride that was cut short due to a rainstorm. Since then I have been spearfishing everyday for several hours and have collected enough fish to live on for several days, and have gotten a few surf sessions in on the north-west swell that came in the middle of the week.
My coach, Ty Sevin gets to Maui for his vacation tomorrow morning so it will be fun to hang with him and show him around and probably get some quality golfing in. I have exactly 7 days left on Maui and am looking forward to getting back to San Diego and starting my training for the 2011 season. The High Tech High track team should be in mid-fall training and I cant wait to line up a full schedule of training and workouts at the Olympic Training Center. The only remaining question is the condition of my knee...only time will tell if it holds up when I start training...here is me, holding my breath and crossing my fingers.
M++
My roomate, Brad Walker, and I relocated to the west side of Maui last week and it was a great move. The water on the west side (Lahina) is much more suited for underwater activities and we have speared enough fish to feed us both every night. Lahina is a tourist town, much like most of Maui... but Lahina is virtually all tourists and resorts so the atmosphere and mood over here is much more relaxed and enjoyable. I have just about had my fill with the local "attitudes" and was delighted to hang out with a more pleasant crowd.
The last week was a whirlwind of activities, with alot of help from the Pacific Whale foundation. The week started off with a snorkel tour of Molikini crater and "turtle town" followed by a dolphin cruise out to the island of Lanai. It was a great tour because I saw all 3 species of dolphins out here, bottle nose, spinner and spotted dolphins. The spotted dolphin pod was over 100 in size and they put on an impressive aerial display, jumping out of the water over 10 feet high. Next was a submarine tour of the bottom of reef outside Lahina at 130ft deep and a para-sailing boat ride that was cut short due to a rainstorm. Since then I have been spearfishing everyday for several hours and have collected enough fish to live on for several days, and have gotten a few surf sessions in on the north-west swell that came in the middle of the week.
My coach, Ty Sevin gets to Maui for his vacation tomorrow morning so it will be fun to hang with him and show him around and probably get some quality golfing in. I have exactly 7 days left on Maui and am looking forward to getting back to San Diego and starting my training for the 2011 season. The High Tech High track team should be in mid-fall training and I cant wait to line up a full schedule of training and workouts at the Olympic Training Center. The only remaining question is the condition of my knee...only time will tell if it holds up when I start training...here is me, holding my breath and crossing my fingers.
M++
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Howsit Bah !?
...still getting used to the local lingo around here...this is my 2nd blog entry from Maui, not much has changed. Its more like groundhog day around here. Wake up to the same weather, same birds, same waves...spend the day underwater, on top of water and underwater again looking for food. The only thing that has really changed is my tan and my facebook friends list ;) I have met some really cool people over here and am still trying to get a grip on how people go about their lives. Its an interesting perspective and one that I appreciate but I also know that its not for me. Its fun for now, but eventually I think that people will grow out of the Hawaii phase and move on with their lives. Its a story that I have heard over here, and its all to common.
Most of the people that I have met over here seemed to have what most people would consider "normal" lives back in the mainland, and for this reason or that, they decided to leave everything behind and join the island life. The reactions are all the same, "I will eventually go back, but for now I am here and loving it".
I have been staying on the north side of Maui for 2 weeks now and everyday I find myself driving to the south part of the island looking for better water and bigger fish...I guess its what the locals call "the search" although they are looking for waves, Im looking for lack there-of. Brad and I are about to relocate to the west side of the island, near Lahina. I visited Lahina this week and fell in love with it. Asides from being on the other side of the island and the weather being different (sunsets and no rain) the attitudes of the locals are completely different.
Its a sore subject around here and I wont go into too much detail, but certain parts of the island aren't too friendly to outsiders and sometimes can be EXTREMELY racist, or reverse racism if you can call it that. I have seen a few shirts and stickers around here that say "don't come to Maui, we are full" and one that said "kill howlie!" (howlie is slang for white guy not from here) Its confusing for me to see people act such a way when its the exact people who they hate who put clothes on their back and food on the table with the tourism they bring in.
Anyways, Lahina is virtually all tourists and its hard to find that attitude there because....everyone is on vacation! Whos in a bad mood on vacation!
Brad and I have upgraded our spear fishing equipment to state of the art spear guns and have snagged a few nice sized fish already, unfortunatly we ate them before I remebered to take pictures of them... I do have a few pics of the last few fish however. 3 more weeks left on the island and its time to get back to work and for once, I feel like Im ready to get home...
until next time, M++
Fire Dancers at sunset:
Coconuts from the front yard
Trigger Fish
More Trigger Fish
Goatfish and Parot Fish
Spraying for Invasive Species with the Maui Hunting Club
Most of the people that I have met over here seemed to have what most people would consider "normal" lives back in the mainland, and for this reason or that, they decided to leave everything behind and join the island life. The reactions are all the same, "I will eventually go back, but for now I am here and loving it".
I have been staying on the north side of Maui for 2 weeks now and everyday I find myself driving to the south part of the island looking for better water and bigger fish...I guess its what the locals call "the search" although they are looking for waves, Im looking for lack there-of. Brad and I are about to relocate to the west side of the island, near Lahina. I visited Lahina this week and fell in love with it. Asides from being on the other side of the island and the weather being different (sunsets and no rain) the attitudes of the locals are completely different.
Its a sore subject around here and I wont go into too much detail, but certain parts of the island aren't too friendly to outsiders and sometimes can be EXTREMELY racist, or reverse racism if you can call it that. I have seen a few shirts and stickers around here that say "don't come to Maui, we are full" and one that said "kill howlie!" (howlie is slang for white guy not from here) Its confusing for me to see people act such a way when its the exact people who they hate who put clothes on their back and food on the table with the tourism they bring in.
Anyways, Lahina is virtually all tourists and its hard to find that attitude there because....everyone is on vacation! Whos in a bad mood on vacation!
Brad and I have upgraded our spear fishing equipment to state of the art spear guns and have snagged a few nice sized fish already, unfortunatly we ate them before I remebered to take pictures of them... I do have a few pics of the last few fish however. 3 more weeks left on the island and its time to get back to work and for once, I feel like Im ready to get home...
until next time, M++
Fire Dancers at sunset:
Coconuts from the front yard
Trigger Fish
More Trigger Fish
Goatfish and Parot Fish
Spraying for Invasive Species with the Maui Hunting Club
Sunday, September 26, 2010
aloha!
This blog entry comes to you from Maui, Hawaii. You guessed it, vacation! I got to Hawaii Wednesday night and my flight home isn't until October 30. It has been a well needed break and thus far and I am enjoying every second of it. I am hanging out with my roommate and training partner Brad Walker and another good buddy of mine was born and raised here and lives about 20min from our condo. We chose a spot about 30 seconds from the water and we have been spearfishing everyday looking for dinner, but have come up with nothing so far. I have access to kayaks, kite boards, wind surfing and any kind of water/board sport you can imagine...unfortunately I cant do too much at the moment because of the knee.
A few hours before my flight to Hawaii, I took another injection to the knee. This time it was synvisc, the same shot that I took for my shoulder back in May. It was a difficult decision for me to make, but with the help of my doctors and training staff at the Olympic Training Center, we chose the shot over the knee scope. The knee is pretty beat up and I was advised to get another knee scope to remove some floating debris and clean up some rough edges...But given my history with the prior surgeries, we decided to take the less invasive option in hopes that I get the same result as the surgery would provide. We made the same move with the shoulder in May and it worked great. If the shot doesn't work, then we will go for the scope in November and go from there. This is me, crossing my fingers!
The view from the backyard
A few hours before my flight to Hawaii, I took another injection to the knee. This time it was synvisc, the same shot that I took for my shoulder back in May. It was a difficult decision for me to make, but with the help of my doctors and training staff at the Olympic Training Center, we chose the shot over the knee scope. The knee is pretty beat up and I was advised to get another knee scope to remove some floating debris and clean up some rough edges...But given my history with the prior surgeries, we decided to take the less invasive option in hopes that I get the same result as the surgery would provide. We made the same move with the shoulder in May and it worked great. If the shot doesn't work, then we will go for the scope in November and go from there. This is me, crossing my fingers!
The view from the backyard
Monday, September 13, 2010
"Welcome to the NFL"
Whats that? The NFL? That’s what the Americas Team doctor told me after having a look at my knee. “This is the same thing that I see when my former NFL guys come in with knee pain”. “You have a 10 year old ACL reconstructed knee, right about this time stuff just starts to fall off and break loose, its just the life of NFL player…or in your case, a professional javelin thrower”…sigh. Well, what to do? After talking with my team doctors here at the Olympic training center and getting outside opinions from Vail, Colorado and Dr Steadman, arguably the best knee doctor in the USA… we still have yet to come to a conclusion. After my initial exam on Thursday, I thought I would be in surgery right now getting the knee scoped out. That hasn’t actually come to be yet, thankfully, the doctors think there may be another way. That way has yet to be finalized, but I am hoping to have that decision made by the end of the day tomorrow.
In other news… I am on vacation! Sort of… I am still at the Olympic Training Center, waiting on the decision on the knee, but the season is over and I have some time to lick my wounds and get ready for next year. My performance at the Continental Cup was less than acceptable, but given the circumstances, I have accepted it and moved on and I actually think that it has motivated me in a way that I could not have expected. I wont go into detail, but lets just say that I am making a few changes next year and I have had great conversations with my coach and training team. The sub-world class performances of the last 2 years will not happen again, you can count on that. I reflect on how I felt after I left Beijing in 2008, and the feeling is the same and can be summed up by what I said then…”Never underestimate the power of ambition.”
The Chula Vista High Tech High Bruins have returned to school for the 2010-2011 season but have not started practice yet. I look to join the team in November to get ready for an amazing 2011 season and more school records. I am headed to Hawaii for the month of October for a much-needed vacation and down time. Hopefully the next blog entry will be from the beach in Maui….until next time,
M++
In other news… I am on vacation! Sort of… I am still at the Olympic Training Center, waiting on the decision on the knee, but the season is over and I have some time to lick my wounds and get ready for next year. My performance at the Continental Cup was less than acceptable, but given the circumstances, I have accepted it and moved on and I actually think that it has motivated me in a way that I could not have expected. I wont go into detail, but lets just say that I am making a few changes next year and I have had great conversations with my coach and training team. The sub-world class performances of the last 2 years will not happen again, you can count on that. I reflect on how I felt after I left Beijing in 2008, and the feeling is the same and can be summed up by what I said then…”Never underestimate the power of ambition.”
The Chula Vista High Tech High Bruins have returned to school for the 2010-2011 season but have not started practice yet. I look to join the team in November to get ready for an amazing 2011 season and more school records. I am headed to Hawaii for the month of October for a much-needed vacation and down time. Hopefully the next blog entry will be from the beach in Maui….until next time,
M++
Thursday, August 26, 2010
When you shouldnt, but you do it anyway ...
"Foolish" resulting from or showing a lack of sense; ill-considered; lacking forethought or caution."
At this point in my career, I am surely smart enough...wise enough...experienced enough...to not go to a competition if I was, lets say, not necessarily less than a 100% (because that's hardly ever possible), but I wouldn't go to a competition injured. Or world I?
This entire season (that almost never existed for me) has been a continuous series of last second decisions. Some have paid off, others haven't. Last week was one of those that didn't.
I traveled to Slovakia last weekend on an injured knee. The knee got swollen and inflamed shortly after a training session last Wednesday. I spent the following 2 days eating a more than healthy amount of anti-inflammatory medications and abused my ice privileges at our hotel. I couldn't fully extend my knee and had some nasty cracking sounds in it. Instead of not competing or training and trying to get ready for the World/Cont Cup, I got on planes/trains and automobiles for a 7 hour travel day to Dubnica Nad Vahom Slovakia. I pounded about 9 espressos the day of the competition as well as 1/2 a bottle of aleeve pain medication (another "foolish" idea). All things considered, I was actually pretty happy with the result. My parents where actually able to watch the meet streaming live from Texas and where able to watch my 1st throw of the meet, which cruised out to around 79m. The problem is in my event there is a foul line, and with no block leg/knee sometimes you end up on your face...on top of the foul line.
I returned to my training base in Köln, Germany and promptly scheduled an orthopedic appointment (BIG thanks to Viola Cruz at the USOC Elite Athlete Insurance department, Viola you are the BEST!!) The doctor found some good news, small pieces of cartilage that had been knocked off. So small that he thinks that it will not require surgery, but large enough to mess things up in their. So, another round of cortisone injections
(see shoulder issues) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MifLldmqJLI
and its back to the road to recovery for the World Cup...Its a road I'm good at and have alot of practice.
That still doesn't answer the question of why I would do such a "foolish" thing... here's my best shot at that:
I came to Europe the beginning of August because I have the IAAF World/Cont Cup the beginning of September. My "plan" was to throw 2 times the entire month of August, and then at the Continental Cup. That was to give me the necessary 5 meet minimum to receive a world ranking.
Why is the world ranking so important? Because I compete for a federation (USATF) that is based solely on numbers and doesn't take into account athletes current medical, physical, mental...or any state for that matter. Its all put up or shut up and in this years case I wouldn't have been able to come to Europe at all if I didn't have the world ranking that I had last year. Since I finished #15 last year, I was given a small travel stipend to help offset expenses of traveling and living while in Europe. Thanks for that...I guess?
In order to receive the same kind of support next year, I am in a scramble to accumulate enough points to get my ranking back to where it was the last 2 years (preferably 2008)... In my current physical condition, that's not the best idea to ensure that I have a successful lead up to the trails and games of 2012. I would LOVE to do what the majority of the smarter athletes have done this year, which is sit out half or the entire season...hindsight...sigh.
In the meantime, I will continue to be thankful for the opportunities that I have been given, knowing that others would love the chance to come compete but cant. I need to change this ice bag now, until next time:
M++
From the dr's office in Köln...dont worry the screws in there are supposed to be there!
At this point in my career, I am surely smart enough...wise enough...experienced enough...to not go to a competition if I was, lets say, not necessarily less than a 100% (because that's hardly ever possible), but I wouldn't go to a competition injured. Or world I?
This entire season (that almost never existed for me) has been a continuous series of last second decisions. Some have paid off, others haven't. Last week was one of those that didn't.
I traveled to Slovakia last weekend on an injured knee. The knee got swollen and inflamed shortly after a training session last Wednesday. I spent the following 2 days eating a more than healthy amount of anti-inflammatory medications and abused my ice privileges at our hotel. I couldn't fully extend my knee and had some nasty cracking sounds in it. Instead of not competing or training and trying to get ready for the World/Cont Cup, I got on planes/trains and automobiles for a 7 hour travel day to Dubnica Nad Vahom Slovakia. I pounded about 9 espressos the day of the competition as well as 1/2 a bottle of aleeve pain medication (another "foolish" idea). All things considered, I was actually pretty happy with the result. My parents where actually able to watch the meet streaming live from Texas and where able to watch my 1st throw of the meet, which cruised out to around 79m. The problem is in my event there is a foul line, and with no block leg/knee sometimes you end up on your face...on top of the foul line.
I returned to my training base in Köln, Germany and promptly scheduled an orthopedic appointment (BIG thanks to Viola Cruz at the USOC Elite Athlete Insurance department, Viola you are the BEST!!) The doctor found some good news, small pieces of cartilage that had been knocked off. So small that he thinks that it will not require surgery, but large enough to mess things up in their. So, another round of cortisone injections
(see shoulder issues) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MifLldmqJLI
and its back to the road to recovery for the World Cup...Its a road I'm good at and have alot of practice.
That still doesn't answer the question of why I would do such a "foolish" thing... here's my best shot at that:
I came to Europe the beginning of August because I have the IAAF World/Cont Cup the beginning of September. My "plan" was to throw 2 times the entire month of August, and then at the Continental Cup. That was to give me the necessary 5 meet minimum to receive a world ranking.
Why is the world ranking so important? Because I compete for a federation (USATF) that is based solely on numbers and doesn't take into account athletes current medical, physical, mental...or any state for that matter. Its all put up or shut up and in this years case I wouldn't have been able to come to Europe at all if I didn't have the world ranking that I had last year. Since I finished #15 last year, I was given a small travel stipend to help offset expenses of traveling and living while in Europe. Thanks for that...I guess?
In order to receive the same kind of support next year, I am in a scramble to accumulate enough points to get my ranking back to where it was the last 2 years (preferably 2008)... In my current physical condition, that's not the best idea to ensure that I have a successful lead up to the trails and games of 2012. I would LOVE to do what the majority of the smarter athletes have done this year, which is sit out half or the entire season...hindsight...sigh.
In the meantime, I will continue to be thankful for the opportunities that I have been given, knowing that others would love the chance to come compete but cant. I need to change this ice bag now, until next time:
M++
From the dr's office in Köln...dont worry the screws in there are supposed to be there!
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Deutschland ich komme!
Do you know what the hardest part about doing a blog is?.... finding a name. I spend most of the time trying to come up with something clever enough to be catchy, but yet explain what may be in the blog. I'm going to try something different on this one. Type the blog, then name it after I'm done...maybe that will work. Now that the useless information is out, lets move on.
The European Championships are concluding as we speak...I didn't actually spend much time monitoring what was going on, but the Euro Champs in the javelin is usually the Olympic or World Championship final plus or minus maybe 1-2 guys. So needless to say, the jav was an event that needed to be watched. I was shocked at how well the German throwers did not only in the javelin, but other events as well. It got my coach and I thinking and I decided to look up some stats over the last 2 years. Going back to Worlds last year in Berlin, this is what I found.
Berlin World Champs 2009:
Womens Javelin: Steffi Nerius wins gold with a seasons best.
Mens Discus: Robert Harting wins gold with a new lifetime best (PB).
Mens Shot: Ralf Bartels wins bronze with a new PB
Womens Shot: Nadine Kleinert wins silver with a new PB.
Womens Hammer: Betty Heidler wins silver with a new PB (only got silver because the gold was won with a new world record). Kathrin Klass barely misses the bronze with a seasons best.
Now lets look at the Germans in Barcelona for the European Championships:
Womens Javelin: Linda Stahl wind gold with a new PB. Christina Obergfol wins silver.
Mens javelin: Matthias De Zordo wins silver with a new PB.
Mens Discus: Robert Harting wins silver.
Mens Shot: Ralph Bartels wins silver.
Womens Hammer: Betty Heidler wins gold with a new seasons best.
And a side note: at the 2010 World Juniors in Canada, Till Wolschler wins the javelin with a massive 5m lifetime best.
The success that the German throwers are putting up at major championships is just amazing. Especially when we are dealing with technical events. My coach and I have come to the conclusion, that the current system that the Germans are using allows them to train and taper for major international championships without the stress of having to perform at high levels throughout the season leading up to these major championships. Most of the German athletes, from what I have been told are WELL taken care of by their federations and more importantly, their clubs. Without going into too much detail...It allows the athletes to remain in and around Germany to train and receive proper training (and therapy) from some of the best coaches and physios in the world. All the while, living very comfortable lives and thriving in a country that passionately loves their sport!
I sincerely hope that USATF takes a good long hard look at the German Development system and tries to implement the same ideas, especially in regards to their funding.
Continuing on the German theme...I'm headed back to Germany next week to re-unite with my training partners who are based out of Cologne (and have been so for almost a month now). My coach and I are headed over for a little over 1 month and I think I have meets in Belgium and Slovakia line up before hitting the IAAF Continental Cup in Split, Croatia. Oh yeah, I forgot...I made that team by the way ;) If you would have told me a few months ago that come August 1, I would have the 2nd farthest throw in the North America, South America, Latin America and the Caribbean...I would have told you that you are absolutely insane! That seems to be how they are picking the team this year, which is backwards from all previous years.
The IAAF Continental Cup formally known as the IAAF World Cup in Athletics will be a four continent competition between Africa, the Americas, Asia/Pacific and Europe. The Americas team will be composed of athletes from NACAC ( North American, Central America and Caribbean track & field federations) and South America. The Continental Cup title will be awarded to the continent with the highest collective point total of both men and women teams.
The Americas Team is selected by the top 2 marks in the world for our region, which is Guillermo Martinez from Cuba and myself. I am very grateful to be able to make my 4th consecutive US National Team, but it is a little bitter sweet. I was only able to get the 2nd best mark by beating my good friend Sean Furey, who just happens to be this years National Champion. In the previous editions of the IAAF Continental Cup (or World Cup as it used to be named) the National Champion was sent to the World Cup to represent the Americas Team, and I think that's the way it should still be.
The current system allows for too many "phantom" marks in shady meets that aren't always under the best supervision. Its just not the best way to send a team and the safest way, the way that is earned...is to send the National Champion. Sean won National this year with his 2nd best throw ever and followed that performance up with another 2 best throw in his life when he threw 79.91m against me last weekend. I was lucky enough to get back over the 80m mark for the 16th time in my career and went 80.05m to take the Cup Team spot....reluctantly that is.
In other news, the last javelin kid I have been working with threw today at the Junior Olympics but I haven't received any word on how he did yet. I am getting scuba certified next week (to continue with my water theme from last months blog ;)...and then will be headed over to Europe Monday morning at 06:30am.... wait...thats early ;(
Bis zum nächsten Mal ... Deutschland hier komme ich, ich habe dich vermisst!
M++
(heres the 80.05m throw from last week)
The European Championships are concluding as we speak...I didn't actually spend much time monitoring what was going on, but the Euro Champs in the javelin is usually the Olympic or World Championship final plus or minus maybe 1-2 guys. So needless to say, the jav was an event that needed to be watched. I was shocked at how well the German throwers did not only in the javelin, but other events as well. It got my coach and I thinking and I decided to look up some stats over the last 2 years. Going back to Worlds last year in Berlin, this is what I found.
Berlin World Champs 2009:
Womens Javelin: Steffi Nerius wins gold with a seasons best.
Mens Discus: Robert Harting wins gold with a new lifetime best (PB).
Mens Shot: Ralf Bartels wins bronze with a new PB
Womens Shot: Nadine Kleinert wins silver with a new PB.
Womens Hammer: Betty Heidler wins silver with a new PB (only got silver because the gold was won with a new world record). Kathrin Klass barely misses the bronze with a seasons best.
Now lets look at the Germans in Barcelona for the European Championships:
Womens Javelin: Linda Stahl wind gold with a new PB. Christina Obergfol wins silver.
Mens javelin: Matthias De Zordo wins silver with a new PB.
Mens Discus: Robert Harting wins silver.
Mens Shot: Ralph Bartels wins silver.
Womens Hammer: Betty Heidler wins gold with a new seasons best.
And a side note: at the 2010 World Juniors in Canada, Till Wolschler wins the javelin with a massive 5m lifetime best.
The success that the German throwers are putting up at major championships is just amazing. Especially when we are dealing with technical events. My coach and I have come to the conclusion, that the current system that the Germans are using allows them to train and taper for major international championships without the stress of having to perform at high levels throughout the season leading up to these major championships. Most of the German athletes, from what I have been told are WELL taken care of by their federations and more importantly, their clubs. Without going into too much detail...It allows the athletes to remain in and around Germany to train and receive proper training (and therapy) from some of the best coaches and physios in the world. All the while, living very comfortable lives and thriving in a country that passionately loves their sport!
I sincerely hope that USATF takes a good long hard look at the German Development system and tries to implement the same ideas, especially in regards to their funding.
Continuing on the German theme...I'm headed back to Germany next week to re-unite with my training partners who are based out of Cologne (and have been so for almost a month now). My coach and I are headed over for a little over 1 month and I think I have meets in Belgium and Slovakia line up before hitting the IAAF Continental Cup in Split, Croatia. Oh yeah, I forgot...I made that team by the way ;) If you would have told me a few months ago that come August 1, I would have the 2nd farthest throw in the North America, South America, Latin America and the Caribbean...I would have told you that you are absolutely insane! That seems to be how they are picking the team this year, which is backwards from all previous years.
The IAAF Continental Cup formally known as the IAAF World Cup in Athletics will be a four continent competition between Africa, the Americas, Asia/Pacific and Europe. The Americas team will be composed of athletes from NACAC ( North American, Central America and Caribbean track & field federations) and South America. The Continental Cup title will be awarded to the continent with the highest collective point total of both men and women teams.
The Americas Team is selected by the top 2 marks in the world for our region, which is Guillermo Martinez from Cuba and myself. I am very grateful to be able to make my 4th consecutive US National Team, but it is a little bitter sweet. I was only able to get the 2nd best mark by beating my good friend Sean Furey, who just happens to be this years National Champion. In the previous editions of the IAAF Continental Cup (or World Cup as it used to be named) the National Champion was sent to the World Cup to represent the Americas Team, and I think that's the way it should still be.
The current system allows for too many "phantom" marks in shady meets that aren't always under the best supervision. Its just not the best way to send a team and the safest way, the way that is earned...is to send the National Champion. Sean won National this year with his 2nd best throw ever and followed that performance up with another 2 best throw in his life when he threw 79.91m against me last weekend. I was lucky enough to get back over the 80m mark for the 16th time in my career and went 80.05m to take the Cup Team spot....reluctantly that is.
In other news, the last javelin kid I have been working with threw today at the Junior Olympics but I haven't received any word on how he did yet. I am getting scuba certified next week (to continue with my water theme from last months blog ;)...and then will be headed over to Europe Monday morning at 06:30am.... wait...thats early ;(
Bis zum nächsten Mal ... Deutschland hier komme ich, ich habe dich vermisst!
M++
(heres the 80.05m throw from last week)
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Balance
Balance - "Balance is an ability to maintain the center of gravity of a body within the base of support with minimal postural sway...balance is used to mean a point between two opposite forces that is desirable over purely one state or the other, such as a balance between the metaphysical Law and Chaos — law by itself being overly controlling, chaos being overly unmanageable, balance being the point that minimizes the negatives of both."
Why balance? because the last month of my training and everyday activities, I thought I had "balance" in my life...sport, social, spiritual...but I was wrong. About a week before USA Champs, I decided I wasn't going to go (see previous shoulder issues in older blogs)... So I sat down with my coach and the distance coach from the training center Joaquim Cruz (1984 Gold 800m). It was a conversation that lasted over an hour, but Ill summarize the key point. Basically, it was like ok..Your not going to nationals, so now what? What do you want to do? Get a job? Go on vacation? I had no answer...no clue as of what to do with myself if there was no sport, no season, no competition, nothing to drive for, nothing to focus on...it was a pretty helpless, and embarrassing feeling... So I have spent the last few weeks searching for the elusive "balance" that I have been missing. With the help of my parents (who came out for a week long visit) and the beach, I think I have found an idea of where I need to be.
Its ironic that what I was searching for mentally, also has helped me tremendously physically. I have spent alot of time at the beach, in the water, on surfboards, boogie boards, and my new toy, my skateboard (that has a bottle opener built in on the bottom of it! oh yeah, its that sweet!) working on, balance. Its not something that I tried to do purposely, but it was a bi-product of me just trying to stay as loose as possible and not stress out about the rest of the season, or lack there of, if there is a season at all?
My typical routine after lifting sessions or throwing sessions is to jump in the ice bath...55 degrees for 15 minutes. It usually does the trick, helps flush out inflammation, removes lactic acid, and all the waste products that accumulate in the body during training. But I thought it was time to...switch it up. So for the last 2 weeks, after each of my more high volume or high intensity sessions...I hit the ocean, just to see if the ocean water, which is rocking around 62 degrees right now, would yield the same benefits as the ice bath, or maybe even something better...I have read that ocean water could be used as a replacement for blood plasma and that the ocean have every single trace element in the periodic table of elements in it. So far, Im REALY liking what I'm seeing.
So whats next for me? Good question...I have a guess on whats going to happen over the next week or so, but I'm not going to tip my hat on here until I see it happen. But the next blog entry will hold the details for the rest of my summer. The High Tech High season is long been over and Coach Earl's Team Elite summer season has also come to a conclusion and everyone seems to be looking for some time off away from the physical and mental stresses of the sport...sounds like a good idea, if only you can have both!
Heres a few picks of my last few weeks...Until next time
M++
Why balance? because the last month of my training and everyday activities, I thought I had "balance" in my life...sport, social, spiritual...but I was wrong. About a week before USA Champs, I decided I wasn't going to go (see previous shoulder issues in older blogs)... So I sat down with my coach and the distance coach from the training center Joaquim Cruz (1984 Gold 800m). It was a conversation that lasted over an hour, but Ill summarize the key point. Basically, it was like ok..Your not going to nationals, so now what? What do you want to do? Get a job? Go on vacation? I had no answer...no clue as of what to do with myself if there was no sport, no season, no competition, nothing to drive for, nothing to focus on...it was a pretty helpless, and embarrassing feeling... So I have spent the last few weeks searching for the elusive "balance" that I have been missing. With the help of my parents (who came out for a week long visit) and the beach, I think I have found an idea of where I need to be.
Its ironic that what I was searching for mentally, also has helped me tremendously physically. I have spent alot of time at the beach, in the water, on surfboards, boogie boards, and my new toy, my skateboard (that has a bottle opener built in on the bottom of it! oh yeah, its that sweet!) working on, balance. Its not something that I tried to do purposely, but it was a bi-product of me just trying to stay as loose as possible and not stress out about the rest of the season, or lack there of, if there is a season at all?
My typical routine after lifting sessions or throwing sessions is to jump in the ice bath...55 degrees for 15 minutes. It usually does the trick, helps flush out inflammation, removes lactic acid, and all the waste products that accumulate in the body during training. But I thought it was time to...switch it up. So for the last 2 weeks, after each of my more high volume or high intensity sessions...I hit the ocean, just to see if the ocean water, which is rocking around 62 degrees right now, would yield the same benefits as the ice bath, or maybe even something better...I have read that ocean water could be used as a replacement for blood plasma and that the ocean have every single trace element in the periodic table of elements in it. So far, Im REALY liking what I'm seeing.
So whats next for me? Good question...I have a guess on whats going to happen over the next week or so, but I'm not going to tip my hat on here until I see it happen. But the next blog entry will hold the details for the rest of my summer. The High Tech High season is long been over and Coach Earl's Team Elite summer season has also come to a conclusion and everyone seems to be looking for some time off away from the physical and mental stresses of the sport...sounds like a good idea, if only you can have both!
Heres a few picks of my last few weeks...Until next time
M++
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Buckle Up, Venting Time!
Buckle up for this one!
This blog comes to you as I’m sitting on my couch watching the IAAF Diamond League, The Pre Classic. I’m doing everything I can to keep from throwing up in my mouth and throwing random items at the tv. Watching this meet makes me realize why Track and Field will never be popular in the USA. Just to prove my analysis, I put it to the test at random times of this competition, which just so happened to have some of the greatest athletes in the world competing there.
The meet has been on for exactly 30min as I type this...here is what I have tried: Switch channels every 5 minutes for approximately 30min, just to see what was on if I happened to be “channel surfing”…here is what I saw: A shot of the stadium…people standing around…more people walking around, introductions of the men’s 85k or something…guys jogging…guys in a press box, a few shots of starting blocks in funny angles…
So I wonder to myself, if I’m your average person channel surfing on a Saturday afternoon, would I stop and watch the Pre Classic, the answer is an overwhelming no.
This brings me to the coverage of last weeks National Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. My training partner Kara Patterson destroyed the American record in the javelin throw, and got a whopping 18 seconds of coverage! 18 seconds of coverage by Universal Sports, who is supposed to be the greatest advocate of our sport…18 seconds…really? For an American Record, and one of the best throws in the history of the event….that added to the 50 or so spectators just makes me wonder if we are fighting a loosing battle. But if you want to watch 9 minutes of a 5k race or something, you’re in luck because you can see the entire thing, start to finish! Des Moines, Iowa is the host for the annual Drake Relays, which is a local high school and college meet, and the meet is sold out well in advance every year, packing thousands into the stands…so how it came to be that our NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS was contested with a less than half filled stands is kind of mind boggling…but then I reflect on the TV coverage, and it starts to make sense.
Speaking of TV coverage, we may not see an increase in interest in track and field until we get a fresh outlook from television commentators who aren’t jaded and biased from the own performances from the 80’s. How many years will we have to continue to listen to the rambling of guys like Dwight Stones? I remember watching the rebroadcast of last years Stockholm Super Grand Prix. Andreas Thorkildsen won with arguably one of the most impressive performances I have ever seen going 86m into a nasty headwind and intermittent rain. I placed 4th and Dwight made the comment that I just couldn’t hang with the Europeans and lacked the arm speed to contend…I’m guessing he didn’t notice that I knocked off the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Silver Medalists as well as the 2003 World Champion in that meet. It was a great source of motivation for me for the rest of the season and still continues to be today….you can imagine my pleasure when I got a friend request from him on facebook! It was also great to hear Dwight say about my roommate, Brad Walker, "Brad is built like a hammer thrower not a pole vaulter" …he then went on and broke the American Record…no big deal right?
Anyways, enough of the negative Nancy stuff… I did manage to throw almost 79m last weekend in Des Moines to take 2nd…again! That makes 4 silvers in a row, always the groomsman, but never the groom! Wait wait wait, not saying I want to be a groom anytime soon, but it would be nice to get a National Championship out of the way! It was a pleasant result, given the fact that I wasn’t even going to compete and the only reason I went is because USATF was threatening to make me reimburse them for my ticket if I didn’t go. I didn’t even take any javelins and was reluctant to even pack my spikes, luckily I did.
I'm sorry I cant even write about the meet right now because the television broadcast of the Pre just finished and guess what…NO JAVELIN COVERAGE! Kara won again with another throw waaaaaay over the previous American Record and kicked the Reigning Olympic Champs butt…I guess that’s not good enough to interrupt a 9 min jog around the track….seriously….I'm going to be sick
M++
This blog comes to you as I’m sitting on my couch watching the IAAF Diamond League, The Pre Classic. I’m doing everything I can to keep from throwing up in my mouth and throwing random items at the tv. Watching this meet makes me realize why Track and Field will never be popular in the USA. Just to prove my analysis, I put it to the test at random times of this competition, which just so happened to have some of the greatest athletes in the world competing there.
The meet has been on for exactly 30min as I type this...here is what I have tried: Switch channels every 5 minutes for approximately 30min, just to see what was on if I happened to be “channel surfing”…here is what I saw: A shot of the stadium…people standing around…more people walking around, introductions of the men’s 85k or something…guys jogging…guys in a press box, a few shots of starting blocks in funny angles…
So I wonder to myself, if I’m your average person channel surfing on a Saturday afternoon, would I stop and watch the Pre Classic, the answer is an overwhelming no.
This brings me to the coverage of last weeks National Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. My training partner Kara Patterson destroyed the American record in the javelin throw, and got a whopping 18 seconds of coverage! 18 seconds of coverage by Universal Sports, who is supposed to be the greatest advocate of our sport…18 seconds…really? For an American Record, and one of the best throws in the history of the event….that added to the 50 or so spectators just makes me wonder if we are fighting a loosing battle. But if you want to watch 9 minutes of a 5k race or something, you’re in luck because you can see the entire thing, start to finish! Des Moines, Iowa is the host for the annual Drake Relays, which is a local high school and college meet, and the meet is sold out well in advance every year, packing thousands into the stands…so how it came to be that our NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS was contested with a less than half filled stands is kind of mind boggling…but then I reflect on the TV coverage, and it starts to make sense.
Speaking of TV coverage, we may not see an increase in interest in track and field until we get a fresh outlook from television commentators who aren’t jaded and biased from the own performances from the 80’s. How many years will we have to continue to listen to the rambling of guys like Dwight Stones? I remember watching the rebroadcast of last years Stockholm Super Grand Prix. Andreas Thorkildsen won with arguably one of the most impressive performances I have ever seen going 86m into a nasty headwind and intermittent rain. I placed 4th and Dwight made the comment that I just couldn’t hang with the Europeans and lacked the arm speed to contend…I’m guessing he didn’t notice that I knocked off the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Silver Medalists as well as the 2003 World Champion in that meet. It was a great source of motivation for me for the rest of the season and still continues to be today….you can imagine my pleasure when I got a friend request from him on facebook! It was also great to hear Dwight say about my roommate, Brad Walker, "Brad is built like a hammer thrower not a pole vaulter" …he then went on and broke the American Record…no big deal right?
Anyways, enough of the negative Nancy stuff… I did manage to throw almost 79m last weekend in Des Moines to take 2nd…again! That makes 4 silvers in a row, always the groomsman, but never the groom! Wait wait wait, not saying I want to be a groom anytime soon, but it would be nice to get a National Championship out of the way! It was a pleasant result, given the fact that I wasn’t even going to compete and the only reason I went is because USATF was threatening to make me reimburse them for my ticket if I didn’t go. I didn’t even take any javelins and was reluctant to even pack my spikes, luckily I did.
I'm sorry I cant even write about the meet right now because the television broadcast of the Pre just finished and guess what…NO JAVELIN COVERAGE! Kara won again with another throw waaaaaay over the previous American Record and kicked the Reigning Olympic Champs butt…I guess that’s not good enough to interrupt a 9 min jog around the track….seriously….I'm going to be sick
M++
Monday, June 21, 2010
Nationals Week
This blog comes to you the week of National Championships. I depart for Des Moines Iowa this Friday for the competition on Sunday afternoon. Most of the training center will be taking off Tuesday and Wednesday so it will be an empty nest around here for a few days...plenty of time to talk yourself in and out of competition form. I am sticking with my gameplan that I developed last year...which is...have no game plan, just lace 'em up and hit it as best I can and let the chips fall where they may. My parents are coming out to San Diego for their first visit since 2007 shortly after nationals, so any plans to try to hit the Euro circuit will have to wait a few weeks post nationals. As I mentioned in my last blog, the High Tech High Bruins season has ended and Coach Earl's Team Elite Club program is in full swing and are departing for Youth Regional Champs this week in Vegas. I have 1 jav guy who looks to be a lock for Nationals and a few others that may squeak in but will take some dramatic improvements to make the cut.
Sorry if this blog seems short in nature, I’m having to send it via a 1993 PC at the training center as my wonderfully amazing macbook is still in the shop, thus holding my recent videos and pictures hostage...Until next time.
M++
Sorry if this blog seems short in nature, I’m having to send it via a 1993 PC at the training center as my wonderfully amazing macbook is still in the shop, thus holding my recent videos and pictures hostage...Until next time.
M++
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Back to the Drawing Board...again
This blog comes as I just returned home the Colorado Springs Olympic Training Center. I was there for 2 weeks doing rehab and analysis for my shoulder. It was a very successful trip and I got a large mount of quality work done and am anxious to get back to work in San Diego and get ready for the season...maybe...
No word from my management team yet on the New York Diamond league, but my gut feeling is that I am not going and will make a last second decision on USA Champs in 3 weeks. I am literally taking it day by day and I know when I will be ready and unfortunately I just haven't felt that yet.
The high lite of my trip to Colorado Springs was my visit to Pikes Peak at more than 14,000 feet. It was a stunning view that literally takes your breath away. Heres a few pics from Pikes Peak and a nasty video of my cortisone/novacaine and synvisc shots last Saturday...not for the weak of stomach (5.5 inch needle)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MifLldmqJLI
Until next time,
M++
No word from my management team yet on the New York Diamond league, but my gut feeling is that I am not going and will make a last second decision on USA Champs in 3 weeks. I am literally taking it day by day and I know when I will be ready and unfortunately I just haven't felt that yet.
The high lite of my trip to Colorado Springs was my visit to Pikes Peak at more than 14,000 feet. It was a stunning view that literally takes your breath away. Heres a few pics from Pikes Peak and a nasty video of my cortisone/novacaine and synvisc shots last Saturday...not for the weak of stomach (5.5 inch needle)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MifLldmqJLI
Until next time,
M++
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Change of Scenery
Once again, this blog comes from an airport terminal, but I’m not flying to a meet as I would normally do this time of year. I’m headed to Colorado Springs, Colorado to train at the “other” USOC training center, which just happens to be the headquarters.
After several evaluations and countless hours of rehab and therapy, it was decided by the USOC medical staff that I take a few weeks to get treated in the Springs by a different group of doctors and therapists. My plan is to stay until I’m ready to throw competitively again. When I say competitively, I mean 80m shape. I can throw in the mid 70’s every time out but not without a considerable amount of pain and I know that 75m will not be medal contention. In a perfect world, I would be ready to throw by the June 12 New York Diamond League, but I’m not holding my breath. I’m taking it day by day and will do the best I can with what I have.
The High Tech High season has come to an end, on a bittersweet note. Last weeks CIF preliminaries where marred by a conflict in schedules between the administration and athletic offices that lead to a few of our best athletes missing the meet completely. Other had to work internships all day and rush to the competition, and in most cases arrive only minutes before the start time. All in all, it was a frustrating but fairly successful day. This weekends CIF meet in North San Diego County put a few of HTHCV athletes against the best in Southern California. Although we escaped the meet with a few personal and school records….the performances where not enough to advance to CIF Finals and the season has come to an end. It was a bumpy but fun ride and I now look forward to working with Coach Earl Cabanas “Team Elite” track club and will even get a chance to coach a few young promising javelin throwers.
My flight is boarding now....gotta bounce.
M++
new personal best in box jumps, 59" = 4.91 feet (1.49m)
After several evaluations and countless hours of rehab and therapy, it was decided by the USOC medical staff that I take a few weeks to get treated in the Springs by a different group of doctors and therapists. My plan is to stay until I’m ready to throw competitively again. When I say competitively, I mean 80m shape. I can throw in the mid 70’s every time out but not without a considerable amount of pain and I know that 75m will not be medal contention. In a perfect world, I would be ready to throw by the June 12 New York Diamond League, but I’m not holding my breath. I’m taking it day by day and will do the best I can with what I have.
The High Tech High season has come to an end, on a bittersweet note. Last weeks CIF preliminaries where marred by a conflict in schedules between the administration and athletic offices that lead to a few of our best athletes missing the meet completely. Other had to work internships all day and rush to the competition, and in most cases arrive only minutes before the start time. All in all, it was a frustrating but fairly successful day. This weekends CIF meet in North San Diego County put a few of HTHCV athletes against the best in Southern California. Although we escaped the meet with a few personal and school records….the performances where not enough to advance to CIF Finals and the season has come to an end. It was a bumpy but fun ride and I now look forward to working with Coach Earl Cabanas “Team Elite” track club and will even get a chance to coach a few young promising javelin throwers.
My flight is boarding now....gotta bounce.
M++
new personal best in box jumps, 59" = 4.91 feet (1.49m)
Monday, May 10, 2010
Where to even start this one? I cant even think of a title for this blog?
The past 2 weeks were an extremely busy few weeks that included a high volume of training, visits from international friends and athletes, and a few outstanding performances by the High Tech High Bruins.
For the past 14 days I have had the pleasure of linking back up with my friend and training partner from Norway, Andreas Thorkildsen. This training camp will be my 4th training camp with Andreas and the Norwegian team and it has been just as good as the previous camps and maybe even better. Although my physical capabilities are better than ever, my throwing is still way behind where I would like it to be, and I had to withdraw from my 1st 2 meets of the year in Shanghai and Daegu. As of right now, I plan to open my season on June 12, in New York at the NY Diamond League. It has been a hard decision for me the last 48 hours. I would love the chance to go back to China and Korea, (where I have thrown well the last 2 years) but I am simply not ready. Speaking of being ready, I would expect to see big results soon from Andreas as he opens his season in Shanghai May 23, and big results as well from another (part-time) training partner Sean Furey of the USA. Sean and Corey White will be throwing in Daegu on May 19 and should both be up for some impressive results and I wish them the best. I know they will enjoy the city and hospitality of the Korean people, they do a great job!
The High Tech High Bruins put up another massive showing at last weekends dual meet with High Tech High Point Loma. During the weeks preparation, I decided to add a some different stimulus to their training and it paid off. In the previous weeks meets, I notice that my guys where doing much better in training than in the meets. They where almost backing off the intensity in the meets and competing "scared". After a few conversations with my guys they admitted to me that they where worried about "fouling" and it looked like they where worried about not doing well in front of others. That was my impression. So last weeks training involved back overhead shot competitions within the team and I was amazed at the results. Most of my guys found their inner-competitive drive and stepped up and put up big efforts and and as a result big throws at the competition (with a little help from Starbucks ;) There are still a few who lack the drive that I would like to see but as a group, they did great and I was actually very proud. This week is League Finals, followed by CIF Finals...Im not quite sure they realize the scope of what they have in front of them, but Im sure coach Earl Cabanas will do a great job firing them up. Until next time
M++
Monday, April 26, 2010
Bling Bling ...
Its a good thing that the High Tech High kids don't need to travel via air, because they would have a hard time getting all their medals through security! This weekends Grizzly Invite brought home 2 more personal bests for the HTH Bruins. Its an ironic occurrence when these kids step in the ring, the training volume is going down and their bodies are starting to react a bit quicker and as a result the are having a hard time "keeping their wheels on the ground". Lots of power in their throws (compared to when they 1st started) but they are having a hard time putting it into the right direction. It would be nice to get to a meet where they are allowed to actually have 6 throws rather than 3...but we do the best with what we got. There are no more "invitationals" this season, as the California CIF finals are approaching in a few weeks. So for the HTH Bruins, its a taper and tightening the screws...
On a side note, in case there are any potential coaches who just happen to be reading this...a word of advice...no matter how bad you feel you may be able to help out another teams athletes by pitching in your 2 cents, DON'T DO IT! There is nothing worse than investing hours and hours into a project (your kids) only to have an egotistical coach come over and throw his 2 cents in and screw everything up. I heard my kids say, "coach Mike, that guy said to do this, but now Im all confused?" uuuggh... wooooh - saaaaaahhh .... ;( So, lesson to be learned by me and others, if Im at a meet and feel like I can help out another jav thrower, you can bet your butt I'm not saying anything, out of respect for their coach, and his time and efforts, no matter how bad they might be!
No big news in my training, other than setting a few lifetime bests in back over head shot throws, hang cleans, standing long jump, hurdle hops...just to name a few ;) If the shoulder holds up (after the cortisone injection last Wednesday) then maybe....just maybe...we will see something cool this summer. If not this summer, next summer should be an eye opener....here's a few pics and videos from this weekend...till next time,
M++
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Psychological Warfare
Psychological Warfare (PSYWAR) "Various techniques are used, by any set of groups, and aimed to influence a target audience's value systems, belief systems, emotions, motives, reasoning, or behavior. It is used to induce confessions or reinforce attitudes and behaviors favorable to the originator's objectives, and are sometimes combined with black operations or false flag tactics."
well.....maybe warfare is a over-exaggeration, maybe mind games is a more accurate term:
This is usually the time of year when most people are putting the finishing touches on their spring preparations and getting ready for the season...this would include most people...except me. Still working on my shoulder, my throwing is still way behind schedule and my main goal is USA Champs the end of June. If that means that I cant throw until that time, so be it. The hard part is not committing to meets even though I need the money and points...never mind the 4 day trip to the Caribbean that I just had to turn down...uuugh! I will admit that there are times that I want to try to rush back and get into the mix as soon as possible (hence the Psychological Warfare intro) and there are plenty of people who want to know when and where i will be back. Its a non stop battle between what I know I should do and what I want to do. Going back to the investment I made in my shoulder back in November of 09, I knew that this year could be used as a re-building year and many others have done the same. Most recently, a friend of mine, Yelena Isenbayeva (World and Olympic Record Holder, Womens Pole Vault) has just announced that she will be taking an indefinite leave of absence from competition.
http://www.iaaf.org/news/kind=100/newsid=56414.html
So, Im guessing, I will continue my leave of absence until I am sure that I am ready to get back in the mix with all I got. To be continued...
My High Tech High Bruins just had their 3rd meet of the season this weekend. There was mixed results with a few personal bests and a few would be personal bests if they could have saved the sector fouls. I'm still getting used to the kids having to rush over to competitions from taking their ACT's. Its not quite what I'm used to but I'm amazed at the sportsmanship at their level. Its sometimes a character trait that gets lost in the professional ranks and it is refreshing to be around. Until next time,
M++
heres a few pics and videos from the meet!
well.....maybe warfare is a over-exaggeration, maybe mind games is a more accurate term:
This is usually the time of year when most people are putting the finishing touches on their spring preparations and getting ready for the season...this would include most people...except me. Still working on my shoulder, my throwing is still way behind schedule and my main goal is USA Champs the end of June. If that means that I cant throw until that time, so be it. The hard part is not committing to meets even though I need the money and points...never mind the 4 day trip to the Caribbean that I just had to turn down...uuugh! I will admit that there are times that I want to try to rush back and get into the mix as soon as possible (hence the Psychological Warfare intro) and there are plenty of people who want to know when and where i will be back. Its a non stop battle between what I know I should do and what I want to do. Going back to the investment I made in my shoulder back in November of 09, I knew that this year could be used as a re-building year and many others have done the same. Most recently, a friend of mine, Yelena Isenbayeva (World and Olympic Record Holder, Womens Pole Vault) has just announced that she will be taking an indefinite leave of absence from competition.
http://www.iaaf.org/news/kind=100/newsid=56414.html
So, Im guessing, I will continue my leave of absence until I am sure that I am ready to get back in the mix with all I got. To be continued...
My High Tech High Bruins just had their 3rd meet of the season this weekend. There was mixed results with a few personal bests and a few would be personal bests if they could have saved the sector fouls. I'm still getting used to the kids having to rush over to competitions from taking their ACT's. Its not quite what I'm used to but I'm amazed at the sportsmanship at their level. Its sometimes a character trait that gets lost in the professional ranks and it is refreshing to be around. Until next time,
M++
heres a few pics and videos from the meet!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
The Grind ...
Its that time of year, the mad dash to get in the last serious volume cycle before the competition season starts. This usually means practices are very long, rehab is tedious and getting out of bed in the morning gets harder and harder... On the good side of things, Southern California has warmed up and it is definitely beach weather!
My training is at lifetime best in every aspect, except the one that counts...throwing. I am still planning to open up in early June at the New York, Adidas Diamond League. I will scramble to find a meet if I feel like Im up for it but I don't have any plans on throwing just for the heck of it and will take a page out the world record holders book..."throw when I'm ready to throw, not because I have to."
The High Tech High track squad had another exceptional week that included 4 personal bests and a few 1st place finishes. They had a pretty chill week this week because of their quarterly exams, but Monday was quite the treat. Somehow, the team found out that it was my birthday (Im guessing facebook tipped them off) and they surprised me with cupckaes and a nice birthday cake. It was alot of fun to step away from the track for a day and just hang with some genuine kids.
This week should be a bit more hectic as the competition season approaches and the stress levels and intensity of the workouts begins to climb. It is also a current European invasion at the training center, as UK Athletics has brought in 70 athletes! Germany, Estonia, Denmark, Poland and the Netherlands are all on their way in. My close friends from Finland will be here in a few weeks and so will my Norwegian training partner Andreas Thorkildsen. Until next time,
M++
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Track Season is Here!
Last weekend I had the chance to watch the High Tech High Chula Vista track and field team dominate their opening track meet of the year. I have been working with the High Tech High Bruins since early February and have seen some pretty cool changes in their technique and performance. My throwers took the following results:
Mens Shot Put: 1st Place
Mens Discus: 1st Place
Womens Shot Put: 1st and 3rd place
Womens Discus: 1st and 2nd Place
Unfortunately, they don't throw the javelin in their league...However, I wish they did because I'm sure we would have a few throwers move all the way up the ranks on the prep USA list!
The kids have progressed very well and are just now learning how to apply force in the right positions and I expect to see even bigger results this weekend at the next meet. The only struggle I have now is fighting to keep my kids in the program. There are so many other activities that these brilliant kids are involved in. It makes it hard to keep them all coming back everyday because they are spread out over so many different social activities. Thats just the selfish coach in me coming out! ;)
My training is going amazing, the shoulder is pain free and I'm doing everything I can to not do anything too much or drastic and to make sure that I'm ready for the big meets later on in the year and into 2011 and 2012. We had a national team camp here last weekend as well and it is easy to see that we are the deepest we have ever been in the mens javelin. We have a few young guys that have more talent than they know what to do with! There will definitely be some BIIIIIG throws by USA javelin throwers this summer...stay tuned!
M++
Mens Shot Put: 1st Place
Mens Discus: 1st Place
Womens Shot Put: 1st and 3rd place
Womens Discus: 1st and 2nd Place
Unfortunately, they don't throw the javelin in their league...However, I wish they did because I'm sure we would have a few throwers move all the way up the ranks on the prep USA list!
The kids have progressed very well and are just now learning how to apply force in the right positions and I expect to see even bigger results this weekend at the next meet. The only struggle I have now is fighting to keep my kids in the program. There are so many other activities that these brilliant kids are involved in. It makes it hard to keep them all coming back everyday because they are spread out over so many different social activities. Thats just the selfish coach in me coming out! ;)
My training is going amazing, the shoulder is pain free and I'm doing everything I can to not do anything too much or drastic and to make sure that I'm ready for the big meets later on in the year and into 2011 and 2012. We had a national team camp here last weekend as well and it is easy to see that we are the deepest we have ever been in the mens javelin. We have a few young guys that have more talent than they know what to do with! There will definitely be some BIIIIIG throws by USA javelin throwers this summer...stay tuned!
M++
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Surfing, Paddleboarding, Kayaking...and dodging Tsunami's!
Aloooha from Hawaii!
About 2 weeks ago, an opportunity presented itself that I couldn't turn down. The scenarios all fell into place... and I packed my bags and headed to Oahu, Hawaii for 10 days of "training".
The last 15 weeks of shoulder rehab were very intense and although my shoulder was getting very strong, maybe even stronger than before surgery...but the flexibility and range of motion where lacking. At the end of week 13, my coach and training partners did a round of testing, which saw me post new personal bests in the 30m sprint and back overhead shot throws...we also did extensive strength testing on the shoulder and the results where good, but as I mentioned, the range of motion was lacking and I needed to back off (again) and give the shoulder time to heal from 13 weeks of pounding. I was due for a rest week, and my coach and all my training partners where going to be out of town for USA Indoor Championships.
Then Hawaii called...
My roommate and training partner, Brad Walker (pole vault) (http://www.bradwalker.us/)
just had some minor back surgery and wasn't able to train at all in San Diego...so he contacted a few of his friends in Hawaii to see if he could come out and do some core and balance training in the water at the islands. It just so happened that he had a friend who was out of town (watching the games in Vancouver) and needed someone to house sit and watch his golden lab Pele'... housing situation...done
He also had another close friend and former coach at the University of Hawaii, Spencer Chang, who doubles as an orthopedic surgeon and pole vault coach as well... He was able to get us access to the University's facilities as well as numerous outlets of therapy... training facility and rehab situation....done
Finally, we where able to link of with a few of the U of H athletes to lend a hand in the pole vault and javelin events. Brad also linked up with the reigning World Youth Pole Vault Champion from Sweden, who was in town for a holiday with her family. It was awesome to get a chance to see 2 current World Champions go at it. It was a good chance for me to give back a bit of what I have learned over the years in throwing a stick.
I had an amazing training week that involved a ton of low intensity kayaking, paddle boarding, snorkeling and even a few horrible attempts at boogie boarding a few waves that where way out of my league! The lifting and sprinting sessions at the University where also much better than expected and the break from throwing did wonders for my shoulder.
Friday night and Saturday morning where quite the adventure. Let me set the stage for you.... dramatic pause....
We got a call around 3 in the morning from the guy who owns the condo (from Vancouver)..he says, "have you heard the news? there was an 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile and there is a 30ft Tsunami headed for Hawaii!"
Turns out, he got a call from our neighbor, who just so happens to be the worlds biggest drama king and blows things waaaaaaaaaaaaay out of proportion! He told him the story of the earthquake and therefore he called us and began giving us instructions on how to pack up his entire house (which was in the evacuation zone, right on the water)
The view from our back patio
We packed all of our stuff and the home owners belongings from 3 - 8am... There was a bunch of random things to do, trying to haul boats out of the marina, moving tool boxes and surf boards to the front of the house, packing food and water for 7 DAYS!!! (thanks CNN...what a waste!) all of this on no sleep and the local media trying to scare everyone into a mellow-panic, if there is such a thing.
The most eerie part for me was the blasting of the Tsunami Sirens at 6am...
We finished packing up the house around 8 and evacuated at 9 and headed for a hilltop about 2 miles away....we joined about 100 other local residents who had set up shop in the cars, jeep and tents and prepared to watch.....NOTHING!
Everyone had their radios on, blasting news and eye witness reporters from every side of every island...then came the news of the 6 foot surge from French Polynesia... It was pretty intense for several hours, but as the waves came closer, then news reports predicted the waves to be 12 feet, then 6 feet, then 3 feet...
Then the sirens blasted again, and the Tsunami that was created from a 8.8 magnitude in Chile struck the island of Oahu and the Hawaii Kai bay with the force of......nothing!
The best report came from an eye witness reporter on the big Island...the radio guy asked, "the time for the Tsunami has come and past...can you tell us what you see now?"
The eye witness said..."well its a beautiful day here and it looks like a great day to be in the water!" ....the reply came from the radio... "wait, you mean you dont see the Tsunami wave surge?" ... "no, no wave at all here"..... "so nothing in the 6 foot range as the reports have been indicating?" ..."hahaha, no man, nothing even in the 1 foot range."
We listened to the radio reports as the dj's desperately began to search for things to talk about as the drama of the killer wave that never showed up quickly disappeared and the locals frustration and lack of interest began showing up. After all, this is the 4th or 5th time that this has happened in the Islands...evacuation, panic...and then nothing.
We hung out on the hill next to the bay for about 4 hours before we finally gave up and headed back to the house and got a kick out of the people who where hanging out on the bay, some of which had already taken their boards and boats out for a spin...it was clear that the panic that the media inflicted on the rest of the world was just a big swing and a miss...
I have 2 more days on the island before I head back to the training center in San Diego and the High Tech High Track Team. I am looking forward to their first meet on March 11 and myself getting back to throwing after a week of "training" here in paradise!
Here are a few cool pics from the week... Catch up with you from San Diego
M++
About 2 weeks ago, an opportunity presented itself that I couldn't turn down. The scenarios all fell into place... and I packed my bags and headed to Oahu, Hawaii for 10 days of "training".
The last 15 weeks of shoulder rehab were very intense and although my shoulder was getting very strong, maybe even stronger than before surgery...but the flexibility and range of motion where lacking. At the end of week 13, my coach and training partners did a round of testing, which saw me post new personal bests in the 30m sprint and back overhead shot throws...we also did extensive strength testing on the shoulder and the results where good, but as I mentioned, the range of motion was lacking and I needed to back off (again) and give the shoulder time to heal from 13 weeks of pounding. I was due for a rest week, and my coach and all my training partners where going to be out of town for USA Indoor Championships.
Then Hawaii called...
My roommate and training partner, Brad Walker (pole vault) (http://www.bradwalker.us/)
just had some minor back surgery and wasn't able to train at all in San Diego...so he contacted a few of his friends in Hawaii to see if he could come out and do some core and balance training in the water at the islands. It just so happened that he had a friend who was out of town (watching the games in Vancouver) and needed someone to house sit and watch his golden lab Pele'... housing situation...done
He also had another close friend and former coach at the University of Hawaii, Spencer Chang, who doubles as an orthopedic surgeon and pole vault coach as well... He was able to get us access to the University's facilities as well as numerous outlets of therapy... training facility and rehab situation....done
Finally, we where able to link of with a few of the U of H athletes to lend a hand in the pole vault and javelin events. Brad also linked up with the reigning World Youth Pole Vault Champion from Sweden, who was in town for a holiday with her family. It was awesome to get a chance to see 2 current World Champions go at it. It was a good chance for me to give back a bit of what I have learned over the years in throwing a stick.
I had an amazing training week that involved a ton of low intensity kayaking, paddle boarding, snorkeling and even a few horrible attempts at boogie boarding a few waves that where way out of my league! The lifting and sprinting sessions at the University where also much better than expected and the break from throwing did wonders for my shoulder.
Friday night and Saturday morning where quite the adventure. Let me set the stage for you.... dramatic pause....
We got a call around 3 in the morning from the guy who owns the condo (from Vancouver)..he says, "have you heard the news? there was an 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile and there is a 30ft Tsunami headed for Hawaii!"
Turns out, he got a call from our neighbor, who just so happens to be the worlds biggest drama king and blows things waaaaaaaaaaaaay out of proportion! He told him the story of the earthquake and therefore he called us and began giving us instructions on how to pack up his entire house (which was in the evacuation zone, right on the water)
The view from our back patio
We packed all of our stuff and the home owners belongings from 3 - 8am... There was a bunch of random things to do, trying to haul boats out of the marina, moving tool boxes and surf boards to the front of the house, packing food and water for 7 DAYS!!! (thanks CNN...what a waste!) all of this on no sleep and the local media trying to scare everyone into a mellow-panic, if there is such a thing.
The most eerie part for me was the blasting of the Tsunami Sirens at 6am...
We finished packing up the house around 8 and evacuated at 9 and headed for a hilltop about 2 miles away....we joined about 100 other local residents who had set up shop in the cars, jeep and tents and prepared to watch.....NOTHING!
Everyone had their radios on, blasting news and eye witness reporters from every side of every island...then came the news of the 6 foot surge from French Polynesia... It was pretty intense for several hours, but as the waves came closer, then news reports predicted the waves to be 12 feet, then 6 feet, then 3 feet...
Then the sirens blasted again, and the Tsunami that was created from a 8.8 magnitude in Chile struck the island of Oahu and the Hawaii Kai bay with the force of......nothing!
The best report came from an eye witness reporter on the big Island...the radio guy asked, "the time for the Tsunami has come and past...can you tell us what you see now?"
The eye witness said..."well its a beautiful day here and it looks like a great day to be in the water!" ....the reply came from the radio... "wait, you mean you dont see the Tsunami wave surge?" ... "no, no wave at all here"..... "so nothing in the 6 foot range as the reports have been indicating?" ..."hahaha, no man, nothing even in the 1 foot range."
We listened to the radio reports as the dj's desperately began to search for things to talk about as the drama of the killer wave that never showed up quickly disappeared and the locals frustration and lack of interest began showing up. After all, this is the 4th or 5th time that this has happened in the Islands...evacuation, panic...and then nothing.
We hung out on the hill next to the bay for about 4 hours before we finally gave up and headed back to the house and got a kick out of the people who where hanging out on the bay, some of which had already taken their boards and boats out for a spin...it was clear that the panic that the media inflicted on the rest of the world was just a big swing and a miss...
I have 2 more days on the island before I head back to the training center in San Diego and the High Tech High Track Team. I am looking forward to their first meet on March 11 and myself getting back to throwing after a week of "training" here in paradise!
Here are a few cool pics from the week... Catch up with you from San Diego
M++
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Olympic Memories
USA...USA...USA...USA...USA...USA...!!!!!!!! that's the sound that I remember as I came down the tunnel and neared the opening of the stadium that seated 100,000 fans in Beijing...
The hair on the back of my neck stood up, my eyes teared, and my heart hurt as I watched Team USA Vancouver file into the stadium on Friday night. I don't know what I was expecting to feel, or feel anything at all as I watched the opening ceremonies. It was just a really cool thing to watch with a glass of wine on Friday evening...so I thought.
As the ceremonies began, I was immediately brought back to Beijing and all the emotions that came with the journey of getting there, competing, and post Olympic depression. I watched with envy, pride, jealousy, and a heavy heart as many of my close friends and part-time training partners where living out their Olympic Dream. I'm sure it was an emotional day for almost all of the athletes as word of the Georgian Luge athlete was passed on throughout the village. However tragic it seems, I feel it is a accurate representation of athletes and the bond that they form with their Olympic Dreams and journeys. It would not surprise me to hear that many athletes would give all they have, maybe even life itself, to live out Olympic glory.
As the Winter Olympic Games play out, you can be sure that I will be rocking my TEAM USA gear everywhere I go and will be supporting my friends and fellow Olympians with every ounce of my being! Watch out for fellow ITA athletes bringing home some serious hardware!!!!!!
LETS GO EMILY, TORIN & CAITLIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In community news. I am now the proud owner of a new title. High Tech High Volunteer Track Coach! I will be working with a local High School's track and field program throughout the rest of the 2010 school year and beyond. I met the team last week and they are a great group of highly energetic kids and I cant wait to get started this week!
Here are a few memories from opening ceremonies in Beijing....enjoy!
M++
The hair on the back of my neck stood up, my eyes teared, and my heart hurt as I watched Team USA Vancouver file into the stadium on Friday night. I don't know what I was expecting to feel, or feel anything at all as I watched the opening ceremonies. It was just a really cool thing to watch with a glass of wine on Friday evening...so I thought.
As the ceremonies began, I was immediately brought back to Beijing and all the emotions that came with the journey of getting there, competing, and post Olympic depression. I watched with envy, pride, jealousy, and a heavy heart as many of my close friends and part-time training partners where living out their Olympic Dream. I'm sure it was an emotional day for almost all of the athletes as word of the Georgian Luge athlete was passed on throughout the village. However tragic it seems, I feel it is a accurate representation of athletes and the bond that they form with their Olympic Dreams and journeys. It would not surprise me to hear that many athletes would give all they have, maybe even life itself, to live out Olympic glory.
As the Winter Olympic Games play out, you can be sure that I will be rocking my TEAM USA gear everywhere I go and will be supporting my friends and fellow Olympians with every ounce of my being! Watch out for fellow ITA athletes bringing home some serious hardware!!!!!!
LETS GO EMILY, TORIN & CAITLIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In community news. I am now the proud owner of a new title. High Tech High Volunteer Track Coach! I will be working with a local High School's track and field program throughout the rest of the 2010 school year and beyond. I met the team last week and they are a great group of highly energetic kids and I cant wait to get started this week!
Here are a few memories from opening ceremonies in Beijing....enjoy!
M++
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Beijing to Vancouver
This past week I have had the pleasure to hang out with the 2010 Team USA mens and womens Bobsled Teams here at the Olympic Training Center. One especially cool treat, was to hang out with fellow ITA athlete and fellow Olympian, Emily Azevedo.
A former 100m hurdler in college, Emily capitalized on her speed and shed her track spikes for the ice of the bobsled track and since has climbed to top of the world in her event! Join Emily's journey to Vancouver as she lives her Olympic dream on her blog here:
http://in-the-arena-emily.blogspot.com/
Joining team USA at the training center is also the Dutch Bobsled Team, as well as the Dutch and Chinese women's field hockey teams. It has been a very busy environment with all the teams tuning up for their respected summer sports and of course the Winter Olympic Games just a few days away. This is a special time of year for an Olympians, past and present. For a few weeks every few years, the eyes of the world are on you and the overwhelming pride of representing the USA on the Worlds largest stage shakes you to the core. I have no doubt that team USA will be locked and loaded and ready to pay for overweight baggage as they haul around all the medals that they are sure to rack up!
A former 100m hurdler in college, Emily capitalized on her speed and shed her track spikes for the ice of the bobsled track and since has climbed to top of the world in her event! Join Emily's journey to Vancouver as she lives her Olympic dream on her blog here:
http://in-the-arena-emily.blogspot.com/
Joining team USA at the training center is also the Dutch Bobsled Team, as well as the Dutch and Chinese women's field hockey teams. It has been a very busy environment with all the teams tuning up for their respected summer sports and of course the Winter Olympic Games just a few days away. This is a special time of year for an Olympians, past and present. For a few weeks every few years, the eyes of the world are on you and the overwhelming pride of representing the USA on the Worlds largest stage shakes you to the core. I have no doubt that team USA will be locked and loaded and ready to pay for overweight baggage as they haul around all the medals that they are sure to rack up!
Monday, January 18, 2010
ITA Winter Athletes in Full Swing and Vancouver Bound!
This blog entry comes from a rainy San Diego, California...very different from the past few weeks where we have had temperature in the mid 80's and most of us here at the Olympic Training Center have been training like its the middle of Spring.
As the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games are approaching in under 20 days, the first news of fellow In the Arena athletes punching their tickets are rolling in! Emily Azevedo, a bobsled athlete, and member of the 2 man USA Team III, has just been named to her first Olympic Team.
Follow along with Emily as he Olympic Dream approaches here:
http://in-the-arena-emily.blogspot.com/
As other winter events are in the midst of qualifying and fierce competitions, In the Arena athletes Torin Koos and Laura Valaas both took Gold at the Methow Valley SuperTour Sprint Event. At the same Super Tour event, ITA athletes went 1-2-3 as Caitlin Compton won gold and Laura Valaas and Nicole De Yong picked up silver and bronze respectively in the 15k thriller. You can follow each one of these athletes here:
Torin Koos: http://in-the-arena-torin.blogspot.com/
Laura Valas: http://in-the-arena-laura.blogspot.com/
Caitlin Compton: http://in-the-arena-caitlin.blogspot.com/
Nicole De Yong: http://in-the-arena-nicole.blogspot.com/
The Altius Track Club, that was launched at the beginning of the year has gotten off to an unexpectedly slow start. Although Ian Waltz and Stacy Dragila have began personal training sessions, an ITA merger looks to be in the near future and maybe within a week. Hopefully I will have some quality community service news to report on in the upcoming weeks...as the saying goes, its been way too long!
M++
As the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games are approaching in under 20 days, the first news of fellow In the Arena athletes punching their tickets are rolling in! Emily Azevedo, a bobsled athlete, and member of the 2 man USA Team III, has just been named to her first Olympic Team.
Follow along with Emily as he Olympic Dream approaches here:
http://in-the-arena-emily.blogspot.com/
As other winter events are in the midst of qualifying and fierce competitions, In the Arena athletes Torin Koos and Laura Valaas both took Gold at the Methow Valley SuperTour Sprint Event. At the same Super Tour event, ITA athletes went 1-2-3 as Caitlin Compton won gold and Laura Valaas and Nicole De Yong picked up silver and bronze respectively in the 15k thriller. You can follow each one of these athletes here:
Torin Koos: http://in-the-arena-torin.blogspot.com/
Laura Valas: http://in-the-arena-laura.blogspot.com/
Caitlin Compton: http://in-the-arena-caitlin.blogspot.com/
Nicole De Yong: http://in-the-arena-nicole.blogspot.com/
The Altius Track Club, that was launched at the beginning of the year has gotten off to an unexpectedly slow start. Although Ian Waltz and Stacy Dragila have began personal training sessions, an ITA merger looks to be in the near future and maybe within a week. Hopefully I will have some quality community service news to report on in the upcoming weeks...as the saying goes, its been way too long!
M++
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Happy New Year.....US Airways, Your Fired!!!
Happy new year, bet you have heard that a few times. Most people would like to start their new year off in a favorable fashion...you know, great New Years Eve party, starting all the New Years resolutions on the 1st and looking forward to all the promising things that the start of a new year brings...almost a clean slate so to speak. Mine was more of a "humbug new year" than a "happy new year".
Christmas was great, minus the usual drama that comes along when families get together over the holidays...I was all set to travel back to SD on the 31st, when my travel luck struck again!
It started with my US Airways flight from Austin-Phoenix-SD was delayed over 1 hour. I only had a 45 min connection in Phoenix if we where on time, so I knew that the possibility of making that connection was zero. Then the gate attendant came on the PA system and said that all passengers that had connecting flights in PHX could either stay in Austin and get re-booked for the morning flight, or fly to PHX and if they missed their connection, stay the night in PHX and get re-booked for the morning. Then she said, "except all passengers traveling to SD, there are 15 of you so they are going to hold the plane in PHX for you." lucky me, so I thought.
As I landed in PHX and made my way to gate 22, all 15 of us realized that there was no flight to SD..they did not hold it, nor even attempt to, it left right on time. The entire PHX airport basically shut down at 9:30PM, which left a few hundred stranded passengers on New Years Eve, all of which had big plans that night for sure. For the next 4.5 hours I waited in line at customer service to be re-booked, baggage claim, shuttle to the hotel, and then the 40 people long line to get checked in with 1 lady working the front desk. So yes, I watched the New Years celebrations while standing in line in a hotel lobby, tons of fun!
The next day the travel woes continued. As I went to the counter to check in, I was redirected to a waiting line that strangely enough had all 15 of us from the previous night. This was around 1pm. I stood in the exact same spot for over an hour and didn't budge. Come to find out, they canceled our re-booked flight to SD because of "crew rest" and couldn't get us even out of PHX until after 7pm, connecting in Ontario, getting into SD after 10pm! It wasn't even 2;15PM at this time, so I just walked over to Hertz, payed $288 !!!! picked up a car and drove the 5 hrs from PHX-SD. I got home around 9pm (which wasn't too much earlier than if I would have taken the later flight). Which in hindsight makes that $288 hurt even more. So 24hrs later than originally planned, I was home. Thanks US Airways! Happy New Year!
Im hoping that the rest of the year gets off to a much better start!
M++
Christmas was great, minus the usual drama that comes along when families get together over the holidays...I was all set to travel back to SD on the 31st, when my travel luck struck again!
It started with my US Airways flight from Austin-Phoenix-SD was delayed over 1 hour. I only had a 45 min connection in Phoenix if we where on time, so I knew that the possibility of making that connection was zero. Then the gate attendant came on the PA system and said that all passengers that had connecting flights in PHX could either stay in Austin and get re-booked for the morning flight, or fly to PHX and if they missed their connection, stay the night in PHX and get re-booked for the morning. Then she said, "except all passengers traveling to SD, there are 15 of you so they are going to hold the plane in PHX for you." lucky me, so I thought.
As I landed in PHX and made my way to gate 22, all 15 of us realized that there was no flight to SD..they did not hold it, nor even attempt to, it left right on time. The entire PHX airport basically shut down at 9:30PM, which left a few hundred stranded passengers on New Years Eve, all of which had big plans that night for sure. For the next 4.5 hours I waited in line at customer service to be re-booked, baggage claim, shuttle to the hotel, and then the 40 people long line to get checked in with 1 lady working the front desk. So yes, I watched the New Years celebrations while standing in line in a hotel lobby, tons of fun!
The next day the travel woes continued. As I went to the counter to check in, I was redirected to a waiting line that strangely enough had all 15 of us from the previous night. This was around 1pm. I stood in the exact same spot for over an hour and didn't budge. Come to find out, they canceled our re-booked flight to SD because of "crew rest" and couldn't get us even out of PHX until after 7pm, connecting in Ontario, getting into SD after 10pm! It wasn't even 2;15PM at this time, so I just walked over to Hertz, payed $288 !!!! picked up a car and drove the 5 hrs from PHX-SD. I got home around 9pm (which wasn't too much earlier than if I would have taken the later flight). Which in hindsight makes that $288 hurt even more. So 24hrs later than originally planned, I was home. Thanks US Airways! Happy New Year!
Im hoping that the rest of the year gets off to a much better start!
M++
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