Copenhagen World Cup

Sorry, I have been less than good about updating, but yeah here is a blurp.

Copenhagen, Denmark World Cup February 13-15, 2009

World Cup Whirlwind – from the first timer’s perspective

2/10/09
6:30pm Mountain Time

I’m sitting on my first flight of the adventure (Denver-Chicago) and when I really stop to think, my mind floods and it is hard to sort out all the thoughts, as they seem to scream through my mind with an utter calmness. I feel as ready as I can be for now. I know there is much room for improvement but that serves to excite and motivate me even more. One of the recurring thoughts that comes to mind is of all the people who have supported me and made everything I do possible. The obvious first thought of my parents and sister who have always been there and taken more flack from me than anyone else ten fold. Beyond that however I think of my extended family who have grown with me in learning and support for the sport, thank you! Then I always seem to end up reminiscing about how I got my start in this sport and all the wonderful people who I owe so much of my success to!

2/12/09
12:56pm Copenhagen Denmark

I made it safely to Denmark from Chicago and all my stuff even made it with me! (carry-on, one bag, one wheel case, one huge bike bag!) Everyone is here now, which consists of: Jim Miller (US coach), Andrew Hawkes (Mechanic), the men: Colby Pearce, Daniel Holloway, Taylor Phinney, and the women: Shelley Olds, Kim Geist, Kacey Manderfield. There are a few others here from the US with their trade team, Hawk Relay, but we have yet to connect with them. Yesterday we dropped all the bikes and gear at the track before scavenging for some food. Lucky us there is a marked about 50meters from our front door! Also lucky for us most of our food is taken care of by the host hotel because everything here is expensive. This morning we ventured out into the cold gray air to unpack our bikes and hit the rollers to get the legs going. We did our roller training in the track center while the allotted teams got in their track time. We have our USA Team slot tonight 6-7:30pm so now it is just chill, eat, and drink until our session. Other than my continued ability to get poor sleep everything is going well. Legs feel pretty good and will be even better after a few more painful openers! It’s just another bike race, right? It just happens to be with the fastest riders in the world, and I can’t wait! I’m hoping both the scratch and points race will have heats as it gives me a trial run on gearing and I can then make a rather educated decision on my gearing for the finals. At this point I just have to get my legs open, relax and mentally prepare for the races, which pretty much involves not over analyzing anything…I’m getting better at this! Next the focus with be to race the heats smart and get qualified for the final. Then game on and I better bring my A game to the table plus some!