Canmore training camp - September 2010

I just got back home from Canmore, AB where Team Mark and Xiuli spent the week riding up and down Highwood Pass in Kananaskis.

Team Mark and Xiuli

Oh no, you are seeing correctly, we really are wearing that much clothing....you can probably guess what the weather was like.

Day 1: between 5-8 degrees Celcius with light rain off and on

Day 2: 8-10 degrees with intermittent rain and wind

Day 3: 15 degrees and sun! on the day we didn't ride (with a 5 minute downpour of course)

Day 4: 10 degrees, no rain, light wind

Day 5: 5 degrees and pouring rain......

etc...



Yup, that's me... nice and cold.

The 5th day of the camp was easily the toughest because we were soaked to the bone despite wearing rain gear. Hands were getting cold and going numb. Noses were dripping. The things we do for our sport... And to top things off... there was lots of snow up on top of the pass.





We had lots of fun, but it was a tough camp. One of my teammates said it best on the last climb of the day. Every season we have a bucket of willpower, and once we use it up, its gone until we recharge. This camp definately used up some of that willpower, but it serves its purpose in Xiuli's master plan, so we do it.

A new season has really begun...

This summer has been quite different from last summer and most others since I have been in Calgary. Many changes have been implemented from top to bottom at Speedskating Canada, and I'm no exception. I am now training with Xiuli Wang and Mark Wild in a group of about 15 middle & long distance skaters, both male and female. Its an exciting new structure and I've already had lots of success working with both Mark and Xiuli.

Mark is a new national team coach for this quadrennial. He brings some jump and excitement to the group and balances off Xiuli who has been around forever! Mark has a background in sprinting, which is the perfect complement to Xiuli's ability to turn athletes into machines. I know he'll bring new ideas and different approaches to Xiuli's tried and tested recipe for success.

Xiuli is a technical hawk that carefully calculates every training block. We do every training session for a reason, and each training session and block leads into the next block. She has an eye for technical improvements that I've never experienced before. What's even more crazy is that she actually demonstrates any technical point or exercise...perfectly.

She is the exact type of coach I need at this point in my career. I've always been strong off ice and in the lab, but technical improvements are going to be what get me to the next level. Every coach that I've had up to this point have each contributed something very crucial to get me to where I am today, and my hope is that Xiuli and Mark can take me one step further!