Winter Cross Training

Post #159

As endurance athletes, it's really important for us to get in a lot of miles over the winter to build up our base fitness. I'll be the first to say that as late January rolls around, logging the miles can start to get pretty boring. If I didn't have my teammates to keep the humor, entertainment, and motivation levels high, I don't know what I'd do. Our latest team bonding/cross training was a trip to Monterey last weekend.

Of course, it wasn't a trip to relax on the beach; hiking, biking, swimming, and football were all built into a busy two days. I was part of a biking group that took a long ride down the coast on highway one on Saturday. Ever since I drove highway one back in 2011, I've wanted to try biking it. The trip did not disappoint; most of the my time was spent ooh-ing and ahh-ing at the ridiculous views. Someday I want to bike all the way from SF to LA...or just do the entire west coast. 

Rest stop at the Bixby Bridge

I can tell the whole team is feeling rejuvenated and ready to tackle "real" training again. I'll certainly have Team USA on my mind over the next couple weeks. Hard to believe the Sochi Opening Ceremonies are only two weeks away.

Fingers Crossed for Team ITA

Post # 158

If you've been following the Olympics, you'll notice that one by one, governing bodies are announcing the athletes that will represent the US in Sochi. The US Figure Skating team was named today, the hockey team was named last week, and several other sports have rolled in. Naming dates for the ITA winter athletes are coming up soon and I can't help but be anxiously excited for them. We have one bobsledder and several cross-country skiers going for Sochi:

2010 Olympic bobsledder Emily Azevedo placed fourth in the World Cup in St. Moritz this morning. She was in the two-person sled that was 0.1 off of the bronze medal. Pretty impressive. In fact, Emily has posted solid results at all of the World Cup events this season. The bobsled team will be announced in mid to late January.

(From zimbio.com)

Two-time Olympian Torin Koos (cross-country skiing) won the freestyle sprint at the National Championships at Soldier Hollow Park in Utah. Sylvan Ellefson also posted an awesome result, placing first in the men's 30k, followed closely by Brian Gregg, who placed second. Brian's wife, Caitlin, won the women's 20k freestyle race. I'm pretty sure ITA is slowly taking over this sport. Some of these guys are headed to the World Cups in Europe; best of luck to them. The team will be named on January 22.

(Sylvan. From ski racing.com, 1/9/14)

Simply reaching the place where you could make it to the Olympics is an amazing feat. At the same time, I know they're in a tough spot right now; being right on the edge of either achieving a dream or falling short of it is not a fun place to be. The waiting game for the announcement drags on. Regardless of what happens over the next two weeks, they've all had fascinating and extremely successful journeys up until now and I can't wait to see what they do next. This is a really special group of athletes to be a part of.

¡Adiós, México!

Post # 157

Kate and I are heading back home after getting in some serious miles on the 1968 Olympic rowing course in Mexico City this past week. It's been an interesting physical and cultural experience. This city sits at 8,000 feet and the altitude is rough on the lungs and spirit; you're breathing harder than normal and still seeing slower splits on the GPS.

La comida 

La Casa de Botes

Unlike a lot of the places we travel to (read: most of Europe), only one person we've talked to here speaks English. We've had to dig deep into our memory of middle and high school Spanish classes to communicate the simplest things. Our Spanish teachers would be appalled with our accents (or lack thereof) and all the words we've forgotten (how do you say breakfast again?), but hey, we're getting by.

One of the biggest celebrations in Mexico is the day of the Virgin of Guadalupe, which happened earlier this week. Millions of people made the pilgrimage to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a famous church in Mexico City. We were too busy training to see any of this, but did hear fireworks going off all day long. I mean all. day. long. And all night long. I began to wonder if there would be any fireworks left in Mexico after the holiday. These people know how to celebrate.

¡Hasta luego!

Full Steam Ahead

Post # 156

Time is flying. The Speed Order wrapped up about a week ago and already Kate and I have been to New York, Colorado, and back, and now somehow the holidays are here. Here's a quick recap of the last couple weeks:

The Speed Order went well - better than expected even. I pulled a personal best time on the 6,000 meter erg test on Saturday to take second place for the lightweight women. Kate, my doubles partner, beat me, which I guess I'm okay with since she set a new WORLD RECORD in doing so. No big deal. I took third place overall for the women in the race on the water - and second place for lightweight women.

The regatta was a chance for everyone to check in and see where they're at right now, and I'm happy with my results. Here's a video from the event, which gives you a good idea of what the erg race and singles races were like. On the erg, there's lots of noise with fans spinning, music blaring, and people cheering. On the water, it's super quiet. (If you're looking for me in the water coverage, go to about 3:15.)

A couple days after, Kate and I went on a trip to New York City and Colorado Springs. You'd never know I grew up in New England or went to school in the upper midwest if you'd heard me grumbling about the cold in both locations. By the end of the week, we'd dubbed it the "2013 California Appreciation Trip" and vowed to no longer whine about the 45 degree mornings in Oakland.

We were in New York City for the Golden Oars awards dinner. We got to see lots of familiar faces, revel in how awesome the people in this sport are, and I got to cheer Kate on as she accepted the 2013 Female Athlete of the Year award. It's the coolest one to get because it's voted on by all the women on the national team, some of whom are pictured here:

Look mom, we're a silent auction item! 

Less than 24 hours later, we were off to the Colorado Springs Olympic Training Center. We got in a few days of testing and altitude training, which, for the record, is a lot more challenging than sea-level training. Everyone at the OTC was amazingly helpful, as always. Whenever I go to one of our Olympic Training Centers, I'm inspired by all the athletes in other sports. This time around, we watched some of the little wrestlers flip huge tires in the weight room and saw the male gymnasts do their work. If ever you feel abnormal for putting so much time into your sport, a trip to the OTC will solve that problem.

Now we're back in California and right back into training. The Speed Order finished out the fall racing season, so now my team is starting the long stretch of winter training before spring selection events roll around. Full steam ahead!

West Coast Fall Speed Order

Post # 155

Oakland, California - This weekend is the West Coast Fall Speed Order. It's a USRowing race designed to "order our speed" or rank us against each other in three areas of the country: the east coast, midwest, and west coast. The other two Speed Orders were last weekend which leaves the west coast one to round them out.

This regatta is pretty brutal; it's a 6,000 meter test on the rowing machine on Saturday followed by a 4,000 meter race on the water in singles on Sunday. There's a lot of time to get anxious ahead of the weekend and not a lot of time to recover between tests, which makes it a unique challenge. One of my teammates wrote an article about what it's like to race at a Fall Speed Order and I'd say it's spot on.

Even though it'll be tough, I'm feeling good about this weekend. It'll be the first time I've done a real, standard erg test in over three years and I'm eager to see what kind of numbers I can pull. The race on the water on Sunday will be on our home course - a luxury I don't think I've had for the last ten years of rowing. 

If you're in the area, the best viewing will be from the High Street Bridge or from the Oakland Strokes boathouse (Tideway Boating Center at 4675 Tidewater Ave, Oakland). Race information will be posted here.

Good luck to everyone at this WCFSO and to Artemis at the BIAC Regatta!

Champ of the Champ Single

Post # 154

Head of the Charles has wrapped up and it was a great weekend. Kate, my doubles partner, won the whole thing! Pretty impressive considering she is a lightweight racing in the heavyweight (open) event.

I came in sixth, which I'm really happy with. It was my first time racing the Championship Single and I'm so glad I got to see where I stack up against some of the fastest scullers in the world, heavyweight or lightweight. An opportunity like that doesn't come along too often. 

It was so cool that my parents, family friends, Amory, and her whole family were there to cheer me on. They stationed themselves in the middle of the last big turn, which turned out the be the perfect spot. It's towards the end of the race, when your lungs and legs are burning, and it's in a traditionally quiet spot in the race course (no bridges for people to stand on in that section). I loved getting some positive energy there! 

The Artemis girls raced on Sunday and did an awesome job navigating the tough course with 83 other youth eights. And it was their first time racing an 8 at the Charles! 

The racing was definitely the most fun part of the weekend, but the most unique experience was being the subject of a full moon photoshoot on Friday night. My buddies at Row2k invited me to come down and row towards the Boston skyline right as the moon came up. Pretty neat: 

Photo by Erik Dresser/Row2k

It was great to catch up with so many old friends and teammates at the Charles. My only complaint was that it all went by too fast. See you next year, HOCR!

Head of the Charles

Post # 153

This weekend is going to be awesome. It's Head of the Charles in Boston, which means I'll be home for four days soaking up the crisp fall weather, seeing friends from high school, college, and everywhere since, and having some fun racing on the Charles. This event is the largest two-day regatta in the world. So many people from the rowing world come to this race that there's not even enough time to see everyone you want to see.

I'm racing in the openweight event this year (listed as the Championship Single). I've raced the lightweight single for the past four or five years and this year, I signed up for the tougher event. I'm bow #8, racing on Saturday, October 19 at 4:41 pm. Here are the first five bow numbers in my event:

1. Gevvie Stone, raced in the single at the London Olympics. She's also a fellow Boston native, and trains on the Charles. She knows this tough course better than anyone.
2. Ursula Grobler, my teammate in the 2010 Worlds silver medal winning quad, now rows for South Africa
3. Emma Twigg, New Zealand's top single sculler for many years, won a silver medal in Korea in this event
4. Kate Bertko, my doubles partner!
5. Mirka Knapkova, 2011 World Champion and 2012 Olympic champion in this event

So, uh, that's who I get to chase down. Wish me luck and if you're there, come cheer! The Artemis girls are racing in the youth 8+ event (bow #58), along with 84 other crews at 1:22 pm on Sunday.

Here's where to find the live video and results.

Wine Country Classic

Post # 152

Petaluma, California - It's been a blast to start coaching at Artemis again. When I showed up a couple weeks ago, I came without telling the kids (on purpose) and I'm not sure who was more excited to see who: them or me. I brought my medal to pass around. I can't wait for the day when one of them brings me their Worlds medal. It's always a possibility and it can certainly start here, at a hardworking middle/high school club.

Moire wearing my Worlds medal

The kids raced at the Wine Country Classic up in Petaluma, CA today. In the first race of the day, they executed the race plan better than they had at races last year by being more consistent and aggressive. Then, every subsequent race went even better than that one. The day ended with the boys' 4+ winning gold! I'm proud of what these guys are accomplishing. Their excitement about the sport and desire to learn is so fun to be a part of. 

Bow 5 of the 8+

Gold medals ! 

"Back to California Where It's Warm"

Post # 151

After being gone for over a month in Korea, Boston, and Chicago, I've touched down in California again and I'm glad to be here. It was a fun trip and so great to see my family and friends during the weeks after Worlds. Now that I'm back, I'm easing back into work and training. This time of year always tests your patience as an athlete because you feel so slow even though a couple weeks ago you felt so fast. It's tough to wrap your head around when you're on your first couple rows back and you're watching how slow your speed is on the GPS. Somehow it always works out but it never feels like it's going to.

So what's on tap for my fall season? I'll be racing at Head of the Charles again this year, this time in the Championship single. For the past five years I've raced in the lightweight single and this year I'm stepping up to the big leagues and racing past heavyweight Worlds medalists, among other incredibly talented scullers. That's October 19th and 20th. I'll probably do a couple more races, but I'm still sorting out which those will be. More to come!

Happy to be back with the California Rowing Club team 

World Silver Medalists!

Post # 150

We won a silver medal in a tough final race at the World Championships on Saturday!

The field was tightly packed through the 500 before the Italians nudged ahead and led for the rest of the race. Behind them, we fought with the Germans for second place during the entire middle thousand with New Zealand and Great Britain pushing us from behind. In the last 500, we were deep in the pain cave but slightly ahead of Germany and trying to wind it up to get to the line. Once I heard the Italians cross first and scream with elation, I knew we could hold the silver medal position.

Happiness (and waves of pain) after crossing the line

For the record, that Italian girl is standing on her tippy toes

Check out the photo gallery of the medal ceremony as well as video of the race. 

Huge props to the Italians, who earned the first ever women's World title for their country in any event. That's an incredible feat and one that is so well-deserved. Congrats to the Germans, as well - their longstanding partnership is really starting to rack up some medals now. 

For me and Kate, it was absolutely thrilling to win a medal in this event. It was my fourth time racing the lightweight double on the senior team and though I'd won World Cup medals, I'd never laid claim to a World Championships medal. For Kate, it had been a hard couple of years and now, in her debut year as a lightweight, she won a Worlds medal. She also now has medals in both lightweight and heavyweight events at Worlds. That's pretty badass. Here's our post-race interview with USRowing (yep, I'm still out of breath).

It was a great weekend for Team USA overall; we won medals in eight events. Between that and the Lucerne results, it's been a solid first year in the Road to Rio and everyone, regardless of where they train or what event they're in, seems ready to get back to work and build towards next year. 

Thanks for the support and for following along. Go USA! 

Our women's 8 won their seventh consecutive World Championships title

A pair of bronze medals for our men's sweep program: congrats to the four and eight. 

Yeah lightweights! Our quad won a silver medal.