Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Mindset

By: Julia Kern

The most important thing I learned in my 4 weeks of international racing is that things are not always going to go as planned; you have to be flexible and always keep a positive mindset. The last month has been an incredible experience and I have never learned so much about myself as an athlete and about racing.
In these past 4 weeks here are some of things that did not go as planned, which I either personally experienced or one of my teammates did…

  • Courses changed 1 hour before the race
  • Race starts moved back an hour before the race
  • Race days completely changed
  • Luggage lost
  • Leg bibs stuck in the klister on race skis 5min before start
  • Broken equipment during a race/crashes/trips
  • Trouble breathing due to smog (even people without breathing issues normally)
  • Flights cancelled
  • No on-snow warm up opportunities
  • Sickness
  • Bad races


Don’t see this list as a negative thing though. With changing weather and travel to foreign countries, there is something bound to not go as planned; it is part of racing. You have two choices. Either you 1) let these hiccups hold you back or 2) keep a positive mindset and overcome these hiccups. The athletes who are able to overcome these obstacles while keeping the mind in the right place, succeed in the end.
            I myself did not race quite as well I had hoped in Kazakhstan. Things did not go as planned, but instead of being down and not enjoying the experience, I looked at the positives from the trip, learned from my mistakes, and moved on to the next races. The following 5 races in the last two weeks were some of the best races I’ve ever had!

             Here are some photos from my last two amazing weeks in the Czech Republic and Switzerland!


Our Ski Hotel in the Czech Republic, right on the ski trail!

My grandparents came and watched my races in the Czech Republic!

Women's Junior Podium in the 10k Classic.

Overall Women's Podium in the 10k Classic.

Highway was closed so we did Yoga and played Soccer.

Not a bad place to ski, does it get any better?

The town we lived in while in Switzerland.

The beginning on the long climb.

Homework in this setting isn't too bad :)

A view from my afternoon jog.

A snow storm overnight buried the team vans at the venue.

The dark area/snow on the right is the avalanche that went over our warm up loop from the day before!

I guess I love skiing :)


Sprint Qualification.

One of our wonderful wax techs, Jason and I after my race discussing my fast skis!
Zurich on the last night before flying home.

Monday, February 16, 2015


CSU February Camp at Bretton Woods

Team photo out on the trails


Scott Mooney has joined us for camp.  Good to have him with us as he can shred with the best.


Girls know how to deal with the cold: Face tape!


Janelle loves the sunshine

Team House residents are smiling


Juggling lesson


The coach demos how to ski the deep powda'

At the team house we are cleaning ninjas

Friday, February 13, 2015

Weston Pics Part 2

Here are a few more photos from Weston on Tuesday.




















World Junior Championships in Kazakhstan


By: Julia Kern

I spent the last two weeks in Almaty, Kazakhstan training and competing at Junior World Championships! I must say it was quite the adventure. The volunteers were extremely friendly and helpful right from the beginning, starting with the airport.

The team arrives in Almaty!    

Our wonderful volunteer Altynai (in the green jacket) with the team!

Our volunteer made us delicious fried buns, a traditional Kazak delicacy!

There is no doubt Kazakhstan has a unique culture and a way of life. They had quite the weird driving system. Some cars had the wheels on the left, others on the right. Also, the stoplights had timers, which signaled how long the light would be green or red for. On the topic of driving, the people are insane drivers there, driving fast and in close proximity to other cars. The bus drivers are incredible, every day they made it up and down the extremely windy access road and through narrow gates without any problems.

Bus selfie with the USA and Canadian Team!

Bus selfies are clearly so important…

I guess umbrellas are Earthquake safe?

Coach Boobar and Katharine in the city with a view of our hotel in the background.   

The subway system is very deep under the ground.

As the volunteers worked hard to blow snow all week, we were able to ski on all of the trails the city venue had to offer. The rocks poked through at times and the warm weather made the snow cover thin, but with all of the hard work, they were able to prep great courses!

Lower course overview.

Looks a lot like Weston with all of those S-turns!
Excitement levels really high in the stars and stripes! (Julia, Hailey, Katharine)    

The tunnel entrance to the stadium. (The venue is a 2022 Olympic Candidate City)

Opening ceremonies J
RELAY DAY= GLITTER

One of the most exciting days for the USA is relay day! Our entire relay team and all other athletes put on glitter for relay day. Hailey, Katharine and I then tracked down all of the coaches and wax techs and put glitter on their face in spirit of relay day.


Boobar being glittered up by Hailey.


Fish receiving his dose of glitter.
Me (Julia) racing in the scramble leg of the relay!    

Julia, Hailey, Katharine cheering for the boys relay!
Every race week and venue has its quirks. Pollution was present in the city we were staying in unfortunately, but everyone has to deal with it. Keeping a positive mindset and being flexible is one of my biggest takeaways. I had an amazing experience at World Juniors and learned A LOT about racing internationally at a high level! Now I am off to the Czech Republic for Slavic Cup races!


I guess my mask style is the new style….

The smog laying low in the city in the morning.

Red, White, Blue= Check!

By Julia Kern