February 1, 2010

Now THAT'S a Sporting Event!

Ok, things have been more than a little crazy, and I have completely neglected my blog. I know things are not going to calm down as we get closer to the Games, but the Olympics is an experience I truly want to share, so I'm going to work on it.

On course in Ruhpolding-hours before the start of the men's sprint.

The last World Cups in Ruhpolding, Germany and Antholz, Italy were good. I didn't have the results I know I am capable of, but given the stress and excitement of the prior weeks, I was happy with the experience. In Ruhpolding, I had the chance to scramble (go first) in the relay in front of over 20,000 fans-probably the closest I'll ever be to knowing how NFL stars feel taking the field in front of a packed stadium. It was an amazing experience, and not only did I have a great time, I had a pretty good leg. I tagged off in 12th place, less than a minute out of the lead, and had clean shooting in prone, and used only two extra rounds in standing. It was a great experience, and made me really look forward to the Olympic relay.

Some of the 20,000 fans leaving the stadium after the women's relay in Ruhpolding.

Antholz was beautiful, and just what we needed after three dreary weeks in Germany. Because of the race schedule, we were able to watch some of the men's racing, which was really fun. Normally we don't get a chance to watch other races, so it was neat to be able to cheer on our teammates.

Beautiful Antholz!

After Antholz I spent 5 days in Lake Placid doing some easy skiing and resting and recharging before the Olympics. I am now at our pre-Olympic camp at Mt. Washington on Vancouver Island. We're here for 5 days before heading to Vancouver for team processing and then moving up to the Whistler Olympic Village. It's really starting to sink in that I'm going to the Olympics and I'm getting pretty excited. It's going to be an amazing experience, and it's just around the corner!

5 comments:

Gus said...

I how you have good snow. We are really dry east of the Cascades. Good luck.

Chelsea said...

EEEEEE! I'm so excited for you I could scream. Seriously.

I'm thinking of throwing an open ceremonies in your honor. It might just be me, my mom and some friends from college but we are going to have appetizers from one country, a main course from another and dessert from another one. Totally Olympic themed. I even make them all shirts that Say "Team Sara" on the front and "Team USA" on the back. What do you think of that?! Wouldn't that be so fun. I'm so proud of you. Congrats, lady.

Anonymous said...

My friend and I were recently discussing about technology, and how integrated it has become to our daily lives. Reading this post makes me think back to that discussion we had, and just how inseparable from electronics we have all become.


I don't mean this in a bad way, of course! Societal concerns aside... I just hope that as the price of memory falls, the possibility of uploading our memories onto a digital medium becomes a true reality. It's one of the things I really wish I could see in my lifetime.


(Posted on Nintendo DS running [url=http://knol.google.com/k/anonymous/-/9v7ff0hnkzef/1]R4i SDHC[/url] DS scPost)

Robert Johnson said...

Sara--Congratulations on making the Winter Olympic team! What an exciting opportunity to represent your country, state, city, etc. We are anxious to watch the Olympics from abroad as we are currently teaching/living in Sarajevo, Bosnia. We drive by the stadium daily where the 1984 Winter Olympics took place. We saw your dad during our quick trip to Idaho during Xmas.
Once again good luck--Rob and Anne Johnson

Lori Messenger said...

Hello Sara,
You go girl! I cried all day off and on the day I heard you had qualified for the Olympics (sweet letter from your mom). I'm cheering for you, as always.
Love, Lori Messenger