"I think my heart is going to explode"

This is the thought that ran through my head as I neared the top of the biggest climb on the Altenberg Sprint course for the final time. I had received a split saying I was 20 seconds behind one of my teammates after the final shooting and was determined to make up some of that margin. When this thought flashed in my mind, it was quickly followed by the other half of my brain screaming, "no it won't! You've trained hard and done tougher intervals than this-1.5K left, GO FOR IT!" It might be tough to understand how quickly these thoughts come and go in a race, and how ridiculous your mind sounds when you look back at what you were thinking, but if you've ever done a really tough race, or just pushed yourself to that limit, you know what I'm talking about.

The one sunny day in Altenberg-the day of our Time Trial!

In the end, I made up all but 6 seconds on my teammate and finished 26th overall. It was a decent race: good skiing and some tough shooting conditions put me in 3rd for US finishers. We were all pretty close though, which makes a big difference with the point system since it's based on your percent back from the winner, not your place. I was solidly in the lead for Olympic qualifying, and that, coupled with my win in the time trial, made all the difference since the final qualification race was canceled because of fog. When not all the races are held, the team is selected by first the winner of each race and then a discretionary pick for the final spot. So all that internal babble paid off-I reached my goal of making the Olympic Team!

Susan and I looking for the targets during zero for the Pursuit-the race was canceled because of visibility problems (an understatement?).

Back to the present, we are in Ruhpolding, Germany for the second to last World Cup before the Olympics. I had an alright sprint race, but coming off a couple of hard races and a very stressful week of trials, I felt ok about it. Today we have the relay-the first relay the US women will do this season. We are all pretty excited to see how we stack up. I'm leading off, which should be really exciting in front of so many fans (I've heard estimates of 15,000 or more!). It will be a great experience for me, and I'm psyched to see how things go.

Next, we'll be off to Antholz, Italy for the final Pre-Olympic World Cup. Antholz is in the Italian Alps, and is a beautiful place to ski, so we're all looking forward to being there for the week. I probably won't have internet for the next couple of days, but check back early next week for a post on the relay competition!

Olympian!

With a win in the first trials race, and a strong finish among tough conditions in the second race, my Olympic trials are over. Late last night, I was named to the US Olympic Team for 2010, and could not be more excited for the chance to represent my country in Vancouver! It's been a long journey, and a long day of travel to Rupholding, where I will race in the World Cup later this week. Please stay check back soon for a more detailed post-and thanks again to all my supporters!

Turkeys?

Hello from Altenberg! Despite rumors of no snow and a 4-5hr drive that turned into 9hrs, we are here and things are going off as planned. Training over New Years was great in Ruhpolding-the atmosphere there is so conducive to good training and getting psyched to race fast. I’m hoping to get a chance to get back there for the World Cup. Since there were between 20-50 people out on any given training day to watch us, I can only imagine what a big race day is like!

Part of the amazing fireworks display on New Year's Eve-anyone can buy big fireworks in Germany, and they all do, so the show is unbeatable.

Tomorrow is the first trials race here in Altenberg-a sprint time trial with just the US team participating. Then this weekend we will race in the IBU Cup Sprint and Pursuit as the final two trials races. It’s an exciting and slightly nerve-wracking set, but I’m feeling good and am excited to get racing again.

In other news, all our new team clothing finally arrived. There are mixed feeling about the new color, but if one thing’s for sure, we are certainly visible-which makes it a little sad our suits have stayed dark blue (blending in with many other World Cup nations’ suits). The bright turquoise color has provided us some comic relief, since some f our German staff keep calling it “turkeys” since that’s about how the color is pronounced in German. I for one am enjoying my new “Turkey” outfit, but it is a bit bright all together!

Looking sharp in turquoise...or is it turkeys?

Austria-Slovenia-USA-Germany

Sounds like a whirlwind, doesn't it? So far, it has been, but it's also been a great trip. Currently, I'm home for the Holidays, but only briefly. I arrived late Monday night and leave Sunday afternoon. It's been so nice to be home to re-charge before trials; but I'm getting ahead of myself-let's rewind back to World Cup 2 in Hochfilzen.

Hochfilzen was an interesting, if short, race series for the US women. With slushy, slow conditions on race day, it was one of the toughest races I have done. Though I had the top US result, it was not good enough to make the pursuit. Putting that aside, I hoped to make Pokljuka and the final pre-Christmas World Cup better.

The women's relay in Hochfilzen with fans lining the course.

Conditions in Slovenia were much better than Austria. Though it was cold, and at times fairly windy, the snow was pretty fast and hard, so I was looking forward to three good races. In the individual, things went pretty well-right up until the last stage. I had one miss in my first standing stage, and then added three more in my final stage. Even with a pretty fast ski time and an excellent last loop, four misses (and subsequently 4 minutes of added time) were too many. It was slightly heart breaking to see that if I had been able to hold it togther for that final stage, I would have been top 30. But I still had the sprint to think about, so I moved on. Unfortunately, it was not in the cards for me there either. With a very rough prone shooting stage, I put all my effort into simply finishing the race and skiing well. I had a solid ski time, which was a small silver lining, but the week overall was disappointing. Luckily, I had home and a week of down time to look forward to, and to help me get ready for Olympic Trials.

Which brings us back to the present. Being home has been great. I've been able to mentally move forward from tough races in the last two World Cups, and am feeling ready and excited for trials. Sunday I will travel to Germany for a week long camp in Ruhpolding with some of the other trials qualifiers. Then we travel to Altenberg for a time trial and two IBU Cup races that will decide the Olympic Team. Team naming happens on January 11-just over two weeks from today! It's crazy that all the preparation and all the hard work is finally culminating in this. So, here's keeping my fingers crossed for the results I know I am capable of. Keep checking back, I'll be sure to update as often as internet access allows! Happy Winter!

Haley Johnson looking out onto the town of Bled, Slovenia from the castle above.

A view from Bled (the town we stayed in-about a 30min drive from the venue in Pokljuka).

World Cup 1

Hello from the World Cup!

The first weekend of World Cup racing is over for me, and it was a solid start to the season. I was the top US finisher in both the Individual and Sprint, and had respectable placings, finishing 60th in the Individual and 59th in the Sprint. With over 110 finishers, I am pleased with the outcome and looking forward to improving on those results next week.

There was some real excitement for the US team here in Ostersund, though. Tim Burke placed on the podium in both races: 2nd in the Individual and 3rd in the Sprint. It was awesome, and extremely motivating to see. I think the whole team is riding a high seeing what Tim has been able to accomplish in just the first two races of the season. It's giving us confidence going into the season...it's a very exciting time to be involved in US Biathlon!

Monday we leave for Hochfilzen, Austria. A new course and a new weekend will be welcomed by all. We hope some sun is also in the forecast for Austria...though I'm sure it can't be as bad as 3pm sunset! Internet can be spotty in Hochfilzen, so I may not be able to update my blog, but you can follow the action on biathlonworld.com. With a couple more World Cups under my belt, I'm feeling stronger and more confident as we head into the next races.

Prepping the stadium and race courses for the Races.

Stadium and shooting range during the men's relay.

Välkommen till Sverige!

I have arrived in Östersund, Sweden! Aside from needing to get a bit more snow, things are going well. Not all the trails are open here, but what is open is pretty good. So far, I like the course, and the area is beautiful. I haven't had a chance to take any pictures yet (it is getting dark around 3pm!), but I'll be sure to post some soon. We have one week of training here before we move away from the venue into town and settle in for racing. I'm so glad to be on snow, and really looking forward to starting to race. Until then, I'll be staying focused and relaxed, and trying to simply enjoy my time here in Sweden!

Almost Winter

At the end of the week, the team will be scattering throughout the world in search of snow. I will be off to Sweden for a week long camp before the first World Cups. While many skiers find it imperative to be on snow in early November, I have been having great, focused dry-land training here in Lake Placid for the last couple weeks. The temperature has been dropping, but the sun has continued to shine and make rollerskiing fantastic. Those of us here have counted ourselves lucky that even though there hasn't been any snow, the pavement has stayed dry and clean for us to continue rollerskiing. This time of year, skiers can often be relegated to running and indoor workouts because of the weather, so we really have had a good situation.

Making the best of some inclement (but short lived) weather last week.

Even so, I'm looking forward to getting on snow. The next couple days will be spent getting ready to head over seas and packing, and then I'll be off! I've never been to Sweden, so definitely excited to see some new places. As always, I'll be sure to keep you updated! Think Snow!