Argentina was a Blast!

After 2 and a half weeks in Argentina, I am finally back home! This trip was an absolutely amazing experience.  It was the first time I had ever left North America, so I was able to experience different cultures, lifestyles and see different sceneries.  Speaking of sceneries, Ushuaia was breathtaking.  It was along the Patagonia mountain range, and it was by far the most beautiful mountain ranges I have ever seen.  I constantly thought to myself "wow this just doesn't even look real, it looks like it came right from a postcard."  The weather was not very good while we were there. Since I crossed the equator, Argentina was in it's winter.  It was very rainy and cold in the town of Ushuaia where we stayed, and then we drove 30 minutes up the mountains to the resort cerro castor.  The weather at the mountain was extremely windy and cold.  There was quite a few snow flurries as well.  In fact, we had many "weather" days, where we didn't even snowboard because the conditions were too dangerous.  The food was very hard to find gluten free, so I had a difficult time eating, especially when we were given the same foods day after day.  So being back in the states, you bet I'm indulging!
But onto the real reason I went to Argentina, to train.  I can honestly say that after these last 3 weeks I have grown so much as an athlete and person.  I was surrounded by Olympic and World Cup athletes; watching them and learning from them was just extraordinary.  The difference between these athletes vs. the athletes I compete with on my tour (Nor-Am) is crazy.  The skill level, focus, dedication, and perfection blew me away.  Being able to ride next to all these people was an experience and learning lesson in itself.  Also, the course we trained on was a World Cup level course, therefore it was the largest, fastest and most technical course I have ever rode.  The experience on a course like this benefitted me so much to not only improve my riding, but gaining confidence with myself, and to show me things I need to work on to get to the next level.  I fixed a lot of equipment issues and really focused on small improvements to my riding that helped me ride that much better.  Snowboardcross legend, Lindsey Jacobellis, coached me quite a bit and gave me a lot of advice on my snowboard career!  After this trip, I have so much more confidence and excitement going into my season because I know I improved in all aspects of this sport, in just a few short weeks!
I am so grateful to be able to have opportunities like this in my life and travel the world!

Yes I ate this crab!