Unfortunate End to my Season

"What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger."

A quote that I believe is so very true, especially in my current situation.  Unfortunatly my season took a turn for the worst at the Northstar Rev Tour event.  During my first training run, I took a gnarly crash off of a double roller, that ended pretty severly.  I was evaluated the day of the accident with just a concussion, but when I returned to Colorado, my body was still in serious pain.  I thought it was necessary to see a specialist, because I was worried I had retorn my labrum in my hip, which I had surgery on three years ago. The diagnosis was much worse.  I fractured my right hip socket, right pelvis, sacrum, tore cartlidge in my hip, strained my hamstring pretty bad, and sprained my left ankle. I am so very lucky that my crash did not go worse, the doctor said I could have been paralyzed, due to the location of the fractures.  No news like this is good news, but every athlete is involved with bumps along their journey, and this is mine.  My recovery is six weeks on crutches baring no weight at all on my right leg, then once the fractures are completely healed, spending some time in therapy.  Like the quote above, I need to use this recovery time to mentally get myself stable, as well as physically stronger.  I'll be back competing next season, and I am so confident that I will come back stronger then ever! 

The CT scan image of the fracture in my right hip.  The half moon looking-crack to the left of the ball and socket. 

the season in finally here!

After a challenging semester at school, I am finally back in Steamboat! I did very well with my classes, and am very proud of myself.  I worked harder then I ever thought was even possible, and ended the semester with 21 credits and a GPA of 3.8.  With that grueling semester out of the way, it is so awesome to finally be back on my board.
I arrived in colorado the 27th, and have been training hard and riding every day since.  I can already tell this season is going to be a much better season.  I feel so much more confident on jumps, and can tell a huge difference with my carving.  These were the two things I wanted to work on for this season, therefore I'd say I'm on the right track!
Friday (January 11), I head out with part of the team to Northstar, California for the first competition of the season.  I am super stoked for this, and cannot wait to start racing again! I hope the results are much more satisfying then last year!

Heres an amazing view from training starts at Howelson with the team. 

The weather has been so beautiful here.  My first couple days here were gnarly powder days, which was an awesome experience, Michigan isn't known for much powder. I hope this year has a much higher average snowfall then last!

start gate training

Like I have said in previous posts, My dad built me a ramp with a start gate inside one of our barns that I spend a lot of my time training on. Starts are by far one of the most important parts of a race, and since I am not able to train an actual course that often in the summer, having a start gate is very convenient!

warrior dash results

I know I'm late on my post about the warrior dash, but it was by far one of the funnest events I've ever done! The obstacles were so much fun, and I loved getting dirty! My dad and I finished in the top section of the group, which were really stoked about! I defiantly plan on doing another event like this again.

warrior dash!

On July 29th, my dad and I are competing in a country wide event called the "warrior dash."  It is a 3.25 mile run, that includes 11 different obstacles.  These obstacles consist of scrambling between barbed wire, balancing across a wobbly rope, swimming, climbing through a waterfall, and even leaping through fire.  This event also raises money for St. Jude hospital.  I am honored to be able to race in this, and cannot wait.  I have been training extra hard these past few weeks to be in the best possible shape for this run.  Yet, not only does it take great endurance to run the 5k, but strength to complete the major obstacles, so I have stepped up my strength workout as well.  Included is the link to the Warrior Dash website.  warrior dash website

Summer 2012 Plans

Just because my season on snow is over, doesn't mean training is.  This summer, I have been, and plan on continuing my intense dry-land training.  I spend a lot of my time working out.  My work outs consist of around an hour of cardio, which include biking, running, or even zumba, then an hour with a trainer at a local gym, working on strength, endurance, and plyometrics.  I also spend a lot of time stretching, which is very important to go along with this intense training.  I had a minor injury in my knee during this past season, so I went to physical therapy for 6 weeks, and thanks to my therapist, I am back to normal.  Another thing I do to train off snow is work on starts.  My dad so kindly bought me a world cup start gate, and we built a ramp in one of our barns.  By having this, I work on my reaction time, strength, and form.  

This year I also graduated high school.  So I have had many exciting festivities to go along with this.  Prom, commencements, and graduation parties are some of the many things I have done now that I'm a Romeo Alumni. 

Following my graduation party, I headed to Mt. Hood, Oregon, to catch the end of the US Team gold camp.  I could not attend the whole camp because my party fell in the middle of camp, and this was something very important to me, and I wouldn't miss it.  But, I felt that any training at this camp would be very beneficial, even if it was only two days, and I was right. Unfortunately my first day on snow was cancelled due to bad weather, but I still had two amazing other days.  Coached by former US Team riders, Ross Powers, and Graham Watanabe, I learned so much, even in just two days.  I worked very hard, and was very satisfied with my riding.  It was sad to leave, Oregon is such a beautiful place. I do wish I could have been there longer.

As for the rest of my summer, I have no specific "plans."  I am just going to relax, enjoy my time off, yet still do my dry-land training.  I'm spending time at my cottage in Northern Michigan, for about ten days, due to the fourth of July.  I boat a lot as well, which is one of my favorite parts about summer.  I try to take out my boat as much as possible, and I wakeboard and tube while I boat.  I really am having a great summer, but I cannot wait for winter to arrive.  

2011-2012 Season Recap

My snowboarding career was not going to go much further if I continued living in Michigan.  I lacked the courses, training, coaching, and experience, that my competitors had.  I have known Jon Casson, the head coach at SSWSC, for a while, and after thinking through what I needed to do, training with his team, full-time, was the best option for me.  I chose to do online classes, through Romeo High School, and move out to Steamboat, Colorado, with my mom.  I can honestly say this was one of the best decisions I have made in my life. Though I gave up a lot, including my senior year, other sports, and leaving not only my family, but my friends, I had the time of my life in Colorado.  I went from snowboarding maybe once a week, usually only when I compete, to every day.  I rode with professional athletes, and learned more then I could even imagine.  The beginning of the season was rough.  I was not doing as well as I hoped. I wasn't qualifying top 16, to be able to race, and it was very frustrating.  But by the end of the season, I finally was able to do this, and all my negative emotions were worth it.  I not only improved as a snowboarder, but as a person.  I learned how to deal with the mental aspects that comes along with competing.  I was very proud of myself this season.  I improved so much, and gained a lot more confidence.  Being my first year in this level of competition, I can honestly say I am impressed with myself.  With more experience, and training under my belt, I cannot wait to see what next year has in store for me!