Over the past week I competed in two Summer Grand Prix competitions. The first of which took place in Oberwiesenthal, Germany. On Saturday morning we had a provisional round of jumping. Only the top 50 competitors from the provisional jump qualified to compete in the individual competition on Sunday. Unfortunately I missed the top 50 by one tenth of a point so I didn't get to compete in the individual competition.
On Saturday afternoon there was a two man team sprint competition. I was paired up with NTG team member Ben Berend. We both had solid jumps and started out the cross country race in 17th out of 30 teams. The race was very fast paced and neither of us were able to hang on to a group of racers. We eventually were lapped by the leaders and had to pull out of the race.
The weekend in Oberwiesenthal was very disappointing but on Wednesday I had another chance to get some better results in Villach. I put together a solid jump and started the race in 46th place. However I did not feel as strong as I have been in the cross country race. This is probably due to the large training load we have been putting on this summer so, although I didn't see the results I wanted, I'm confident that once my training load goes down for the winter I'll start racing faster.
Overall I was not thrilled with my results, but thats part of the sport, there are ups and downs. Every day brings a new challenge and opportunity to improve and there are so many factors that go into having a good competition. My results in these Grand Prix events may have been frustrating but I gained valuable experience that will make me that much more prepared the next time I am on a big international stage.
Sometimes it is easy to get much too wrapped up in results and performance. It's always good to take a step back and remember that I am blessed with the opportunity to do the sport I love in some of the most beautiful places in the world. I would like to say how thankful I am to have the support of my family, the National Nordic Foundation, and everyone else. Thanks!
On Saturday afternoon there was a two man team sprint competition. I was paired up with NTG team member Ben Berend. We both had solid jumps and started out the cross country race in 17th out of 30 teams. The race was very fast paced and neither of us were able to hang on to a group of racers. We eventually were lapped by the leaders and had to pull out of the race.
The weekend in Oberwiesenthal was very disappointing but on Wednesday I had another chance to get some better results in Villach. I put together a solid jump and started the race in 46th place. However I did not feel as strong as I have been in the cross country race. This is probably due to the large training load we have been putting on this summer so, although I didn't see the results I wanted, I'm confident that once my training load goes down for the winter I'll start racing faster.
Overall I was not thrilled with my results, but thats part of the sport, there are ups and downs. Every day brings a new challenge and opportunity to improve and there are so many factors that go into having a good competition. My results in these Grand Prix events may have been frustrating but I gained valuable experience that will make me that much more prepared the next time I am on a big international stage.
Sometimes it is easy to get much too wrapped up in results and performance. It's always good to take a step back and remember that I am blessed with the opportunity to do the sport I love in some of the most beautiful places in the world. I would like to say how thankful I am to have the support of my family, the National Nordic Foundation, and everyone else. Thanks!
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