Javelin Journal

Perth

2012-02-14T02:50:00.000-08:00

First of all, it was so weird to compete on Saturday! I went through the day doing everything I normally do to prepare for a meet-resting, eating light, nutritious meals, visualizing technique and watching some video, etc.-but it was so surreal to be doing those things on February 11th. The earliest I had ever competed before this was in college at the end of March. Crazy, but I came down to Australia to change up the routine I’ve had for the last few years and to see how the things I’ve been doing in practice carry over to a higher-pressure situation.

My first few throws were terrible. I didn’t feel any connection to the javelin and I really didn’t want to rush things, so instead I went down the runway ridiculously slowly. I do have to mention that this was my first pain-free meet in a long, long time; my left SI joint remained calm throughout the night! I am so excited about that, because I wasn’t sure how things would go, even though I’ve been feeling great in training.

Having a pain-free meet fresh in my mind is already a huge confidence boost.

On my third throw, I decided I needed to move a little quicker through my approach and really hold my entire left side solid. I sort of achieved those goals, and the javelin went 59.18m. I thought that my last throw was a little further because I felt more connected to it than the third and it flew straighter and with more power, but it only reached 58 meters. I’m slightly disappointed with my final distance because I know I’m capable of throwing much further right now, but I guess it’s okay since this is a totally new experience for me!

The things I’m really happy with from this meet

are that I didn’t lose any of my throws to the right, which is something I’ve been working so hard on this fall! I had a few right sector fouls throughout all of my disappointing meets last season, and I’m really excited to be consistently hitting the middle of the field now. Along the same lines, I only lost the tip of the javelin (threw it too high) on my first throw; one that I’m happy to forget about in general anyway! The first competition throw of the season might always be weird and unusual. :) Every other attempt flew well, if not as far as I wanted them to fly!

This week, I’m working on holding my entire left side really strong, and waiting to push my chest forward until my left foot is down. My two biggest weaknesses in throwing are pushing with my right leg into the block and moving my chest forward too early in order to get a false stretch on my arm. Both result in my whole body being too far forward really early, which doesn’t let me get any actual stretch at all! I had a fairly successful session working on those cues this morning, and we’ll practice again tomorrow morning before heading to Sydney on Wednesday. The meet there is on Saturday!

We Americans (Russ, Mark and I) are having a blast here in Perth; there are so many beautiful places to see and weird, adorable animals to discover! Look for a picture post soon.

Going Down Under

2012-01-11T19:56:00.000-08:00

I'm going to Australia!

Russ mentioned a while ago that he was thinking about going to a few meets there, and asked if I'd be interested in going, too. I thought that sounded cool, and told him I'd think about it. The next day, I got an email from my manager asking if I'd like to go, too! With all that Australia talk, it seemed meant to be that I head there for some competitions.

This will be a new continent for me, and I'm super excited to be going A) during their summer, B) at the same time as Russ, and C) right in the middle of the big, long stretch of months that are usually just training every year. In 2010 and again in 2011, I injured my back between January and April, so I'm really looking forward to switching up my routine and going on a little adventure. I've really liked every Australian I've ever met (Kim, Benn, Coach Zuyderwyk, etc.), so I have high hopes for visiting the country! I leave February 4th for a meet in Perth on the 11th and another one in Sydney (in the 2000 Olympic Stadium) on the 18th.

My technique right now is coming along well. I've really focused this year so far on finally properly learning how to fly the javelin. I've pretended in the past that I worked on that; like, in my head, I said the flights of my implements in practice weren't that bad, but when I got to high-pressure situations things fell apart. Um, duh, Kara. :)

Read an article about the Perth meet here. It simply mentions that I'll throw head-to-head with Kim Mickle, who I mentioned above. She has always been someone that's easy to talk to at competitions and is super sportsmanlike; I'll never forget how much fun it was to have her there at a meet in Kawasaki in September of 2009!

Christmas in pictures

2012-01-08T14:08:00.000-08:00

Russ building my Dad a really cool fishing rod. :)

A shot of my tree in Chula Vista!

A flag for my Grandma.

Nio's face!

Boss and Lucky! Friends...sometimes.

Elevenmile reservoir on the 15-under-zero day of fishing.

Russ feeding one of his Dad's cows!

On a walk with my Dad and some animals. :)

My brother, Craig (right), and me (left) on the Christmas tree at my parents' house.

Updates!

2012-01-07T15:18:00.000-08:00

Heeeey blog. Sorry I've neglected you.

My fall training was fabulous. We're doing this new thing this year (new to us anyway...not new to Kibwe) where we throw and lift in the mornings and then do it again in the afternoons, with some variations (running/jumping/med ball throws) in there. The training is modeled after Dr. Bondarchuk's philosophies, and I couldn't be happier with how things are going! I throw (always out of a full approach, just at different speeds) more but with less volume per session than I have before, so repetitions are higher quality and I can focus better on executing good technique. This training just makes sense to me.

I'm a javelin thrower. I need to know how to throw the javelin.

In other news, I traveled basically all over the country for Christmas vacation! I was home in Washington for a few days, went to Iowa and got to see lots of my Mom's side of the family, hung out in Colorado with Russ and his family for a week, and attended my friends Mandy and Johan's New Years Eve wedding in Phoenix! It was fabulous (and my workouts were general strength most of that time, so I didn't miss much), but it has been amazing to be back in one place and know I'll be here for a while, especially considering how much I traveled this fall. Here's to consistent, exciting training!

I'm taking part in the Powerful Women Athletes Telesummit, an event organized by Christina McKinstry to inspire younger athletes and fans alike with conversations about different aspects of training, competition and the lives of elite female athletes in general. My interview will be on Sunday, January 29th at 5:00pm Pacific time, and you can register (free!) to listen in here. The Telesummit starts tomorrow with Loree Smith's interview, and you can see a list of speakers and the schedule here. I'm really excited to listen to all of the interviews, as so many of the women who will speak through this event have inspired and continue to inspire me!

Vacation recap!

2011-11-09T19:32:00.001-08:00

I'm baaaack.

I wanted to share a few pictures and stories from my vacation this fall. I've been thinking about exploring the world of digital photography for a while, but I'm a pretty careful consumer, so it took some prompting from Russ while we were in Colorado Springs for me to actually purchase a camera. I couldn't be happier that I took the leap, because it was just in time for our trip to Estes Park, Colorado with his family, then on through the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone on the way up to Washington to see my family!

The week we spent in Estes Park meant lots of time spent in Rocky Mountain National Park. We did our first summit hike; to the top of Mount Ida (elevation 12,880 feet)! From there, we camped in Grand Teton National Park one night and hiked a little, then saw a lot of the south half of Yellowstone the next day before camping for the night and leaving the next morning! Needless to say, we need to go back. Then on to Washington for seafood, huckleberries, hikes, and card games with my family, plus a trip to Seattle to see Russ's college friends. :) Enjoy the barrage of photos! It was a fabulous, amazing vacation.

Daegu (World Championships)

2011-08-31T23:22:00.000-07:00

For the third time at a major championship, I did not make the final.

Yes, I'm extremely disappointed. (This interview makes me look a lot happier than I felt after the competition.) Yes, I cried literally on my room's floor when I was alone. Yes, I've dwelt on it for days. But am I completely shocked and surprised with the result? Not at all.

This season has been a nightmare for me.

I was inconsistent all the way through college, and was SO happy to be throwing far every single time I tried last year. I had a goal of throwing 61.00m in my first three throws at every competition possible in 2010 because I know how important that is for qualifying rounds at World Championships and the Olympics. I had a purpose for the success I was having, and I was so confident in my ability to do the same thing this year when I started out at Drake Relays in April. But, big surprise to me, I've struggled to throw even 58 meters all year long. I'm faster, stronger, more explosive and healthier than I was in 2010, but I haven't been able to time up my technique with those new physical abilities, and I never realized what a fine line that can be.

Everybody struggles sometime. Multiple people and multiple competitors have told me that this year, and now I know what they're talking about. I've never had a season that I felt like was a fight all the way through until this year. Now that I've experienced feeling good physically but throwing poorly without knowing why though, I've gotten such joy from getting some understanding back in the last few weeks. I felt awesome warming up on Thursday and had really good connection and alignment, but to think that two or three weeks of good practice throwing could overcome a whole season of inconsistency and a lot of bad results was pretty ambitious.

I miss the days when competing was simple and fun, and I'm looking forward to learning from the experiences I've had this year, throwing more in practice next year, and generally just enjoying myself again. I've learned a lot this year about how to value experiences over results, but you only say that when the results aren't what you want. The bottom line is that I'm disappointed and that I want better for myself, and I'll make that happen in the future. This World Championships hurt the most because I finally felt like I had the tools to make my first final. Beijing in 2008 and Berlin in 2009 showcased me being naive and inexperienced; wanting so badly to make the top 12 but not having any idea how to purposefully accomplish that goal. The competitor that I am now is very different than that, and someday the growing that I'm doing will pay off.

I have felt so much support in the past few weeks and even after my competition;

THANK YOU.

Mike and Ty were here and at my practices, I know the national team staff pretty well after having worked with them for a few years, I got awesome therapy while here, I knew more of my teammates than I ever have before and felt comfortable introducing myself if I didn't, and I roomed with Jillian Camarena-Williams, who is not only the first American woman to ever medal in the shotput, but also a good friend who made me a sign to wave around during my competition! Overall, I'm moving forward, and have had great chats with people who have been in the sport for a long time and know a thing or two about success. I'm happy to kind of throw this year away, but retain how I got some of my connection and timing back here at the end. So many people have told me that once you have a rough year, you know better how to handle yourself in the future and have a clearer idea of how to work things out and what to focus on later. I almost feel like I belong in the sport even more after going through something that it sounds like everybody has to.

My season is officially over! I didn't get into Zurich, so I'm not going to Berlin, even though I loved that meet last year. I go home to San Diego tomorrow, I'll be apartment-hunting for the next week, and am off to Colorado next weekend for some quality outdoor time with Russ, who I feel like I haven't seen for months!

...and so it begins!

2011-08-26T19:31:00.000-07:00

The IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea begin today! Huge shout out to Aretha Thurmond, Gia Lewis-Smallwood, Stephanie Brown-Trafton, Kibwe Johnson and Michael Mai, who are competing in their qualifying rounds to kick the American throwers off!

I arrived here on Monday night; I flew from San Diego to LAX, LAX to Tokyo, Tokyo to Busan, South Korea, and then rode a bus to the Athletes' Village. By the time I got to the bus, I was so tired that I have absolutely no idea how long that trip took. I think it was probably 5 hours. Okay...more like two. On the 12-hour flight from LAX to Tokyo, I had my own exit row by the bulkhead; two seats to myself with all kinds of leg room! It was probably the longest and easiest day of travel ever. The only bad thing that happened was that I had a Mom moment and left my favorite water bottle somewhere in the L.A. airport!

The Athletes' Village here is amazing. This is only the second time that there has been a village for World Championships (instead of just a hotel), and the LOC (Local Organizing Committee) did an awesome job!! There are four bedrooms and two bathrooms per suite, plus a big living room and kitchen. Jill and I got the master bedroom, haha! The air conditioning is fabulous, and each suite has its own wireless internet router! The dining hall is in the basement below all the different buildings, connecting them, and while the food leaves much to be desired, it's convenient and sufficient (plus, I brought my own healthy snacks and tuna packets, and there's a grocery store down the road with peanut butter). There's a fitness room with a fantastic sauna, and the practice track, weight room and throwing area are actually in the village! Honestly, it's exactly like living at the Chula Vista Olympic Training Center, except with more living space and worse food. I'm a happy camper!

Speaking of camping, Russ is on an amazing fishing trip through Colorado right now, and I'm really excited to meet up with him and explore the wilderness on vacation! Before that happens, there's work to be done and fun to be had here, though!

I threw in practice on Wednesday, and it was better than the majority of my practices this summer, but not as good as the ones I've had at home in the last few weeks. I'm extremely happy to say that I've found my alignment and connection again, and I'm working on reproducing those feelings on every single throw I take. We've figured out which rhythm and speed I should use in my full approach, and keeping all my energy moving in the right direction is getting easier and easier.

It's so nice that Worlds are finally here.

This season has been a pretty surprising roller coaster ride, and it's great to finally be resting a lot to let my body soak up all the hard training I've done for the last nine or so months! I'm happy that the focus of the season has finally arrived, and that I feel like everything we've done this year (and last year!) has led me to this competition. That was the plan all along. :)

London

2011-08-11T14:57:00.000-07:00

I competed last Friday in the Aviva Grand Prix Diamond League meet in London. The competition was stellar; Barbora Spotakova and Christina Obergfoell exchanged the lead multiple times, and Goldie Sayers and Madara Palameika had good showings, resulting in some unusual attention being paid to the women’s javelin! I ended up fifth with my first round toss of 58.25m (it might've been 58.29, I can't remember), and had a few other decent (decent, still not good) efforts beside that.

I was in a really good place coming into this competition. My travel on Thursday was absolutely easy, despite the fact that I had all my luggage with me (see previous post). I’ve generally had good experiences in London and was happy to be at my last meet before going home to San Diego! Being in Europe for just one month is a lot easier than two, I tell you what, but I’m ready to be home nonetheless. My practices lately, while not amazing, have improved, and Dr. Ross has helped me remember to focus on how to succeed, not just success itself.

I’ve been to London three times now. There are a lot of people that go to the meets that I do that have been to London much more often than me, and

I think this was everyone’s first time seeing the sun there.

I walked down to Starbucks and the grocery store before leaving for the competition, and was surprised to find myself squinting and sweating on the way back! I actually saw some views of the city from my second-floor window on the double-decker bus we took to the stadium! I wore shorts to throw in! It was pretty fun. Add to that the great atmosphere of the Crystal Palace and the fact that I speak the same language as the meet officials (or, as one of them told me a bit snootily, “Almost.”), and I felt great during warm-ups.

I focused on getting to my left foot quickly in warm-ups and holding my left side strong at the block. When I do this properly, javelin tip control is much less of a problem than it has been throughout this season. In the competition, I was more aggressive and trusting of myself on the runway. I did get to my left foot satisfactorily quickly, but didn’t hold my left arm and chest up the way I had planned. I know what to work on and I’m happy to be home to work on it before leaving for Daegu on August 21st for World Championships!

A word on external motivation…

the Diamond League final for the women’s javelin this year is in Zurich on September 8th. I have no Diamond League points and no prayer of winning the series; Christina Obergfoell (who was my roommate in London and who I already knew is awesome!) locked up the overall victory with her win last week. That doesn’t mean that I don’t want to go to Zurich, though. I fully understand that I don’t deserve the chance, but I’ve experienced some things lately that make me grateful for my position, regardless of the fact that I haven’t performed how I want to so far. After throwing in Paris at the beginning of July, I was riding the elevator up to my hotel room when the Zurich meet director asked me what happened that day. If you’ll remember, I got last in one of the best Diamond League meets ever for women’s javelin. I told him a little about what’s been going on, but mostly knew that the excuses I have are things that he and everyone that has ever been around a struggling technical athlete has heard before. He said to me, “Well, you should figure it out, because if you don’t, you’re not coming to my meet.” You might think that’s harsh, but I already knew that. What he said next was the cool part: “And that’s bad for me.” It took me by surprise that he would tell me in not these exact words that he wanted me at his meet! Then in London, as we both got off the bus at the stadium at the same time, he said, “Kara, would you like some motivation from me?” I already knew what he would say, but answered, “Sure!” He told me that if I threw far that day, I could come to Zurich. You may remember that last year, I didn’t get into Diamond League meets at the beginning of the year. It took an American Record followed by a victory at Prefontaine to get me into the following meets in the series, so I’m familiar with needing to throw far in order to get into meets. It serves as positive motivation for me to have this kind of pressure, and the unique thing about this situation is that someone who has the power to give me an opportunity actually told me how it was. I’m thankful for that; if he didn’t maybe want me there a little bit, he wouldn’t say anything. I highly doubt that he was impressed enough with my performance in London to let me in, but I know that the opportunity was there, and that bodes well for the future. I was encouraged by my experience in London, and that’s all that matters. Here’s to a solid two weeks of training, lots of rest, and on to Daegu!!

Travelin' with Javelins

2011-08-05T07:23:00.000-07:00

Since April, I’ve traveled on airplanes with javelins a total of 15 times, and 7 of those times have been internationally. A conservative estimate of what I’ve spent to put them on the plane with me is $600 total. That’s pretty cheap, considering my pole-vaulter friends spend FAR more, but I’d like to share a little bit about the experience!

When I travel in Europe, I have my javelin bag, a big suitcase, and a rolling Eagle Creek convertible backpack, as well as a purse. I need to take a picture of myself carrying all that stuff sometime, because I’m sure I deserve the looks I get. I left Cologne for London yesterday morning (competing today!), and it was the first time this summer that I’ve had to get myself to or from the airport without any help from my dear boyfriend, adventurous parents or various meet transportation. I consider that fact to be a triumph! Our apartment this year was on the fourth floor of a super cool (in both senses of the word) building in a very convenient location. When I say convenient, I mean it was close to training and grocery shopping (which were the only places Sean and I went for the last week!). Going to the airport, however, was a different story. It’s not too bad of a trip, but last year we only took one train to the airport, while this year, we had to change trains once from home to the Flughafen. Add to that construction going on along the normal route, and I was a little nervous about my solo trip! Not to mention, I totally forgot which platform I was supposed to go to once I got off the first train, and I wasn’t even sure where to get off at. I’m a disaster sometimes.

I’ve gotten used to the Cologne train system enough to know where to look for information and understand enough German to listen to announcements and find my way, so getting on the right trains and arriving at the airport was no problem: It might’ve even gone faster than it ever has before! That doesn’t mean that I’m not stressed about it and/or sweating profusely because of all the stuff I’m carrying though. So when I show up at the check-in counter, perspiring visibly and toting one oddly-shaped and another overweight bag, maybe the man/woman behind the counter isn’t too happy to see me. In all my travel with javelins, I’ve never once thought that maybe I’m ruining their day a little bit by showing up with something they don’t normally see!

On my way to Pre this year, I stood at the United check-in counter in San Diego for literally 40 minutes. I wasn’t in line for that long, I was waiting for the man behind the counter to call the actual plane I would be flying on from San Francisco to Eugene to make sure that my 8-foot-long tube would fit on board. IT’S A PLANE. I CAN FIT THEM IN MY CAR, WITHOUT STICKING THEM THROUGH THE TRUNK. I flew Delta to New York and had to pay $175 each way for them. When that’s the only bag I check (which was the case for Rome, Pre AND New York), I feel like I should get a little bit of a break. On the way home from New York, the ladies at the check-in counter wanted to MAKE SURE I knew that my bag was oversize. They said, “Ma’am, this is over 80 inches long,” and I said, “Yes, I know,” and they said, “But, that’s oversize,” and I said, “Yes, I know,” and they said, “MA’AM, this is an oversize bag! It’s longer than 80 inches!” and I said, “YES, I KNOW! HOW MUCH DO I OWE YOU?!” I learned about inches and feet in elementary school. I bet they didn’t know how many meters long the javelins are. I know that, too.

I understand why an oversize bag costs more money, and I also understand why airline employees are concerned about putting an oversize bag on a small plane. I’m fully aware that I’m not the only person flying on each plane I board, and I think that the other people on that plane have also probably checked luggage. All that said, I’ve just begun to realize why I’m met with such hostility sometimes when I attempt to check in my javelins. People don’t like change or things that are unfamiliar to them. In the same way that I’m uncomfortable if I don’t know exactly which train I’m supposed to get on or precisely where the check-in counter is at each airport, every new airline employee that I meet during check-in doesn’t know what I have in my bag, or whether or not their boss will be upset with them if they put it on the plane. Before I started traveling to track meets at the end of high school, I didn’t know it was possible, either. I look at people funny if they travel with cardboard boxes (I’ve seen it!), and other people look at me funny because I have a bag that’s taller than me. I think that maybe it’s more common for dogs to travel in the cargo hold than javelins, now that I’m thinking about it. I’ve seen multiple dog crates come out of the oversize luggage area when my javelins do, and I ALWAYS want to pet them.
I do my very, very best to educate the public (what little of it that I encounter in airports) about what’s in my crazy bag. The VAST majority of people who actually talk to me (instead of just stare curiously) think I’m a pole vaulter, which most of the time just angers me, but is a huge opportunity to teach them a little bit about the sport of track and field. If you know me, you know that when I think I’m being mean and snooty, I’m probably being nicer than most other people. Sometimes I try to have an attitude, but it just doesn’t work because A) I have no practice and B) I chicken out and say something nice after something that might, maybe, possibly be considered harsh.

Basically, traveling with javelins is inconvenient, somewhat embarrassing, slow (because you have to talk to people and explain yourself most of the time), expensive, awkward, and really not that bad. I do my best to greet check-in counter people with a smile every time I get to the airport, and perpetually work on my positive and understanding attitude and communication skills when people are SURE they know what’s inside my bag. I’m thinking about having “JAVELINS” embroidered on my next case, but I’m sure the same happenings will still occur.

Any ideas for colors/patterns/designs for a new case, by the way?

Bottropp and Monaco, etc.

2011-07-27T08:47:00.000-07:00

Since I started blogging last year, I've really enjoyed reading friends' posts, writing my own as an outlet about track, and finding fun blogs to follow that have nothing to do with my day-to-day life. I've suggested that others both start and refresh blogs, and discussed with a fellow devoted blogger just how difficult some posts can be to write.

Last year, it was extremely easy to update everyone on how I was doing. I was happy to report that, for the very most part, things were great! I competed better than I ever had before, and when I didn't, I couldn't wait to get it all out in a post and move on. This year, I've been disappointed time and again because I feel awesome and end up throwing crappy. It's hard to keep coming back to the keyboard when I know I'm going to write about something that's discouraging and frustrating. I have a lot of people that I can talk to about how competition is going and how I'm feeling (Russ, my parents, Britney, Mike, Maggie, Jamie, Ty), but I guess my blog is where I put stuff to move past it.

So here we go.

I threw in Bottropp, Germany on July 15th. It was a tiny meet that was actually really cool to be a part of. Russ and I took the train up there and back in the same day (only an hour one way), and there were a lot of American athletes, plus a German teammate of Russ's that he hadn't seen in years! Cool! I was looking forward to a low-key, low-pressure situation where I could focus on positions and not worry as much about distance. Unfortunately, my competitive nature got the best of me, and once again I tried too hard, waited too long to put my left foot down at the block and lost the tip of the javelin, only throwing 57m and placing second. Russ took video though, and for the first time since like April I saw what I've been doing on film. That meant that we went to practice that Monday armed with a plan and positivity on my end; I was a lot closer than I thought!

The Herculis Meeting in Monaco came next, on July 22nd. I love Monaco!! It is gorgeous, has fabulous weather all the time, reminds me of San Diego (just fancier), and I did well there last year. I felt awesome (again) warming up for the competition, and my warm-up throws actually went way better than they had in recent meets. My first throw felt like the good ones from warm-ups and it flew pretty well, but landed way, way too close to me. I adopted the same attitude on each throw; do what I'd been focusing on in practice and the distance would come. Unfortunately, neither one of those things happened and I ended up last. Again.

I've been feeling really sorry for myself for a while now, and I wanted someone to just come along and magically fix me. There has been this desperation to figure it out right now, and I think that has been my downfall. Multiple people have advised me to just be patient, and that has been really difficult because of my own expectations, but I'm trying my best. I did have a revelation yesterday:

The season's not over yet.

Tomorrow, I'm going to practice and I will think the whole time about how I can still accomplish my biggest goals for 2011. What I need to do to get there is slow down, be more disciplined than ever in my technique, and remember why I do what I do in the first place. So here we go!

Paris

2011-07-14T11:03:00.000-07:00

I'm embarrassed, discouraged and in awe all at the same time. I guess the emotion of being "in awe" during a competition isn't the most productive, but witnessing (and being a small part of) last Friday's Paris Areva Meeting was cool (World Lead by Christina Obergfoell, great depth of competition), and also terrible.

I warmed up okay. My body was pretty achy, which it had no reason to be after my first business-class international plane ride! The weather was fine and we were in a stadium, meaning wind wasn't really a factor.

My first throw sky-rocketed and landed at like 55-56m (as far as I could tell; it could've been more or less). I had too much pride and intentionally fouled it. My second throw went right out of the sector, but I ran through the foul line as soon as it left my hand because I could tell where it was headed. There were only 8 women in the competition, so I knew I would make finals, but figured I should have a legal mark to do it. That meant that I marked my third throw, even though I knew it was bad. To find out how bad, you can look at the results, because I'm not going to say it.

After that start, I really, really had to fight to get back up to 58-ish meters, which happened on my last throw and still meant that I was last by 3 meters. I have to take pride in the fact that I did manage to claw my way back to a distance that would not have been last in (I don't think) any other Diamond League meet except the one that I got last at in Zurich last year. And three people didn't throw over 60m in Zurich last year, whereas I was the only one to not throw over 60m in Paris (and I threw a meter farther in Zurich).

I've been in Cologne, Germany since Sunday, training at a facility in Leverkusen where I've trained for the past two summers. I'm happy here! I know the city, I'm familiar with how to get around, I'm living with a group of people I like in an awesome set of apartments that are equipped with washing machines and internet, and my little bit of German has come flying back to me! My idea of how to throw has also come back to me, and now I just need to apply it. I'm competing at a small meet in Bottropp, Germany tomorrow afternoon, and I'm looking forward to a low-key setting (with some familiar faces) where I can focus on remembering that good technique means far distances.

USAs!

2011-06-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

I competed at the 2011 USATF Outdoor National Championships yesterday, and came away with my fourth straight national title (including 2008's Olympic Trials Championship)!

I'm happy.

I'm happy that I threw farther than I have been in recent meets.

I'm happy that I put a decent throw (59.34m) out in the sector on my first toss, since I was the very first thrower in the order and had an opportunity to make a statement early.

I'm happy that I competed well, not only against the other girls, but against my recently-chattering brain!

I'm happy that I kept my USAs winning streak alive.

I'm happy that I really took to heart all the amazing encouragement I've received over the past few weeks from people that I care about and who I know truly care about me.

I'm extremely happy that I didn't have any right sector fouls. :) In fact, my fourth round throw landed on the left side of the sector. Booyah!

I know I have more work to do. I'm spending a few days at home in Washington and I'll be back in San Diego on Wednesday morning. I'm really looking forward to building on this competition's technical progress in practice, and getting even more great training in! Thanks a bunch to everyone who has offered support and congratulations! Thanks especially to my Coach (Ty Sevin) and Sports Psychologist (Dr. Ross Flowers), and huge awesome-job-you're-the-best-training-partner-ever-appreciate-your-help-always shout-out to Mike Hazle, who won his first national title in the men's javelin on Friday after coming in second to four different guys for the last four years! Well deserved and long-awaited victory! Proud of ya. :)

I've been confirmed for the Paris (July 8) and Monaco (July 22) Diamond League meets! I'll be spending most of July in Cologne, Germany, living with a group of friends from the training center. I loved living there last year and am looking forward to spending time in the same place again! I definitely have my work cut out for me in the coming competitions, but it's nice to feel like I'm rounding into a good mentality at the right time.

CVOTC "Tune-Up"

2011-06-19T23:58:00.000-07:00

I competed in the meet here at the training center on Thursday. I wanted to have a low-key, fun meet after New York and before USAs! Some dear friends of mine threw the javelin for me to make it a legitimate meet; thanks ladies :). It was fun, but each time I got on the runway, I got all tight again.

I threw 56.98m, which is better than New York, worse than Pre and not nearly where I want to be. In the middle of the competition, I took another step out of my approach, which means my approach is now exactly what it was last year (and I loved it last year). After the competition, I practiced for about another hour, throwing out of that new/old full approach and finishing up with some shorter stuff at the end. Practice was great and I think I threw myself out of some things by the end of it, yay!

It's strange when we change things that don't need to be changed or we forget about things we worked on for a long time. But those things don't matter as long as we realize how important it is to focus on basics and execute simple things we know we're good at. I'm looking forward to practice tomorrow!

adidas Grand Prix NYC

2011-06-13T08:36:00.000-07:00

Well, I got sixth again. This time though, sixth meant I also got last place. I only threw 54.62m, intentionally fouled two of my throws, and had two sector fouls. My last throw (the one that went 54m) landed about an inch inside the right sector line.

Needless to say, my alignment is off.

I still feel physically awesome. I was a little more achy than recent weeks on Saturday, probably because of the slight sickness I've had and all the travel I've done in the last three weeks, but a little achy shouldn't mean 54m. Last year, I threw at Drake Relays and had two meets at Tucson Elite before USAs. Those three competitions were low-key and fun, and I got a chance to really trust the technique I had developed. I wasn't trying to win on every throw, I was just trying to solidify the things I had done in practice. This year, I threw at Drake Relays, flew to Rome a month later, went to Eugene the next weekend, and competed in New York the weekend after that. Rome, Eugene and New York were much more high-pressure than my competitions last year, and dealing with external pressures from having prior success has been something I thought I was prepared for, but perhaps wasn't.

I think it's important to talk about the mental side of track and field. I started working with Dr. Ross Flowers here at the training center last year, and his help has been invaluable. I get to talk to him this afternoon, and I'm craving a good, tough conversation. After I threw 61.56m in 2008 at Big Tens, I suddenly felt like I needed to throw that far every single time I competed, and (in my head) it seemed like people following my career would be disappointed if I didn't. Not true. I realized eventually that people were watching me because they were excited to see me succeed. Sure, they'd be a little bummed if I didn't throw far, but if I did, they'd be happy. I wanted to make them (and myself) happy! It took me a while to learn how to use other people's energy as a positive thing, and I think I'm dealing with the same kind of stress now. Every athlete takes a different path to where they want to be, and I'm doing my best to learn and grow from everything I experience!

It's pretty cool to receive congratulatory text messages/facebook messages/voice mails/tweets when you do well, but something that I took a lot of comfort in this weekend was that people didn't hesitate to contact me to tell me how much they are still supporting me after a poor performance. I feel blessed to have people in my life who cheer for me and lift me up when I'm feeling a little bit down. I try to be that person for them when they need it, too! Part of athletics, though, is always moving forward. So, on to practice today and away from a meet I'm happy to leave behind.

Prefontaine Classic

2011-06-06T12:52:00.000-07:00

I had my worst result ever at Hayward Field this weekend (58.39m). I also suffered my first career loss at that venue with a 6th place finish. I'm disappointed, but the way I felt physically did not show in my results!

Training this year has been much more challenging than last year. Yeah, I worked hard in 2010 and was in good shape, but 2011 has been vastly more well-rounded as far as total-body focus along with many ever-important technical sessions. Ty has been teaching me to throw the javelin with my legs and whole body instead of just using the arm felixibility and strength that I've always known are there. In the competitions that haven't gone like I wanted this season (Drake and Pre), I've resorted to old ways.

Obviously, I don't revert on purpose.

I'm simply having to learn to use a higher fitness level and more speed on the runway; to make adjustments. My timing was off in Eugene this weekend because I didn't trust myself to stay behind my block and hit correct positions with the power I was bringing to the throw. I'm frustrated with myself for not being brave in the moment, but I'm feeling very positive about the fact that I'm healthy and haven't had to miss nearly as much training as I did last year! I need to just hone in on some technical cues in practice and trust my positions in competition.

My parents and brother came to the Prefontaine Classic this weekend! I love my family because they are competitive and, of course, only want the best for me. When I don't perform to my potential, I know they love me anyway, but I also know that they're feeling disappointment too. I don't take that as pressure, I take that as reassurance of their belief in my capabilities as a javelin thrower. They want me to be as great as I want myself to be, and I love that!

Up next is the third installment of women's javelin Diamond League meets. I'll throw in the adidas Grand Prix in New York on Saturday!

When in Rome...Learn

2011-06-06T11:16:00.000-07:00

I competed in the Compeed Golden Gala (my event's first Diamond League meet) in Rome, Italy on May 26. Sorry for the delay in writing a blog about this one, but I'm nearing the end of a flurry of recent meets and haven't had much time between training, volunteering, travel and competition! Things I Learned in Rome:
1. Eliminate distractions whenever possible.

At Drake, I wore a back brace to support my cranky SI joints. No matter how prepared you are for your attempts during a competition, having to put on an extra piece of equipment each time is just obnoxious! I've been seeing Brett the rehab master here at the training center regularly for adjustments and exercises, and ditching that back brace is always a celebration. I didn't even bring it to Rome, so getting ready for my throws was simplified. Javelin, shoes, Kara...check, check, check. I also learned how the zipper on my new uniform jacket works. I know that sounds stupid, but I struggled with it at Drake and it really drove me crazy. To put on and take off my outer layer with ease was a relief.

2. A little adventure never hurt anybody.

Becky and I went to see the Vatican on Tuesday night (the day we both arrived in Rome and two days before competition). We didn't stay long, but glimpsed the ancient tourist attraction from the outside, ate some delicious gelato, and wandered around for a while enjoying a game of "Tourist? Or Local?". I do better at competitions when I don't take myself super seriously, so it's always nice for me to get out and see the sights a bit! After the meet, dinner was served at a party around the pool, and I love to socialize, so it was great to meet some new people and catch up with others.

3. Sleep is my BEST FRIEND.

My flight landed on Tuesday at about 10:30am. I kept my eyes open until 8:30 that night, and didn't open them until 10:30am on Wednesday. I took a nap from 1:00pm-3:30pm that afternoon, then went to the track to do my pre-meet workout. I fell asleep at about 11:30 that night, and slept until 8:30am Thursday (competition day). After a quick breakfast, I fell asleep again from 9am-3:30pm, waking up in time to grab a mid-afternoon snack and get ready to leave for competition on a 6pm shuttle. I. Felt. Awesome. That's approximately 32 hours of sleep in a 53-hour period. You gotta do what you gotta do!

4. Sometimes, you just get lucky.

I was delayed out of San Diego on Monday about an hour. Unfortunately, my layover in Chicago was only a little more than an hour. I spent my first flight sort of nervous, but also knew things would work out if I didn't make it. After all, I've learned from past mistakes and now always have everything I need with me. I found out during the first flight that the man across the aisle from me was also going to Rome. He was a lot more nervous about making it than I was, and also a lot more clueless as to where our connecting gate was. Walking as fast as possible without completely leaving him in my dust, I showed him to our next plane, which was delayed about 20 minutes, meaning I had time to grab a quick sandwich at the totally convenient deli nearby! After I ordered, strange man from my previous plane surprised me by buying my veggie wrap, even though all he got was a banana. Then I hid from him in the totally convenient women's restroom until my flight boarded. I had an empty seat next to me on the flight despite the fact that the rest of the plane was completely full! When we got to Rome, my javelins were there waiting for me even though the connection in ORD had been tight. Made a short connection, free lunch, open seat AND javelins arrived safely? Fabulous!

5. Good plans work.

During warm-ups for competition at the Olympic Stadium in Rome, literally every one of my competitors kept one or two of their javelins with them to throw in the warm-up area. I had checked in all of mine. I don't expect to be able to throw in the warm-up area at regular-season meets, because it hardly ever happens that way! But when everyone else was doing it, I felt a little foolish. Then I said to myself, "Kara, you never do that. Stick to the plan," did what I usually do and then relaxed until we were called to go inside the stadium. What do you know, my warm-ups on the runway felt fine and I competed pretty well in prelims, throwing 62.76m on my third attempt when I felt like I needed a better mark to ensure that I was top 8 and would go to finals. The other plan that worked well was to train through Drake completely. I definitely could have and should have thrown better there, but having such a strong training base this season is going to serve me very well in the long run. :)

6. Chill, baby! And take care of number one.

When we were led out to the runway for warm-ups, the men's pole vault had just started. Even though there are two different places that both the pole vault and javelin can be contested in every stadium, we were both on the same side. That meant that the pole vault and javelin runways intersected at a T, and a man stood with an orange flag throughout both competitions, prohibiting a javelin thrower or a pole vaulter from doing their thing at all times. This was especially problematic during our warm-ups, as there's not an ample amount of time for them in a stiuation that doesn't involve potential violent collisions. I saw the problem as soon as we arrived, so I grabbed two javelins and took them into the field, away from the chaos. A few meet people told me not to, but if I'm not getting a chance to go down the runway, I'm gonna do what I have to to be warm to throw. Sorry I'm not sorry. :) It was silly that both men's vault and women's jav took twice as long as they needed to, but it ended up being kinda fun to be so close to another field event. The mantra that we should worry about things we can control gets put into practice in all kinds of situations!

I learned a whole lot at this meet. I think mostly it was a refresher course though; a re-introduction to big time competition and how to handle certain stressors. I didn't respond well when Barbora passed me in the sixth round and ended up fourth overall, so that leaves me hungry. Rome got me excited about Pre, but that didn't turn out how I wanted it to. Stay tuned...

Modified Approach

2011-05-17T09:55:00.001-07:00

I had trouble with my approach at Drake. I added two carry steps this year (running forward with the javelin over your head; each left foot strike counts as a step), making my approach four carry steps and three crossovers. Last year, I used two carry steps and three crossovers, meaning that my approach this year got a lot longer, less aggressive, and more likely to have mistakes in it.

The point of adding more carry steps is to get more speed by the end of the approach. Unfortunately, if you don't use that speed correctly, there is absolutely no reason to include the extra steps! Acceleration is one of the most important factors in good javelining, so if you're not accelerating throughout your approach, something is wrong. Take a look at this video of my best attempt at Drake.

Pretty constant speed, not much acceleration, just blah all the way through, slow left leg at the end.

Yesterday, I had a good throwing session. We're throwing 700-gram javelins right now, and I've been pleased with how my last few practices have gone. At the end of throwing sessions, we practice approaches. After one mock approach using four carry steps yesterday, Ty simply said, "You just look tired." I felt tired. By the end of that long approach (distance runners, no laughing) I was just feeling lost and scatter-brained,
so we decided to shorten it by one carry step. Huge difference. I'm very excited about using this slightly shorter approach! I feel more comfortable at the end of it and much more ready to throw far out of it than the extended version. I can accelerate throughout instead of feeling like I have to hold something back for the end. I'm pretty pumped to put it to the test in Rome next Thursday. :)

Drake Relays

2011-05-04T18:13:00.000-07:00

I went to Drake Relays! I threw the javelin. I hung out with my family! I came home.

Those were my emotions this weekend. I was excited to go to the meet, but for some reason not that pumped about actually throwing my implement. I wanted to throw far, but the process of actually using my body to do it was somehow boring once I arrived at the competition venue.

I couldn't (or wouldn't) get my energy up and hold my technique together simultaneously.

By the end of my six throws, I was moving decently fast on the runway, but nothing held solid at the end of my approach to give the javelin any energy. I ended up throwing 57.74m (189'5") on my final attempt. I had two other 57m throws, and one farther sector foul (when the javelin lands outside its designated target area, which is large).

I know what I need to fix. In the meet, I tried to focus on all of the technical things we have been working on in practice. The problem was that I tried to focus on all of the technical things we have been working on in practice! When I get to a competition, I need to have laser focus on a few very important technical cues, and execute them to the best of my ability. I simply am out of practice at that kind of mindset, and I'm excited to get back to it in practice in the next few weeks.

I also think that it is extremely important to always be thinking about where you want to end up. At Drake, I was just throwing to throw at Drake. I didn't have a fire in my belly about hitting this season's distance goal or competing simply to throw the farthest I possibly could or preparing myself to throw at USAs/Worlds to the best of my ability. Striving to constantly be better is something that I always want to do, but an idea I forgot about last Friday.

Moving on. :) It has been confirmed that I will compete in the first women's javelin Diamond League event in Rome, Italy on May 26! I'm really looking forward to it, because last year I missed out on the first two Diamond League meets for my event. It will be really nice to begin the race on the actual starting line this year!

Staycation

2011-04-22T11:40:00.003-07:00

It's rest week again! I didn't have practice yesterday, and I don't have to do anything today, tomorrow, or Sunday (although I'll do a little something Saturday).

I decided to get away. I'm at a secret location, relaxing by myself in San Diego. :)

This last block was awesome. You already know that I threw a practice PR three Mondays ago. What you don't know is that I threw another one (actually two) this Monday!! The week and a half in between those good days was pretty bad. I love when I can have a few frustrating practices, forget about them in order to move forward, and then come back more focused than before!

Ty, Mike, Andreas, Daniel, Tero and his coach were watching my practice on Monday. It has been extremely fun to have so many fabulous javelin throwers (the Germans are here, too!) and international gurus of the sport around, because there is quite a different energy at the track than when it's just Mike and I.

Andreas and Mike had all of the javelin throwers and Russ over for a barbeque last Friday. It was simply amazing to look around at all the talent eating cheeseburgers in one room! Each event in track and field is so specific that I always try to take advantage of relaxed social situations like that one. You can only get to know someone so well when you're competing against each other! The happiest guy at the party was Sean, as he set a new personal record at Mt. SAC Relays last weekend! He threw 81.62m, and there's nothing quite like that PR high that lasts a few days after competition. Good job, Sean!

HAPPY birthday

2011-04-12T19:53:00.000-07:00

Three or four people have told me that it’s all downhill after the age of 25. Whatever, I say.
I love birthdays. I tell Russ that mine is coming up at least a month beforehand. A lot of people might say, “Well, Kara, you’re only 25. Wait ten years and then tell me you love birthdays.” But I challenge you to enjoy each and every year of your life. You’re alive, right? Go have a good time with that. You can't go backwards, so don't waste time wishing you could.

I was brought up in a house where your accomplishments were praised, and your birthday was filled with happiness and celebration. I simply don’t understand how a birthday could be treated like every other day! It doesn't have to be a huge deal, but it should be noticed and appreciated. To me, April 10th each year feels a little bit like hitting the pause button. I get to spend a day still feeling like I’m the age I’ve been for a year, while also wondering what the next age will bring (and, chances are, it won’t be that different). I ponder what I’ve done so far, and what I’d like to tackle next. I do what I want, and I get to hear from people that I love!

This year’s birthday was so much about friends. People went out of their way to spend time with me, and it meant a lot! The calls, messages and texts that I got from people from all walks of life really made me appreciate how much I’ve been exposed to and how lucky I am to have met such awesome individuals from so many different areas (and eras, for that matter).

Don’t complain about your age. Enjoy a day that's all about you; there's only one guaranteed opportunity to do that each year!

Practice PR!

2011-04-04T21:46:00.000-07:00

We all know that practice distances don't count. They aren't officially measured. Only you, your training partners and your coach can vouch for them (and those people might be a little biased). A lot of times, practice throws are fouls.

But when you have good practice throws, you're just happy.

When macthrowvideo.com featured me on their website last year, someone asked me if I had thrown farther than the American Record (thanks again, Cyrus!) in practice. I absolutely have not! I'm not a "practice thrower." Mostly, we focus on technique during the two sessions per week that we're on the runway, so I try not to be concerned about how far my javelins fly. But there are times that we bring the intensity up and measure throws to kind of check in with how preparation for competition is coming.

I set a training goal last year to throw 60 meters in practice. I never achieved that, but I raised it this year because of the success that I saw in competition during 2010. So, although I'm really happy about meeting last year's goal today and setting a new practice personal record :), I'm more excited about striving toward this year's aspirations.

Outdoor season has begun,

but not yet for me! My first meet of the season will be Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa. I throw on Friday, April 29th at 2:00pm!

Off the Runway

2011-03-23T00:07:00.000-07:00

I haven't been on the runway that much lately. The throwing sessions that I have had have been super beneficial, though, yay! I've mostly been on the computer (see the new CVOTC Track and Field blog) and getting treatment/waiting for my left SI joint to calm down.

I've also been volunteering my time!

Although I get paid a little bit for it, I don't think of being a tour guide at the training center as a job. It's actually really fun for me; people, surprisingly, always ask different questions. It's neat to be able to share something with them that they've never encountered before, or might not have ever had explained fully to them. A little while ago, a group of athletes from The Larry English L.E.A.D. Foundation came for a tour. We walked them around the training center and showed a video. It never ceases to amaze me how everyone gets mesmerized by footage of inspiring Olympic moments. Watch the video in that link and tell me you weren't just a little misty-eyed.

I started working with Athletes for Hope after the USATF Annual Meeting in the fall of 2009. They help athletes get connected with volunteer opportunities in their communities. It took me a while to figure out which organization I wanted to become a part of and to really get the ball rolling, but last summer I finally attended my orientation as a San Diego Humane Society Volunteer! I got trained in my specific program, Dog Activities, in February, and last Wednesday I had my first hands-on training day, walking these pets under the supervision of an already-trained Volunteer. I'm loving it.

Ian, Stacy, Sandy, Russ and I drove up to LA last Thursday for the USATF Olympians Night at Staples Center before the LA Kings vs. St. Louis Blues hockey game. We met a few athletes and answered some questions about Track and Field and life in general. A small group of people came, and it was really nice to have the time to actually have a conversation with them! Then we got to stay for the game. If you've never been to a professional hockey game, go. It's super fun.

I have my second training day at the Humane Society tomorrow. :) Can't wait to see the puppies!!

Me? Explosive?

2011-03-01T23:35:00.001-08:00

Last week was rest week. You read that right; last week was rest week. It wasn't rest Thursday-Friday-Saturday-Sunday,

it was do-what-you-want-when-you-want week.

Mike and I went to hot yoga at the Chula Vista Yoga Center twice, did three recovery workouts (general strength and abs), and I went on a long, leisurely bike ride with Russ! I absolutely loved the time off, and took advantage by getting tons of therapy! Three chiropractic appointments, 2.5 hours of massage, one shoulder mobility torture session, and one acupuncture appointment later, I felt pretty awesome heading into the first week of this new block.

I didn't squat at all last year. Literally, not one time. Our leg lifts were single leg, and mostly step-ups. That means that I hadn't squatted since approximately June of 2009 until I did yesterday. Front squats are on my program this block, and my legs hurt. I look forward to getting those neglected muscles in shape again so I can get some actual work done!

I've written recently that my gymnastics skills are coming along nicely. Our new gymnastics regimen is a lot more about strength than spatial awareness and coordination, like the last block. We did a bunch of posterior-chain strengthening with the Keiser machines today, followed by high bar srength with muscle-ups. The most I had done in a row before today was 3. On my first set, I did 4. Then, Ty said the most he'd ever seen a girl do was 5 in a row. I started out on my second set by doing 6. Then Ty said, "If you do 8 you don't have to do any more." So, I did two more. Then, we figured that there was no reason not to do 10, so I did two more.

Not only did I figure out a skill, but now I'm strong enough to perform it repeatedly...and fairly well!

The most exciting part of the gymnastics workout this afternoon was that, right after I exploded out of the bottom of the movement to pull myself on top of the bar on one of my repetitions, Ty remarked on the power that I had exhibited. I've never, ever thought of myself as an explosive athlete, and to hear him say that and feel powerful and explosive in the skill is really gratifying. I really look forward to applying the stretch-followed-by-explosive-arm-strike feeling that I've gotten in muscle-ups to the javelin.

Good Day

2011-02-07T18:53:00.000-08:00

Last week, I had some of my best throwing sessions ever. On Monday, Mike, Andreas, Ty, and Asmund let out a collective, "ooooohhhh" after one of my throws, which was pretty awesome. I was throwing on the runway and hitting consistently good, closed positions. On Thursday, Ty had Mike and I throw off of the grass for the entire session, which feels awesome on your body compared to the track surface! I hit even better positions on the grass, mostly because I wasn't going as fast as on the runway. I'm super encouraged! Here are two of my throws, and one of the light ball throws that we do at the end of practice.

Since we had a relatively easy day on Thursday, Ty told me that I had to throw 57 meters on Monday. I was pretty excited to see whether or not I could throw far when I wanted to instead of accidentally hitting positions and having things work out! Alas, when I brought the intensity up and tried to throw far, it didn't quite happen that way. By the end of the throwing session, I finally remembered that I needed to focus on positions more than just speed and aggression, but by then I was pretty tired. Instead of 57 meters, I threw 56. I'm disappointed, but afterward I remembered that I didn't throw during all of February last year because of a back injury. I'm pretty happy with how yesterday went when I think about it that way.

My parents are coming to visit this weekend!

I haven't seen them since Thanksgiving in Hawaii, and I'm really excited to show them around. We lived in San Diego when I was a baby, so I know they're familiar, but my Mom has never seen the training center before! Hopefully the rain that's in the forecast is short-lived!

I'm a gymnast! ...kinda.

2011-02-02T19:21:00.000-08:00

One of my training goals for the year was to do a kip (and I do mean a kip). I do gymnastics with Mike, Melinda and Becky twice a week, and in every block before this one, I've simply been building my strength while the three of them flip and twist and spin like crazy around me! Becky looks like this, and I've been doing pull-ups and basic strength things on the high bar...kind of embarrassing sometimes.

When there is evidence all around me that I'm behind in training (nevermind that Becky was a level 10 gymnast and Melinda and Mike have done this before) I get extremely motivated to improve.

I quietly have worked on improving my strength on the high bar (3 pull-ups the first day to 3 sets of 10 now) and on the rings so that I could have my shot at learning some tricks!

Last week was rest week. You may remember that I thought the week before that was rest week, but I was wrong. That means I really needed to recharge my batteries this weekend! I took full advantage: got away from the training center, borrowed Ian and Stacy's dog London, a vizsla, and took her to the beach, went to the zoo with Russ and even met some of his family we didn't know lived here! I was ready to come back to practice on Monday, and I was extremely ready to try some new moves on the high bar on Tuesday afternoon.

I did a kip.

Then I did like 7 more of them! Then I tried some muscle-ups, and I did those, too! I am absolutely loving gymnastics, because progress is so measurable. You either can perform a skill, or you can't.

As Dr. Ross said when I told him I had achieved a year-long aspiration on the first day I tried, I need to modify my goals a little. :)

Progress

2011-01-17T19:00:00.000-08:00

Technical focus is paying off! Last Monday, my legs were pretty good during throwing practice. Thursday, my arm and javelin tip control got better, but my legs were awful. Today, I put them both together okay! I was able to be explosive with my legs, have a fairly substantial impulse, and get my left leg down before I initiated a good arm strike, keeping the tip down. Yay!
Thanks to interim coaches Mike and Andreas, who are awesome for watching me throw while Ty is in Colorado with Becky and Melinda; they opened their indoor seasons on Friday! I don't know if you know this,

but Mike and I are pretty excellent training partners.

We work really hard, and he knows exactly what to say to me to push me in practice. Sometimes he motivates me so much that I feel guilty about not having good ammo to fire back! I'm more of the positive, happy, point-out-good-things-you're-doing kind of girl than one that can think of scenarios he'll get fired up about, anyway. :) The addition of Andreas to our regular training regimen has been super cool, too; obviously. We may not do the same things in practice each day, but it's always good to get a fresh perspective on things, especially when javelin knowledge is coming from such a reputable source!

Lifting has been going awesome, too. This block, we have front split jerks for four sets of two reps, and we hook ourselves up to a Tendo unit to measure our power. At the beginning of the block, I figured I'd have trouble with a certain amount of weight, but it turns out that I'm a lot stronger than I think! My power increased with each session until today. That's okay though, because this is the beginning of week 4 of this block,

which means I'm spent,

and ready for all the rest that is coming my way at the end of it. :)

I realized today that my birthday this year will mark ten years since my first javelin competition. On April 10, 2001, I threw 107 feet in a meet in Oregon. I was pretty excited to figure out that that milestone is coming!

Technique and Normalcy

2011-01-10T10:01:00.000-08:00

I returned to San Diego from Colorado Springs last Monday morning, and went straight to practice; my first one with 500-gram javelins. That's always a little awkward, as my problems with lunging forward as I throw are blatant with a lighter-weight implement. When I throw heavy javelins (700- or 800-gram ones), my arm and upper body are forced to stay back, and I get a big stretch before the implement is released.

Not so with a dinky javelin!

I have to make sure I'm patient and really learn how to purposefully wait on the release. I'll do my best again today.

Another problem I've dealt with in my throwing for a very long time is controlling the tip of my javelin at release. I'm pretty flexible (understatement alert?), so I pretend that I can feel more stretch across my shoulder by breaking at the wrist when I throw. This makes for loss of distance because my power isn't going into the javelin at the correct orientation; the tip gets too high. This week, I'll focus only on keeping my wrist in line and making sure my javelin flies correctly. It's a little bit daunting to think about fixing this, because it is something I've always struggled with. Better late-ish than never...

I'm so happy to be back at the Training Center and able to practice normally every day. It's fun to travel and see family and get my workouts in elsewhere, but

never is training as beneficial as when I'm in the environment I'm familiar with,

with my coach and training partners. Four or five solid months of training regularly here is an exciting idea for me!

I know what my goals are, but I haven't written them down yet. Soon, I'll write measurable goals for training and competition!

Christmas Week!

2010-12-27T12:00:00.000-08:00

I have decided that this week is Christmas Week. I always get really sad the night of Christmas Day, because Christmas is over! No longer, I say. The week after Christmas and before New Year's will now be Christmas Week in my life.
By the way, my Christmas Day was amazing; Russ got me super sweet and thoughtful presents, and the collection of gift cards I have from his Mom and my parents is really exciting! Christmas week this year takes place in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Russ and I plan to get lots of outdoor activity in; the weather has actually been gorgeous so far. It's clear and sunny, with temperatures maybe between mid-20s to high 40s. That's pretty awesome, considering I've been really cold here before. It was pretty chilly at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo last night, though!

Training while we're here will be a little bit of an adventure. When I'm on vacation, I seriously love making my workouts fit in with the time I spend with family! It's like this timing puzzle that's super satisfying to solve, because I feel good physically and mentally at the end of the day; I get my workouts in and I get to bond with loved ones. This morning, I threw an 800-gram ball around in the park near Russ's Mom's house for my throwing practice, and I'll lift at a random gym in the area while Russ is at a dentist appointment. Tomorrow, I'll run in that same park, and do gymnastics on the jungle gym! Last week, we were in Orange Beach, Alabama visiting Russ's grandparents and Dad, and the local recreation center offered everything I needed for training; all I had to do was be a little creative. Excuses don't cut it; if you want to get better, find a way to make it happen!
This morning's practice marked the beginning of the first week of Block 3 for me (my 9th week of training). I'm really excited about some of the technical things we've been working on this fall! My last throwing session before this Christmas trip started made me a little frustrated with figuring out the new positions, but I've been visualizing them pretty consistently, and really focused on them this morning in the park. I'm getting low in my legs in order to get my left down quickly, staying really closed until my left foot is down, and really trying to keep the javelin angle down at release by keeping the tip as close to my face as I can for as long as I can! I'm really looking forward to early spring training.

The Diamond League schedule for 2011 came out recently! Here is an idea of the meets I'd like to compete in this year:

last weekend of April: Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa
May 26: Rome, Italy*
June 4: Prefontaine Classic* in Eugene, Oregon
June 11: New York*, New York
last weekend of June: USA Championships in Eugene, Oregon
July 8: Paris, France*
July 22: Monaco*
August 5-6: London, England*
August 27-Sept. 4: World Championships in Daegu, Korea
September 9: Zurich, Switzerland*

*Diamond League meets

Merry Christmas Week!!

Business as Usual

2010-12-10T22:08:00.000-08:00

The last six or so weeks have been great! The first block (three weeks) of training went well, and this marks the end of the second week of my second block. I'm really, really excited about all the shoulder strengthening stuff that's involved in my every day training this year.

I always have shoulder pain when I start back training:

Every year my mind tricks me into thinking it's worse than it has ever been before! Once we get into regular throwing sessions and toss in some extra rehab for good measure though, it calms right down. Right now, we're throwing heavy javelins, getting back into crossover shape, and working really hard on learning some real gymnastics skills.

I've been having some technical difficulties with the internet lately, so I didn't get to post a blog about Rally for Girls' Sports Day. I just wanted to leave a list of things that I've won from playing sports.

1. friends
2. self-confidence
3. mental and physical strength
4. a job (that I love)
5. perspective on the world
6. opportunities to give back
7. lots and lots of gratitude for others

A note on #7: Victories (whatever their scale) are so much more fun when you realize that they aren't just your own. It's extremely humbling to think about the things that so many other people had a hand in to get you where you are, and I try to think about it every day and say thanks!

Back to Work

2010-11-04T21:32:00.001-07:00

Russ and I drove back to San Diego last week, arriving on Saturday in order to start practice on Monday. I have to say, vacation was so much fun and we lived such a "free" lifestyle that it was difficult to face the facts again! Our road trip all the way down the Oregon coast, across to Reno with a stop at Lake Tahoe, and down the east side of the Sierra Nevada mountains was one last taste of outdoor exploration before beginning fall training. It was beautiful!

Now that practice has begun, I can talk about javelin again!

The first four days of training have been awesome. My upper body (mainly my chest and shoulders) is unbelievably sore, and I'm sure my legs will catch up after tomorrow! Starting October 14, I had little preparatory workouts four days a week, which made it easier to transition into these full-fledged workouts that we're doing now!

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday are two-a-day practice days, and Wednesday and Saturday are "active rest" days. Monday and Thursday, Mike and I do drills and throw javelins in the morning and lift in the afternoon. Tuesday and Friday, we have conditioning exercises of all kinds in the morning and do gymnastics with the pole vaulters in the afternoon. Wednesdays this year, everyone goes to the beach, we take a 20-minute run, do general strength exercises in the sand, and then go for a dip in the ocean to cool off!

I don't know what Saturday has in store yet :).

I'm excited about how the year has started off. We are running a lot compared to last year, doing running drills, doing more specific strength stuff, and much more challenging (for me) gymnastics. I remember feeling a little out-of-sorts last year, mostly because I was new and unfamiliar with all of the drills and terminology. The throwing that we've done already has shown that the technique I learned last year has stuck with me well throughout vacation! There's also this feeling of excitement from everyone around here; I know it could be because it's the first week back, but I also have this idea that it has something to do with 2011 being a World Championships year...hooray!

The annual Throws Summit that USATF puts on is this weekend in Las Vegas; I usually enjoy a good javelin technique discussion, and it will be fun to see everybody!

The Great Northwest

2010-10-23T21:36:00.000-07:00

I am totally loving vacation! Southwest Washington in October is absolutely gorgeous; foggy, cool mornings mostly give way to clear, sunny afternoons that showcase colorful trees. Perfect for hiking and exploring outside.

Tuesday, Erica, Russ and I hiked Lava Canyon at the base of Mt. St. Helens. It was an awesome day, with beautiful scenery and excellent company! The hike had really steep sections with huge dropoffs to the river and crashing waterfalls below, ladders we had to climb up and down, and a 1/4-mile stone staircase trail to the top of a huge rock covered with greenery where we ate lunch! The first time Mt. St. Helens erupted 3500 years ago, lava carved a path through the valley. Then, the canyon that was made got covered up by forest. When Mt. St. Helens erupted again in 1980, a mudslide uncovered the canyon and people discovered it! Such a fun and various trip :).

Thursday, Mom, Russ and I hiked to June Lake, also at the base of Mt. St. Helens, for lunch. Then, we explored the lower cave of the Ape Caves in the same area!

Friday, Dad drove Russ and I to Astoria for lunch, and then on to Seaside for some cards (cribbage is the game of choice around here), lounging around, and a walk on the beach before heading back home.

I'm going to see my brother in Seattle and meet his girlfriend for the first time on Monday! I haven't seen him in a long time (probably since last Christmas), and that makes me sad. I'm so excited to catch up!

home again!

2010-10-03T22:10:00.000-07:00

I traveled home to Vancouver (technically La Center), Washington today! It feels SO good to be here and to relax a little bit. I have absolutely loved my last three weeks in Colorado with Russ!

We camped for two nights on the east side of Rocky Mountain National Park, where Elk are abundant and active! The male Elk ("Bulls") make a crazy, squeely, bugling sound at each other and to attract the females ("Cows"); it is quite a spectacle. The first night we camped there, a group of animals came right up to the road, vehicles and human audience and all.

We went on a hike the second day; one that led us past Nymph Lake and Dream Lake to reach Emerald Lake. It was much more populated than our previous hike to the other Emerald Lakes, but still awesome.

A group of Elk saw us out of the Park, and the Bull among them wasn't the least bit camera-shy!

Russ's Dad, Brad, has waited 23 years to have the opportunity to hunt for Elk in Moffat County, Colorado in a highly exclusive Game Management Unit. I do not claim to know anything about hunting, but what I know, I have learned in the past four days! This sector of Colorado is home to a huge population of large Bull Elk, and they were extremely active and vocal while we were in their territory. Before we left on this trip, I bought what's called a "Zero Gravity Lounger" so I would be comfortable reading books in camp all day while Russ, Brad and Brad's friend Les searched for animals in the woods.

It. Was. Awesome.

Camping was fun, spending time with Russ and his family was more fun, and I really enjoyed all the reading I got done, the sunsets I watched, and the fires I started all on my own.

I am only home for like two days! My roommate from Sophomore year at Purdue, Mel, is getting married on Saturday, and Sam is one of her bridesmaids. How could I possibly miss it??? I travel to Chicago on Wednesday, and I could not be more excited to see my friends!!!

Backpacking!

2010-09-19T10:28:00.001-07:00

I'm in Colorado Springs hanging out with Russ and his awesome parents! Last week, he and I walked eleven miles into the woods (uphill, haha) to get to the Emerald Lakes in the Weminuche Wilderness of Southwest Colorado near Durango. It was my first backpacking trip ever, and I absolutely loved it. It is so much hard work to pack in,

but incredibly rewarding!!

We camped just south of Little Emerald Lake, and took day hikes around it and to the north side of (Big) Emerald Lake. I'm loving vacation! Hanging out in Elk camp is next on the list.

Russ on the trail at the beginning of the pack in!

Us on our second day of hiking; straight uphill for 4 miles. But gorgeous :).

The first view we had of Little Emerald Lake! Beautiful.

A view toward the north shore of Emerald Lake from the trail on our day hike.

Looking south across Emerald Lake toward Little Emerald!

Russell on the trail on the way out. The Aspens were awesome :).

Continental Cup

2010-09-08T23:02:00.001-07:00

I competed in my last meet of the season on Saturday in Split, Croatia at the inaugural IAAF Continental Cup. It was a super neat experience, as being selected for the team was a real honor, and having teammates from other countries was new! I don't speak Spanish, but I was able to help my javelin teammate understand what was going on during the competition; cool.

Croatia itself is beautiful; mountainous land with many, many islands and the gorgeous, clear Adriatic Sea! I didn't take nearly as many pictures as I should have. Mike got some amazing sunset shots.

As for the competition, I was disappointed with my season-ending performance. I couldn't manage anything further than 58.07m; by far my worst meet of the year. I also ended up 6th out of 7. The bottom line is that I simply got tired after two months overseas! My body broke down a little bit, and

I simply couldn't get my mind past the fact that I was achy and sore on the day that I needed to be tough.

I also had a hard time focusing on executing my technique well because I couldn't get past the fact that I didn't feel good physically. Mediocre technique plus decreased confidence in my physical abilities equals worse throwing than I'm used to these days!

I had a meeting with Ty today to talk about next years' strategy, and discussing the future helped me understand what happened at the end of this season. This year, my training was designed to peak at USAs, with a maintenance program that started right afterward. That maintenance program allowed me to last about seven weeks in good shape before the affects of the training I did prior to USAs fully wore off. Seven weeks post-USA Championships put me right at Zurich, which is where things started to decline a little bit!

How cool to know why things happened the way they did,

and to know that we can change plans for next summer in order to be ready to throw far when we want to. Yay! I'm excited to have real focus next year instead of going meet to meet just, you know, seeing how things go. It will be good to have direction.

Overall, this season was amazing for me, and I'm super excited about how far I've come in a year, not to mention the room for improvement that I still see! Thank you endlessly to everyone that has ever offered me an encouraging word or ten, as it always, always helps!! Here are some statistics to compare last year with this one...

2009 average of top 5 competitions: 59.19m
63.95m (USAs)
58.56m (Regionals)
58.41m (ASU Invite)
57.90m (NCAAs)
57.14m (approximation...haha)

2010 average of top 5 competitions: 64.66m
66.67m (USAs)
65.90m (Prefontaine)
64.21m (Monaco)
63.41m (London)
63.11m (Gateshead)

Including all 12 competitions this year, my average was 62.28m. I threw 61.00m at 8 out of 12 competitions this season, or 67% of the time. In 2009, I threw further than 61.00m only once.

I'm extremely excited to have some rest! I fly to Colorado Springs tomorrow morning to hang out with Russ and his family, and we're going to spend lots of time in the great outdoors, yay!!!!

German Road Trip

2010-08-30T03:30:00.000-07:00

I traveled to Breda, Holland and Bad Kostritz, Germany this past weekend to watch Russ compete! We rented a car and got to drive on the Autobahn, wow.

Breda was gorgeous! Cutest little Netherlands town ever. They had their own beautiful cathedral and lots of litte interesting restaurants, not to mention happily chorusing groups of people everywhere; it must have been some sort of holiday. The stores were pretty impressive, too, not that I believe in shopping in Europe...I would if I could fit things in my suitcase, though!

After Russ competed in Breda, we took off in the car for Bad Kostritz; approximately a 6 hour drive. I was told that it's strange to drive for that long in Europe, because everything is supposed to be close together! We arrived late, and Bad Kostritz is a tiny (but awesome) German town.

The meet the next day was a combination Highland Games/track meet! It's called Kostritzer Werfertag ("Werfertag" is, literally, "Thrower Day"), and is sponsored by the local brewery. This means that the winner of each event got a giant glass of Kostritzer Schwarzbier, their specialty! In the spirit of sportsmanship, all of the guys who podiumed got a taste of the beer. The crowd really wanted them to chug the entire thing, which Russ almost did.

Russ competed in the Portland Highland Games in 2007, and it was such a fun experience to watch! The events at the Werfertag on Sunday were super entertaining; people just want to have fun with their friends when they're competing at something like that! I got some hilarious pictures, and videotaped a caber-weave race (??...see picture). There is a Highland Games World Championship in Scotland on the first Saturday in September of every year, and I think it would be amazing to go someday! I have a good source (my friend Jessica) who's a big fan.

Berlin

2010-08-27T11:26:00.000-07:00

I was ready to redeem myself in Berlin this year, both because of Zurich and last year’s World Championships in the same stadium. This summer has been full of amazing experiences, and I’m so glad that I chose to spend an entire two months of the season in Europe instead of commuting back and forth from the states! I have, however, gotten a little bit shaky on my technique because I’ve been practicing alone.

In Zurich, my distances didn’t suffer as much from poor technique as they did from timidity. In Berlin, I had 3 throws over 60-meters again, but because of aggression instead of good technique. I forced positions and I was frustrated enough with mediocre distances in the beginning of the competition to simply try harder instead of changing technique, compromising my shoulder and elbow a little.

Any time my arm gets out of its “slot” behind my shoulder and I still try to put some big energy into the throw, things get dangerous.

I’m definitely not injured as a result, but my arm was much more tender after Berlin’s competition than it has been after any other all year! It was nice to get some rest, massage, and rehabilitation-type exercises in upon my return to Cologne.

While I did have three 60-meter throws, I didn’t have any 61-meter (A standard) throws. My best landed at 60.97m, which I’m pretty sure is exactly 200 feet. I ended up third to Christina Obergfoll and Linda Stahl. The rest of the meet in Berlin was really cool to watch, and was highlighted by a world record in the men’s 800m race! It was absolutely amazing to see David Lekuta Rudisha of Kenya run 1:41.09. I ran the 800 in middle school, and while I was nowhere near good, I have massive respect for such a cool result. It's the best it has ever been done!! My friend Benn Harradine (shown below on the big screen!) threw well for second in the discus, and watching Brad pole vault again is really fun; this was only his second meet of the year!

I threw in practice today, and Ty was there to help me! It was so great to have his input again, and I’m feeling optimistic about my chances to go out with a bang at the Continental Cup. I leave for Split, Croatia on September 2nd, throw on September 4th, travel back to Cologne to pack up on September 5th, and go home to America on September 6th!! I can’t wait to get a San Diego beach day or two in before I go on vacation :).

Here are my meets and distances so far this year (A standard throws in bold):

Drake Relays: 61.80m
Tucson Elite Day 1: 60.33m
Tucson Elite Day 2: 61.75m
USA National Championships: 66.67m
Prefontaine Classic Diamond League: 65.90m
Vancouver, B.C.’s Harry Jerome: 61.58m
Gateshead Diamond League: 63.11m
Monaco Diamond League: 64.21m
London Diamond League: 63.41m
Zurich Diamond League: 59.50m
Berlin ISTAF World Challenge: 60.97m

Eight out of eleven meets above the A standard so far! My goal for the season was to have 90% of my meets at that distance. Eight out of eleven is approximately 73%. There’s no way I’ll reach my goal with only one meet left in the season, but all things considered, this year has been one big confidence-building, successful learning opportunity. During the 2009 season, I had one meet over the 60-meter line. I actually only had one meet over the 58.56-meter line, and that was USAs at 63.95m. The 2010 season has been a whole different story, and this last meet is arguably the most important of the year! I’m really excited to finish strong.

Zurich

2010-08-21T04:00:00.000-07:00

I did my best to approach the Diamond League Final as I have all of the other Diamond League meets this year; with confidence in my technique and focused on what I could do to succeed in the competition. Somewhere along the way in preparing though, I started listening to hype about the fact that I could win! While externally I said that I needed to just focus on what I could control, fantasies started playing in my head a little bit. It’s dangerous to think about what could be if you forget about what you’ll do to get there.
My distraction showed in my results, and I ended up 9th in the standings in Zurich with a throw of 59.50m on my third attempt. Ninth place means that I was the only one who only got three throws, as they took 8 to finals.

I was very happy to see Christina Obergfoll throw 67m! I was also so glad to congratulate Barbora Spotakova on her inaugural Diamond League victory!

Not living up to my own expectations was really difficult, though. If you know me, you know that I’m a pretty emotional person. I’m a sore loser when Russ beats me in cards, but I do my very best to be gracious on the javelin runway. I hate that I can’t help crying when I’m upset with myself, but I let my competitors know how great I think they are despite my few tears! All I know is that I really care about what I’m doing, and when I don’t succeed, I’m disappointed.

Another thing about the competition is that I knew everyone would come to throw far. It is a final, after all! I also knew that I needed to throw far, but after the first round, I started getting worried instead of digging deep for my competitive energy. I watched others’ distances instead of thinking about my own and how I could improve them, when I already knew I shouldn’t fall into that trap.

Even though the results from Zurich are definitely not what I wanted, I’m trying to keep a little bit of perspective. I want to be tough on myself, as accepting less than my best is not what I’m about, but beating myself up too much isn’t smart or healthy! Some people have asked me if I’m injured, worried that that’s the reason I had my first meet of the season below 60 meters and didn’t get at least top 3. I’m not injured; I just had a bad day.
One year ago, I would have been happy with 59.50m in any competition, as I was struggling terribly in Europe. I’m not happy with it now, but it’s my best distance by a long shot in a really high-pressure meet like this one was. I’m doing my best to learn everything I can from this season and am looking forward to applying all the new knowledge to competitions in the future.

I’m throwing in Berlin in the Olympic Stadium tomorrow! How great that I get an opportunity to throw again so quickly after a frustrating performance, especially because disappointments from last year in the same Olympic Stadium are now fresh in my mind. Can anyone say redemption? We’re even in the same hotel; I feel kind of like I get another chance.

Switzerland, Land of Chocolate and Presents

2010-08-18T02:26:00.000-07:00

I left for Zurich on Tuesday morning. I woke up around 3am to a torrential downpour outside. I couldn't sleep for the next hour and a half, worried about walking to the train station with my javelins and suitcase in the storm! Sure enough, at 4:45 when I headed out the door, it was still coming down. When you're faced with a problem you just have to overcome, no matter what, you might as well get going on it.
Luckily, it poured rain a few days earlier, and I had bought an umbrella (the first one I've ever really owned, being from Washington, and tough about rain). I honestly don't know how I did it, but I took my javelins and suitcase in one hand (two fingers holding the jav bag and two rolling the suitcase) with the umbrella in the other. My traps were on fire after a minute or so, so I did my best to switch arms periodically! This meant that I barely made it to the train on time. It was smooth sailing once I reached the airport, though.

Upon check-in at the Hotel Moevenpick by the Zurich Airport,

they gave me chocolate!!!!

My diet rules are that I cannot buy or otherwise get sweets for myself; they must be given to me as presents, or I need to be celebrating something. Being given delicious Swiss chocolate as a welcome gift is well within those rules! Being given an awesome Swiss massage by a meet physiotherapist is great, too.

On Tuesday afternoon, there was a kids' clinic at the stadium that I was invited to attend! Christina Obergfoell, Sunette Viljoen and I led group of kids in throwing Vortex nerf footballs and foam turbo-javelins. It was a nice break from my normal routine, and when we returned to the hotel, iPod Nanos were waiting for us as thank-yous!

I was interview by Peter Ahnberg for IAAF Athletix (a TV show) on Wednesday morning. They filmed me blogging, which was a surprise, and we talked about the competition and the rest of my season. Neat. After that I did my pre-meet and relaxed all day (and the next day), preparing for the competition.

London

2010-08-14T10:34:00.000-07:00

I arrived in London in a much more put-together fashion than last year! I know my way around the Cologne Airport pretty well now, so check-in and finding the oversize baggage screening area and my gate were a breeze. I did, however, forget that London would have different outlets than those in Cologne! Thank goodness for Becky Breisch and her preparedness; she always has extra converters, and let me borrow one after the two I bought last-minute in the airport weren't up to the task of charging my phone.

Speaking of Becky, it was so good to see her!! I miss San Diego a lot, and I literally hadn't seen Becky or Britney (who came for lunch on Friday) since the very beginning of July. Brad also made his season debut, and hanging out with all of them was a much-needed taste of comforting home!

I traveled to Amsterdam a few weeks ago to watch Russ throw discus in the 1928 Olympic Stadium there. I had a great time simply spectating, but it poured down rain during the whole competition! For some reason, I knew that London would be the same. I brought as many warm clothes as I could fit in the small bag that I take to meets, and prepared for the competition in much the same way that I got ready for Drake in April. I know that I need to feel really warm to trust my body to throw far, so I wore long spandex and a long-sleeve shirt under my uniform. Rain is inevitable sometimes, so you might as well prepare for success despite it.
My warm-up throws for the competition were mediocre at best, and I was feeling really tired. That was frustrating, because I felt awesome in my pre-meet workout the day before! Maybe I over-did it. Anyway, warm-ups only count for preparing your body for competition, so I did my best to execute technique on my first throw; I didn't do a very good job of it, but it went 59.57m. That's only my second 59-meter throw ever, and the way I began my series at USAs, so I was encouraged by it. My second throw was better overall and landed at 61.77m, and my third felt excellent until I dropped my arm at the last second, making the flight funny and only going 56m.

Becky, Jill, Dustin and a bunch of other Americans were standing behind the runway watching the meet and cheering for me, and it was so great to be able to smile thanks in their direction between throws. After my third throw (we only got four attempts again, like Gateshead), I went to chat a little about technique. Becky was helpful and encouraging, and on my way back to my chair, Andreas waved me over to give me some tips! We chatted about how I should run onto my block and keep my arm back as far as possible to connect with the javelin better, and I kinda did that on my last throw; 63.41m. Cool.

I barely lost to Barbora! She threw 63.50m on her first attempt and passed the rest because her elbow hurts. I hope that her injury isn't serious, as elbows can be tricky for any javelin thrower. My parents watched the video on Universal Sports and got to see lots of my throws!

I'm kinda disappointed. I wanted a better distance, and I went into this meet knowing that if I won, I had a very legitimate shot at winning the entire women's javelin Diamond League series. I want to say that I did my best on the day of competition in London, but I know that I could have done better. I haven't had a competition in a while, so I should have been fresh from all the rest I've gotten. I've had a lot of opportunity to work on things in practice, but I haven't been executing positions quite like I should be. I didn't feel fresh and I didn't execute the greatest positions, but I still managed to compete well and almost come away with a victory! I also had an A standard throw in my first three attempts, and as I was trying to envision this competition as, say, the Olympic final in London in two years, I was happy to put a decent distance out there early. Take the good with the bad, but focus on how to use the bad for good in the future.
I still have my biggest competitions of the season to come! The Diamond League final in Zurich on August 19th is a big deal, as it's the culmination of Pre, Gateshead, Monaco and London for me (plus Doha and Rome before that), and is worth double Diamond points. The Continental Cup in Split, Croatia on September 4th is such an interesting and exciting event, and will be my last of the season. Ty, Mike and Melinda recently arrived in Cologne, and I'm really looking forward to throwing with Ty in practice again!

Reschedule!

2010-08-01T11:24:00.000-07:00

So, the travel to Tallinn, Estonia was going to be as follows:

By train:
6:45: leave for the main train station in Cologne
7:25-8:20: Cologne to Monchengladbach
8:25-8:56: Monchengladbach to Venio
9:19-10:00: Venio to Eindhoven
10:02-11:22: Eindhoven to Amsterdam Centraal
By plane:
13:15-16:30: Amsterdam to Riga International
17:10-18:05: Riga to Tallinn

All that with a rolling duffel bag, javelins and a backpack? Sounds really difficult. I've had a bit of a cold for about a week, and have been feeling it in the way workouts have gone. Getting information about this travel schedule coupled with the sickness factor made the decision not to go to the meet pretty simple, even though I had been looking forward to it! Sometimes doing the best thing for myself takes some convincing, but I like to think that I come to my senses more often than not.
In other news, tomorrow is Russ's birthday, and since we're both no longer going to this meet, we'll be able to do something fun to celebrate!

Unfamiliar Territory

2010-08-01T04:02:00.000-07:00

In preparation for my next competition, I was supposed to throw and do some overheads (throwing a shot put behind you as far as possible) yesterday. It takes approximately one whole hour to get to Leverkusen, so I opted for the Cologne Sport University again.

I arrived at the Rheinenergie Stadion train stop and made my way past the stadium toward the track to do my workout. When I got there, it was locked. Crap.

There are big empty fields right next to the stadium, so I made my way back to throw a little in the grass. I haven’t felt awesome lately-I think due to sickness on top of a little different exercise plan-so I warmed up carefully and did my best to listen to my body. Throwing in the grass is so fun for me! I did it the other day in Leverkusen, too. It’s easier on my back, I can go at a little slower pace than I would off of the runway, and it really makes me work to hit the positions I want to. It also helps me trust my footing; we worked on throwing on grass in the fall, and if you get your left foot down to block on time, you’re not going to slip like you’re afraid you will. Good training!

Sometimes when you’re in an unfamiliar place, you don’t have access to everything you need to train like you would at home. If you’re unsure about whether or not you’re supposed to be doing something somewhere (throwing javelins in a really nicely-kept field by a pretty stadium, for instance), do it until you’re told not to. Then be respectful and apologetic when you get in trouble.
So, I’m throwing my javelins in the grass, and it’s going well, and I’m listening to my music on my iPod shuffle, when a man responsible for facility maintenance in a bright orange jumper thing strolls over to me. I do my best to ignore him and keep my headphones in, as I’m afraid he’s going to kick me out. He catches up with me, and instead of getting upset and making me leave, he just wants to throw one of my javelins! So I let him. A few minutes later, another one of the jumpsuit men comes over for his try. “Just once,” I say, and he throws and is happy. These two encounters made me laugh! These guys seemed pretty bored with their jobs, and simply wanted to attempt what I was doing. Nice; they took an interest.

I head back toward my pile of stuff, throwing along the way, and just as I’m about to take my last throw of the day, I get another visitor. This one drives across the beautiful grass on a moped, cigarette hanging from his mouth, and spouts off some German at me. I think he was working the event going on at the stadium, and it was weird to me that he was so rude, because everyone else at that event was super happy! “Entschuldigung, bitte? Sprechen Sie English?” I say, and he simply points at my javelins, waves his arms horizontally in front of him and says, “Nichts!” Oh, I understand…you don’t want me throwing here, but you can drive your moped around on the grass. Alright.
So I toss my remaining javelin down on the ground, smile politely, and say, “I just finished! Thank you.”

All-in-all, a weird and semi-frustrating, but also semi-successful day. I walked about half an hour out of my way only to find the locked track and head back to the field where I decided to throw. I got in some good throws at the intensity that I needed to a few days before a competition, and got to glimpse a social event unlike any other I’ve witnessed before. The trains were super crowded, and that’s really annoying when you have javelins on board and everyone a)gives you really funny looks and b)expects you to be able to negotiate an 8-foot-long tube that does not bend around corners or people with the greatest of ease, without giving you any extra wiggle room. If it was me, and I didn’t know what was in the giant long case, I might not crowd as close as I possibly could to it. Just saying.

Tourists

2010-07-28T05:16:00.000-07:00

Russ and I went sight-seeing on Friday and Saturday! The cathedral (Kolner Dom) in the central part of the city is amazing, and apparently one of the more important destinations for pilgrimages during the period of history when that was the cool thing to do.

Friday, we did our best to find the stairs to the top of the towers, but couldn’t, so just looked around the impressive main level. There was actually a service going on, which definitely added to the ambiance! Like the most perfect background music for exploring a super ancient, amazing church.

The train bridge over the Rhein in Cologne has thousands of locks attached to it. Russ had noticed them from the trains, and we walked over to check it out after touring the Dom on Friday. As far as we could tell, each lock represents a loving couple! It’s seriously impressive how many of them there are; we (…Russ) calculated a conservative number, and got 560,000! At least!!

Saturday, since we had nothing else to do, we decided to actually find those tower stairs. Success! Five hundred and thirty three stairs later, we looked down from a ridiculous height on the city! The bell room was really cool, and it’s just astounding to think about the people that had to climb up there and build that thing. How freaking scary.
Last night, Becky, Brianna, Bri’s friend Mel, Trevell, Jamie, Russ and I hung out together at the Aachener-Weiher Beer Garden. It was SO much fun to just sit and laugh with friends! Being in Koln alone and trying to figure everything out is a little tough, but when you can have such a fun time together, all the traveling and stuff gets a lot better!

Monaco

2010-07-25T11:43:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Monaco on Wednesday and realized that I miss San Diego a lot! The palm trees, gorgeous scenery, nice cars, ocean views, and beautiful weather made me think of home. Monaco was just a lot more expensive!

When the meet lady greeted me in baggage claim in Nice, France, she had me leave my javelins with the pole vault poles that had already arrived, assuring me that she would take care of their transportation to the track later that day. I asked a bunch of questions about that, as I’m not really comfortable letting my implements out of my sight. I decided to trust her.

The drive to the hotel was awesome! We meandered along a super windy road that made its way down the side of a mountain, and overlooked the French Riviera the whole time. I checked in with no problems, and asked a few questions about my javelins to make sure they would be taken to the track like I was told. Then I had lunch with Jill and Dustin, and Jarred, followed by a pre-meet workout later that afternoon. I didn’t do a lot of exploring Wednesday, as I was simply ecstatic to be spending some time in an air-conditioned space with a comfortable bed and someone who spoke English (Erin Donohue was my roommate at the meet)!

After breakfast the next day and asking a few more questions about my javelins

(Will they be checked in at the track, or do I need to find them and do that myself? Have you seen them? Are you sure they’ll be there?)

and being assured again that they would show up, Jill, Dustin and I took a walk! We went up to the pool deck and took in the amazing views. Then we checked out the area up by the Monte Carlo Casino, where all the super fancy cars park at night. We wandered back to our hotel (the Fairmont Monte Carlo) on the other side to see the apparently famous hairpin turn in front of the entrance. An afternoon of relaxation followed our short adventure, and I left for the competition around 6:45pm, as women’s javelin started at 8:40pm.

My general warm-up felt awesome on Thursday! It was hot and humid, which is pretty conducive to warm muscles. I felt explosive and rested, and did a good job of getting my shoulder warm, as I’m now prepared to not getting time to throw in the grass at big meets. There was an awesome crowd, I warmed up on the runway well, and was really looking forward to throwing far. Once again, I didn’t throw over 61m in my first three, but my fourth one went 62m to move me into second place, and my fifth was 64.21m to keep second to Barbora. There's video this time, too!

I really, really tried to win on my sixth throw,

but as good as it felt on the runway, I missed the tip a little bit and it fell short at 58-59m. I felt better about the positions that I hit at this meet than I have lately, and I was happy that I had two throws over 62m, but I still want better distances in my initial three attempts. I was kind of surprised to feel disappointment after my last throw, too!

I am beginning to expect more of myself than I ever have. Cool.

When we were escorted out to the runway before competition, the first thing I looked for was my javelins, which I hadn’t seen in one whole day. They weren’t there, despite all of my careful questioning! When you check javelins (or any other throwing implement) in for competition, they become fair game. I am always happy to let other athletes use my stuff, and the same kinds of javelins that I like throwing were already checked in, so I used them! I figured that I would solve the mystery of where they were afterwards. As soon as the competition was over (and I was notified that I had been selected to be drug tested…again), I tried to figure out where they’d got to. I was told that they would meet me back at the hotel that evening, but the offices where they might be were closed. The assistant meet director (Remy), of all people, found me that night to tell me he would do his best to find them in the morning and let me know.

The meet has a pretty fancy Gala after the competition concludes, and it was really nice to visit with friends and eat some good food. Just when I thought I was headed to sleep after the Gala, my married friends Jill and Dustin, Casey and Lindsey had the awesome idea to go jump in the ocean! We walked to the beach, and spent like an hour floating around, laughing, avoiding “Snea Snakes” in the words of Jill, and marveling at the fact that we were actually in the French Riviera! I missed Russ like crazy on the romantic walk back to the hotel with the two married couples :).

I woke up earlier than necessary the next day to find my javelins before catching the shuttle to the airport. I looked in all of the meet offices in the hotel to no avail! I had no choice but to board my bus and hope that Remy found my javelins and could ship them to me in Germany. About an hour later while standing in line to check in at the airport, Remy called me to say he had found them and they would be arriving on the next bus! I waited outside for them, then checked in and got through security in just enough time to board the plane. It will always be a mystery where my javelin case was for two days, but the results and the experience I had in Monaco couldn’t have been much better for my first time. Yay!

Here is my upcoming meet schedule as I hope it goes!

August 3rd: Tallin, Estonia
August 13th: London, England
August 19th: Zurich, Switzerland
August 22nd: Berlin, Germany
August 31st: Rovereto, Italy
September 4th: Split, Croatia

Then, home!

The New Girl

2010-07-18T09:44:00.000-07:00

Every day is an adventure in Cologne, Germany.

I have been training, yes, but I have been doing a lot more walking, moving apartments, looking for food, attempting to get rent money, taking the wrong trains, and translating the laundry machines. I’ve also been doing my best to use the German that I remember from high school and college, but I’m not often successful I realize that my last post was really optimistic and happy, and that’s generally how I feel, but getting used to a place takes some time! Momentarily, though, I’m enjoying a nice iced mocha and evening muffin at the Starbucks with free internet in Friesenplatz, and life could only be better if Russ was here, too.

Apartment adventure:
I spent my first four nights at the apartment Becky and Brianna rented. It’s nice to have friends around, but I felt out of place, as they had rented the space for themselves, not me. I looked at and signed the paperwork for my own flat in the MediaPark area of the city, and I like it a lot! It has been hot, there is no air conditioning anywhere, and fans are sold out all over the city, but my apartment has nice big windows that give good airflow to the place at night. It’s in the city, so it’s loud, but I plan on finding ear plugs and an eye mask somewhere around here soon.

Food adventure:
When you live in the city and don’t speak the language fluently, it’s a little bit difficult to find what you’re looking for in terms of a grocery store. I love the German bakeries, but Apfeltasche won’t sustain me (or help me throw far, haha). Becky and I found a pretty good grocery store when we went to Leverkusen for training yesterday, and I will do my best to find another one close by soon. I have enough to tide me over now, but it was bleak for a while! There is a good old-fashioned Subway near my apartment, too!

Money adventure:
I brought a good amount of cash with me (but not enough to pay rent), as I know that it’s the easiest way to make transactions in foreign countries. Credit and debit cards are different from country to country, and I’ve found that you can’t really depend on them. There are also ATM withdrawal limits overseas just as there are in the U.S., and I am forced to pay my rent in 150 Euro increments because the Deutsche Bank (partner of Bank of America, or so I’m told) won’t give me a cash advance for the full amount of the summer’s rent. Very frustrating and confusing because of the language barrier and the mystery of why something I’m told should work, won’t. My Dad is doing his best to help me, though, and my landlady is awesome.

Train adventure:
So far, I have taken two trains in the wrong direction. I think that’s pretty good, considering I’ve taken a lot of trains! The day that I moved from the third floor (with no elevator) of Becky and Brianna’s building to the second floor (with elevator, yay) of my building (one train stop away), I took two trips to get all the stuff to the new place. The first trip took me an hour, one way, because I took the right train in the wrong direction, and when I finally got to my stop, I started walking the wrong way and had to turn around. The second trip took me 15 minutes. Friday, when Becky and I were doing our best to get back to Cologne from Leverkusen, we sat and watched two trains we thought we weren’t supposed to take pull away, then took a third of the same line of train because we figured out that it was, indeed, the one we needed. Then, we took the right train, in the wrong direction, from the main station and had to turn around. But we made it! We decided that you need to mess up in the train system before you really understand it. I feel like I haven’t messed up enough to be proficient yet.

Laundry adventure:
There are laundry machines (washer and dryer, the latter of which is a big deal) in the basement of my building, and I’m so happy about that. The washer takes 1 Euro for 1 hour of power, and yesterday I put one load of laundry through one washing cycle, but without the water. Oops? I didn’t see water going in there, but I figured maybe that happened later in German washing machines? The second time around, I found a little valve to turn that let the water in. Yay! All in all, I spent 5 Euro and approximately 6 hours doing laundry. Cool. At least I have clean clothes.

In other news, I threw pretty well on Thursday at the Deutsche Sporthochschule Köln (German Sport University Cologne, the one in the picture), and felt great in training in Leverkusen on Friday!
My body is feeling a little broken down, especially in my Achilles, but my back feels good and I’m doing my best to be off my feet when I can. Becky and I went to dinner by the Rhein last night, and back to Leverkusen for throwing, vaulting and lifting today! Russ gets here on the 20th, and I honestly haven’t been more excited to see him since we lived in different states!!! He has been a real warrior of the circuit, as he will have competed in 6 meets in about a week before he arrives in Cologne. What an outrageous stud!

Gateshead, Great Britain

2010-07-12T11:35:00.001-07:00

I competed in my second Diamond League event of the season in Gateshead on Saturday! I threw 63.11m on my fourth (and final...we only got four attempts) throw to move from 4th place to 2nd.

My general warm-up for the competition felt really good! I was happy, because I didn't quite know how I would feel on the day of competition after arriving from "The States" (as they say abroad) two days prior. My throwing warm-up didn't feel as good, and my first three throws felt pretty bad (especially 2 and 3; I intentionally fouled them). I'm really looking forward to throwing in practice this week and next and re-cementing some of the technical things that I've lost my edge on in my past few competitions! Like in Eugene last weekend, I didn't release an A Standard throw in my first three tosses in Gateshead, and my primary goal is to do so as often as possible this summer.

All self-criticism aside, I'm excited that I placed and threw well in my first meet overseas!

It's difficult to travel and compete right away (although apparently not for Russell :)), and I'm glad that my results are already better than last year's. Russ threw a PR (Personal Record, just in case you're not familiar with the terminology) in the discus of 62.88m on Saturday in Donnas, Italy after arriving from the United States a mere four hours before his competition! What a trooper!! That's a World B Standard throw, and I'm super proud of him. :)

I traveled from England to Cologne, Germany on Sunday night, and Brianna Glenn is letting me crash at her apartment here until I get my own! I have an appointment to see a flat (teehee!) in the Mediapark section of the city tomorrow afternoon, and I think I'm going to love it. The apartment is in close proximity to a cinema, grocery stores, restaurants and more, plus the S-Bahn and U-Bahn (train and subway) systems in German cities are simple and efficient, with stations absolutely everywhere. We will do the majority of our training at the Cologne Sport University, but will make a few trips to Leverkusen to use their facilities, too.

I vow to start taking pictures soon. I get to train hard here for a week and a half or so, and head to Monaco on July 21st!

Tale of Two Travel Experiences

2010-07-09T13:26:00.001-07:00

I arrived in Gateshead, Great Britain yesterday, and I wanted to share two very different stories. (all links in this post will be English, by the way!)

Travel Experience A:

July 2009: Purdue to London, England

My flight from Indianapolis was delayed approximately two hours, meaning I sprinted through the huge Minneapolis airport to barely catch my flight (on which I sweated constantly and wheezed some because of my jaunt) to London Heathrow. For this reason, when I arrived, my checked luggage didn’t. This being my first major international meet not with Team USA or people to take care of me, I hadn’t packed my uniform or javelin shoes in my carry-on.

Sometimes I see missing luggage as a good thing (less to carry, yay!),

but I kind of needed my stuff to do my job. I focused next on looking for my ride. Russ had advised me to find people with signs about the meet, so I awkwardly read the signs the few men in suits were holding by the exit from baggage claim. None said anything remotely related to track and field. I asked the lady at the information booth if she could help me, and she paged anyone looking for Kara Patterson (which is so embarrassing). No luck. I had rented a world phone from Verizon because my Voyager didn’t have international capability, so I could supposedly text and call people. Nope; no service. I ended up buying an hour of internet (thank goodness it was available in the airport) so I could Skype Russ and have him contact Jeff somehow so he could contact the meet (because obviously I didn’t print off any of my own information) and ask them what I should do! That took a while, but finally we figured out that I was in Terminal 4, when I needed to get a ride from Terminal 1.

Who knew London Heathrow was so big (not me);

the train to Terminal 1 took about half an hour. Once I got there, I wandered around a little more, timid and increasingly anxious, since my computer battery was now low and outlets are hard to come by in European airports. Finally I saw Brad Walker emerge from the arrivals area, and stuck to him like glue. The shuttle man found Brad immediately :). Once we got to the hotel, the front desk had me down as Karen, but gave me a key anyway. I was so excited to get to my room and take a shower (and then put on the same clothes and not be able to brush my teeth…ew) but when I got to the door, my key didn’t work. Awesome. So I trudged back downstairs to get a different one. I had arrived on a Thursday evening, and it took until 10:00pm on Friday to get my luggage delivered to the hotel! The meet was on Saturday. At least I got the stuff. The only time that I shed frustrated tears was when one of the front desk ladies refused to let me use their phone to call the airport about my bags. The climax of this whole story is that I threw terribly and didn’t even make the final the next day.

Travel Experience B:

July 2010: San Diego to Gateshead, England

My dear training partner Mike took me to the airport on Wednesday for my 6:25am Delta flight. I only paid 55 dollars for both my javelins and my checked bag, and I carried my brand-new awesome Eagle Creek rolling backpack on. All my entertainment fits in the purse that I got at the fair, so there’s no shuffling around in the bag that I put in the overhead bin before boarding. From San Diego to New York’s JFK airport, the middle seat next to my window seat was open, and I got some sleep before beating Prince of Persia on my iPad. I had two hours in JFK to call my mom and Sam and get some food (the food lady was super nice). I also bought Stephen King’s “Under the Dome,” which is my first full book by the famous author, and excellent so far. From JFK to Barcelona, I had my own row. Yes, three seats to myself. I slept (laying down!) for about 5 of the 7ish hours. Fabulous.

The price I paid for such luxury was one lost earring back. Those are replaceable.

I had about a 6-hour layover in Barcelona, but waiting for my bags and going through customs took about an hour and a half, and I read for about three. It took some effort to find my check-in counter, but I consider the long walk I took in the heat and humidity to be yesterday’s workout! You’d think that the Barcelona airport’s use of pictures on signs instead of words would simplify things, but when you don’t know which picture you’re looking for, things get confusing. The flight from Barcelona to Newcastle was painless, and I napped and read my book. I got through customs and got my luggage quickly before immediately finding my ride just outside baggage claim! I even had some people to talk to on the shuttle. The first key that they gave me downstairs worked magnificently, and I did some abs and showered before getting an awesome massage and eating dinner with Jill and her husband Dustin, Leo and Michelle.

Immediately after London last year, I purchased a BlackBerry. Now I can communicate via two different email addresses, BlackBerry Messenger, Facebook, and Twitter at all times, and text or call if I want to pay lots of money (which I don’t). This time, I printed off all of the itineraries I had, copied hotel addresses and phone numbers before I left the states, and packed my shoes, uniform, and some extras in my carry-on. That age-old theory works:

If you’re prepared for the worst, things will work out for the best.

You’ll also have a lot of peace of mind after understanding how stressful a trip gone wrong can be.

The meet in Gateshead is tomorrow! I throw at 5:40pm. That’s nine hours ahead of San Diego time.

Beautiful British Columbia

2010-07-06T07:25:00.001-07:00

A quick note about Harry Jerome before I board my plane back to San Diego!

This place is gorgeous. I didn't get to hang out in downtown Vancouver, B.C. at all, but what I saw of the city and surrounding area from the plane and cars was just amazing. I can't wait to hopefully come back in the fall with Russ maybe! Mountains, water, greenery everywhere, and family made the trip fabulous, not to mention throwing pretty well again and seeing my friend Krista for the first time in a long while!

I threw 61.58m (202'0") on my second throw of the day, took one more that went 58.94m, and passed my remaining three throws. I'm feeling tired from all of the competition lately! I didn't have competitions for like a month before USAs, so all this traveling lately is awesome, but I'm also working hard to keep up. I didn't want to hurt myself, so I figured I shouldn't take all of my attempts. I did, however, continue to meet one of my goals.
I told myself I would throw the World A Standard (61.00m last year) in ninety percent of my meets this year, and right now I'm 5 for 6 on that. Gotta keep it going.

Russell threw 20.15m in shot put for second place at the meet! It's always fun when we can be at a competition together, and I really enjoyed the short time we got to hang out.

In other news, I've been accepted into Gateshead and London, as well as Monaco! I had to decide between Barcelona and Gateshead, and I'm really sad that I don't get to go to Barcelona, but sometimes tough choices have to be made. I'm really looking forward to my Europe trip, which takes off tomorrow morning, super early!

Prefontaine Classic

2010-07-03T21:43:00.000-07:00

Firstly, Happy 4th of July!!!!! And happy birthday to my good friend Jim :).

Today I competed in my first Diamond League event of the season, the 36th Annual Prefontaine Classic. I have to say, this meet is amazing!! Russ threw at Pre in 2007, and I was lucky enough to travel to Eugene, Oregon with him to watch.

I was amazed then, and I was blown away today!

With so many awesome performances all around the track and in the field, I admit that it was a little difficult to focus on my own event. Just check out the results and press coverage on the website! So cool to be around!

I arrived at the track around 11:00am (I caught the shuttle this time!), checked in my javelins, and headed over to hammer to watch Britney throw! I didn't get to see last weekend's hammer competition, so I wanted to make sure I at least glimpsed it. She finished fifth! Our Canadian friend Sultana Frizell threw for third :). I watched the whole hammer competition! It was possible because the field was small and the meet was high-energy. Awesome!

After hammer, I laid down for a few minutes. I checked in, warmed up, reported to the tent, warmed up on the field, and was ready to go! At these bigger meets, sometimes things take a little bit longer to get accomplished. They take the field out to the runway earlier and there's another event going on, so you have to wait to throw. There's a lot going on on the track, so you have to wait to be introduced. At a meet as big as World Championships or the Olympics, there might even be a national anthem playing, and nothing goes on when that happens; respect! :).

The waiting game shouldn't take away from your performance, though. I try to use it to relax.

The competition ended up going well! At first, the whole field struggled. There were only six of us javelin thrower girls, so things went quickly once throwing commenced. We had a typical Hayward Headwind, as expected, and my technique wasn't quite ready for it today! I figured it out by the end, though, and threw 65.90m on my last toss. Yay!

I ended up...first! In my first Diamond League!

Results here. I'm stoked. I didn't get a 61-meter throw in my first three, which is always my goal, but I'm glad to have followed last weekend up with another big distance.

Oregon track and field fans are always awesome, and today they did not disappoint.

It's really inspiring to be down on the field when a close race is egged on by the crowd, and it's fantastic to be cheered on by 12,000 strong. Wow.

On to Vancouver, B.C. after a day of rest at home in Vancouver, Washington! Side note: Nani and Nio (the family dogs) are getting SO old. I cried a little when Nani tottered up to me. They are still themselves though!

USAs

2010-06-29T21:27:00.000-07:00

Drake Stadium is turning out to be a fun place for me to throw.

Last Friday, I competed in the 2010 USA Track and Field Outdoor National Championships. I won my third consecutive national title (counting the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials), and had the best series of my life.

Ty had a lot of athletes competing this weekend, so it was up to me to get to the track by myself. I planned to take the 3:40pm shuttle from our Holiday Inn Hotel, but it left early! I missed my ride! Good thing there was a couple right next to me that had also missed the shuttle. Sylvia and Kurt-a couple of Kansas Jayhawk fans who had come to Des Moines simply to watch the meet-gave me a ride to the stadium, and we got an excellent parking spot. I directed them toward the throwing fields, where they watched Russ earn fourth place in the discus!
I’m super proud of him for persevering through some nasty wind conditions to place well in his “fun” event.
After checking in at the clerking tent to get my bibs, I went inside to sit down for a while. As soon as I arrived at the track, I started tripping over things. I’m naturally clumsy, but Friday was worse than usual. I couldn’t help thinking, “why today? I need to be coordinated in a few hours, geez.” I ate most of my second sandwich of the day, did my warm-up, and went back to the tent to be lead out to the field with the rest of the girls! I found Ty in the crowd after scanning it for my mom, Russ, and Grandpa too, and had a solid warm-up. It was fun to have Ty there for a competition! I liked how he told me to stop my throwing warm-up earlier than I might have if he wasn’t around; it let me know that he thought I was completely ready to go.

This year at USAs, the women’s javelin competitors were all put together in one flight. There were 15 of us in a rotation, and I didn’t think it was necessarily a bad thing! Sometimes it’s nice to have a little break between throws, and the officials kept the meet running very smoothly. I was the 13th thrower in the order.

Lo and behold, I tripped on my first throw. Surprise, surprise. Sometimes when I get too excited, my right foot clips the inside of my left leg upon withdraw! My shoes are pretty rough on the bottom, so when this happens, I make myself bleed. Despite this hiccup, my first throw went 59.62m (195’7”). I had actually never had a 59-meter throw before this! I’ve always thrown either 58 or 60 meters, never in between. Kinda cool. This was my series after throw number one: 60.92m, 62.61m, 61.42m, 62.80m, 66.67m (218’9”).

I am SO happy not only to have broken the American Record on my sixth throw, but to have put together a series like I did. I am well aware that I haven’t been the most consistent javelin thrower throughout my career so far, but I’m on a mission this year to change that!

I can't say enough how thankful I am to everyone who has sent me congratulatory messages! The outpouring of encouragement and excitement for me has been overwhelming, and it's amazing to see how much people care that things are going well. I truly appreciate it!

The technical aspects that I focused on most at USAs were landing behind my block, not pushing off of my right foot into my block, and doing my best to keep my left side closed as long as possible. The strong headwind that we dealt with during the competition would have been a major ordeal for me last year, as I used to throw my javelin too high (take my first four and last throws at USAs 2009 as evidence). This isn’t something I fixed overnight. I’ve fixed it by focusing on other aspects of my throwing. Those other aspects naturally helped me control the trajectory of my javelin! Cause and effect is a big deal in javelin throwing. I’m not saying I don’t still struggle with it in practice sometimes, though; I do. Javelin will always be a work in progress.
Being at a meet with my training partners and friends from the Olympic Training Center was such a blast. We represented the training center well! Something I didn’t expect (but should have) in moving to Chula Vista was the team aspect there. Yeah, I left the college atmosphere behind, but I still have a track family to support and be supported by. It’s so much fun to walk around a meet and see multiple people that I train with every day doing well in their respective events! Our comradery makes us all better.

On Saturday, I drove up to Fort Dodge to see Grandma and Grandpa and Mom! I rented a car (a Pontiac G6; loved it), and found an awesome light rock radio station (104.1 if you live in Des Moines…) that actually came in loud and clear on the whole 2-hour drive! After all the excitement of the competition the day before, it was awesome to relax and sing along in the car. Visiting Grandma and Grandpa is always really fun for me, and I’m so happy I took the time to do so.

I only stayed for the afternoon, however, and drove back to Des Moines that night to hang out with Britney, who was third in women’s hammer! Russ got sixth in shot put on Sunday, and my roommate Becky Holliday earned 2nd in pole vault; her highest placing at a national championship with a personal best of 4.60m (15’1”). Sean Furey and Mike went 1-2 in the men’s javelin that day, Becky Breisch won women’s discus, and Tora Harris and Jamie Nieto were 2nd and 3rd in men’s high jump! Connie Moore also won the 200m dash after a hiatus from the sport. What an awesome day for Chula Vista :).

I throw at the Prefontaine Classic this Saturday; my first Diamond League event of the season!!! I’m so excited about it, and I have some friends and my parents coming to watch. I even get to go home after the meet is over and sleep in my own bed before I head to Vancouver, B.C. for the Vancouver Sun Harry Jerome International Track and Field Classic! My Dad will travel to that meet also, and my Canadian family is planning on being there. My schedule after this weekend is as follows:
July 6: fly from Vancouver, B.C. back to San Diego
July 7: travel from San Diego to Barcelona, Spain
July 9: meet in Barcelona, Spain
July 10: travel from Barcelona to Cologne, Germany
July 22: meet in Monaco (another Diamond League that I just got invited to!)
After that: who knows :)

relaxin' all cool...

2010-06-25T10:24:00.000-07:00

I'm waiting for some Jimmy John's sandwiches to be delivered to my hotel room in Des Moines, and I don't know what else to do but write a new post.

I throw tonight at 6:00pm at USAs! I kind of like it when competitions are later at night. I get to relax all day and get some stuff done if I choose (like paint my nails, which I already did). I also like to watch movies :).

I'm currently in the market for some new methods of carrying-on to planes. Ever since my bags got misplaced on my way to a meet in London last year, I travel with the essentials at all times. My uniform and shoes are always in my carry-on, with some extra exercise gear and toiletries for good measure. The thing is, that stuff adds up to a lot of weight on my back if it's in a normal old backpack! I know it's not the coolest thing in the world, but I'm really excited about purchasing a rolling backpack. Don't hate. There might be some Asics ones out there! I figure that I can wear it as a backpack before I check my bags, and roll it around with me after. It's difficult to roll two bags and carry javelins, so this seems like the best option.

Russ's dad, Brad, traveled to San Diego for a visit last weekend! It was really fun to have him there, and it was his first-ever trip to the beautiful city. We did a lot of fishing. Actually, Russ and Brad did a lot of fishing, and I did a lot of eating, sleeping, and watching them fish :). We did go on a hike at Sunset Cliffs, though, and that was beautiful. I want to spend more time there!

We also took a chartered fishing trip with H&M Landing, and I caught a red rock fish. He was pretty!

We spent the day that Brad left at Fiesta Island, grilling and cooking seafood and playing games. I love a day in the sun with good friends :). We even watched as Stacy played badminton and went for beach walks at 9 months pregnant! What do you know, the next day she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Allyx Josephine. Congratulataions new parents, Ian and Stacy Waltz!! Here's a (weird) picture of Russ and I with baby Allyx!

My sandwiches are here; one for now and one for before I throw tonight! Gotta eat lunch and watch a movie before I get ready. Yay!

back to Des Moines!

2010-06-19T17:56:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday, I will board a plane to the 2010 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The competition will be held at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa; the same venue I competed in Drake Relays at. I'm excited! I compete on Friday (6/25) at 6:00pm (Central time).

Because of all my missed-meet woes lately, I've gotten a LOT of good practice in. At first, that lots of practice messed with my body a little bit. I think at this point in the season, a track and field athlete's body is ready to compete, not keep pounding in practice day after day.

Something's gotta give,

and I had two somethings kinda give! About three weeks ago, my upper right back/shoulder blade area and my left Achilles tendon became aggravated for no apparent reason. Both those issues have plagued me slightly since, but are clearing up nicely now. Ty says that sometimes your body just does weird things before competing at a championship! I guess...

All year, I've been working hard to improve my technique. Some main points we've been trying to develop are landing behind my block after impulse, really slotting my right arm in a good position, landing closed, and waiting to push my chest until my left is down.

The mind is a powerful thing,

and I really feel that when I am forced to take time off from throwing by injury/aching, I get better when I come back to the runway because of all the thinking I get done! My last two throwing sessions have been awesome as far as hitting the positions I mentioned consistently. Yay!

If you ask Russ (or anyone really, including me), I'm not the most explosive athlete out there. This can make my weightroom sessions somewhat frustrating! I'm strong, sure, but maybe I use the wrong muscles for certain lifts or maybe I'm not explosive in the right directions. Lifting weights the right way transfers much more to throwing than my awkward way, though. Therefore, I've been doing my very best to learn proper Olympic lifting technique! On Thursday, I had snatch pulls (that's not the best link...), and I finally used my hips correctly and kept my back solid on all my repetitions! I was SO happy. I'll keep that up I think :).

I'll be roommates with Britney at USAs! I'm planning to throw on Friday night, watch some events on Saturday, drive my rental car up to see my Grandparents and hang out with Mom in Fort Dodge on Saturday night, and head back to Des Moines to watch Russ throw shot and catch my flight on Sunday!

In other news, I got into another meet! Pre was already on my schedule, and now I'm throwing on July 5th in the Harry Jerome International Track and Field Classic in Vancouver, B.C.! I haven't been to Vancouver to visit in my adult life, and I'm really excited about it. Russ, Melinda, and Krista Woodward will be there, too! If all goes according to plan, I'll go straight to Europe after Harry Jerome.

Responsibility

2010-06-06T19:39:00.000-07:00

I'm still in Chula Vista. By myself. Because (it seems like) everyone else gets to travel and compete and I don't yet! We all know that the Brazil thing didn't work out because of the Visa agency. The Rome thing isn't working out just because they don't want me yet, and the Spain and Switzerland things (the meets I wanted to attend on the 9th and 12th of June in place of Rome) aren't working out because I'm told they don't have money and already have a bunch of athletes entered. So, I'm here, training and preparing for...what? Maybe a meet on the 12th or 14th locally, but maybe nothing before USAs (I throw on the 25th at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa).

It seems like this season was already a bit of a waiting game before recent disappointments. I had that back spasm before Drake, and had to play by ear whether or not I would throw. That worked out. Then I went to Tucson, where I didn't know if I would throw on the second day of competition after I found out I probably wasn't going to Brazil. That worked out, too. Now I'm waiting a) to get into some meets and b) to execute techniques I've had the chance to really focus on since I'm not traveling. Those things will most likely work out.

Even though plans change, javelin (and the way I approach it) remains the same.

Meanwhile, I'm house-sitting this weekend. It worked out (whaddya know) that I get to hang out at this awesome house-complete with awesome pool, awesome dog, and awesome cat-just when I was feeling kinda down and disappointed with my circumstances. It's great to have a little responsibility thrown at you when you get to feeling too sorry for yourself. The cat seems to say to me, "You stop that sulking right meow!"

Speaking of the cat (Cairo), he doesn't like Bentley (Yoo Kim and Katherine's dog) very much. Katherine was over yesterday after we let Bentley and Aurora (the dog I'm watching) play, and Cairo got a little upset, made some weird noises, and tried to attack Bentley through the screen door! Odd, but funny. Bentley was very respectful of the cat's wishes that he not come anywhere near after the altercation!

I took Aurora on the best walk today. We went to her normal canyon trails and park, but instead of coming straight back, sat in the shade for a while and hung out. There is just something about being completely happy with where you're at in a moment, and dogs show that attitude off so well.

She rolled around and let me pet her, and was SO HAPPY the whole time. It's therapeutic to make a dog's day better!

And, of course, I wore some Asics shoes. So great :).

Tucson Zoo adventure!

2010-05-26T21:09:00.000-07:00

Russ and Drew Ulrick are in Brazil, and they got second and third at the meet in Uberlandia today! Good work, guys. :)

Speaking of those two...the three of us (Russ, me and Drew) got to go to the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson on Sunday before Russ and I left town! We were lucky enough to get a behind-the-scenes tour from one of Adam's roommates, Jed. It was amazing. When you go to a zoo, all you see is the animals in their habitats, minding their own business and maybe not seeming that happy. When you get to go on an exclusive tour of the Tucson Zoo and meet animals like Shaba the elephant, Denver and Texas the giraffes, DJ the mandrill, and Kobe the polar bear, you see the special relationship that the keepers form with the animals and what a great service zoos do for education, not to mention sustaining species of animals.

We got to feed the giraffes carrots! I tried to pet one of them, but I guess they don't like that very much. Their tongues are black instead of pink so they don't get sunburned! I heard somewhere a long time ago that a giraffe tongue can take the skin off of a human, but I don't think that's true, as I still have the skin on my hands.

I don't know if you know this about me, but I LOVE elephants. In March of 2009, Russ and I came to San Diego to visit the training center and make sure we wanted to move here, and on our trip, we got to see a two-day-old elephant at the San Diego's Zoo's Wild Animal Park. I am not even embarassed to say that I cried a little bit when I saw him. Up to this point in my life though, I haven't had (that I remember) a close encounter with one. So, when Jed's girlfriend Cassie took us into the elephant exhibit to meet Shaba, a huge female African elephant, I was beyond words. Cassie asked Java to lay down and stand back up, lift up each of her feet, wave her trunk at us, and fan out her ears, among other tricks and behaviors. We got some great pictures at that point, and came back later to touch the bottoms of her feet (she's ticklish!), her side, and her tail. SO COOL.

Drew likes monkeys, so we met DJ, a male mandrill. He was in the overnight room behind the exhibit when we met him; he smiled at us, gave us a little head bob (apparently a sign of dominance...), and we fed him peanuts through the door of his room! It was awesome to see his little fingers reach for the food through the cracks! He doesn't eat the peanut shells either, so it was even more impressive that he peeled them off and just got at the good stuff.

Russ's enthusiasm for bears might equal mine for elephants. He even made little black bear stencils to put on his discuses, and they are really cool. The last animal we visited on our tour was Kobe, a 700-pound female polar bear. She was waiting at a chain-link fence behind her exhibit for Alicia, her trainer, when we all walked up! We each got a turn standing next to her and asking her to perform her behaviors for us; "Kobe, tongue" for her to lick our fingers through the fence or, "Kobe, open" for her to open her mouth wide and show her scary teeth! Once she did what we asked her to, we got to feed her a cracker! To have your fingers that close to a polar bear's mouth is kind of intense. I was struck by the urge to try and reach through the fence and pet the bear's head, and this sentiment let me know that I should never be a polar bear trainer; I'd most likely lose my perspective on the reality that these animals are extremely powerful! Better safe than sorry!

If you ever have the chance to see how zookeepers and trainers interact with their animals first-hand, it would be a big mistake to pass it up. It was simply incredible!

Tucson Elite

2010-05-23T22:40:00.000-07:00

Ever since I first heard about the Tucson Elite Throwers' Classic at the University of Arizona, I have wanted to attend! However, I haven't gotten the chance because of a clash between this meet and the collegiate championship season.

This weekend was my first trip to Tucson, Arizona; loved it.

I drove the 6.5 hours with Russ on Tuesday morning after a massage for me and acupuncture for him at AcuSport Health Center. We have fun on road trips, no matter what he might tell you! A new trivia game on the iPad was helpful :). We drove straight to the track and did a shake-out, got some dinner with Adam Kuehl and girlfriend Courtney, and put in some shut-eye! Wednesday was a day of pre-meet practice, greeting thrower friends that arrived that day, and rest.

Tucson Elite is set up to mimic a bigger, championship season competition. The two-day format imitates the Olympic Trials, Olympics or Worlds in that there is a qualifying round (three attempts per athlete) followed 48 hours later by a final contested between the top 12 athletes from the qualifier. It's awesome to get some practice competing close together like this! There was a meet Thursday and another one Saturday. The meets started at 4pm with women's hammer, followed closely by and at the same time as all of the other throwing events! Women's javelin was at 7:30pm, and Russ threw discus at 5:30 and shot put at 8:30. I've never really done a shake-out/get-the-muscles-firing jaunt the morning of a meet, but I tried it out on Thursday. Kept it minimal; just a bit of a walking warm-up, maybe two 20-meter sprints and some low jumping before getting lunch and relaxing all afternoon (I watched Planet 51; juvenile but cute!).

Thursday was fun! Saturday was more fun!

Thursday I threw 60.33m on my first throw, and 60.14m on my second, followed by 4 throws in the 50s. It was my first meet with two throws over 60 meters! Then Saturday (I didn't do a shakeout/warm-up in the morning), I threw 61.74m on my first throw, 57m on my second, and 61.17m on my third! Two throws over sixty one meters. The biomechanists that USATF employs to analyze the different throwing events were in attendance, and watching video that Steve Leigh took from Thursday helped me keep my right shoulder higher, control my speed at the beginning of my approach, and try to keep my chest up at release on Saturday. Here's my best throw from Saturday (61.75m); as you can see, the chest still has a long way to go :).

As previously posted, my plan was to throw on May 20th (Thursday) in Tucson, then on May 26th (Wednesday) in Uberlandia, Brazil. However, Brazilian Visa drama struck on Friday morning around 6:45am. I received a wake-up call (literally!) from the lady helping me at the visa agency I am using in Chicago. She told me that she didn't think they would receive my Visa on Friday, meaning they wouldn't be able to overnight it that night, and I wouldn't be able to leave on Monday as planned because I need it (and my passport, which they have) to travel. The Consulate isn't open on weekends, so Saturday wasn't an option either. I talked to them this morning, and it really doesn't look like I'll be going to Brazil after all. The frustrating thing about this experience is that I followed directions. I called numerous times to make sure I was submitting the right paperwork and signing all the dotted lines I needed to, but it's not working out. Coach Jim Lathrop, my strength coach at Purdue, gave me a great piece of advice once.

He said to worry about what you can control.

I can control my attitude about the change of plans. I can control how I prepare for whichever meet will be my next. I'd rather focus on those things than get worked up about something I can actally learn from. Speaking of things I can control; it is well within my control to drive to the Brazilian Consulate in LA next time and get the Visa myself :).

Russ did amazing this weekend!!! He PRed in shot on Thursday, throwing three fair throws over 20.30m (the World A Standard from last year) with a best effort of 21.25m (69' 8"). Then on Saturday he had six shot throws over 20.30m, with exactly the same best effort of 21.25m! It was awesome to see him so fired up and competitive; he has been working so hard on technique and cementing throwing concepts that it was nice to see him let loose! He also had three or four discus throws on Saturday over 60m! What a STUD! Here's his best throw from Saturday, courtesy of Will Conwell's YouTube account.

Britney was incredible as well!! She PRed in hammer on Saturday, twice. Her fourth throw was 70.90m, and her sixth was 71.15m. That's an America-leading throw :). I was so excited when I heard that I teared up! Go you.

Entertainment and the Great Outdoors!

2010-05-13T20:24:00.000-07:00

I did something "trendy." I don't normally go out and buy things to keep up with the Joneses or what have you, but for traveling and entertainment purposes, I purchased an iPad. It's light and small, has great battery life, and I can read books on it! I love to read but I sorta hate traveling with books, so problem solved. Let's just all hope my eyesight doesn't suffer! The games I can get are really fun, but Russ pointed something out yesterday; people spend lots of money buying these expensive pieces of equipment, only to play simple, basic games on them. For example: large, powerful office computers are often used for Solitaire! That's not to say that we both don't enjoy playing Unblock Me on my iPad, though.

Russ wants to start spearfishing. Before I met him and we started dating, I had no idea there were so many different kinds of fishing to be done! Anyway, I think spearfishing is interesting, but unlike the other kinds of fishing I've tried with the best BF ever, I have no interest in participating in this kind. I would, however, like to get into other water activities! Snorkeling, scuba diving, stand-up paddle boarding, etc. Snorkeling here will be much different than what I remember it being when I was little in Hawaii, though; cooler water temperatures and murkier water are slightly scary to me! Therefore, I bought a nice wetsuit yesterday that was on super clearance sale as a first step to delving into new underwater fun. I'm excited!

Upcoming meets for me are as follows:

Tucson, Arizona: May 20th
Uberlandia, Brazil: May 26th
Maringa, Brazil: May 30th
Hopefully: Rome, Italy: June 10th
If Not: San Diego Mesa College: June 12th
Des Moines, Iowa (USA Championships): June 25th

The meet in Rome is huge. The Diamond League makes its debut this summer, and the first meet with women's javelin is tomorrow in Doha, Qatar. Rome is the second. The start list for Doha doesn't have me on it and I'm sad, but I just have a little more proving myself to do!

I'm feeling awesome. I've been a little tired lately, but going to bed a little (sometimes a lot) earlier, taking a few more ice baths, and keeping up with my vitamins is essential for getting fresh again! When your body is complaining and you don't know quite why, make good decisions to get it better.

How you feel is mostly your responsibility!

All in all, I have been repeating generally great technique, and I feel like I have good power. I've also been getting back into a comfort zone in the weightroom; I'm still a little nervous that something might cramp up at any time since I've had such problems with that, but it's no way to live life, so I'll get over it soon :). I'm really looking forward to my impending flurry of competitions!

International Experience

2010-05-05T20:50:00.001-07:00

Happy Cinco de Mayo!! Kudos, Mexican army, for defeating the French army in the Battle of Puebla in 1862.

Today was a rest day for me, or at least a recovery day. I did a walking warm-up, hurdle mobility for my hips, and a bunch of rehabilitation stuff that helps the little, complicated parts of my body (ahem, shoulders) stay together.

I love days like this because I walk away from practice feeling whole and balanced.

I'm competing in two meets in Brazil at the end of May; Uberlandia on May 26th and Maringa on May 30th. In order to enter Brazil, Americans need a Visa. The process of getting one can be pretty complicated, and I spent the day post-practice filling out paperwork in order to get one. I don't know if you've ever gone through the process before, but it's a good idea to start early. Oops. Sometimes that's not possible in the track and field world!

Best to be flexible and open-minded at all times.

After dealing with all the business, I headed down to the field to watch Mike and Andreas Thorkildsen throw. Lately we've had a bunch of foreign throwers around the training center, and it's simply an awesome environment! Everyone is happy to be here and working alongside each other to improve; it's so fun to see four discuses (disci?) flying across the field at a time instead of just one, and getting to know everyone has been great. Alas, there will always be more ring throwers than javelin throwers!

I think there's something you can learn from everyone you meet,

and there's a lot I can learn from athletes that have already been in the professional track and field environment for a while. Tero Jarvenpaa, Mikaela Ingberg, and a younger thrower, Miko (who is very good but I don't know his last name and I feel terrible) are three Finns who trained here too. Mikaela is amazing. She has SO much experience and is super willing to share ideas, opinions, and advice. I'm not much of a brain-picker, but I asked her a fair few questions :).

Anyway! Watching Andreas and Mike throw today was really cool. I don't know if you know this, but Andreas is kind of a big deal, and to be able to even attempt to learn from a javelin thrower of his caliber is exciting!! Plus, he's a nice guy, willing to help younger, more inexperienced athletes (read: me).

Basically, this summer will be about getting as much international competition in as I can! I want to learn to be tough and always ready to release a big throw. This probably won't get accomplished in just one season, but I tend to expect a lot from myself. Being surrounded by people that encourage and challenge me to improve is never a bad thing!

Here's a picture of Mike, since he's my current favorite training partner :).

Drake Relays

2010-04-26T19:47:00.000-07:00

I traveled to Des Moines, Iowa this weekend to compete in Asics-hosted Drake Relays. My grandparents, Tom and Jean Engler, live in Fort Dodge, Iowa; about two hours north of Des Moines. I spent a relaxing and lovely weekend hanging out with them and my parents after throwing on Friday! Mom and Dad drove down from Fort Dodge to watch. :)

Travel to the meet was a little bumpy...I flew through Denver and had to run to my second plane, only to be delayed almost two hours. Thankfully, I happened to be sitting right in front of my buddy Dana Pounds!! Once we got to Des Moines, we found Kim Hamilton and headed to our hotel, courtesy of the nicest shuttle drivers ever that Drake provides the "High Performance" athletes. After grabbing some lunch, we went to the track to pick up our information, check in the javelins, and get a little shake-out in.

I didn't quite know what to think about Drake this year. As previously mentioned, I fought a little (actually not little) back spasm two weeks ago, and it was lingering slightly. Ty wasn't going to be there and I hadn't done a pre-meet workout in his program yet, plus we hadn't really practiced the approach I would use.

There were just things that I wasn't sure about.

Dwelling on those things is most likely the worst thing I could have done, so I didn't! For the pre-meet on Thursday, I did a walking warm-up and some hurdle hip-mobility exercises, then a few short sprints and box jumps to get my legs firing. Some core work to make me feel confident in my back and a little javelin footwork while visualizing the next day's competition wrapped things up. That night I went to dinner with Dana and her family and then off to bed. Changing time zones is hard!

On competition day (Friday), the forecast called for rain. Sure enough, it rained all morning and Dana, Kim and I prepared for the worst. I wore long spandex (tights and a shirt), sweatpants and swishy warm-up pants, and a sweatshirt with a jacket on top. Also my new beloved Asics beanie and uniform, of course! I knew I had to warm my back up really well if I wanted to be fully ready to go, so I did! All those clothes helped. My warm-up throws felt relaxed and technically-sound, and I tried not to let myself favor my back. My main technical focuses (foci?) in this meet were keeping my shoulders closed, getting to my block quickly, and hiding the javelin behind my head. On my third competition throw of the day, I kinda did all of those things.

Like I said, "kinda." I definitely could have been more closed, the time between my right and left feet hitting after my barely-there impulse was faster than my other throws, but still not where it needs to be. I hid the javelin behind my head okay, but my arm wasn't as far back behind me as it should be; it was a little bent (and that's not like me). Also, I don't know if you noticed, but I'm a little slow!

As it is, this throw went 61.80 meters (202'6" I think). One of my competition goals was to go to Drake and throw the World A standard (what you have to throw to be eligible for big international competitions). Since there are no outdoor World Championships or Olympics this year, there really isn't an official A standard for women's javelin, but last year it was 61.00m. I'm happy to have met a goal, and I know that fixing the technical issues listed above will make the javelin go a lot farther. I was most proud of my attitude going into Drake Relays though; I had fun and accomplished what I went there to.

A lot of my friends from San Diego (including Russell!) competed at Drake on Saturday, and I wish I could've watched them do their thing! I spent the rest of the weekend at my grandparents' though,

and family comes first,

especially when you hardly ever get to see them. We took Grandma shopping, ate delicious steaks, played cards, and visited with each other and all kinds of their friends. Each time I visit, it is harder to leave. I just love sitting and chatting with Grandma and talking sports with Grandpa. He's also great at giving me directions when I need to get somewhere in Iowa :). Grandpa gets to go on an Honor Flight from Fort Dodge to Washington D.C. this Saturday. I'm so proud of him!! The flight will take veterans of World War II to D.C. for a day to visit memorials and tell stories that only they know. What an honor!

my old Purdue

2010-04-13T20:49:00.001-07:00

Let me just start by saying "Hail Purdue." Despite where I came from (gorgeous Washington), I eventually learned to love West Lafayette, Indiana! And the best time of year to be there is exactly now, making my visit this weekend amazing because of the people and (bonus!) the lack of humidity! Who knew that could happen...

Purdue Track and Field has an alumni reunion meet each year, and this past weekend was it. I was scheduled to throw at Mt. SAC Relays, but I experienced a pretty severe muscle spasm in my low back/SI joint, so decided not to go. Instead of competing at Mt. SAC, I traveled to Purdue for the alumni bash!!

I still wanted to try and throw at Purdue, and remained open to it literally up until an hour before the event. I woke up on Saturday and donned my new ASICS uniform, got some breakfast, and walked over to the track, ready and willing to warm up and throw if my back permitted it. It didn't, and I'm happy that I decided to do the smart thing and not compete before I was ready. At the USA Track and Field Annual Meeting in Indianapolis in December, I heard a quote that I have taken to heart from Dan O'Brien, legendary decathlete. He said,

"Sacrifice the day to save the week, the week to save the month, the month to save the season."

I used to forget to respect my body; I'd demand too much from it and ignore it when it told me it wasn't handling stress (physical or mental) well. Now I know when I need to take a nap or not lift that heavy dumbbell again. You live, you learn! I still push the limits a little though...

Instead of competing in the javelin on Saturday, I chose a different event! My Alumni 4x100-meter Relay team (aka Team Awesome) consisted of Jim Schwingendorf, Ben Pax, myself and Andrew "Chops" Smith. We got second to Keith Hopkins, Terrell Thompson, Brian Kaluf, and Steve Bach, mostly because I'm a girl and slowed my team down. :) It was so much fun though!

After getting some ice and watching the rest of the meet (highlighted by Brianna Neumann clearing 4.20m in the pole vault),
I got to go to Coach Warner's house for a little alumni mingling! I met some awesome former Purdue Track and Field athletes, and got to hang out with West Lafayette High School Track and Field head coach (and Russ's former boss) Lane Custer and his wife Anne! I spent most of my time there visiting with Larry Grambo, member of a 3rd-place nationally 4x100 Relay team from Purdue around 1970. He was full of information on how I could get my shoulders/arms in general stronger using martial arts and Iranian techniques. It was so interesting and unexpected!

Saturday night spent with friends was a blast. My back was still bothering me a bit, but sometimes it helps more than you think to just relax and have fun!! We went to 9 Irish Brothers, and I had the privilege of meeting the owner, Jerry O'Bryan. After Mallory discreetly (haha) mentioned one of my better javelin accomplishments to him, he gave me the generous gift of the jersey of his pub! I believe it is the official jersey of the Purdue Hurling Club. That's Jerry and me, showing off that jersey.

It's great to know that I have support from people at Purdue, even though I'm not there anymore.

My weekend visit was amazing. I even got to stay in my old room at 610 Dodge! The coolest part about going back, though, was that I realized fully that I'm where I'm supposed to be. It was awesome to see everyone, "compete" at my old home track, and wander around campus a little bit, but when my plane landed in San Diego on Sunday night I had a huge smile on my face. I'm comfortable at Purdue, sure; I always will be. But, at least for now, San Diego is my home. I like that!

#influenceSD

2010-04-12T21:39:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday, one of my dearest friends invited me to go to a cool formal event with her! Britney Henry is a hammer thrower, and is partially responsible for Russ's and my relationship :). Her blog, "Olympian in Progress,"was nominated for Blog of the Year at the first inaugural #influenceSD Awards. What is #influenceSD, you ask? I'm a little confused too, but basically they are a group (business? I don't know...) that celebrates and promotes social media (facebook, twitter, websites, blogs, etc.) in San Diego. Being a blogger now, I approve!

The #influenceSD Awards were held downtown at Anthrology. This place is super-duper classy! They have live music events all the time, and they feature specialty entrees and drinks depending on the events they are hosting! I absolutely want to go back, because the Twitter-tinis (cheesy...but cool at the same time) and my seafood linguini were delicious! They also have the coolest menus on the planet. They're made from Taylor guitar wood; beautiful.

The awards night was nothing like I expected. I don't know what I did expect, but I got a whole lot of new experience! This event was largely for networking, and it was largely attended by what seemed to be the socialites of San Diego! Very out of my comfort zone at first, but I'm okay talking to new people, so it ended up being really fun. I also was firstly there to hang out with Britney and cheer her on, so I knew I would have fun regardless! Her team of people making The Britney Henry Project happen are awesome, and I always love seeing her Grandma Carol; Mike and I watched her (she's 81, btw) attempt to water-ski on one ski in September. Talk about inspirational!

Overall, a fun night. This world of athletics doesn't lend much time to getting dressed up,
and it was really fun to do so!

A Few Reasons I love Britney Henry:

-She is ridiculously loyal and fiery: I'm pretty sure she would win a fight in your honor if it really came down to it! But she is a lover, not a fighter, otherwise :).
-She is one of the most thoughtful people I have ever met; when I made the Olympic Team in '08, a) she cried for me and b) she sent me a water bottle filled with travel-size tidbits I never would have thought to bring for myself.
-She always laughs with you.
-She treasures memories just as much as I do; one of my favorite things to do with her is laugh about our joint experiences!
-She remembers things you say and wants to know about them later; I'll forget that I told her I was up to something, and when I'm done she's always excited to hear how it went. I call that supportive!

Thanks for inviting me Brit! Love you.

rope MASTER

2010-04-08T22:57:00.000-07:00

I did it! Twice!!

Since about junior year at Purdue, I have set firm competition goals for myself. This year, through work with Dr. Ross Flowers (one of the awesome sports psychologists here), I set training goals too! They include things like walking on my hands for certain distances (my biggest challenge, grrr), throwing so far in practice, etc. The one I've been focusing on most recently is this:

Climb the rope in the weight room all the way to the top using just my arms (no legs).

In November when Mike and I started training, I could climb the rope maybe halfway up with legs and arms, and I got horrible rope burn on my ankle too. I tried my hardest to climb it with just arms the first time, but couldn't even get two pulls in! Once I learned how to prepare myself for my rope-climbing attempts and a little bit about the technique of it, I saw slow but steady improvement.

Tuesdays are gymnastics days for us. In this training cycle, we sprint, jump and do javelin footwork with a sled on Tuesday mornings, then gymnastics in the afternoon! Skin the cats, rope climbs, isometric stuff, etc. My original goal was to climb the rope all the way to the top with just arms before Indoor USA Championships, but I hurt my back a few weeks before then (and had almost reached my goal!), so couldn't attempt it until about 2 weeks ago.

It was frustrating to have a setback, but sometimes you just have to recalculate success for later.

Don't forget about what you want to accomplish just because you didn't do it in the original timeframe you planned to.

This past Tuesday (April 6), I climbed the rope all the way to the top with just arms. Then, I did it again! I didn't really know the other athletes that were lifting when I accomplished my goal, but one of the foreign kayakers could tell that I was excited; I looked down from the top of the rope with a huge smile on my face, and he gave me a subtle thumbs-up! It's nice to be supported by other athletes, and that is a huge perk of living here.

I can't wait to climb the rope three times with just arms next time it's in my training schedule. Next week is rest week, AND I'm going back to Purdue for the meet that is considered "alumni reunion" each year!!! I'm so excited to see some of my best friends that I miss talking to so much. More on that later :).

Good, Refreshing Idea

2010-04-05T21:22:00.000-07:00

One of my BFFs from elementary school-on is Courtney. Our friendship has transcended the gap of not going to high school or college together; she will simply be someone I can talk to about anything, for life. Yay :).

Courtney works as an Autistic Therapist. The Pepsi Refresh Project uses Pepsi money (they have some extra) to fund a great idea. Court and her friend are working to develop a new school and resource center for the Autistic Community in my hometown of Vancouver, Washington, and they are up for a $50K grant through the Pepsi Refresh Project. I don't know about you, but helping out is fun for me!!! Take the time, if you will, to vote for their idea by clicking below. You might have to register, but it's real fast; promise.

You can vote every day until April 30th.

Thanks, friends. I'm sure Courtney will thank you also when they get the funding to make a difference for the kids they love to help out!

me, the Boilermaker alumni

2010-03-29T19:16:00.000-07:00

Every year since my sophomore year at Purdue, the first outdoor meet of the season was the ASU Invite in Tempe, AZ. This being my first post-collegiate year, I didn't throw at the ASU Invite, which was this past weekend. I did, however, drive over to Phoenix to see my old teammates and coaches!!!! I stayed with Mandy Bodnar, who graduated in 2007 and threw discus and hammer for Purdue. I also got to have breakfast with one of my favorite friends from high school, Rachael Pike, on Sunday before I headed back to San Diego.

It's strange to be out of college, and then sort of go back.

After a workout at 24 Hr Fitness in Tempe, I arrived at the track by myself and was kinda nervous! For some reason I forgot that I would know so many people on the team still. When you're away from something, sometimes you forget what it's like a little bit, even though you love it dearly :). Turns out, the same awesome people are doing the same awesome things at Purdue as when I went to school there. I love catching up with friends :). Staying with Mandy was so fun, as she and boyfriend Johan have a house they're renovating and it's looking great! I am pretty jealous that Mandy gets to paint walls and decorate and make spaces her own.

I look forward to that!

Here is (left to right) Stacey, me, Mandy, and Sheena at Indoor Big Tens at University of Illinois in 2007. My only Indoor Big Tens ever and the last meet I competed at with Mandy, as I got injured that outdoor season!

Breakfast with Rachael on Sunday was wonderful. :) I absolutely love just sitting and chatting with food and coffee at cute places that are new and fun. High school friends are easiest to talk to about everything, because they have known you since before you really knew yourself. At least that was the case with me, because I was really awkward for a long time (and still am a little!). And Rach is just an awesome person in any case! There she is at my brother's old apartment when we went to Seattle for New Year's a few years ago!

I've been throwing in practice, last week and this week. Not just walking, either :). I have also been feeling good enough to increase the weights and attempt some of the more back-demanding exercises I haven't been able to for a while. I'm really excited about it!

I haven't said anything about acupuncture! Vasa Mik is my acupuncturist, and he's awesome. The people at AcuSport Health Center are super friendly and the therapy is doing me well. I have had three treatments in the past two weeks, and what I didn't expect was how all-encompassing the sessions are! First, Vasa puts the needles in various parts of my back, hooks me up to electricity, then sometimes I fall asleep while the work is being done. After they take the needles out, sometimes Vasa does cupping and some soft tissue work (massage). Then, hip/leg/back stretches and I'm out! I am sore for a few days, but the thing about the needles is that they stimulate and release the muscles much deeper than a massage is able to. That's why I'm sore, and that's why I feel like it's helping! I didn't know what to expect, but I'm happy to say, "yay."

a little video action

2010-03-19T10:46:00.000-07:00

Training (walking!) throws yesterday: Thursday, March 18, 2010:

My PR from USAs 2009 in Eugene, Oregon: 63.95m (209' 10"):

actually throwing javelin

2010-03-18T20:46:00.000-07:00

Like I said, my back has been feeling better...when the javelin mini camp was here last weekend, I did a little bit of walking around and throwing an actual javelin in the grass. It was fine, but I was nervous to push it because I was still pretty sensitive. When I got to practice this morning though, I felt ready to go! I didn't throw explosively by any means, but got to do a bunch of walking throws using good technique. As soon as Mike sends me the video, I'll post it! I had no pain, and most of the technical things I've been pondering in this hiatus from throwing went really well.

I'm excited!!

Another part of training today is lifting. In the fall, we got Keiser Equipment in the building down by the track. This is what I use to lift on Thursdays! It's awesome, because it doesn't let you use momentum to lift weights; you really have to do all the work and create all your power just from your muscles. There are readouts on all the equipment and it keeps track of your maximum power output, showing percentages for each repetition. I really enjoy Thursday lifts, because they are a refreshing departure from a normal weightroom setting. There are also garage doors on the track building, so on beautiful days like today, we leave them wide open!

I've never been able to lift basically outside before. Love it.

Training cycles go in 4-week increments. Three weeks of high-volume, all-out practice, and then a week of lower-volume and rest! This week is rest week, and that means no practice for me Friday or Saturday! Meaning today was the perfect day to test out acupuncture for the first time. I think I liked it! The needles sort of felt like what my muscles would feel like after a vaccine shot when I was little. I know that's random. Apparently I'm supposed to be a little sore from it, so we'll see in a few days if it was beneficial for the old back!

Boys and Girls Club via Athletes for Hope

2010-03-18T10:08:00.000-07:00

Russ and I attended the USATF Annual Meeting in Indianapolis at the beginning of December, and there was a presentation from Athletes for Hope; a volunteer organization dedicated to getting athletes involved in their communities. I admit, I didn't act on the opportunity quite immediately, but I have been in conversation with Chris Wyttenbach for a few months now. I had my first volunteer experience through AFH yesterday; went to the Boys and Girls Club of Chula Vista to meet the staff and get a tour!

It was a little overwhelming. Throughout my life, I have wanted to be good with kids! Once they get to know me, I think they like me okay, but at first they just stare. You can see in their eyes that they're thinking,

"who is this girl and what is wrong with her?"

Anyway, I have a little bit of a complex about that, and volunteering at the Boys and Girls Club will be a challenge for me personally, but that is sort of why I'd like to become comfortable helping out there. :)

The plan is to just go back when I have time and get more accustomed to hanging around the kids and learning what the staff do. Basically they play all afternoon, and eventually it'd be fun to lead an arts and crafts project or lead some cooperation/teamwork activities...I loved those when I was little.

My back continues to feel better! The x-rays were normal the other day, and the next step is getting a bone scan. I've been going to the training room on top of practice every day, and I still love the rehab I'm doing!

The clock is ticking

on the start of season...

visiting friends and healing backs

2010-03-15T21:23:00.000-07:00

I drove to L.A. yesterday after dropping Kim and Rachel off at the airport (camp ended!). One of my roommates from Purdue, Liz, still plays softball for the Boilermakers, and they played in a tournament at Cal State Long Beach (aka Long Beach State University) this weekend! Alas, they lost to Notre Dame 3-0, but I got to hang out with Liz and her family all morning/early afternoon in beauuuutiful L.A. weather. Sometimes laying around in the grass and just chatting makes me SO happy, especially when I haven't seen someone I love in a while! Plus, I forgot sunglasses, so of course I had to buy some new ones :).

That's me and Liz, Halloween 2008. You might not recognize me...

My back felt better this morning! Extension (leaning backwards) is what hurts it, and leaning back PLUS rotating hurts the most. My progress has been in the form of slowly increased range of motion with slightly less pain...and today I felt like I gained a lot in both areas!

Rehab is always your friend,

no matter how much you don't want to do it every day. Practice was great today (sprints, jumps on a slide board, and modified lifting), and I'm going for x-rays (just a test) tomorrow!

Chula Vista OTC Javelin Elite Development Camp

2010-03-12T21:26:00.001-08:00

Little back story: I live and train at the ARCO U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA (slightly southeast of San Diego). Athletes from all different sports come in and out of here all the time, whether for camps with lots of other athletes or simply for some sunny weather training!

So, the "elite athlete development" sector of USA Track and Field has decided to focus a little more on javelin this year and hopefully the next few (yay!), and this weekend a bunch of great US throwers showed up for a little technique analysis, skills/strength testing and camaraderie! Athletes here include: Mike Hazle (my training partner) and Sean Furey (who also trains here regularly), Corey White, Chris Hill, Rachel Yurkovich, Kim Kreiner, Alicia DeShasier, and Katie Coronado. Tom Pukstys and Duncan Atwood , a couple of US javelin greats, are leading us through exercises and sharing knowledge and opinions about our throwing and javelining in general! Steve Leigh, an excellent biomechanist from UNC, is also here analyzing and sharing his extensive knowledge. Overall, a great opportunity for involved javelin talks and some friendly (but for sure quality!) competition.

About 3 weeks ago, Mike and I were doing some testing throwing shots...the big metal ball kind of shots...and I sprained a facet (facet) in the low-middle of my back. It was super painful the first day or two, then calmed down a bit, but hasn't gotten significantly (to me that would mean totally haha) better since about three days after I did it.

SO FRUSTRATING

I am hardly ever a Negative Nancy, but when you're an athlete and suddenly your body won't do what you want it to without pain (or it's not smart to make it do so for fear of worsening the situation), it's tough to smile constantly like I normally do.

Needless to say, it was difficult today to watch my fellow javelinists throwing and bounding and competing against each other (complete with friendly banter) without being able to join in! I wanna play, too!!! Very impressed with Sean and Corey and their far practice throws, and, as expected, Rach is prolific at all the general explosiveness testing; major props! Camp continues tomorrow with more analysis and tests, in which my participation will again be limited.

POSITIVE SIDE

Since I'm SO much more used to being excited about things than gloomy! I am itching to throw! I'm visualizing all the awesome technique I have learned since November under new coach Ty Sevin, and the full approaches I practiced today while everyone else was throwing felt stellar! I focus on the things I can do instead of the things I can't. I do lots of core strength rehab things, which I love. Plus, I'm going to AcuSport Health Center on Thursday on recommendation to experience my first-ever acupuncture! (AcuSport Health Center) Exciting!