Michael and John - Canadian Team Coaches
This is where the medals will be presented.
Tacen is like a Roman Amphitheater for Whitewater.
This image, above, is from one month ago when David, Dad and I visited Opa.
I finally got around to the fan mail that has been piling up over the last year. So, for everyone who's written me, a response is now in the mail!
_
Here, I'm recording the script for the video...new experience for me but I enjoyed it. No one likes the sound of their own voice though...so I hope it's ok!
Gymp camp is Rocking it Rocky Style!
Larisa & Anna
___
Can you see the moon?.... No photoshop required. Isn't that amazing!
And People tell me I'm crazy!
___
National Champs were held on the Gull River. A beautiful site!
Not much can beat being in a boat on a calm evening. (except perhaps waterskiing on a calm evening!..but...that will have to wait till next year for me...)
I LOOOOVVVVEEE Ontario Cottage Life. We stayed at Ed's Shack...which wasn't at all like a shack! It was wonderful for my Ontario Soul.
What an awesome family! My brother Jeff (far left) is now in the Military!!!!!! Go Jeff Go!!! I'm so proud of you!!!!!! (as you may be able to tell by all these exclamation points)
I love this shot...such cute feet!
the men’s team and how they’re working together made me realize their team hasn’t changed much heading into this next quadrennial. A stark comparison to the women’s side as we have seen many changes in the last year. I’m looking forward to working with our new staff and with a group of athletes who are extremely motivated! Still, I will miss some of our coaches who have moved on and especially the athletes who are now travelling new paths.
in my knee to help get is moving a bit smoother. It seems to be helping and keeping my knee moving forward in its recovery. My bending is still improving slowly. They aren’t too worried about it now since I have a very useful range of motion and more than enough range to be a ski racer. My yoga poses may suffer a little…but hey…a small price to pay for rocking it out on the ski hills!
wouldn’t be using it long helped as well!) It was great to have though and I enjoyed riding in Europe. That was my first time seeing Europe from a bike seat and I fell in love with riding there. I also took some pictures while there as I continue to enjoy my pursuits to grow as a photographer. It’s a wonderful art and one I’m continuing to fall more in love with. As is always the case with sport David had some good days and challenging days. Ah, the joys of highs and lows in sport! He is fit and fast though – so it’s just a matter of finding the race gear and tweaking a few equipment issues.
Since my last blog there have been some promising developments with my knee and lots of changes within Alpine Canada.
First, let’s talk knees.
The milestones of injury have included such exciting moments as; the first day I wore jeans; when my foot had a normal colour while standing; the day I ditched the crutches; did a revolution on a bike; climbed the stairs normally; first workout where I broke a sweat…etc. Most of these milestones are rather small but they are still reasons to celebrate. These daily advances keep my focus on the positive as I slowly improve. Since I’ve been able to start biking outside my leg muscles have started to return. I have very cute little muscles now! (oh so feminine…:) I’m having loads of fun outside and enjoying the feeling of filling my lungs with fresh air.
I’m currently in Whistler supporting David as he prepares for his team selection for the World Championships. It’s been great having this time together and we’ve both fallen even more in love with this part of the world. Now…if only I could win the lottery and retire to luxury here in Whistler!
My knee is at 130degrees of flexion and this range is becoming healthier and smoother every week. I’m working with Andree Lavoie (she was a physio therapist with Alpine Canada for over 15years) here in Whistler and we’re plugging along. Although I always wish this process was faster she seems pretty happy with what she sees.
A New Team
Many of you may have heard through the media that there have been a lot of changes within my team and the organization at Alpine Canada. My world will certainly look different – especially with the retirement of two of my teammates. Emily Brydon and Shona Rubens have hung up their race skis to pursue other interests. I’m sad to them go and I will miss them terribly on the tour. Still, I now we will remain lifelong friends and wish them nothing but the best moving forward.
Our coaching staff is also completely different. I’m looking forward to seeing how these changes come together and what the new team dynamic will look like. Next season will be a fresh start in many respects and I look forward to everything that that will bring to the table.
As far as getting back on my skis…it’ll be another few weeks before we’ll start looking at timelines. But I know with each passing day I’m getting closer to arching some turns on the white stuff. For now, I’m happy to feel the sun on my face, the air in my lungs, and to watch my muscles rebuild. It’s a lot of hard work, but the milestones keep me going. Next week – a marathon! (Ha ha, just kidding)
Cheers,
Kelly
…in awe at how good these kids were. I saw something in every kid’s skiing that they could build on. I know how long the road it is to the World Cup, but it’s all a matter of putting together their own jigsaw puzzle. And these kids are starting to collect the pieces. 
I can’t believe we’ve already passed the middle of March. I have really enjoyed my time at home with David the last few weeks. It’s been almost surreal planning for weekends in advance, to feel a sense of living here at home…not just a place where I rest my head in transition. Usually our weeks together are filled with unpacking, re-packing and a million chores before we say goodbye for another stretch. Amazingly, we’re still married too! Many people have joked that our time apart is what’s kept us together all these years, although I have to argue that that’s what has held us back from being even closer (no pun intended).
My knee is coming along, but again, it’s a slow process. Some days it feels daunting knowing how far I have to go and the pain I’ll have to endure to get there. Although my muscles are reacting extremely well and the range I have is fairly functional – it’s still very limited. Daily routines include a lot of painful exercises to increase my range of motion. I’m lucky to have David with me since he’s able to push me extremely hard in between my physio sessions. This is key to getting my knee healthy again…although I know it’s hard on David.
What else has been keeping me busy? Well, as anyone who knows me I certainly like to fill my time with projects! One thing that I’ve been working on for the last 5 weeks has been a mental training program through Minds At Work. It’s a program that trains your ‘working memory’ – the functional short term memory you use to perform everyday tasks. It is also said to help high performance athletes take in a lot of information at once and process it quickly in order to help make the best possible decision. This would all happen in a millisecond. I’ve been happy with the training and I look forward to seeing how it translates into my daily life. Lately, I can say that I have felt ‘highly functional’ but it’s hard to specify changes since it’s so pervasive. The brain is elastic and I know from experience that we can train our minds and bodies to reach incredible feats.
On another front, I have become quite popular as a keynote speaker for corporate events. This has kept me busy along with my speaking engagements at schools.
All in all, life if good. I’m plunking along working hard as always. Still, my number one priority is getting my knee back in working order so I can race as fast as ever.
Cheers,
Kelly
Is this the quiet after the storm? It’s hard to say goodbye to an event we’ve looked forward to for so long and an event that exceeded my wildest dreams. After the closing ceremonies, which David and I were lucky enough to attend, we made our way home. The next day I had that feeling of total satisfaction with my Olympic experience yet sadness as I knew it was over. We went to Tim’s that next morning and I was surprise to see Roll up the Rim was back – I had to laugh. It was the perfect pick me up for a true Canadian suffering from post Olympic let down.
Stories from Abroad
There were many stories floating around about how the world reacted to our Olympics. Generally, the world was extremely impressed and they have a new impression of Canada after seeing the flowers blooming mid-February here on our supposedly frozen tundra.
One story I thought needed sharing came from Down Under. David was in Australia training for the first block of our Olympics. A week into the Games the local radio station began pleading to their listeners for public aid. This stimulus package wasn’t for Haiti, rather, they were looking to save Canada’s Olympic Games. They asked all their listeners to go to their freezer and ship as many ice cubes as they could spare to Vancouver!
Knee Update
My degree watch took a bit of a hiatus during the Olympics. Although I was still hard at work doing my exercises my blog had more important details to cover! In Whistler I worked with Andree Lavoie, a physiotherapist who used to work with our team for 15years. Between Andree, my portable physio clinic I had set up in my hotel room, and the pool at the Westin I was well covered.
Good news; I’ve ditched the crutches! I’m now walking full time without any assistance. My leg has some muscle again so the blood flow is back to normal which feels great and lets me stand and move a lot more. My balance is quite good on my leg and I can stand on one leg doing basic exercises.
On the other side, bending my knee is coming slowly. I’m currently at 75degrees and slowly making progress. I’m going to town bending my knee pushing to tears 3 to 4 times a day. Everything is coming along extremely well once I get new range of motion – but it’s a stiff knee. It’ll come though and I am confident that the work I’m doing will get the results I’m looking for.
Other good news is that the ligaments are nice and tight! My knee is strong knee once again.
Food For Thought:
- Has anyone else lost their excitement for the NHL? After the Gold medal game I’ve become spoiled. It was such a high level of hockey, with so much at stake, that the NHL has simply lost some shine. Don’t worry, I’m sure it’s shine will return. However, for now, I’m happy to bask in my Olympic memories of what hockey can look like.
- Are our Olympians going to fade off into the sunset? I was extremely surprised to learn from the Conglomerate (CTV, TSN & Sportsnet) that as soon as the Games are over they aren’t allowed to use any video footage from the Olympics. Not in highlight reels; not in wrap up shows; nor in yearend highlights either; the images from these Olympics can’t be used again…period. Sadly, I think this IOC rule adds to the fact that many Olympians seems to disappear between the Olympic Games. Wouldn’t it be great if the highlights from Vancouver were replayed all year long?!
- Congratulations Erik Guay!!!!! Way to go winning Kvitfjell’s World Cup Super G!!!!
Till next time,
Kelly
