Thoughts On My Time Trials

October 13th was the first round of time trials for me this year while Nancy and Brian decided not to race. I skated the 500 meters and 3,000 meters (the sprint and a mid/long distance race). This time trial I trained right through, doing a hard morning skate and afternoon lift the day before. Like most everyones' year beginning races, mine stunk and it gets you down for a while but then you got to put that behind you. What I can't deny is that my training is heads and tails better than last year so when i actually begin to taper and prepare for more important races, I think the times will come.

"You're never as good as you think you are or bad as you think you are"

One day you're at the top, the next in the ditch. When competitions go poorly athletes tend to think the worst...I'm overtrained, or I need to train harder, how did this guy skate faster when my technique is way better than his? When things go well you feel pretty untouchable until the next day when your body decides to take the day off. The truth is, in sports where results depend on so many variables and subtle preparations that can each make a substantial difference, it's a safe bet to say that you're abilities lie somewhere in between your high's and low's.

But that's not to say you can't take those high's and ride them out as long as possible.