Home Town Throw Down

I had one of the best races I have had all summer! I threw down last weekend at Canadian National Championships on my home river the Kananaskis. I was U23 and Senior national champion! 

Applying my new technique of racing allowed me to focus on the details and execution of moves rather than focusing on the outcome of the race. Just before I began to sprint down the course I would tell myself to "just have a good run". Each time my mind would stray I would repeat those words to myself and it would push away any negative thoughts. 

Marissa (left) Alex (middle left) Me (middle) Hayden (middle right) Sam (right)

Having a competition at home was great. I was able to see my family and friends while I was raceing. My brother who used to compete came out and raced for fun and ended up being really close to making the U23 national team! 

I was also able to connect with my old team mate and good friend. Below are the photos that she took!

MarissaTiel Photo

MarissaTiel Photo

The great thing about Nationals is that young aspiring athletes can come and race with provincial and national team athletes. This is an exciting opportunity for new athletes to experience what is possible and for more seasoned athletes to see up and coming hopefuls. I was so happy to see many familiar faces at the river both paddling and volunteering. Over the past 2 years I have been lucky to teach and coach Waterwerks Kayak Club participants. So to see their performance at nationals gave me great pride and a sense of excitement for the possibilities ahead.  

It was a miracle to be able to host this race considering that 5 weeks previous, Alberta declared a state of emergency due to the massive flooding of many of the provinces rivers. Thanks to all the volunteers and the Alberta Whitewater Association for working endless hours to make this race possible. It was truly amazing to see our community pull together and recreate the Kananaskis river. Thank you to Alberta Slalom Canoe Kayak as well as Canoe Kayak Canada for putting on a great race! Also a big thank you to my Mom and Dad for helping to officiate the race.

U23 World Championships

In the words of Dr Seuss "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened".

I had some of my best paddling in an international competition however because of some major mistakes I did not have the results that I had hoped at the U23 World Championships in Liptovsky, Slovakia. I placed 24th overall with only 3 touches throughout the whole race!

The competition was very stiff and cracking into the top 10 was difficult as there were a lot of strong competitors. Racing is a journey with constant ups and downs. I needed to have bad races in order to understand how to race well.

I read a very inspirational blog post from Kyle Shewfelt that helped me to realize where I was making mental errors. In future racing situations I need to focus on the details and the execution of the moves and not so much on the outcome of the race.

Lucky #13

The image I had of La Seu d’Urgell was the most spectacular course that I could ever imagine with perfect white water and cafes and markets everywhere. My coach Mike and team mate Jessica would always go off in rants how amazing Seu was. This was the world cup I was looking forward to the most. 

The weather was a dramatic difference from Augsburg where it was 30 degrees each day with sun and minimal rain.  I had a very good race, but had a loop at gate 4 and too many touches where I placed lucky #13. Without my touches I would have made it to the final. I see myself as a confident and strong paddler, but touches are killing my racing. Although I did not have a clean run I executed the moves very well and I am content with my result.

 SO I have decided to make each touch have a consequence. Each time I touch a gate I add 25 cents to the jar and each time I miss a gate I have to add $5. Once I have had 10 sessions without touching or a clean race then I can take the money from the jar and reward myself. I believe that being more conscious of where I am touching in my training and racing will eventually make it a habit of be very careful and being clean.

I was able to connect with an old teammate and good friend while she was abroad on her journeys.

Also my mom and dad were in Seu to watch my racing and provide me with some additional support.

It was a little difficult to transition into the Spanish culture as to accommodate for the hot weather the Spanish wake up early while its cold and then everything closes down at around 1:00pm so that everyone can have a siesta. Then at around 8:00pm everything opens back up as the temperature cools down. This meant that dinner wasn't eaten until about 8:00pm. Luckily we were staying in an apartment where we had a kitchen and were able to cook our meals on our own time.

I am happy with my result and I am gradually getting better. I just need to clean up my touches and truly be confident in myself.

Well That's Racing

Mistakes are a way that each person learns and grows. Racing is such a difficult thing as it takes experience and time to understand your specific racing style and apply it over and over again.

It has been challenging to learn where to pace myself while being on the road. Competing on the World Cup circuit is complicated as you are only in each location for about a week with only 4-5 sessions on the white water before you race. Then you pick up and leave again. It is a draining process.

I found myself very tired for my race in Augsburg, Germany. The weather also didn't help… as it rained all week with very cold temperatures. I had two major mistakes in each of my qualification runs. The 1^st run I caught an edge close to the bottom of the course and flipped over. Once I had rolled back up it was too late and I had blown past gate 17. I was upset and frustrated after my first run, as I knew I could perform better. I was exited and anxious for my second run where I reviewed in the video tent and repeated visualizations of a perfect execution of the course in my head. I felt prepared and ready to race. I powered out of the start gate and was determined to throw down, but I missed the line through the first hole and missed the 2^nd gate and the line was so off I also blew past the 3^rd gate as well.

That's racing, sometimes you have good races and sometimes you have bad ones. That is what I love about it, but that is also what makes it so difficult as each athlete is striving for consistency. The mistakes I made in Augsburg were tough, nonetheless it has given me even more motivation to do well in La Seu d’Urgell and Liptovský Mikuláš.

World Cup #1 Cardiff

The 1st World Cup of the 2013 season kicked off last weekend in Cardiff, Wales, UK.  It was a solid week of training and racing. I placed 13^th in the semi final race at the World Cup, but unfortunately not good enough to make it to finals. I feel I am continually learning and gaining valuable experience in international competitions.  Although I did not make it into the top ten, I am still pleased with my race result,  Now I am looking forward to racing this coming weekend in Augsburg, Germany.

While in Wales I was able to connect with an old friend from Calgary who is now living in Cardiff. Tess, her husband, and I toured around to an old castle ruin and the ocean side. The UK was very beautiful and exactly as I pictured it with very small roads and sheep everywhere.

It was a little difficult to stay focused on the race as the flooding in Alberta was on my mind. I hope all those affected by the flood will be able to recover from the damage. I am proud to say I am a Calgarian and I know our city and province will pull through these tough times.

Canoa & Kayak by Ettore Ivaldi