Sunday October 31st

I have one week before I am home again! That is one long week though as I still have 3 days of training, a tough packing job, a day of traveling and getting checked in my hotel and then a weekend of stressful racing in Cleveland. Its gonna be good because I will make it good.
  Kendal's party was fun. There were a ton of people there from her and her older brother's school. Everybody was dressed in a costume of course. We danced a lot and I was sore the next day.
  The whole couple days was so hectic. But it was a controlled hectic. From skating friday morning I went home with Kendal, dropped her off at school and then helped Annette (Kendal's mother) shop. We went back to the house and unloaded all the groceries and then I went with Kendal's brother Austin to pick Kendal up from school. I didn't sleep all day leading up to the party though I wanted to but when the party started, I was ready - of course. lol. It was too late to go home to the Uyeharas when Casey and I left so I went home to Casey's dorm and slept there on the couch. When I woke up, I had the challenging decision of how to get home. Should I take the lame bus system and take all day to get back? Should I save time but lose a ton of money by calling a taxi to take me? Could I maybe get Casey to give me yet another ride? Could I all Gary to come down and bring me back? Or should I just stay with Casey all day and go with him to practice? I decided on the first option, the bus.
  It went surprisingly well. I mapped my route out on Google maps and took two different buses for a total of 25 miles for just $3. However it took 2 hours and 20 minutes and by the time I got back, I hardly had time to fall asleep before I had to go to practice. It was good though. The whole thing. I have become so good at planning ahead and working things out on my own. I had everything I needed at all times. I was never hungry, thirsty, sleep-deprived or anxious about much of anything. Casey gave me the book Fight Club to read on the bus as I have finished the other two books I had. The area around his College, OTIS, is very nice and artsy. I like it.
  Today Gary is swinging by and we'll spend the day together.

Friday October 29th

Well not much to say other than practice was good this morning. Very hard with lots of sprinting and lots of hard breathing and sore legs. I am at a house now where there is going to be a huge Halloween/ sweet 16 birthday party for Kendal. I have been helping set up all day and am just now getting some energy up for the party.

Thursday October 28th

This morning was another good practice. We did speed endurance so 3 sets of relays all out for 11/2 laps eight times out. I did a 9.0, a 9.1, and a million 9.2s. That is very good for me. I hope to be under 9 soon  but like Chris said, "You just went the fastest you've ever gone and you're complaining you didn't go fast enough!?"
  I fell last night for the first time in a while and I fell again this morning! I think its because I am starting to really get a grasp of what I need to be doing exactly technique-wise and when I don't execute it, but I am close, its dangerous and I can't support the G's. Last night I think that was the case and it was funny the way I fell: It was the last turn(!) of a 15 lapper and as I went down exactly at the middle block, the "apex" of the turn, I fell back on my left and while I was trying to stop myself from falling, I grabbed the apex block and took it with me into the pads where it came dislodged from my grasp from the impact of the hit. I picked it up and put it back and it wasn't until Drew said " there's about a one in a thousand chance that will ever happen again" that I realized what had happened.  This morning's fall was just a case of stepping on a block. I was feeling sooooo good in a 10 lap technique set and I just stepped on the block. 'Twas bizarre. But really, I am feeling so much better than I have skating. I am feeling like I am on a roll, a mission, and that I can prove a lot this year. Now I am in  high again though so I have to be careful how high I let myself go mentally and not be content with where I am, but want more. That should be easy. I just have to shoot for good technique and try to get under 9.0.
  -Gym later and I have to find some sort of a costume for the Halloween Party at Kendall's house Friday night.
  -Now, eating, sleeping, reading, practicing are in my immediate future.

Wednesday October 27th

Well I am pretty much re-settled back into my room here in The Uyeharas' house in Lakewood. Much like a ready sleeper snuggles into the perfectly made bed and fits his head into the perfect nook in the pillow, so I leak more and more into the house the first couple days back until the structure is set and I can function. The key is the "perfectly made bed", which in my case is keeping absolutely everything intact around me and making sure that I am not taking over the house and making it my own. I have to remember that it is still the Uyeharas' house and that I am a temporary visitor. When I came back Tuesday morning, the room was so transformed I could hardly believe it. There is so much room now and I can keep it so tidy. Its good. :) I have only thanks in my heart toward Jon and Jean and their niece Sarah. Thanks and love. Aloha.

  Monday afternoon beach training, the first in a while because of rain, went well. I worked hard. :)
  Tuesday morning practice went well. We did lots of work. Lots of tempos - the all out things, remember? I am in a bit of a "low" right now physically. I think this is because I worked so hard recently but it is not a negative thing. I can become much stronger based on how I work through it. If I let it get to me and stop working hard, it will take longer to go away I feel. So my times weren't great tuesday or monday but I worked hard and that's the required constant.
  Tuesday night I had a great weight session and afterwords I went into the mall right next to the gym and shopped for some better shoes. The other ones were not doing it at all. These seem much better and I put them to the ultimate test this morning at the stairs. I was rested and strong this morning on stairs and I did an extra "bonus set" at the end to finish with 5 differing sets, not counting the initial walk up. I hope I feel strong again tonight in skating but regardless, I plan to work hard again. Why not? I can. I am here now. Later

Monday October 25th

Saturday was a busy day. Gary came and picked me up at the house I am living in here in Culver City. Gary is an old friend of the family (my family back in New York) and lately Ive gotten closer with him through the yoga classes he runs at this sweet house. If I kept going about Gary (stories, accomplishments, awesomeness, etc.) it would be a novel. Anyway, he picked me up and took me on a great ride through Beverly Hills, then up and down the Hollywood Hills and we arrived at our destination, the house of one Penny Marshall  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_Marshall
Among numerous jaw-dropping features to the house, it has a porch with sofas and tables which looks out over much of L.A. She has a ton of baseballs autographed by Joe Dimaggio, Roger Maris, Jacky Robinson and so many others. Derek Jeter's Helmet, Darryl Strawberry's helmet - there is so much. Outside of the kitchen window there are about 6 or 7 Hummingbirds feeding. 

  Gary took me to the rink and watched the little race we had. I did so so in the race. I have been training soooo hard lately I think it is catching up with me as my legs were super heavy. I had some good moments.

  After the race I went to eat at Chipotle with Casey after and then back to his College Dorm where I met his room mates and chilled there for a bit. Then Zach's parents picked me up on the way back from Souplantation and I slept like a baby.

  Sunday, a new day, an off day, and still a busy day. I woke up and went to the Araneta's church, which was quite an experience. Live music and a very confident pastor were included in the sermon before we went to eat in Chinatown. Then we went to Santa Monica pier which was cool and saw a movie (not worth mentioning, but don't see Life As We Know It). Santa Monica is cool because there are tons of live performers on the street. We came home at night and I played the cello for the family while they ate. haha.

  This morning I was back on the ice and dealing with mental problems. I was not in the mood to work hard and it was the first time Ive caught myself with something less than a determined attitude since my new resolve. I caught it though and finished strong. Joey Lindsay may be coming to train for a long time here. That would be super!

 

Friday October 22nd

When does it stop being interesting changing families! The Aranetas, my latest kind hosts (kind is an understatement in their case as you will see), are from the Philippines. Apparently as Lorelei has told me when you are middle class or above there, you have such an easy, laid back life with Nannies and people who do your laundry. They moved here and took a few years to adjust, with the help of Lorelei's mother, as the life was much more trying obviously. Lorelei is a fantastic cook and she ran a catering business together with her husband Zachary until recently. Now she has a lot of free time and lucky for me she uses a lot of that time to cook for the family. I feel like a king the way I eat here. Egg sandwiches with scallops in the early morning along with a strawberry-banana smoothie; When I came home this morning, the younger Zach who skates and myself went to the pool and jumped in the cold pool for 5 minutes then in the steaming, bubbling jacuzzi for (a long) 5 minutes a couple times. we came home to the smell of delicious salmon burgers and sweet potato fries made only with healthy ingredients along with another shake. Now Zach is off to school and I am here alone in the house with the keys and access to anything. I am serious when I say I feel like a king. I am helping out as much as they will let me, which is not much as they are just too kind. Its amazing.
  I had another good session this morning and Kyle is in town for the weekend (the reason I am not in the Uyeharas' house) so I had someone to chase which was great. I am lowering my consistent lap times which is so cool. soon I am hoping to be under 9 flat consistently. Technique technique technique!

Thursday October 21st - New House

Well I am sleeping in yet another bed tonight through Monday. It is very nice here. It is an apartment facility with lots of winding little paths here and there and many green plants and foliage. The fact that there is a jacuzzi and a pool right next door is very nice. The mom of the two skaters, Zach and Shadrack, Lorelei is an amazing cook and I am in food heaven. It is late for me as I have to wake up before 5 tomorrow so I will write more tomorrow. Goodnight.

Me, Edin and Zach, with whom I will stay when Kyle comes back this Thursday through Tuesday.

I am so sad Edin is leaving. He has been such a good friend, example, training partner and role model just in the way he goes about things. It is going to be lonely in the rink in the mornings. I expect it will be just myself and Coach Wilma some mornings but apparently it was like that when J.R. was training with her at one point.
  I just found out today that when Edin was young, he, his sister and his mother were forced to move to a refugee center during the violence in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He told me some pretty amazing things about what they had to do to stay alive. His father was in the army and because the United Nations nailed Bosnia with the Embargo that they could not use automatic weapons, his father would be facing the Serbians who had guns and everything with nothing more than a water pipe. A lot of his friends do not have their fathers anymore. People my age and younger were fighting, having "nothing to lose but their lives", as Edin put it. He is extremely thankful to his mother who would sometimes look harder for toys and means of keeping him and his sister mentally active and healthy before searching for food. for water, his uncle took a soup spoon and dug a hole the size of an average room so that they could access the river that flowed under the house. If they risked going to the water supply near by, they faced snipers, and or the worry of having the water poisoned from the source. I mean, what a different world!! When I was that age, I was chillin under an apple tree with Mommy.
  Its been awesome knowing you Edin and I will miss you.

Tuesday October 19th

The days are flying by! Its already almost November! I have a race, another American Cup, November 6th and I am working hard as ever to have better showing than last time, which was just embarrassing! I am able to finish sessions comfortably now though without my foot being the thing I think about more than my technique. Speaking of my technique, I am starting to narrow things down and I am really ( I think) a different looking skater now than I was just at the last Am. Cup. My feel for the ice is improving which enables my foot speed to increase and when I move my feet rapidly there is still power behind the pushes. I can stay with Edin now when we do what Wil calls Plyo turns, where we start at the beginning of the straight -away doing slow, low strokes and once we pass the first block, build speed as quickly as possible for one lap from the next red line. This morning after the warm-up relay, we did 3 of the pkyo turns, which we do a lot, but I never mentioned them because I never really liked them (aka I was never very good at them). Then we wasted no time in jumping into the "Tempos". I don't quite understand why they are called tempos but its any distance all out, from what I can make out. We did a one lap build and then 9 laps all out 3 times. When Wil was previewing us the workout as she does every session, she said apologetically , "I'm sorry guys, but I'm gonna have to throw in a couple tempos". haha. The first one was okay. Andrew led it but died after 5 laps so Edin took over and he kept the laps fairly consistent so that  think we ended with a time around 1:32ish. I led the second one but I died super fast - much faster than I expected and who knows what my time was. Edin blew by me and finished miles ahead. It was weird because the next one, Edin led and following him, I did 1:30.9 and finished strong! I guess following is just that much easier??? All I know is that I felt very good in the last one and Wil said she was happy with the times this morning. Next we did slow technique laps which I love. We have the luxury of doing technique work at this point in the season because there is ice 6 times a week and it really helps me. We did 10 laps then 15 then 10. I felt great but again, I felt and looked the best following Edin in the 15 lapper. We did the band on the ice and then finished with 15 minutes of relays - 3 man team, 3 laps each.
  I will go to the gym later and tomorrow I will do whatever workout Wil gives me instead of stairs  because it has been so rainy here!! It has rained almost every day since I think sunday and is forecast to rain again tomorrow.

 

Michael jackson pose

In front of the Michael Jackson star in Hollywood, Edin and I struck a pose.

Sunday October 17th - Off day in Hollywood

Today was a very nice day. I slept in, read the Times, practiced, read my book, took a nap waking up to Edin giving great orations in his Bosnian slumber. Then Jon drove us to Hollywood. First we drove up through Griffith's Park and down, which was very nice. Unfortunately it was overcast and rainy so the view wasn't the greatest. We drove down Hollywood Blvd and even did some touristy things like take pictures in front of things. It was a nice day and I feel rested after my one and only dear rest day of the week. Ready to go at it again tomorrow.

Hahaha - when I first looked at Samuel Jackson, I didn't realize it was a statue and, just to make sure it was him I ran up to Jon and Edin and, all excited, told them it was "that famous guy - whats his name". Even after they saw him and told me the name, I still didn't understand it was a wax museum or something like that and that it was not a coincidence that there was a statue of Marilyn Monroe and Shrek next to him. even standing next to him, I was half expecting him to say something.

Thanks for the pics Jon and thanks for a great day. :)

Saturday October 16

Happy Birthday Uncle Steve.

  I am back from my morning workout at the gym. I met Edin there who had roller-skated there before me. I did a shorter workout, as I didn't feel strong with the weights today and then Edin and I did some turn cable in the gym, showing off for the jacked Popeyes. It was cool. I am starting to know all the regulars at the gym now. One guy saw the workouts I do and knew I was a skater. Then, my hair cutter (I got a haircut down the street yesterday) showed up last night and we continued some conversations from the afternoon. The Yankees were playing in the playoffs last night so I went to the gym and rode a stationary bike instead of running for extensive endurance. It was such a good night. I got to the gym, started my 45 minute spin and it was already 5 nothing Rangers. I finished the endurance work and migrated to the part of the gym where I do core and a bunch of other key exercises. I got lost in the workout, as I was really feeling good, forgot about the game, and when I looked at the TV again, it was tied in the eighth inning! They went on to win and I along with a gaggle of other fans went out happy after some fist pumps, high fives and congrats. I was surprised that there were so many people from New York here in L.A.

  Skating later today and then a much needed day off.

Thursday October 14th

Well Wilma says its okay to be happy so I am going to put it out there. I am happy right now. That is because I finally skated this morning. I was having fun and struggling through the tough part of the workout, for the most part, able to concentrate on my technique when my legs were burning instead of a technique that would put less pressure on the place on my foot that has been such a traumatic problem. I had fun for the first time skating this morning in a long time. At the end of practice we were doing technique relays and we had Michael Jackson going. Everybody came alive with the music on and everybody started skating faster and doing their respective Michael dance impersonations. Edin and I were going at it, passing a lot and doing some "easy speed". It was awesome. Okay, gotta keep working hard because as Wilma says, I always have to be satisfied with the present condition yet at the same time always want more.
  I did something new with the boot last night which Edin suggested (so far everything I've done that Edin has suggested has had a positive outcome). It seems to have worked and I will continue to tinker but hopefully the worst is behind!

Tuesday October 12 - Back on the ice!

This morning I was ready to go! I got to the rink and warmed up, helped with pads and got dressed for the ice for the first time in over a week. It felt great once I stepped on the ice. We did mostly technique fortunately this. What was fast wouldn't normally have been fast but I was really slow this morning, getting back on the ice after a long break. There was not any pain at all at first with the foot thing, but gradually it got warn and was there just a tiny bit. Success. I will put a little round foam bandage and that is that! (Hopefully) I'm off to do weights now. Gotta stay strong now...

Monday October 11th

I went to the doctors today to have my boot worked on. I took the bus there just like last time and since last time I arrived 45 minutes late, I left half an hour earlier this time, already feeling like a local on the bus. This time everything went smoothly (I knew exactly how much money to have ready when I got on, I knew exactly how the timing worked, and knew all the time splits of the different buses)and it only took around thirty minutes instead of two hours! I arrived at the doctors an hour and twenty minutes early. It was okay. I read and drew and listened to music and sat in the sun, relaxing in my leisure. What the doctor did was take a fine tool shaped like large scissors but one prong had a ring at the end and one had a ball. At the handle there was a device which enabled him to sustain the right amount of pressure because it locked the arms exactly where he wanted them. I was super cautious and inspected the tool suspiciously and had him explain it precisely. I actually even tried the boot on again before doing the procedure to make sure the marker was in the right place. The thing was, when I tried it on, I could hardly feel the blister at all! I leaned  and I mimicked all the most painful angles we skate at and nothing hurt, so I said lets just push it out a minuscule bit, which is what we did. I really just hope he doesn't have a good point when he (he is Dr. Graves by the way) says that it is not painful just because of the break from skating and that the callus could build up and become painful again. So my taxi arrived ten minutes late to pick me up and dropped me off at  my house late which I tried to avoid by reserving the taxi instead of the bus in the first place, but it all worked out because my ride to Beach training was late. It turned out that even he wasn't late though because he found a much better way to go which literally cut about half an hour off the trip. We arrived there 20 minutes early.

  Anyway, I'm just recapping in such detail because it all just meshed together so well and it was a cool day. The day capped off with the best part of all: A good workout. Wilma said vehemently after the third set of sprints up the hill that she "likes my head" and repeated it seriously. Then, "keep it". I plan to.  Skating tomorrow and I am excited to get on the ice again finally, and at the same time nervous. okayyyy Alarm set: 5:40, skates sharpened, dinner eaten, bag packed, lets do this.

Sunday 10/10/10 !

Ahhhhh, just woke up to a room soaked with cloudless sunlight. Its supposed to be very hot today and I am in the right place. Ill hit the beach and hopefully go in the water a little and just use my day off to relax like a pro. Wilma is happy with how I am working out just as I am. Again, I just am praying that it transfers to the ice without trouble from my foot Tuesday.
  I had a real nightmare last night. I was in a hotel with Casey and Andrew and I think it was Andrew who transformed half way through our stay in the hotel into a psycho killer, bent on destroying Casey and whoever else entered the room. He was very subtle though and I was the only one who picked up on it, and rather than informing anybody and having them freak out, I exited the hotel and went in search of my father, who for some reason was in a hurry to leave the hotel. When he heard the situation, that there was a crazed, blood-thirsty killer in my room, he immediately exited in an even greater hurry than before. I had asked him to call 911 and have that type of help in as soon as possible because I didn't think Casey could hold out much longer up in the room with Andrew inserting suicidal thoughts into his head. (You see Andrew was not only a physical killer but a brilliant perverter of the mind).  I for some reason also went out into the street and for a good while I was battling traffic flow to get somewhere - I can't remember where. When I returned, the dream's location had switched to the top of a mountain line, maybe six feet wide, with the ridge in the middle splitting two steeply sloping segments which just ended after about three feet. There was nothingness underneath. When I finally returned to this location I returned too late to rescue Casey. His pour mind was twisted into thinking he was so over-weight that he needed to drop weight instantly. Andrew's formula was, on the side of the ridge, as fast as possible pivoting around his hands with is feet. Casey was desperately obeying and, his newly gained weight dragging him down, he fell off the side of the cliff! I was yelling at Andrew to stop his spell only after helplessly trying to stop Casey, but to no avail, as Casey solemnly drifted into nothingness. Andrew turned to me, and started speaking and I felt my mind submitting to his powers, then I thankfully woke up. Meanwhile, the police never showed up and my dad was nowhere to be found! Perhaps this dream is just strange and unexplainable, but maybe it is based on the fact that my parents are so far away. I love dreams. They are so interesting and crazy.

  The Yankees are the first team on to the next round! They swept the Minnesota Twinskies for the second year in a row. http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/10/10/sports/YANKEES-REPLAY-9.html
 

Saturday October 9th

So I am not skating, but Wilma is still making my legs hurt. I did a 40 minute workout of low-walks and dryskate and jogging then jogged straight to the Gym and lifted and did core and jogged back. Then I jogged to the rink with my backpack full of stuff and did the pre-ice workout which was pretty hard, I must admit. I watched the session and talked with different parents and then did the after ice workout which was pretty hard, I must admit.

  Now I am at Andrew's house in Huntington again, just for the night. My friend Federico from Apple Hill (the music camp I went to two summers) is rolling through tomorrow and we will hang out at the beach and then I don't know.
I really hope that the foot problem is better after Monday because I can't wait to get back on the ice and skate! Its so hard watching the group and not being out there with them.

Friday October 8th

Lots to say... let's see...

I did basically three workouts today: One turn-cable workout at the rink this morning. I jogged to and from the rink then took a slight break to refuel and prepare for a tough workout on the street here at the house which lasted about an hour and consisted of low-walks, accelerations and jump sets plus a cool down run and stretch. I lazed around for a while, practicing, eating, sleeping making plans for Sunday, making plans for Monday, lol, and then I jogged to the Gym which by Google Earth, is exactly 1.3 miles away. I had my backpack with all my workout stuff and a water bottle to carry and it felt so strange running - like some sort of ad for a North Face product or something. At the Gym I did - what else - a grueling workout on the bike, watching the playoffs on one of the TVs, some core work and then jogged back here. I must have run around 6 miles total today and with the weights last night and hamstring exercises, I am having trouble walking, i am so sore. Tis good.

  On a family note, there is a noisy new member to the Uyehara family and her name is Ginger. She is a tiny dog, but she can threaten the composure of your ear drums when she gets going barking. This happens whenever anyone enters the house or whenever anything unusual passes outside or when the wind blows or when you breathe too heavily - as a matter of fact, she can go off at ANy time - 6 in the morning not excluded. She's a hoot though - its easy to forgive her.

  Jon's parents were in today. The father served in the army and was telling me some pretty crazy stories about serving in the Korean war. He described the feelings when he heard the battle horns, then saw the enemies swarming over a hill! It was intense.

  I plan to skate again Tuesday. Monday I will return to the Podiatrist and we will push out the boot in the place necessary.

  Okay, I'm starving. Gonna go cook up a somethin good.

Thursday, October 7th

Yesterday I had a real hectic day. It was pouring rain here. It was definitely the hardest rain I have seen here in L.A. I tried to go out and do my workout for the morning but I had to call it off rather quickly because when I would sprint, my sneakers would slip on the pavement and it was getting dangerous. I came home, dried off, packed some food in my backpack, and went to wait for the bus. I took the bus to the doctor's office only after going too far on one street, having to stay on the bus at the end of the run waiting for it to go back the way it came, and then not going nearly far enough in THat direction. I got to the doctor's about 40 minutes late even after the operator of the bus system had told me I would have 40 minutes to spare before my 2:00 appointment. Anyway, when I finally got there, the Dr. Bautista took for ever because he was switching between 3 different patients (I learned to watch what I said, making sure not to give him any reason to leave the room because he would never return). But in the end, he gave me some good treatment solutions and just confirmed the obvious - I have to stay off the skates until it heals. I had called the office so many times, either scheduling, asking questions, or pleading for directions from somewhere in Lakewood, that I developed a friendship with the receptionist Alice before I even met her face to face. That ended up incredibly beneficial as I was going to be late for practice for sure if I took the bus home, but Alice waited an extra half hour after she was off and drove me home as she too lives in Lakewood! That was a godsend. I got home at 4:30, stuffed down some peanut butter and jelly, and jogged to the rink, arriving there perfectly - just as the group was finishing their warm-up jog. We did a killer dryand before, in which Wilma was constantly yelling at me to work harder than everyone else because I was not skating. She said after that she was happy and she could tell that I am determined as ever. I helped with pads and then ran a ton and stretched a ton while everybody skated and then helped take off the pads and did the turncable workout after. Wil said it was the best I've looked on the up-downs ever. Ya, it felt good.
  Wil gave me a ride home and then I actually cooked a very delicious dinner - Pasta with a meat sauce and broccoli - and watched Mariano close out the Yankees' first win of the postseason - hope there's many more to come!
  This morning I showed up at the rink after ice and did the turncable workout vigorously. Wil gave me a looooooong workout to do in the gym and she took no mercy on me saying, that's to make up for not skating! haha - I wanted that though - its gonna be good. I had a big lunch after a nap. I practiced and now I will go to the gym and sign up for a new membership. Hmmm, what will I cook tonight?

Photos Courtesy of Jerry Search - Thanks Jerry!

Short Track Action!

Part of the faithful crowd staying warm and supporting the skaters

 Great Shot - gettin cozy.

 Edin dominating group two - those poor guys!

 Jeff and Travis. I think Jeff is making a pass here.

 Kyle Carr - haha, what a great face - smelling gold?

 Kyle, in whose room I am staying!

 Me...In the one good race I had this weekend. I was in the lead after an outside pass just waiting for Olympian Anthony Lobello to glide by.

I am stealing photos that Jerry Search took. He is an awesome photographer who goes to almost all the races. Here is his website. He has photos from waaaaaay back. http://www.nationalspeedskatingmuseum.org/Photo%20Albums/JerrysAlbums.htm

New Resolve

Well, I have not written for a while because I had to think over this weekend and gather my thoughts before blurting something rash out.
  Let me start by saying I am very happy I went and that I learned a lot about racing with the best and what it takes to be one of the best. I learned a lot about myself too, of course, and I am sure now, that I am learning about myself through speed skating more than I ever was before. Its interesting.
  I performed poorly this weekend but it was what I had expected. I will let my foot heal now and I am determined more than ever to train harder, smarter and more efficiently. I did not skate this morning but showed up for dryland.  I am looking so much forward to stairs tomorrow morning and building back up the muscle and form I have lost from the summer. I am going to the gym tonight and I will go to the hospital nearby to have my foot checked out. Hopefully I can get an official opinion and agenda instead of educated guesses and intuitions.

LAX - Thursday Killing Time

I had to document Harshan. He has had this full grown beard since he was 15!

Trying to catch the top guys as they go by.















Some photos of the rink. The is a Long Track going around the whole facility and running track outside that and when you are on the running track, the short track looks tiny. Its a cool facility. Shani Davis is training there now.

The statue in front of the arena.

Looking in at our sweet hotel room. That was very nice.

The rink from the outside

Friday Night - Night Before Am. Cup 1

  I did a whole bunch of nothing before practice ice at 4:15 at the Petite National Ice Center. The free hotel shuttle took us there in about 10 minutes. I arrived and before I even pulled into the parking lot, I saw a group of familiar faces. It was awesome to reunite with everyone. The Virginians, the huge group from Pittsburgh, the guys from Saratoga and everyone else. The warm up went okay. The ice was already chopped up when we (Edin, Casey, Kendal and myself) got on the ice. The pittsburgh club looks very intimidating indeed and John- Henry looks amazing.
  Shani Davis, who apparently trains in Milwaukee (long track) was in the building and skating around. He's awesome to watch.
  I have warm-ups at 10:30 tomorrow and I will do 1500s first. It should be very interesting. There are a lot of great skaters and I don't feel very confident on my feet skating. The two weeks off ice combined with the blister problem is the reason.  I will do my best of course and try to stay positive, knowing that I have only improvement ahead of me this year.