Weymouth Training

Hello Hello!

Currently I am in Weymouth, England doing lots of hard core training. Luther and I have been sailing with one of the US Sailing Development Team sailors Mitchell Kiss. We have also been joined by a sailor named Isabella Bertold from Canada. It has been a blast sailing with these two. Mitchell, only being 16, has great potential to be a top rated sailor in the world. He is currently training to win the Gold medal at the ISAF Youth Worlds and I have complete faith in him. I really enjoyed having him around and I am looking forward to future training sessions with him.

So, let me tell you about the conditions we have had here! The sun is occasional, but very pleasant when it decides to show its face and it's been windy. Very windy...I am very happy about this, because I feel this is the perfect way to get in really good shape before the event. Our goal is to work super hard on the water so my hiking legs can be built up for the event.

We just did a 5 day stretch of long hours on the water. My body was definitely stiff when I woke up this morning so I decided to take the day off. I went into town with the idea of buying a sweater...but I ended up buying more then I set out for. A top, shorts, dress etc. lol

I am currently staying in a new apartment complex and I love it! I have allergies and Weymouth seems to have everything that can get them flared up. So, this apartment has been great in shielding me from all the problems.


I'll keep writing with more updates.

Conclusion of Trip 1

The SOF regatta didn't end so well for me. I had the worst luck that I have experienced this year. If I went right, the wind went left or if I started at the pin then the boat was favorite. It was just one of those events. Luther and I both feel that we learned a lot and have seen improvement in my sailing even though the result might not of shown it. Guess you can't do good in them all!

It's all about bouncing back now, but during the event it was a true test of character for me. It was definitely tough and very frustrating at times, but I kept pushing through. No matter what place I was, I never gave up. I will be honest and say that it sure is hard to keep going everyday when everything seems to keep going against you, but it's the only way to learn and get stronger both mentally and physically.

Luther was a great help for me there. After a tough day he would help me de-rig so I could change. It was very nice of him and it was a small gesture that showed how strong our team was. It helped re-amp me to go out fighting again. 

The first 4 months of this season have been great. I have managed out of the five events results of a 1, 1, 1, 4, 13. The results are good, but the amount of things I have learned are the best part about it. 

For the next two weeks I am going to kill myself in the gym. I want to really push myself mentally through lots of pain. Trials is coming up and I want to be ready. I know the last event was tough, but I have complete confidence/trust in myself, training, and coach that all is going to be just fine.

Take a look a video that was posted of me:
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=2026826713660 

1st day SOF Regatta

Breezy conditions today! I had a 7, 8 which is pretty consistent. It's a good way to start the event, but I definitely want to improve tomorrow.

My biggest downfall today dealt with my starts. I kept getting shot out the back...I just lined up too close to the boat to leeward of me thus resulting in a bad start. I did my best to catch-up, but was stuck in the positions of 5-10. It was very hard to pass from them.

Luther and I were happy with the results, but have discussed things that I will work on for tomorrow and for the future. It's suppose to be light air tomorrow, but I want to keep the things I thought were my weaknesses in my head so I can take them to training to improve them.

Tomorrow we start at 9.30 (YIKES THAT IS SOOOO EARLY!) So keep checking the results!

Hyeres, France

The fourth stop of the ISAF World Sailing Cup is here = )

I've been doing training with Luther over the past couple of days. We have been very careful to not over do it since I have been ill with some kind of food/water sickness. The training has consisted of two hours that are very intense. The last few days have been pretty windy. We focused mainly on my boat handling and short course racing with a lot of boats. It's been really fun and I have really enjoyed sailing with all the girls! I actually managed to round the windward mark, drop my tiller and take out the whole fleet! That takes some serious skills to mess up all 20 boats you're competing against! hehe.

Now, I am going to take a few days off and get rested up for the event. Racing starts on the 24th and you can view the results/regatta website at http://sof.ffvoile.net/.

I hear that I am on the same course as my brother!!!! That's going to be soooooo much fun. We will be able to share information and see first hand how each other sail.

Vacation Europe!

It’s been since 2007 since I have been in Hyeres France, but first let me tell you about vacation time!  A group of friends and I went traveling around Southern Europe. It was so much fun. We first started off our trip in Monaco. That has to be the wealthiest country I have ever seen. Driving around in a Bentley or Ferrari was common. Guess you can say that my 2005 Fiat Ducato with neon flower stickers and peace symbols didn’t quite fit in. = ) One of the prettiest things about the country was it was all based on a mountain. Housing extended to the top of the mountain that overlooked the super yachts in the marina.

Next, we headed off to Venice, Italy.  We stayed in the middle of town where all the locals lived. It was nice to be there because it got us away from all of the tourist, which there were billions of. We visited everywhere ranging from the famous piazzas to local palaces. It was so unique since the city is located on a canal system.  Instead of taking a bus to get around you instead rode a water bus. The highlight of the trip was going to the opera. We went to a palace where a live opera was performed in all the different rooms. It was very up-close and personal. I loved it!

We attempted to find a place in Milan, Italy, but the housing was too expensive. So, my wise brother said he found a place on his GPS, but it ended up being 2 hours away. We raced our way down at 1 in the morning to Genova where we were confronted by the local gang. HMMMM, don’t think we will be going back there anytime soon. It was a beautiful city, but we just saw some different aspects of it. 

Now when I’m supposed to start training again I decide to get food poisoning. Yippee! I’ve been sailing some, but I was weakened by the ordeal. Luther and my goal is to take it easy and not go too hard since the SOF regatta will be starting soon.

Princess Sofia Regatta

Hello!!

3rd stop on the ISAF World Cup is done...I finished fourth which I am pretty happy about.

I started the event off with a bang. I was extremely consistent with finishing 2nd in the first four races...but then things started to change.

First, I did something that I find quite amusing. I didn't make the time limit in one of the races. HAHA! The leader of the regatta got stuck in no wind and couldn't finish. It was pretty funny to me, but not my coach!

Second, I managed to mount the pin and get stuck on a chain link anchor line. I thought to myself, "O NO, but boat!" I came out of it without a scratch and actually managed to win the race. I was completely lucky! I wish I could say it was skill. I remember sailing the race and saying to myself, "Is this one of those events where I can't do anything wrong? Where everything happens to go my way?" Was I ever wrong!

I then had two races where I struggled with the wind. I couldn't figure out how to tactically go upwind which resulted in me getting a 24 and a 28. Those two races were the majority of the points I earned for the whole event and resulted in me dropping out of first.

I was pretty disheartened after the second bad race, but I pushed through it. I ended the event with a 4 which I am really happy about. This proves to me that when things start getting tough that I can hang on and not do anything drastic to get it back on track. I feel that this was a huge turning point in my sailing.

Now, Im off to Hyeres, France!!!!

Palma De Mallorca

Hello from Palma de Mallorca, Spain!

            I just arrived here yesterday and I am currently taking the day off to recover from jet lag.  It was kind of an interesting trip…I managed to miss one of my connecting flights, which resulted in then having my bags lost because of the ordeal. 

            For the last month and a half I have been doing lots of training. In February, I sailed in two events: the Laser Radial North Americans in Ft. Lauderdale and the Midwinters East in Clearwater, Florida.  I won both of them which was really nice. The most beneficial thing I can take from those two months dealt with my big breeze sailing. I have been very light for the last two years because I was doing so much schoolwork and sailing. This made it impossible for me to gain weight.  Since I graduated, I have been able to focus completely on my body and sailing.  My strength and endurance has increased thus helping me hike harder and longer.  This is definitely due to the gym work, but also having Luther Carpenter (my US Sailing Team Alphagraphics Coach) push me to the brink of exhaustion on the water.

             The year has started off with a bang, but I must remember to pace myself because it’s all about trials this year.  So in January and February I practically sailed and went to the gym every day, which means I took a bit of a break in March. I didn’t sail as much, but, I continued to train in the gym very hard. My focus was to gain weight. I managed to put on a few pounds which currently I am content with, but I know I need to gain more. Time will be the key ingredient in putting the weight on.

            Right before I came to Spain I went to Colorado Springs to do a USSTAG (US Sailing Team Alphagraphics) training camp at the Olympic Training Center. It was very fun, but extremely strenuous. We did workouts and fitness test throughout the day. Our nutritionist was monitoring our dehydration levels which made realize how much more diligent I need to be on consuming fluids. I didn’t seem to absorb much so, I learned how to mix my drinks properly so it can benefit me more.

            Back to the present day. I am here in Spain currently looking out to the ocean seeing lots of people training. I wish I could be out there right now, but logic tells me not to push it too hard yet because I want to prevent illness from wearing myself out.  We had a tough last four days with lots of working out and then I traveled across the world to get here. So, I’m going to be smart and let myself recover.

            I’m planning on starting to sail tomorrow and then I will fly to Barcelona to pick up my trailer and boat on the 25^th.  I then take a ferry that night and will be back to Palma on the 26 where I will resume training.

            On April 4^th I will be sailing in the Princess Sophia regatta, which is the third stop on the ISAF Sailing World Cup. It’s an important event for me, because I want to prove to myself that I have improved in some of these difficult conditions. Results wise though it is a grade C for me. Even though it’s not one of the most important regattas, I’m still going to go for a stellar result. I HATE doing bad, so I’m going to give it all I have. The regatta website is: http://www.trofeoprincesasofia.org/noticias.php

Paige