Sochi Olympic Winter Games

The Road to Sochi has never been easy or simple.  So many people have been a part of the journey.  Twists and turns, uphills and downhills it is AWESOME!

I first wrote it down on paper when I was 15 years old that I wanted to go to the Olympics.  I had plenty of time to think during an Outward Bound "solo". My "solo": was a 72 hour fast where everyone in the group sat in a secluded spot near water and just thought.  The nice thing about writing down big life goals when you are 15 is that I was not influenced by money or what makes sense.  I chose something that I thought was really fun.  I have a big smile on my face because I have a lot of fun.  Some of my best friends and greatest coaches have taught me that hard work can be a lot of fun.

"My husband is headed to Sochi"- Caitlin "My wife is the best teammate ever!"-Me

The 2014 Olympic Team was named at 11am CST on Jan 22.  The anticipation of the naming of the team was intense.  I knew that I had done everything that I could to make the team but I didn't know if that would be good enough.  I am so happy to have the honor of representing the USA in the Olympic Winter Games.  My focus events will be the 30km Pursuit and the 50km Freestyle.

The year has been my best year Skiing ever.  Caitlin and I are  having so much fun through it all

Today I had one of the best skis of my life.  I had a 3-3.5 hour distance classic ski on my schedule and a trail out in front of the house.  I have skied left several times but today ventured right for the first time.  The tracks were freshly groomed, the vistas incredible and right when I started to bonk a bit we found a restaurant that served apple strudel.  Sometimes opportunities can be a little scary and offer plenty of unknowns.  I encourage everyone to go for it, because the worst thing is to look back and wonder what if.    

Caitlin certainly has taught me that this year. The US Women's team is the strongest ever, we knew that going in to this year but Caitlin still went for it.  She is not afraid to put it all out there and she has done that.  Watching her win nationals by 3:36 seconds was incredible.  She did not get named to the 2014 Olympic team but I am incredibly proud of her. She did everything she could and we have no regrets.  We are so thankful for the opportunity to pursue our passion.  Thank you to everyone who makes this possible.

Originally my plan was to fly back the the USA after the Period 2 World Cups but with the stress of the travel we took the gamble on heading to Sochi and decided to do a training camp in Northern Italy. This is my 5th time ever to Europe but both Caitlin and I are pretty good travelers (We have been on the road from our home in Minneapolis since October 1st.).  We found an apartment on kayak that looked like it was close to the ski trail in an area that should have snow.  20 miles away things were looking grim but everything worked out great.  We have a little kitchen, bathroom, and studio about 100m from the ski trails.  There is a well equipped gym here in town and the owners graciously have given us a key card for 24 hour access.  We also just discovered that if we position our computer just right down in the lobby we can pick up an internet signal.  Life is pretty good.