So I’m sitting on a plane right now on my way to Moncton New Brunswick.  Thanks to the Canadian Olympic Committee, we have the honour of attending the Olympic Hall of Fame induction ceremony that is being hosted by the beautiful province of New Brunswick.  I’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of Canada on my travels and I’m always amazed at 3 things: How huge it is, how beautiful it is, and how much different each of the provinces are. I don’t spend a lot of time out on the east coast so I’m really excited to spend a few days surrounded by great people, amazing Olympic athletes, and the lovely east coast of Canada.  A few neat things are happening this weekend.  First, one of our bobsleigh alumni is being inducted.  Congrats Dave Maceacern! Secondly, the guests are a mix of summer and winter athletes.  It is always so amazing when we get to spend time with Olympians from the “other” season.  We always discover how much we have in common, how much we inspire one another and how we always feel like we are part of a big maple leaf wearing, anthem singing family.

A few of my teammates will be there and it will be great to see them.  Shelley will not be joining me because she is busy training….and this is an interesting story!  Shelley was an amazing track athlete.  She went to college in Nebraska where she earned both a bachelors and masters degree while competing in hurdles and sprints.  After 5 years of sliding and training with a focus and determination that none of us possessed in our early 20’s, she realized that she is both stronger and faster than she was back in Nebraska, where, by the way, she was one of the top ranked hurdlers in the NCAA.  The thought of using her full athletic capability to pursue the sport that she has loved since she was a little kid is overwhelming for her.  She has so many dreams and plans for her future and her passion for kids and community outreach programs but there is this nagging question in her mind.  The dangerous “I wonder….”

I say: dream of impossible things Shelley.  I will be cheering.  It doesn’t matter where it leads you, it will be an amazing journey.

We will miss you so much in Calgary, and the program will not be the same without you but I can’t wait to watch you run.  Good luck and thank you for the 5 years you spent elevating our teams push times and spirits.  Most importantly, thanks for the last 2 seasons.  You are an amazing person, a great friend and an incredible teammate.  I was so lucky to have you next to me week after week, all winter long.

Hels

Today is exactly one year to the day that I flew home from the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver.  I still vividly remember feeling so exhausted and broken both physically and emotionally.  The negative effects of surviving another Olympic season however were masked by the elation and joy of accomplishing a goal I began chasing 8 years earlier.  It was a much different feeling than the one I had leaving the Olympic Games in Turin in 2006.  My fatigue there was overcast by the deep regret of knowing I underperformed.

Last summer, Shelley and I were faced with a tough decision: whether we wanted to walk away from the sport after the Games in 2010 or continue.  I still had so many goals unfulfilled in the sport and Shelley felt the same but we were both tired, and satisfied.  We spent a few weeks weighing our options and then with the help of our coaches and sponsors, decided to give it one more shot. We were lucky enough to have the full support of so many wonderful people (BCS, B2ten, Jennings Capital, to name a few)

I have won my share of World Cup medals, but due to bad luck and bad timing, I’ve never had a solid run at winning the overall title, and after 8 years of racing, I was still missing one medal: World Championships.  So that was the plan setting out.  We took big risks this summer, changing a lot of our training (thanks to Q and the boys at b2ten) and starting the preparation much later than usual.  The season started out great, the sliding was going well, we were both feeling pretty good physically and we added some great new girls to the program to help us slide and compete this past winter.

I have come to realize that for some people, certain things are just not meant to be.  For me, having a chance to win the overall just doesn’t seem to be in the cards.  After our first World Cup week of the season, Shelley had subluxed ribs and I was left in a sling with a badly separated shoulder and a badly bruised ego.  Did this really just happen on our Olympic track? The track that we know better than everyone else!  Are you kidding me?  I had to skip the first World Cup race and tell myself that winning the Overall World Cup title isn’t that awesome.  I’m such a liar.

The season was ok.  Our worst result was a 7^th.  But some great things happened this winter.  Shelley and I earned a few more World Cup medals for Canada, one of those being a gold.  Shelley’s first World Cup Gold medal!  I was so happy for her! It was the last World Cup race into the 2011 World Championships, the real reason why we came back to race this winter.

I was expecting big things.  Training went great and we had just won the World Cup in Italy.  Our coaches, mechanics, physios and chiros worked tirelessly to prepare us for 4 great heats.  And when those 4 heats came and went, we were left once again just off the podium.  5^th place.  I’m still not really sure why.  I was pretty happy with my runs, I was really happy with our start times.  We just weren’t fast enough.  Its hard walking away from a race satisfied when you can’t quite put your finger on what went wrong.  It was a tough week. The good news is that Canada still came home with hardware thanks to a great performance by Kaillie and Heather and I got to watch 2 of my closest friends retire from the sport with a silver medal to round out an amazing and inspiring career in our sport.  Now, some time to rest, reflect and figure out the next 12 months of my life.  Thank you so much for everyone who has been cheering, and following us.  Your support is so appreciated. I will write again soon…

Hels