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Archive for January, 2009

Sammendrag av IBU Cupene i Altenberg og Nove Mesto

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009

The IBU Cups in Altenberg, Germany, and Nove Mesto, Czech Republic, were a blast to participate in and gave me the experience of seeing and competing with some of the best in the sport—something I’ve definitely been getting a taste of in Norway, but not in the shear number of competitors that were present at these races. This was also a fun time to connect again with athletes from home that I hadn’t seen in a while.

The US IBU cup team with our hosts in Altenberg–from bottom left: Tracy Barnes, Laura Spector, Carolyn Bramante, Russel Currier, Mark Johnson–back row from left: Sara Studebaker, Susan Dunklee, Zach Hall, Gary Colliander

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Jeg er i Altenberg, Tyskland

Friday, January 9th, 2009

Well, “I’m in Altenberg Germany” now along with the rest of the US team as we prepare for our first race tomorrow at the IBU cup. All has gone well thus far and I can’t wait to start racing. We have a nice place to stay, great coaches and wax techs, and the weather looks great for the weekend too! It has also been fun to connect again and brush up on my language skills with some of the Norwegians. Tomorrow’s race is the 20km Individual race that has four shooting stages. Each miss will be an expensive one-minute penalty. Sunday’s race is the 10km Sprint with two shooting stages.

The last time I raced for the US team was last season at Junior World Championships. Those races were a bit daunting at times due to the fact that I had other priorities with school and my training hadn’t been as specific. This year it definitely feels different, most likely due to my training and racing experiences in Norway, but also probably due somewhat to becoming a senior and no longer being protected by an age class. In spirit, I feel more confident and relaxed, which is definitely a welcomed feeling. We’ll see how things go this weekend, but I’m sure it’s going to be fast and fun.

Here are a couple photos from Geising, a small town close to where we are staying…

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