October 9, 2006

Subject: EPIC UPDATE!! 2006 season

Hello to everyone!

I would like to start by apologizing for not having sent many update e-mails this year. I haven't forgotten about any of you! This year has proven to be challenging for me and I was having a hard time to put my thoughts and experiences into words for a while. I really managed to push myself to the edge this year with the scheduling and traveling. Though I had an extremely difficult time with my season this year, I'm happy to say that I'm back on with my e-mails again. A lot has happened and I've once again learned a lot; a lot about my personal limits and a lot about how to go about planning a better season.

If I could translate what my season has been like this year into a rollercoaster ride, I think I'd have a good chance of being in competition with the rides at Disney World! Having started off strong in the early months of this year I felt great and I was ready for anything... Or so I thought. Europe this year proved to be something else. With all the major events back-to back, there was no time off for those of us who decided to do them all (that would be me!). Princess Sofia, Hyeres, World Sailing Games, Spa, Europeans and then a small break before worlds. That's 5 major events in 3 months (excluding the Worlds). Looking back now I can see that its ridiculous to expect to do well at all of these events, but I was very naive. I could go on and on about these events and how frustrated, tired and upset I was that I didn't do well, but that would be much too long, even for me! I can summarize by quoting the Steve Miller Band and their song 'Jet Airliner': "You gotta go through hell before you get to Heaven".

After a tough season in Europe, I took a week off completely and then did some training in Houston at the Houston Yacht Club. With the help of the coaches there, I did some drills with the youth sailors and just got back to the basics. This was probably the best thing I could have done for myself in preparation for this year's World Championships. I got to the worlds feeling refreshed and ready to bring it on. I am happy to report that I had a pretty good event overall, finishing 33rd in Gold Fleet. It wasn't quite the result that I had aimed for, but I had some fantastic races and managed to qualify for the National Team for 2007. I am really happy with how I sailed, though it was another stressful wait for me to see if I made the gold fleet this year. Tommy, my coach, told me that I had to finish in the top 4 in the last race of the qualifiers in order to certainly make the gold fleet. I tried my hardest, but the best I could get was 5th!! So I was completely stressed out until they finally posted the results that showed me in the Gold! Then the next day I proved that I belonged there with a solid 4th in the first race and a 13th in the next. This one, I can't complain about, especially with the kind of season I had been having.

After the Radial Worlds, I coached at the Youth Radial Worlds, which was a nice change of pace and a lot of fun. It was a good break from always being watched, and to finally be able to watch others.

2006 Good Luck Beijing Qingdao International Regatta.

Try saying that regatta name 5 times fast!

After doing some coaching I flew out from LA to China and did the Olympic Test Event (Otherwise known as the above mentioned regatta). This event was... How can I put it... Interesting?! I am really happy that I was able to go to Qingdao and see the venue this early on, as it is very different from anywhere I've ever been before. With winds around 4 knots and tides of around 2 knots, it made for some very difficult sailing, and not very much racing. I could also go ON and ON about this event, but I will try to keep it short.
China is prepared to give the world a grand Debut of the New, Modernized China. With the Opening and Closing Ceremonies televised live and with all the important people there, it was quite impressive! (they love their fireworks!!) The venue was almost completely prepared, with only an athlete's village and some minor things within the venue to finish up before the main event in 2008. This is almost unheard of for any Olympic Venue! It was really fantastic in that respect, though the organization/race committee does have a lot of work cut out for them though in the next two years.
The Chinese were extremely hospitable and always had a police officer around to make sure we were safe. It was pretty scary riding in the Taxi's there, but at about $1-$2 to go anywhere in the city, it was the way to go! The culture there is just so different from our Western Culture, but it was really a great experience, and I do feel like I could go back there again and feel a lot more comfortable now that I know what to expect.

The sailing itself wasn't very good at all. The main objective of this trip was to go and see what it was like. So it was a good trip! I just know now that I should go and train in places with very strong tides. Though there was next to no wind, on the last day a storm came through and brought some good conditions for the sailors in the medal races. This proves that you really have to be prepared for everything! This is always the goal.

SO... Now I'm in Vancouver after having just driven from Houston. It was a long haul, but I'm happy to be here. This coming weekend we have our Canadian National Qualifying Regatta (NQR) at the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club. I haven't touched my boat since China, so this will be a nice event to get myself back in the mode to do some serious training this winter. I will be based here in Vancouver for the next 2-3 months, with only one trip in that time. I will go to Hawaii to do some training with Danielle Myrdal, one of the American Radial sailors. The objective for the next 3 months is to really focus on building a solid plan for this upcoming season. The Worlds 2007 in Portugal is the first opportunity for anyone to Qualify for the Olympics, so its really cruch time now. Time to 'Go Hard or Go Home'! I'm planning on going HARD!!!!!!

How do you feel after reading this Epic Update? Did it feel Epic? Ha ha... I don't know, I thought maybe more people would read this if it had a catchy title! It seems to work for newspapers, right!?

I do hope that all of you are doing well and I really look forward to hearing back from you. It always brightens my day!

Ciao for now,
Keamia