Staying busy with Collegiate Nationals, Worlds, Reno River Festival…..
The last week was busy with media, promoting the upcoming Collegiate Nationals and Reno River Festival. I shot for a TV show one day and then spent the next day with the News Paper. I think that both projects should come out really well. Jason Craig and I have been boating a lot together. I have been working with a clock doing timed rides, and generally trying to practice under some kind of pressure. All of my moves here feel really fast, snappy, and good to go. This weekend I am helping to judge the Collegiate Nationals here in Reno. I am really looking forward to paddling with everyone and watching everyone compete. The World Championships are only a few weeks away now. I leave next week to head up to the Ottawa River and it will be full on, full time training for me until the event starts. I have myself in great shape, so I should really be able to prepare well with out dealing with fatigue. I have gone back a bit to some of my old ways in terms of how I want to be physically. I used to be big, strong, and very explosive. The last couple of years I have tried to make myself skinny, and weaker, for the sake of staying a lot lighter in my boat. Forget that, right or wrong, I am going back to the old me. Big, strong, explosive and ready to throw down! I am hopeful, but still a bit skeptical that the Worlds feature will be in and at a prime flow. To the best of my knowledge certain people in the past have made claims to the idea that they can control the water. I have heard such claims before, and never before has the water been controlled for any event that I have ever been to on the Ottawa. I was on the Worlds web site the other day and my concerns were validated. The only reason that I bring this up is that I am really concerned about the risk that this is for he sport. If the water level is good then it could be the best Worlds ever. If the water level is bad then it could be the biggest disaster in Worlds history. It would be a huge blow to the sport of international freestyle competition. My concerns lie only with the sport. Anybody that knows me knows that I will show up at any feature, good or bad, and compete with a great attitude. I have had a great time competing on some really bad features, but I am hopeful that this one will be really good.
