Thursday, December 27, 2012

Technical Difficulties

Hello Everyone,

Unfortunately due to complications with the web program I use for my web-site I have been unable to upload any photos of my travels. However, I will update photos as soon as possible.

God Bless

Jesse

www.jessebeckom3.com

Twitter: @jessbeck3

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

2012-2013 Season Whistler, Canada World Cup Update


Whhhhhaaaaaaazzzzzzzzup! Oh yeah it’s coming back!

Abbreviated Version

For anyone who would prefer not to read the whole story an abbreviated version is available on the last page of this update.

The Extended and more exciting version!!

It has been about three years since I was last in Whistler, Canada for a World Race, and I have to admit it felt nice to be back. The track itself was, of course, the same, but the last time I was there was pre-Olympic Games so all the banners and decorations had not been put up yet. It was bitter-sweet seeing how it looks now, after the games, since the majority of my thoughts were of how amazing it would have been to be there competing in the Games! But in all honesty those thoughts only lasted about a day, my main thought was, it World Cup week, I’m racing and let’s make it happen!


Training had gone well all week; our pushes were right up there with the other two teams from the USA and the rest of the world. As a team we were all feeling pretty good about our chances going into the race. After training, however, our driver (Corey Butner) spoke with the coaches about what he was feeling with the sled. Unfortunately for us, the feeling he had about the back of the sled not responding properly was correct, the sled was broken! One of the bolts that kept the body of the sled stable with the frame was missing at the back end of the sled making the sled flex in a weird manner and possibly causing the sled to be slow. Since we did not have the equipment to fix the sled for this half of the tour, the plan was to use it one more time then ship if back to Placid. This scenario was only possible because one of our coaches who constructs sleds had another 4-man sled ready for USA 2 to use once we arrived in Germany the following week. USA 2 would get the new sled then our crew would take over their sled, which is a good sled and the same one I raced in during World Championships last year.

Regardless of the possible future scenarios and the mechanical issues going on with the sled, we still had a race in the morning! As usual the night before the race we sanded the runners (Ice Skates of the sled), checked the inside handles, did some practice loads into the sled, waxed the sled, then threw the sled cover on top.

Since the race was at 9am we were all up by 6am in order to have breakfast and a pre-workout lift completed before we left for the track at 7:15am. The weather at the track had been in the high 30’s to low 40’s which is pretty warm weather for bobsledding. In conditions like this all you can hope is that your team has chosen the correct runners to use for the race temperatures on that day. Luckily, or unluckily, for us our driver only has one set of race runners which make the decision much easier (but, at about $8-10,000 for a good set of runners, who can blame him). If by chance you are wondering, No…..we do not have runners for truly hot conditions because, if it were that hot, the track would turn into a water park, and our sleds do not float.  Lol.

 The Four-Man Race had a field of about twenty-seven sleds.  Of them, only the top twenty sleds get a second and final run. The top ten sleds, based on their world ranking, have a random draw to see who goes off in what order. After that, sleds 11-whatever go off in the order that they are ranked in the world. That being said our sled was off nineteenth. The first two American sleds had already gone and were sitting in top ten positions, and now it was our turn to join the party.

The Team of USA3 that I am currently on consists of Corey Butner (Driver), me (nicknamed Jesse Law), Johnny Quinn (JQ), Nick Taylor (Nic).

(Yes, yes I know what you are thinking, How many nicknames do I have? Well, I will summarize a few I have been given; Immortal, Predator, Terminator, The Truth (no offense A.I) and now Jesse Law! The Law Dawg if you’re funky! Lol, but I digress.)

After a strong warm-up we all stepped onto the start block ready to push. Nick initiated our cadence and as usual Corey finished it, and we were off and running. After Corey loaded, I loaded four steps after him as usual, with JQ following directly after me.  I knew something was off.  Apparently JQ’s foot got caught up getting into the sled which delayed his load. JQ recovered quickly enough to get in and down in the sled with Nic loading right after him. Considering the small difficulty, the start was ok (should have been faster). Corey’s drive down the hill was pretty smooth, but at the finish the time did not match how smooth the trip was, leaving us in 15th place. We were all baffled and noticeably upset at the bottom of the track! It was not until we got to the top of the track, flipped the sled and were preparing to sand the runners (to remove any scratches they might have picked up after the first heat) for the second heat that we discovered why we were so slow down the hill. To our horror a piece of ice had come off the track leaving some concrete exposed which put some huge, deep, monstrous scratches in both runners on the right side of the sled! Once we hit that concrete, the groves in our runners began digging into the ice, causing us immediately to begin losing time all the way down the track!  Unfortunately and fortunately for us the sleds behind us all hit concrete as well ensuring that we would at least get a second run. Now, normally, the FIBT jury provides identical grades and pieces of sand paper for each sled going into the second heat.  However, our runners were so badly scratched that they let us use our own sand paper to try and get the groves out!! We got the scratches out the best we could in the time we had, but we also still had to warm-up for the second heat of racing!

In the second heat we made a good improvement, dropping four hundredths of a second off our first push. That start helped to put us up by three tenths of a second over the sled that had gone down before us! It was at that time our troubles started.  Unfortunately we got caught in some frost in the curve which made the sled climb higher than it should have. Normally a driver can pull the sled down quickly when the ice is fast/glazed the way it should be.  But when it’s a bit frosty, there is more grip and that makes it harder to pull the sled off the curve when you are supposed to. This started a chain reaction of being late into other approaching curves resulting in being very late in curve nine.  That led to us rolling over and crashing!!!

Luckily it was an easy roll over and not a fall from a ten foot curve! However, we did briefly roll upside-down - getting a little height and then banging pretty hard into the bottom of curve eleven, with only 4 more curves to go! As you may know, I am seated in the second position in the sled, just behind the driver.  That is normally a comfortable position. But in a crash, I quickly go from a smooth Cadillac ride to becoming the kickstand of the sled!! (Not a lot of fun).

You will get a better idea of what I mean by this when you watch the video provided in this link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzlkC97AvEg

What’s that a question in the back row!!? Well I’m glad you asked that! To answer your question:  In case you are ever in a bobsled crash you want to try and get every part of your body off the ice if you can, since at those speeds (85-100mph) your flesh can be ripped or burned off! (Yeah I could have used the word “skin” but “flesh” has more flare lol)

Once we rolled over I did my best to get most of my body off the ice and into the sled while at the same time pressing my head/helmet against the ice. This insures that the helmet takes most of the rubbing and burning instead of my body. The whole ordeal lasted a couple of minutes,  towards the end I was actually, briefly, happy when I saw, while we were still sliding on our side,  that we had crossed the red finish line that is under the ice. The reason for that moment of happiness was that, as long as we cross the finish line, we would still get points for the race (IF everyone were still in the sled). As I said, I was only happy for a brief moment because, as I got out the sled in order to assist my teammates getting out, I noticed that our brakeman/fourth guy was not in the sled! The fact that he came out of the sled before we finished meant that we were instantly disqualified from the race! You all can imagine how upsetting that must have been for all us to crash, cross the line, and still be disqualified! Hey I guess that is a part of racing! And most importantly none of us was hurt, so I know God was definitely watching over us!

I will have pictures of Whistler, Canada posted on my web-page in a few days.

Abbreviated Version

Hey you guys (its Chicago lingo, men and women can both be called guys when referring to a group) do you remember when I said I was ready to rock and roll for my race in Whistler? Yeah well….we rocked and rolled a little more than I or the rest of my team had planned!  Yeah uhm….we crashed in the 4-man sled and were disqualified from the race because our fourth guy fell out of the sled during the crash. Don’t worry, I tell the full story above, this short version is just for those of my readers  who don’t enjoy my long e-mails!

God bless

Jesse

P.S I will be sending out conse

www. Jessebeckom3.com

Twitter: @jessbeck3

P.S In the near future I will send out 2 more updates that will bring everyone up to current events.

Saturday, December 15, 2012

Last 4-Man Race of the First Half

Hello Everyone,

I apologize for being behind in my updates, I have been posting updates on facebook, and twitter but have done a poor job as of late posting on my blog page.

Please tune in and watch the final 4-Man Bobsled Race of the first half tomorrow December 16th. It will be on at 9:25am European Time 3:25am EST. The link below has all the information you need to tune in!!

http://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-and-Skeleton-Federation/Features/2012/December/11/World-Cup-tour-stops-in-French-Alps-before-holiday-break.aspx

God Bless

Jesse

Friday, November 23, 2012

4-Man Race Tomorrow

Good Morning/Afternoon Everyone

I will be racing in the 4-Man Race tomorrow Nov 24th. The race begins at 9am West Coast time, you can view the video at http://www.youtube.com/user/bobskeletv Please subscribe to this channel to keep up with all my World Cup Races. I'm looking forward to helping out Team America Bobsled_SuperForce succeed

Sincerely

Jesse

www.jessebeckom3.com

Twitter @jessbeck3

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Let the Season Begin!

Although I will not be racing this week please tune in to Watch Team America Bobsled force in action during the First World Cup of the Season!! Subscribe to this YouTube Channel http://www.youtube.com/user/bobskeletv

There is also and App for your I-pod or I-pad just download the "Live+" from Digotel Sarl. After you download the app just tap a video channel and then one of the videos in it. When you watch a live video you can scroll back the stream at any time to watch a key moment again. Tomorrow November 9th the Women's 2-Man Race begins at 9:04 am EST, the Men's 2-Man Race begins at 1:04 pm EST. On Saturday the Men's 4-Man Race starts at 9am EST

Please check out the Article that was done on me in the Des Moines, Iowa Register
 
God Bless and Enjoy!

Friday, November 2, 2012

Happy Day After Halloween!!


Happy Almost Halloween everyone!!!

Well, at times I really don’t make things easy for myself! One of these years it’s going to be such a smooth road for me I won’t believe it! Lol Unfortunately however, that will not be this year!

 In the beginning there was darkness that covered the earth until a great light appeared. Sorry another flash back! Lol

Here is the real beginning. This year I decided to head up to Lake Placid 3wks early then our testing date so I could get acclimated to the environment, get some practice runs on the sprint track we would be testing on; along with getting some extra pushes in at the push track!

Just to refresh everyone’s memory, at the beginning of each season the whole teams participates in combine testing and push championships. These tests are designed to test general overall fitness as well as rank brakemen. Our combine testing includes three field events and two lifting events. The field invents include a 60m sprint with timing eyes at the 15m, 30m, 45m, and 60m mark with a maximum 100 points awarded at each timing eye split, then there’s a standing long jump,  and shot toss. After that we head into the weight room where the men have to squat a maximum of 200 kilos for a set of three in order to receive 100 points. The last event is a one rep maximum 150 kilo clean in order to receive 100 points. . Following the combine test a few days later we have our Push Championships for Men and Women Drivers, then Men and Women Brakemen.

 
Let The Testing Begin

After a great summer of training I was well prepared heading into testing and confident in the numbers I would put up!  The day of the combine I was felt relaxed and focused on the goal at hand. As I entered the sprint event, an event where for whatever reason I always seem to be more nervous than not. However, this time around I was feeling pretty confident since my coach had me running through the timing eyes most of the summer. I did not know it then (pretty sure he did though) it allowed me to be more comfortable and prepared for that moment of testing. Going into the sprint I had planned run only one sprint out of the 3 available. I and the majority of the veterans on the team had all pretty much decided to run only one. This was done to not only minimize the possibility of a fluke injury but also to have fresher legs heading into Push Championships at the end of the week.  Just as I had done all summer I stepped to the line took a calming breath and took off running. After running my sprint to my delight I had run my personal best in testing a 2.07 at the fifteen meter eyen and a 3.64 at the 30 meter eye!!  I was pretty exciting going into the next event which was the standing long jump where I also jumped my personal best of 3.10 meters on my first jump, I took three jumps there but they were all pretty much the same distance as the first. We then moved on to the shot toss where last year I throw 17.1 meters and had been throwing between 16.9m and 17.3 through the summer. I stepped up for my first throw and threw a 17m on the head, I then gathered for my second throw and it went 17.6m I was pretty excited  because once again it was a personal best for me! I had another throw but it only went 17.4.

With the completion of the field events it was now time to head into the weight room for the strength part of the combine (the easiest part for me). It’s also the reason why  I wish it was worth more points, you know just to even the points out a bit to help the powerful guys out a bit kind of how the sprint awards a ton of points to the guys with a track and field background. And no…..I’m not trying to get more points for my strong points…Ok maybe I am! Lol

As I mentioned earlier, in order to get the maximum amount of points for the lift you have to squat 200 kilos for a set of 3 (100pts possible), and clean 150 kilos one time (100pts possible); I quickly finished those two lifts, spotted a few teammates on their squats then immediately went to stretch out in the training room. It was a great day all around for me with record best in the field testing raising my combine score of 718 last year to 755 this year!! And although I was pleased with my performance my main goal was to make sure I carried this momentum over to Push Championship which was two days away.

In preparations for Push Championships I spent the next two at the push track practicing my initial hit on the sled; and my first few drive steps and pushing over the crest. Looking back on things I have to admit I did not feel as comfortable as I know I should have felt going into Push Champs, but I figured it was just a little nervous tension like I usually get.

 Push Champs

After what felt like an eternity the day of Push Champs was finally here! In keeping with the trend of bad Lake Placid weather during testing it was a chilly rainy day. The rain in the forecast caused me and the majority of the team to warm-up in the gymnasium. While we warmed up in the gymnasium the rain passed and with about thirty minutes left before the start of the competition we headed over to the push track to finish warming up. My warm up went well like any other day and I was ready to rock on the push track!

Really quick the way it works is that each brakeman/push athlete has three pushes and an a optional fourth push but, if on your first three pushes you have not pushed from a certain position you must push from that position on your fourth push.  The first push for everyone is from the brakes than their best side push (left or right), and then the third push is usually from whatever position side or brakes the athlete pushing feels they can improve in to jump up in ranking.

 From the race draw that was done the previous night I went of 7th in the order. I stepped on to the start block but for some reason I was not zoned out nor losing my mind and pumped with adrenaline like normal; regardless I got into my start position and began
pushing.  While I was pushing I thought I was in a good position but when I loaded into the sled it did not feel that powerful step off the ground and into the sled. I pushed from the left side, then from the brakes again. But to my dismay I was sitting in 11th position .06 out of the top 4 from the side and brakes, which is where I was last season. Before my fourth push I asked consulted with some of my friends that were there watching what they had saw. They told me that I was too far bent over the sled and I needed to get up and run! I was pretty frustrated because it was a rookie mistake and I was extremely upset that I had made it. Because for whatever the reason I could not feel that I was in a bad pushing position as I normally would. On my forth push I went from the right side of the sled which is usually my weakest side, and being that it was my fourth push I did not know what to expect.  Just from changing my pushing position I was only a hundredth or so off my time from the left side of the sled (my best side).  For all practical purposes I should have been a lot slower but it was the difference in body position that made up the gap proving how bad my body position was on my first three pushes.
 
After push championships the drivers began picking their teams and although I had raced as USA 2 in the previous season and at World Championships my driver decided to go with someone else heading into National Team Trials. So to make a long story short I worked with one of my teammates on technique which helped to get me out to the slump I had fallen in. I immediately saw the difference in practice once we began to push on Ice, which I was able duplicate in our National Team Trial. I ended up pushing with USA 3 driver Corey Butner for 2-man where we finished in Second Place. Then in 4-man I ended up pushing for USA 5 driver Cody Basque and pushing him to the fastest time he has ever had in his life, taking third in the race and helping him move up to USA 4!
The following morning the National Team was named and I am happy to say that I was named to the Team. As of right not it is looking as if I am an alternate and may not be racing as of yet, well that is unless I have an opportunity to win a race-off against a teammate and move up. I have to admit it is a humbling experience losing my rank and funding as well, but I am confident in my God given abilities and hopefully soon I will be back in the position on the team where I belong. Because if it’s one thing I know is that God has a plan and however things happen through the highs and the lows in the end it will be to his glory and I trust to my benefit!
My Goal is to be on the 2014 Olympic Team and I will Grind it out however I have to through the good times and the less than good times! 
God Bless
P.S if you know someone looking to sponsor and World Class Athlete please forward them to the sponsorship section of my web-site or have them e-mail me to figure out a personalized sponsorship deal. I'm looking to garnish $5-$6K to get me through the season.
 
Jesse B
 
 
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Thanks

Good Afternoon everyone, I really do not have an update at the moment but I just wanted to say thank you all for your continued support of me! Happy Mittwoch!

Sincerely

Jesse B

Friday, August 24, 2012

Training and Meeting with my Big Hommie from the Chi!


Training
The month of August is almost at an end along with my summer training in Colorado Springs. I will be heading out to Lake Placid, NY September 9th to finish my final preparations for Push Championships and the start of the season. To date my training is going great!!! My coach and I have started timing my sprints, measuring my jumps and my throws for the events I will be tested, I’m happy to report that my practice testing numbers have improved from last year at this same time. I am extremely excited to display my hard work and get back to competing! Speaking of competing please follow this link to see the World Cup Schedule http://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-and-Skeleton-Federation/Events.aspx  As to not bore you with tales of ungodly amounts of weight that I throw around the weight room and how I created several sonic booms while sprinting or that I jumped over THE MOON…Twice! I will share the story below.


Meeting with my Big Hommie from the Chi (a.k.a Chicago)!
 I had to share this Story!!!

Thursday August 9, 2012 started of like any other day. I woke up stretched, ate breakfast,  took a few supplements and headed into the weight room. I hopped on the stationary bike for about ten minutes, and then began my normal thirty minute dynamic warm-up. Being that I’m pretty good at what I do my work out went smoothly! Lol No but seriously I’m a beast with it! The other day one of the tourist who visited the training center saw me lifting and started SCREAMING out Gayaka! Gayaka! Since they just saw me Movin Monster Type Weight, the police were on their way until they were told “Stand Down! Stand Down! It’s just Jesse in the weight room again and he scared another tourist!” lol And Yes there is something seriously wrong with me!  I….Knoooowww!

Sorry I got off track again.

In the middle of my workout my Coach Eric reminded me that President Obama would be speaking down the road today at Colorado College then jokingly asked me if I was going to go listen to him speak. I told him I would like to but I did not have a ticket nor did I have a clue on how to get a ticket. As I continued my workout I just had a feeling that somehow I would end up getting a ticket to hear the President speak, possibly getting to shake his hand at some point. Honestly I have no idea why I felt this way but for some reason I just saw everything falling into place. True to form just as I was finishing up my work out one of my friends and tour guides at the training enter walked in, asks me if I wanted a ticket to go hear the President speak! Evidently he had earned a ticket from volunteering but was unable to make use of it due to work. Of course I accepted the ticket, I mean come on people destiny was revealing itself and who am I to stand in its way! Lol

 The gates per say opened up at 11a.m but I did not finish up my work out till 11:45a.m, but I figured that I had until at least 1pm before he actually started speaking. After completing my work out I quickly stretched, showered, dressed and was soon headed to hear the President speak.
 
I arrived at Colorado College around 12:20 pm; the scene was what to be expected with a line of people extending at least five blocks. Initially I was worried that I may miss the president speak, until a volunteer told me that his speech would not start till 2pm.  Standing in line was definitely not the highlight of my day although the line moved along rather quickly. I think this was partly to do with my amusement/amazement at the stories and arguments from those people who saw this as a great opportunity to petition for the legalization of Cannabis.

  At the main entrance of the event the security was extremely tight complete with snipers a top several buildings, policeman and secret service members scattered throughout the crowd (some seen and others not seen I’m sure).  As I’m standing in the crowd waiting for the president to speak numerous people began to pass out from the heat and general out of shapeness (yes that is a real word…Deal with it lol).  But the medics there were efficient to say the least because within minutes of someone passing out the paramedics were right on the scene. They also had volunteers passing out cold water to keep everyone hydrated. Speaking of hydration, I happened to be standing next to this couple along with their mother-in-law (I had been talking to this group since my arrival). Every 20 minutes or so the mother would kindly offer me some water; and every 20 minutes I would kindly decline. About the fourth time she asked with me not accepting she expressed her concern about me passing out. I somewhat jokingly and possibly arrogantly said “I think I will be ok and if I pass out then everyone here is in trouble because surely Hell on Earth is soon to begin!” we both laughed!

 Needless to say the President was well received by the adoring crowd. I initially missed the President running up on stage because I was too busy looking up in the sky at the circling Blackhawk helicopter, which was pretty cool in itself! As you might imagine the President’s speech was polarizing, motivating and inspiring the assembled crowd. CNN already went over the ins and outs of the speech so there is no need for me to do so here….Yup You Are Welcome! Lol At the end of the speech the President made his way to his motorcade, shaking hands and greeting the public along the way. I was too far away so I did not get my hand shake!

Making my way back to my car I ran into Darrin Steel CEO of USBSF, which led to a twenty minute conversation about training and general bobsled dynamics that I will not bore you all with. The conversation was productive; afterwards we both left to meet destiny head on!  

 As I pulled into the OTC (Olympic Training Center) I saw the same police motorcycle escort that I had just seen at the rally! I immediately ask the guard what’s going on and who is on the campus? The security’s guard initial response was “I can’t say but we have a V.I.P on campus!” I looked at him and said “Sooo…Obama came over here after his speech then?” He said yeah pretty much! lol Knowing that the president would want to take pictures with some athletes, I figured that he would be either in the cafeteria or the main gym. I quickly parked my car, and then ran into the Athlete Student Center downstairs into the cafeteria. Seeing no president in sight I walked out to the main yard of the OTC where I saw Secret Service members lined along the entire Belk Pathway, which is the walkway that runs down the center of the campus! Ironically enough I was not the only one trying to get to the weight room or somewhere in that vicinity. It just so happened that a member of the kitchen staff had just gotten off work and was trying to get to his car that was parked by the gym and another athlete was trying to get inside the gym. The Secret service agent asked the guy from the kitchen where he was going and he replied to his car, the Agent told him he needed to wait. Then the athlete who was in front of approached and the Agent asked him where he was going and he replied to the weight room, the Agent told him he needed to wait! So then I walk up the Agent asked me where I was going, I said to the weight room and he said ok go ahead!! Lol I must have looked like I work out or something! As I walked past the Agent another Agent about thirty feet away screamed to the first Agent “Hey What about that guy?” The first agent screamed back “He’s Good!”

 As I continued down the stairwell towards the gym there was another Agent in front of me; so to make sure I did not get shot anytime soon I asked him if it was ok for me to proceed to the gym. He said he was not sure but to go as a group of three agents that were at the bottom of the stairs and adjacent to our position. As I walked over to the group of Agents I could see they were sizing me up as I them, they looked like a group of football tight ends; so off first impression I did not care for them and by the looks on their face they did not care for me either! Lol  I asked what seem to be the Agent in charge if it was O.K for me to go into the gym, he suggested that I wait 20 minutes or so. He then said don’t worry you want miss the snow (it was a reference to the Bobsled shirt I was wearing). When he saw I did not laugh he said it was a joke! I said yeah…I know and walked towards the side entrance of the gym! In hind sight he probably could have shot me, however growing up in Chicago I’ve been almost shot a few times (TMI?) so the thought really did not bother me much! lol

 Truly the fates were on my side because indeed the side entrance was open, as confirmed when I heard my team mate Emily Scream out “Jesse you just missed the president, he was just here!”  I was like really…really….you have to be kidding me! Taking Emily’s acknowledgement that indeed I belong in the weight room I quickly ducked into to assess the situation. Talking with my team mates I found out the president was next door in the wrestling room speak to the young wrestling camp that was going on. I would have tried to make my way into the room but the Secret Service Agents were not having it! However, luckily for me the inner hallway that lead to the wrestling room ran directly in front of the entrance to the weight room!  My plan was to wait inside the weight room by that hallway then knock on the glass when the president was walking out of the wrestling room hoping not to startle the Secret Service Agents to the point where they may want to shoot me! Lol Just Saying it could happen! As I approached the glass one of the Secret Service Agents saw me patted his hip and shook his finger as to say NO! NO!....just playing! When he saw me he actually started flexing towards me and pointing at my biceps; which inspired the cameraman next to him to start laughing and pointing at me as well! I pointed at the guard, then told the cameraman “It’s not my guns you need to worry about since they are made out of muscle, but it’s the gun that Agent is packing under his suit that you need be concerned!” we all started laughing. After waiting about 15 minutes or so one of the agents opened up the door that lead from the weight room to the hallway and with intent asked us if we would mind not suddenly coming into the hallway anytime soon! We did not have ask what would happen if we did…it was a given! Lol Shortly thereafter the President came walking out; it was time to my plan into action!! I used my Jedi mind trick to make the President look up in my direction, then proceeded to knock on the glass threw my arms up as to say “What up Prez can your boy come hollar for a minute at or what!? (and possibly to show the agents around me I had no weapons ha-ha”). Being that the President is from the Southside of Chi so without me having to say a word he looked at me and said “sure come on out”, then opened the door for me! In my mind I was thinking “The President just open the door for me Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat like Kanye said You Can’t Tell Me Nothing now! Lol” I was cheezing from ear to ear (and no need to spell check me on that in my blog that’s a word get over it, it makes it easier for everyone!)

 Now I’m in the hallway speaking with the Most Powerful man in America and arguably the World who has also lived in Chicago; I can definitely check that off my bucket list! He looks me up and down, then asks me what sport I did, I told him bobsled; he said I guess we make our bobsled athletes pretty big! Lol I told him that I use to play football at Iowa State and we fill out a little different than the basketball players he’s use to being around. I then told him I was also from the Southside of Chicago, without missing a beat the President Immediately Shouts Out SooouthSiiiiddde!!! His Security, the cameramen, newspaper reporters, the President along with myself all broke out in laughter, it was classic! He asked if the USA was any good in bobsled. I told him about are Men’s USA 1 Squad who won Gold in last winter Olympics and last year World Championships as well as our USA women who took Bronze in the Olympics and a Bronze in last year’s World Championships. He asked where I had attended high school and with pride I told him Corliss off 103rd street. He nodded his head in confirmation that he knew the area. He then told me congrats and that I had come a long way from the Southside of Chicago. Without missing a beat I told him “Hell you’re one to talk look at you!” once again everyone present got a good laugh out of my response. After we were done chatting one of the guys present asked me if I wanted a picture with the President, of course I responded and the rest is digital history.

 So ends the story of how President Barack Obama got to meet Jesse Beckom III! Lol

 
Have a great weekend everyone. Pictures will be posted by monday on my web page in the V.I.P album. But pics are already up on twitter @jessbeck3

 God Bless

 Jesse

 

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

July Update 2012

Where do I begin, do I start with the alien abduction story explaining to you all how
escaped there evil clutches then how I single handedly saved the Galaxy by taking out 10,000 alien invaders and….the mother ship you all did not know existed or do I talk about only my training? Hmmmm…..decisions decisions.

Well guess I will talk about training but you are welcome for saying your lives and no, no I don’t need a parade or 100 foot statue erected in my honor but thank you!

My Training My training is going really well! I’m super excited about the upcoming season! My coach and I had numerous talks about my training schedule; we’ve decided to follow the same schedule as last year since we both felt that I was extremely prepared for the season. I’m feeling strong in the weight room and so so fast and explosive on the track! For my weight training I’m lifting the same amount of weight as last year, but now I am moving it at a faster rate! During my sprints my heel recovery is lower; my foot strike is more under my COM (center of mass) and my upper body angle is also improving as I run. I would talk a little more in detail about what I have been doing in training but I don’t want to give all my super-duper training tips away, well not in one huge e-mail anyways! But some of my training may have included a bungee cord possibly a parachute or two and more! However you are in luck, if you start following me on
Twitter @jessbeck3 you will gain a little more access to what I’m doing for my running and lifting…along with the fun randomness that is Jesse Beckom III you all have come to love or put up with! Lol

I will tell you this, in preparations for this year’s Push Championships that are going to be held in October; I will be training on the Lake Placid Push Track from July 14th-28th with my teammates World Championships so that we can continue working on our timing.

National Team Camp Our Annual training camp has come
and gone, but I have to say it was the best one to date!!! The Team atmosphere was excellent, it was a bit exhausting at times but the energy was really positive. There was a ton of team bonding in the form of team competitions, community outreach, and just generally getting to know a little more about each other. One of the team events was a relay race, where we (coaches, staff, and athletes) were split into two teams and we

had to move a stack of four twenty-five kilo plates along with two twenty kilo plates
and restack them five yards away. After that we had to sprint to a hurdle where we had to throw a twenty pound med ball over the top of the hurdle then squat under the hurdle throw the med ball over the top again, we did this five times before moving to the last station. The last station was a 60 kilos for ten yards at a high push position and for ten yards at a lower push position then a 30 yard sprint back to the finish to tag the next person! You would think it would be easy….It was not for most! After the prowler push high and low everyone’s legs were completely blown but no one really knew it…until they started to run and fell over!! It was hilarious, some people were crawling, stumbling, falling multiple times, lunging, skipping anything they could to try and get across the line tag the next person it was beyond comical!

We were also involved in a few different community events, but I will only mention a couple. The first was an Olympic day where 200 or more kids were on campus and we took them through a shortened version of our combine test. We tested their vertical jump, long jump, and how fast they were in fifteen meters; the kids loved it and we also had a blast! At the end we gave out gold medals and stickers to all the kids there. We all had a good time, it was pretty funny watching the kids trying to cheat to get a higher jump then they actually did. It was also funny to see the kids go from laughing to competitive mode once they start hearing each other’s numbers, then it was game on!! It reminded me of our team because it’s all fun and games until the timing eyes come out then it’s me or you and I want to win!! Soooo….guess it’s going to be me!!

Another event we did was held at a local boys and girls club that one of the bobsled women works at during the summer. Our mission if choose to accept it was to give these kids an ideal of what it’s like to compete in Bobsled and Skeleton. In order to do this we took them through a few of our testing invents which included a standing long jump, 15m sprint, and my favorite a race on these small rolling dolly’s; Me and JQ (one of my sled mates from World Championships) ran this station!!! We renamed it "Station Awwwesoommee!" Boom! How did we pull of such a fantastic feat demonstrating bobsled and skeleton in a gym you ask?? Well hold your horses Big JB3 will explain! The dolly’s we used were about a 13"x13" square; to demonstrate bobsled we had one kid sit on two of them with legs extended while another kid held on to their shoulders and pushed them forward. For skeleton we used the same principal but this time with the kids lying on their stomachs with their feet bent so the other kid can push them!!! The kids had a great time,
but I think me and JQ may have had more fun because we got to demonstrate this four different times for each group that rotated through. Despite a couple of near head to head collisions and head to wall collisions it was successful. So who wants me to babysit? Lol

During our Team Camp we also
focus on how we can improve physically as an athlete; this includes focusing on our diet, weight training, and our Push/Sprint technique. To help us with our sprint mechanics our federation brought in Dr.Mann who is a track and field guru that helps to coach America’s fastest Olympic Sprinters! This man knows his stuff! In short he explained to

us how they had recently discovered that what we thought we knew and had been
taught about sprint mechanics for the past ten years was Wrong!! Yeah my thoughts exactly! He explained the information they found, showing us the research including diagrams, and charts that illustrated their findings. Afterwards we hit the running track, where Dr. Mann began to teach us these sprint mechanics along with drills to help reinforce them. He recorded each one of us as we sprinted past high speed cameras, then as he watched the playback he critiqued each one of us showing us where and how to make improvements! For me this was my favorite part of the camp. There were a few other things that happened but nothing too exciting.

Waldon Canyon Fire victim’s day at ITZ  As I’m sure you all heard about all the wild fires in Colorado Springs and the surrounding area; about 350 homes were lost and about 7 people were killed. Luckily the fire was far enough from the training center that we were not displaced. However in other parts the scene looked like a clip from Armageddon complete with blackish reddish smoke filled skies, congested highways and emergency vehicles. Thank God the first responders were on top of it all, even to the extent that some of the firemen slept on the streets in sleeping bags of the affected neighborhoods because they did not want to leave the area and waste time coming back in the morning. I don’t know about you but that is some serious dedication!! I also have to give credit to the USOC for being a Red Cross evacuee center in times of emergency. The Olympic Training Center allowed families that were evacuated to stay at the training center, they also set up clothing, food, and toy donation drives for these families.

After the fires were pretty much under control I was included in a group of athletes who were asked to come to a family fun day at ITZ (Similar to Chuck E Chesses), to help lift the spirits of the families that were displaced by the fires. Members of the Denver Broncos, Fire Men, Police Officers along with other civic workers that had been battling the fire were all present to help encourage these families in their time of need. We signed pictures for the kids and played several different games with them as well, overall I would say the evening was a success. I and the other athletes definitely enjoyed hanging out with these families and sharing our story with them, but it was truly a humbling experience. I cannot express how honored I felt when one of the fireman who had been fighting these fires every day shook my hand, wished me luck, and was proud to have me representing our country! All I could think is that this man’s career is to save lives and all I do is slide down an Icy Hill and try to be the fastest at it! So in my eyes Fireman, Policeman, Doctors, Nurses, Soldiers and the like
jobs are way important than what I have done and for those that do it right, they are the ones who truly represent our country to the fullest!!

London 2012!!! I may or may not have mentioned this
before but one of the biggest thrills for me as I train is having my friends from other sports train alongside of me. Then watching them as they go through their Olympic Trials and make it to the Games!! That being said be sure to check out the

2012 London Olympic Games and you can see 24/7 coverage on Universal
Sports www.universalsports.com or on the Universal Sports Channel!!!

GO AMERICA!!!! AMERICA!!!! MERICA!!!!!!!!!!! WOOOOHOOOO!
YEAH!!!!

P.S

Pictures will be posted by the weekend on my web-page under "July Update
2012"

Sincerely

Jesse

www.jessebeckom3.com
Twitter: @Jessbeck3