5-Item
Combine Test and Push Championships Update
Hello I hope you all are having a beautiful August!
“It is said
that despite its many glaring (and occasionally fatal) inaccuracies, the
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (A Great Movie by the way) itself has outsold
the Encyclopedia Galactica because it is slightly cheaper, and because it has
the words “DON’T PANIC” in large, friendly letters on the cover” –Douglas Adams
I’m back
from outer space….well not really but I was back in the states briefly, Lake
Placid, NY to be exact. We finished up our combine testing and Push
Championship events in Calgary, AB, Canada. Speaking of Canada I’m actually
back here now training, but I will get to that later in the story. Also Brace
yourself grab some coffee, maybe a doughnut and if you’re that person….grab
some fruit! This is a long one!
5 Item Combine Test
Being that
is Olympic Year instead of having our annual Combine Test and Push
Championships in Lake Placid, NY we held them in Calgary, AB, Canada. The
reason for this is that In Calgary they have an enclosed building which houses
a 150 meter refrigerated iced start ramp appropriately named “The Ice House”. This
iced start ramp is equipped with a built in timing system that provides us with
a read out of our speeds and velocities as we push.
In an
attempt to get acclimated to living/training in Calgary myself and most
members of the team arrived in Calgary a week (two weeks is ideal for me but
not always possible) prior to testing. During that extra week we familiarize ourselves with our surroundings and future testing venues. When we go to Calgary, Canada or Park City, UT we don’t have the option at
staying at an Olympic Training Center. That being the case we either pay for a
hotel rooms or vacation rentals if they are available and at a reasonable
price; along with finding a place to train. For training we usually end up
purchasing a weekly pass at the Bob Niven Training Center located in the Canada
Olympic Park (COP) or at the University Of Calgary (UOC) where the Olympic oval
is located. Oh! Really quick, history
fact for you; In 1988 Calgary Canada was host city to Winter Olympic Games and
in a movie about some men from Jamaica who raced in those games.
Three of my
teammates (JQ, Adam, Andreas) and I ended up sharing a four bedroom house about
twenty minutes away from the COP and fifteen minutes away from UOC. We actually trained at
both facilities at one point, since originally we were scheduled to do our
sprint testing at UOC. However, the indoor track at the UOC did not meet our
needs (the track surface was not Mondo) so we ended up running at the Foothills
Outdoor Track. The schedule of events
was Combine test July 31st, Individual Push Testing Aug 1st,
Combo Push Testing Sept3rd
Unlike the last few years of combine testing in
Lake Placid where it’s normally pretty cool and or raining, testing in Calgary
was on a warm beautiful sunny day. The combine events included a 60 meter(m)
sprint, standing long jump, shot toss (shot), squatting up to 200 kilos
(440lbs) three times, and cleaning 150 kilos (330lbs) once; all of which you can score a
maximum of 100 pts. per event. However in the sprint timing eyes are at the 15m,
30m, 45m and 60m mark. At each timing eye you can earn 100 pts. or 400 pts. total for the sprint depending on your time. A perfect score on the combine
test is 800 pts. In each event you have the option of three attempts. Since push
champs were only a couple of days away most people will only take one or two
attempts an event depending on how they feel.
Just like in
high school the order of combine testing was by last name, placing me third
off. I was feeling good after a nice hour long warm up so when my named was
called for the sprint I was ready. I stepped up to the line like
I had done many times with Coach Lawson (my strength and speed coach) got in my
stance and just ran! I came back to where the coaches were marking down all the
numbers and to my joy my sprint times at each timing eye was faster than what I
had ever run in testing. I ran again but my over thinking it caused me to tense
up and the time was slower. Thankfully only the fastest time counts! Sooo…moving
on lol
The next
event was a standing long jump (used to measures explosiveness). For the
standing long jump we jump into a standard track and field sand pit that is
used in the triple jump event. However we don’t run up into the jump, we stand
at the edge of the pit where the track meets the sand, from there we jump
straight forward into the pit for a measured distance. The order was pretty
much the same for the long jump as it was for the sprint, so once again I was
the third person up. I stepped up set my feet BOOM I believed I could fly! With
a jump of 3.1 meters I beat last year jump of 3.05 meters or something! On the
second jump I was not so lucky, and landed a bit short. After a readjustment
for my third jump I ended up jumping longer than I ever had, jumping 3.2 meters!
Next up was the shot toss!
Similar to
the standing long jump we toss the shot from a stationary position, using your
standard 16lb metal shot (small round ball that looks like a small cannon
round). The shot toss order was the same as the other events, so once again I
was one of the first to throw! To prepare for the shot toss test we all take
turns throwing around the spare shot a few times! I may or may not have taken a
little bit longer than the other guys took warming up, but that’s ok! It took so long for me to warm-up because in training I figured out that my fifth
throw is usually my longest so I took four unmeasured warm-up throws beforehand. But right
before my fourth practice throw I was asked if I was going or not. I said I was still warming-up,
and asked them to give me a minute while I do my last warm-up throw. I casually
walked up sprayed my hand with some Tuff Skin for better grip, reached down to
pick up the shot then chucked that bad boy as hard as I could. It felt like a
good throw and I was pretty relaxed when I threw it! Previously, as I was walking over to the
shot area I was praying to God that I throw at least 18 meters which would beat
last year throw of 17.6 meters. Well the big man answered my prayer instantly and
then some, my casual little toss flew out to 18.4 meters!!! My best toss ever
and second best toss in USA Bobsled history!! YeeeeHaw I got the 100 pt.s for
that event so need to throw it two more times. I was done!
The shot was
the last outdoor event of the combine. After the shot we took an hour break
then went over to the Bob Niven Center located inside the Canada Olympic Park
for the Clean and the Squat test. Every year someone makes the joke that the coaches
should just mark me down for the 100pts for both lifts so I don’t have to waste
my time doing it. Needless to say I did the 200 kilo squat for 3 and I cleaned
the 150 kilo for one. I do have to say the clean which at times can feel heavy,
felt really light. And if my boy Donavan from USA weightlifting is reading
this…yes..yes..I know it’s a really easy weight for you! Lol
At the end
of the day I had personal bests across the board, going from 755 points last
year to 771 points this year! I thank God I was able to make those jumps and
for giving me the sense to follow Coach Lawson’s guidance when it comes to
training. My coach did his job; he got me stronger and faster which lead to the
increase of my combine score!
Individual Push Testing
After a day
of rest it was off to the Canada Olympic Park and their indoor iced pushed
track for our individual Push Championships! The night before testing we had a
draw to determine the push order.
For the
individual push testing all athletes Drivers and Brakemen/Pushers compete
against one another to see who is able to push the bobsled the fastest. The
Drivers, Brakemen, and Brakewomen, all have separate races within their
discipline. Since the men race two-man
and four-man we have a chance to push from the back, left, and right side of
the sled. Being that the women race only two-man so they push from the back of
the sled. Of course since the drivers are who they are they push from the
Driver’s bar.
As good as a
day I had during my combine test, unfortunately my individual push testing day was
a polar opposite. I would like to tell you that I woke up that morning feeling
great but that would be a lie. My body
was feeling appropriately recovered but something just felt off. I had a good
warm-up and was feeling good. When it was my time to push I did not execute the
way I had practiced all summer. On this day I finished towards the bottom of
the athletes present. I allowed myself to focus on what everyone around me was instead
of focusing on myself and executing the technique I trained. The positive side is
I’m faster than what I showed that day, I
watched the film on my pushes and I knew what I did wrong and how to correct the mistakes. I am still in the mix for the
national team but it's going to be a fight, a fight I am ready for!
The top
three finishers for the men were 1st Chris Fogt, 2nd
Steve Langton, 3rd Abraham Morleu
The top
three finishers for the driver competition it was 1st Nick Cunningham,
2nd Steve Holcomb in, and 3rd Codie Bascue. The top three finishes for the women was 1st
Aja Evans, 2nd Katie Eberling, and 3rd Lauren Williams
in.
2-man Combo Push Testing
In bobsled
the saying is that “You are only as good as your last push”, so you can only
imagine how anxious I was to get back on the ice for the 2-man combination
pushes! After a few hours of being upset with myself for not performing up to
my ability I refocused. I went through my pushes in my head and thought about
the corrections I needed to make in order to be ready for the 2-man combo
pushes that were two days away.
In what
seemed like an eternity of waiting (48hrs to be exact) 2-man combo push day
final arrived! It was another great day of weather outside, prompting the
majority of the guys including myself to do our warm-up on the road outside.
It’s pretty much how we warm up for races during the season. We do not have the
luxury of warming up on a Mondo track surface or either a removable roll out
surface; we warm up on ice covered concrete or gravel roads! Well…except for
the new start house that they built for Sochi, Russia which finally added a
great area for us to warm-up!
The
competition started at 2pm, by 1:50pm everyone was warmed up and ready to go.
Unlike the individual push competition where we knew the order days before,
today none of us knew the order. This was done to make sure everyone warmed up
equally and was ready to go no matter what combination they were in.
I thanked
God that my focus had returned to where it needed to be, which was on me and
what I needed to do! During the combination pushes I felt like my body was in a
more powerful position then the day before. That feeling of
something wrong was no longer there and it showed, my pushes were competitive
and in the mix again where they needed to be.
For most of
my career on a 4-Man sled I have pushed either from the left side or brakes, leading
some to assume that I’m unable to push from the right. I think the fact that I
am a team player who was always asked to push from the left side got overlooked
and misinterpreted as an inability.
However, the day before the combination testing I did ask the coaches to put me
in a combo where I could push from the right side of the sled. After a couple
of combinations in I was happy to see the coaches had taken my request into
consideration by placing me on the right side to push. It also turned out that
my push combo from the right side was my fastest time of the day! It was a good day for me but I know there is a
lot more in me and the only way to prove that is to keep pushing on the Ice as
much as I can no matter what!
All in all I
had two good days of testing and one bad day of testing. It would have been
great to have three solid days of testing, but for whatever reason it did not
work out that way. Through Ice house pushing, National Team Trials training and
racing that one bad day does not define the caliber of athlete I am. I will show I am able to be consistently push fast, deserving to be on the National Team contending for a spot 2014 Olympic Team.
Next on the agenda!
I wish it would have been possible to come to Calgary two weeks before Push Championships but the
resources were not there. However, I am
back in Calgary now training with the push coach our federation hired for the
season. I’ll be up here until September 1st continuing to perfect my on ice pushing and mental focus. Afterwards I will return to placid for three
weeks to continue training then if the resources are available fly back up her
to Calgary on September 18th -September 28th, for more on ice training with our coach and
some of my team mates.
In October
we begin our National Team Trial races, which are self-funded events held on
the dates listed below in bold along with other important dates:
October
12th-13th – National Team Trials Race 1 Lake Placid, NY
October
25th-26th– National Team Trials Race 2 Park City, UT
October
27th – National Team Named
November
24th – First World Cup Race at the Bobsled Track in Calgary
In the next
few weeks I will have these dates and others posted on my web-page, along
with a few pictures from Push Champs.
As I am
continuing to raise funds for this Olympic Season that will pay for my current
and future training trips to Calgary; Lake Placid and Park City, UT for
National Team Trials I need your help and support. I have raised 11% of my
funding goal using Rallyme an online fund raising platform. I have 25 days left
to raise the other 89% I need for essential trips this season.
Please visit my rally page at https://www.rallyme.com/rallies/115
Please visit my rally page at https://www.rallyme.com/rallies/115
Sincerely,
Jesse
Special thanks to
the following sponsors
Jesse and Addie Beckom Denise Beckom Tina and Mark Fornwald Ulanka Beckom
Venus Beckom James and Lena White Albert
Beckom Catherine Beckom Floyd Redmon
Robert Frazier Valerie Robinson Russell Wright Thea Singleton Heather Margain
Stacey Ross Dennis Kelly RL
McCaskill III Brad Jacob
James and Lena White
Christy DaPrato Crystal Smith Jenifer Furda MSA International
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