Here Ye! Here Ye! Come one! Come All to the e-mail that tells the tail Jesse's Mountain Adventures!!
Ok you got me Colorado Springs is a City but there are mountains here and we run up them! You may ask how does one run up a mountain and the answer is you take bigger faster steps. lol
Training continues to go as planned here in Colorado and I am pleased with the progression in my running and lifting. My speed and strength are improving each week, making me feel pretty great actually! Its also worth noting that my Calf's are finally getting back to being rock solid like they were before my surgery. Honestly it was weird for a while trying to contract my Calf's and having them never really harden up as I have grown accustomed to them doing. But now they are responding the way they should, giving me back that explosive feeling coming of the the line or starting block. The Kid is very pleased with this! (To the new commers on my e-mail list I tend to refer to myself in the third perso either using my formal name or The Kid....and yes I am 32 and fully aware of my MANLY Status, The Kid term has no age refference associated to it. Plus Jesse Beckom likes to use it! so just go with it. Oh and I tend to use puncuation as I please fully aware that my old professors are having heart attacks everytime they read my e-mails, See that, I just used a comma as a period! lol)
In regards to the upcoming season, we have our Push Championships scheduled in Lake Placid from September 20-26. The push championships is how we determine who the best push athletes are, which also goes into the determination of who will be pushing on USA Sleds 1-3. Then starting on October 11, 2010 out Team Selection Races will begin. In preparation for Push Championships I am currently in Park City till next Tuesday to train on the Push Track there. The push track will allow me to better perfect my pushing and loading from each side of the sled, God willing it will be a great week of training. Also, I have updated my web-page www.jessebeckom3.com with the USA Bobsled 2010-2011 Schedule, so please take a look.
A couple of weeks ago I had a great surprise in the weight room! My Strength Coach from Iowa State Coach Matt McGettigan who is now the Strength and Conditioning Coach for Air Force Football came down to the OTC to speak with my Coach out here Jon Carlock and watch me train!!!!! Coach Getty said he would stop down one day but it was still a good surprise to walk in the weight room and see him there. Having the opportunity to lift in front of Getty immediately got jacked up and wanted to throw around some big weight.....you know just to show Coach that I'm still a Beast with it in the weight-room! For those of you are unfamiliar with who Coach Matthew McGettigan is, he was one of the Man at Iowa State that helped to get us physically and mentally ready for the rigors of college football and in part for life after football.....or as we liked to say "Getty will get you Right! Right!" You may not have liked certain coaches from time to time but Coach Getty was respected by all and even though he worked the hell out of you, you could not help but like him because he pushed you beyond your limitations for your own good! When cocky lil freshmen would come in we use to tell them that "they were not ready till they got some Getty in them, then they can come talk to us about working out!" It was not until their first day of heavy lifting and gasser's did they truly understand what we meant as their cockyness expelled itself into a garbage can while they were doubled over! Ahhh....college,It was definitely some great times. I.S.U BABE!!!!! Unfortunately though Getty came during my down week (this past week though Getty you missed 4x3 at 230K) of lifting which is where I lift about 75-80 percent of the normal weight I usually lift, but it was still a surreal moment for me. Because in my opinion Coach Getty, Carlock (Colorado Spring OTC Strength Coach), and Jason Hartman (Lake Placid OTC Strength Coach) form my holy trinity of Strength and Conditioning! and I dare anyone to challenge that .....Come on I dare you! Bring it!! And you will loose and not partially but by a lot, a whole lot! So there! lol.
On another note I had the honor of being one of the speakers for the USOC 17th annual Finding Leaders Among Minorities Everywhere (FLAME) Program http://www.teamusa.org/resources/usoc-programs/f-l-a-m-e. From some odd reason they wanted me to tell my story to the college students attending the event. For this talk I addressed more of the road that lead me bobsledding as opposed to the sport itself, stressing the success and pitfalls that I have experienced in chasing my dream. We talked about surrounding yourself with the right kind of people and cutting off those that may be detrimental as you pursue personal goals. I touched on how peoples perception matter, the importance of first impressions, and making sure you are always networking and building good relationships with people. In these types of talks I like to encourage questions at anytime which allows for a better dialog between me and my audience helping to remove that lecture like atmosphere. From the response I received from the student after speaking with them I gather that they enjoyed the experience and found some of the information useful. Who knows maybe I can make a career out of speaking one day, hmmmm.......its a possibility! I may have to have David look over my speeches though since I am a genius at typos.
Talk to you all soon.
God Bless
Jesse
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
July Update
I hope you all had a great 4th of July!!!!
Things are continuing to go good out here in the Springs (for now on Colorado Springs will be abbreviated Springs and Lake Placid as Placid cause I like short cuts!) I am happy to say that my running is improving, my heart rate is getting lower and the Kid is feeling pretty good. I am also going to drop a little weight this summer so I can be more ripped than Hulk Hogans pile of old T-Shirts! lol seriously though I will be faster when I drop a few pounds.....but being more ripped is a burden I am willing to to carry.
On another and less narcissistic note I do have a some interesting story from the last month or so. Since its the year after the Olympics the schedule tends to change a bit, some things happen later in the year and others happen earlier in the year. That being said we have already had our National Team Camp this year out here in Colorado Springs. The camp was a bit more laid back then last year, not being even close to the physical challenges of the camp last year. It was more of a celebration of the success that we had at the Olympics and how we plan to build on that as we head toward Sochi, Russia in 2014.
During the camp we did get a chance to pay tribute to some of America's true Heroes. We spent an afternoon with the Wounded Warriors http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org out on For Carson Army Base here in Colorado Springs. These are military personnel who have been injured while serving, suffering from amputations, brain damage, nerve damage and etc. The Wounded Warrior program helps these soldiers to return to some form of normalcy through physical activities and rehabilitating some soldiers back to active duty status. Its truly a humbling experience being surrounded by men and women who have sacrificed themselves and lifestyles fighting for our freedom, especially when they tell you that you inspire them and make them proud! I mean seriously how do you respond to something like that. Not sure if its the right answer but I thanked them for their service and sacrifice.
Overall it was a really fun of getting to know the soldiers, their stories, their families, and the sports that they were currently competing in. Some of my teammates sang karaoke at the band stand with some of the kids there, which I must say was very amusing. However I did provide some amusement for everyone in return. Hold on don't rush me I am getting to how I achieved such a thing bare with me, I just have to preference this story with a few things.
So evidently and unbeknown to me in certain situations other than before I am about to compete the sane part of my mind shuts down and Insane Jesse wakes up and is happy to take over!!! lol This became obvious to me when soon as we stepped of the bus at the Wounded Warrior picnic the woman showing us around told us about all the events that were going on. She pointed out the food, the karaoke, the dollar bash a car with sledge hammer area, and also that the Colorado Springs Police K-9 unit was there giving attack demonstrations!!! Yup!! this is the point where the sane part of my mind took a seat in my mental recliner, picked up the remote control and watched THE INSANE JESSE SHOW!!! This all happened in nanoseconds, since upon hearing this I immediately said HEY ARE THEY LETTING PEOPLE PUT ON THE ATTACK SUIT!!! (I was hyper like a 8yr old kid who just herd the ice cream truck coming!) our handler said she did not think so since the officers were only demonstrating. All I heard was.....she had no clue! Yeah....I'm that guy. I decided to go over and ask the officers myself and you know what THEY LET THE KID DO IT!!! THAT'S RIGHT EVIDENTLY GETTING ATTACKED BY A DOG IS MY IDEAL OF A GOOD TIME!!! LOL! (Dean Stop Laughing and Paul you hired me no laughing either!! )
After getting the ok to put on the attack suit and go head to head with the K-9 units I tell my teammates of my triumphant negotiations. Everyone kind of shook their head and said only Jesse! We all headed over to the K-9 demonstration area and I began to put on the protective gear. The officer in charge game me some tips on what to do when the dog was charging me, and that he wanted me to go with the blow so I do not jam the dog up and hurt it. That's right Jesse ain't scared of Dogs, Dogs are scared of Jesse!! He tells me that after the dog latches on to move my arm in a figure eight motion so the dog can test its grip. I am standing there in the middle of the field staring at the officer about 60ft away who is holding back an attack dog that is barking feverishly wanting a piece of me! At this point my adrenalin is starting to point and I am thinking YOU WANT SOME OF ME!!! YOU WANT SOME OF THIS DOG!? THEN COME GET YOU SOME!!! OH YEAH BRING IT!!!
All I can say is that it was a good time, I could actually feel some of the dogs teeth sinking through the protective suit. It was definitely worth it.
Well that's all I have for now, thank you for tuning into another episode of Jesse A True Story.
God Bless and enjoy the videos below
Jesse
www.jessebeckom3.com
Things are continuing to go good out here in the Springs (for now on Colorado Springs will be abbreviated Springs and Lake Placid as Placid cause I like short cuts!) I am happy to say that my running is improving, my heart rate is getting lower and the Kid is feeling pretty good. I am also going to drop a little weight this summer so I can be more ripped than Hulk Hogans pile of old T-Shirts! lol seriously though I will be faster when I drop a few pounds.....but being more ripped is a burden I am willing to to carry.
On another and less narcissistic note I do have a some interesting story from the last month or so. Since its the year after the Olympics the schedule tends to change a bit, some things happen later in the year and others happen earlier in the year. That being said we have already had our National Team Camp this year out here in Colorado Springs. The camp was a bit more laid back then last year, not being even close to the physical challenges of the camp last year. It was more of a celebration of the success that we had at the Olympics and how we plan to build on that as we head toward Sochi, Russia in 2014.
During the camp we did get a chance to pay tribute to some of America's true Heroes. We spent an afternoon with the Wounded Warriors http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org out on For Carson Army Base here in Colorado Springs. These are military personnel who have been injured while serving, suffering from amputations, brain damage, nerve damage and etc. The Wounded Warrior program helps these soldiers to return to some form of normalcy through physical activities and rehabilitating some soldiers back to active duty status. Its truly a humbling experience being surrounded by men and women who have sacrificed themselves and lifestyles fighting for our freedom, especially when they tell you that you inspire them and make them proud! I mean seriously how do you respond to something like that. Not sure if its the right answer but I thanked them for their service and sacrifice.
Overall it was a really fun of getting to know the soldiers, their stories, their families, and the sports that they were currently competing in. Some of my teammates sang karaoke at the band stand with some of the kids there, which I must say was very amusing. However I did provide some amusement for everyone in return. Hold on don't rush me I am getting to how I achieved such a thing bare with me, I just have to preference this story with a few things.
So evidently and unbeknown to me in certain situations other than before I am about to compete the sane part of my mind shuts down and Insane Jesse wakes up and is happy to take over!!! lol This became obvious to me when soon as we stepped of the bus at the Wounded Warrior picnic the woman showing us around told us about all the events that were going on. She pointed out the food, the karaoke, the dollar bash a car with sledge hammer area, and also that the Colorado Springs Police K-9 unit was there giving attack demonstrations!!! Yup!! this is the point where the sane part of my mind took a seat in my mental recliner, picked up the remote control and watched THE INSANE JESSE SHOW!!! This all happened in nanoseconds, since upon hearing this I immediately said HEY ARE THEY LETTING PEOPLE PUT ON THE ATTACK SUIT!!! (I was hyper like a 8yr old kid who just herd the ice cream truck coming!) our handler said she did not think so since the officers were only demonstrating. All I heard was.....she had no clue! Yeah....I'm that guy. I decided to go over and ask the officers myself and you know what THEY LET THE KID DO IT!!! THAT'S RIGHT EVIDENTLY GETTING ATTACKED BY A DOG IS MY IDEAL OF A GOOD TIME!!! LOL! (Dean Stop Laughing and Paul you hired me no laughing either!! )
After getting the ok to put on the attack suit and go head to head with the K-9 units I tell my teammates of my triumphant negotiations. Everyone kind of shook their head and said only Jesse! We all headed over to the K-9 demonstration area and I began to put on the protective gear. The officer in charge game me some tips on what to do when the dog was charging me, and that he wanted me to go with the blow so I do not jam the dog up and hurt it. That's right Jesse ain't scared of Dogs, Dogs are scared of Jesse!! He tells me that after the dog latches on to move my arm in a figure eight motion so the dog can test its grip. I am standing there in the middle of the field staring at the officer about 60ft away who is holding back an attack dog that is barking feverishly wanting a piece of me! At this point my adrenalin is starting to point and I am thinking YOU WANT SOME OF ME!!! YOU WANT SOME OF THIS DOG!? THEN COME GET YOU SOME!!! OH YEAH BRING IT!!!
All I can say is that it was a good time, I could actually feel some of the dogs teeth sinking through the protective suit. It was definitely worth it.
Well that's all I have for now, thank you for tuning into another episode of Jesse A True Story.
God Bless and enjoy the videos below
Jesse
www.jessebeckom3.com
Monday, May 24, 2010
Russia?......Hmmmm
Greetings and Salutations everyone,
Sorry it has been so long since my last update but The Kid needed sometime personal time to decide the next step in my journey. However it's amazing how clearing my head translated into numerous punches and kicks into multiple walls (sorry OTC Maintenance), it was also surprising that with all that adrenalin flowing I did not hurt myself! lol Guess it just goes that physical therapy is calming!
But honestly I am doing good and by the Grace of God my legs are feeling excellent and have been since December, unfortunately though it was too late for me to make the Vancouver games. I admit that was a really hard pill to swallow considering the sacrifices that were made to reach that point. The support that I received from my family, friends, sponsors and all others was extremely encouraging.
Since that time I have been able to stop in PA, Chicago, and Iowa to visit old friends, family and my Alma Matter Iowa State. It has been a great couple of months getting back to the places and people that helped shape me into the Man I am today (For the record I AM ALL THAT IS MAN!! Lol! Seriously I am!)
This time has made me decide to keep on pushing forward this year and towards Russia, no pun intended. But be careful because pun will possible be intended later on so watch out for it cause pun has away of popping up with you least expect it.
Currently I am at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs for the summer in preparation for the upcoming season. I have spoken with my weightlifting and running coaches and we have put together a plan to make me faster and stronger than ever before. I have been running and lifting like I never missed a beat. If I sound excited I am since last year this time I could barely walk let alone run full speed. My trainers and are getting back to basics in my running and lifting technique improving on every aspect of them, and with God's help I will be Beast on the Ice when it's all said and done! And for those of you wondering the tap out age of a bobsledder is 40 for the most part, not that I plan on going for that long but figured I would throw that out there.
Along with training I will be job hunting and looking for more sponsors to help off-set my expenses so please let that rich Uncle/Aunt or Company who just do not know what to spend their money on, that Jesse Beckom is a great investment!! I am also looking into some opportunities that may set me up where I would not need any sponsors so please pray that comes to fruition.
God Bless
Jesse
www.jessebeckom3.com
Sorry it has been so long since my last update but The Kid needed sometime personal time to decide the next step in my journey. However it's amazing how clearing my head translated into numerous punches and kicks into multiple walls (sorry OTC Maintenance), it was also surprising that with all that adrenalin flowing I did not hurt myself! lol Guess it just goes that physical therapy is calming!
But honestly I am doing good and by the Grace of God my legs are feeling excellent and have been since December, unfortunately though it was too late for me to make the Vancouver games. I admit that was a really hard pill to swallow considering the sacrifices that were made to reach that point. The support that I received from my family, friends, sponsors and all others was extremely encouraging.
Since that time I have been able to stop in PA, Chicago, and Iowa to visit old friends, family and my Alma Matter Iowa State. It has been a great couple of months getting back to the places and people that helped shape me into the Man I am today (For the record I AM ALL THAT IS MAN!! Lol! Seriously I am!)
This time has made me decide to keep on pushing forward this year and towards Russia, no pun intended. But be careful because pun will possible be intended later on so watch out for it cause pun has away of popping up with you least expect it.
Currently I am at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs for the summer in preparation for the upcoming season. I have spoken with my weightlifting and running coaches and we have put together a plan to make me faster and stronger than ever before. I have been running and lifting like I never missed a beat. If I sound excited I am since last year this time I could barely walk let alone run full speed. My trainers and are getting back to basics in my running and lifting technique improving on every aspect of them, and with God's help I will be Beast on the Ice when it's all said and done! And for those of you wondering the tap out age of a bobsledder is 40 for the most part, not that I plan on going for that long but figured I would throw that out there.
Along with training I will be job hunting and looking for more sponsors to help off-set my expenses so please let that rich Uncle/Aunt or Company who just do not know what to spend their money on, that Jesse Beckom is a great investment!! I am also looking into some opportunities that may set me up where I would not need any sponsors so please pray that comes to fruition.
God Bless
Jesse
www.jessebeckom3.com
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Rehab Update
Nov 8, 2009
Good Evening Everyone,
So a bit of GREAT news........The Ralph Lauren web page is up and running and it is great!!!! The entire staff over at Ralph Lauren did a great job and I can not wait to see what comes next. Here is the link http://www.ralphlauren.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=3880779&ab=global_usolympic
Once on the web-site be sure to move the sound selection from off to on, on the web page itself. Have a look around the site, click on the meet the athlete tab, hightlite the athlete and you will find out information about each of us! Some of it is quite amusing!!!! I will also post a link on my web-page www.jessebeckom3.com
I am currently in Lake Placid rehabbing my leg while steadily weight training and running. Since I have been back my trainers and I re-evaluated what has been going on with my groin/abductor area. They have put me on a new rehab schedule that is focusing on the more supportive muscles in my leg that play a key role when I run and push, which seem to be the main cause of why I have been having this issue so long.
It is my opinion that after my lower leg surgery we concentrated on all the major muscles like my quad, hamstring and calf muscles and did not pay enough attention to the smaller muscle groups in my leg that help with stability that need to be firing correctly and play a key role when I run. Since we have identified this as a problem we now have a good place to work from. I thank God that my leg continues feel better each morning I wake up, my strength, quickness, endurance, and speed seemingly improve as well. My mind is in a really good place right now! I have seen adversity before and I have been groomed to handle it! You DIG DEEP and that is what I am doing I am DIGGING DEEP for all my worth!!!
After I am completely healthy which should be in the next week or so I will race the America's Cup Circuit, push great and with God's blessing show the coaches what I am capable of and that when I am healthy I should no doubt be on World Cup. Depending on my performance and how the guys are pushing on World Cup our Coaches have the ability to call me up to World Cup during the First Half or the Second Half of the season. So if you have time please say a prayer or two that I am finally able to compete at 100 percent of my ability!!! And Like my football coaches always told us "Perform and let the numbers speak for themselves!"
Thank you all and God bless
Jesse
Good Evening Everyone,
So a bit of GREAT news........The Ralph Lauren web page is up and running and it is great!!!! The entire staff over at Ralph Lauren did a great job and I can not wait to see what comes next. Here is the link http://www.ralphlauren.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=3880779&ab=global_usolympic
Once on the web-site be sure to move the sound selection from off to on, on the web page itself. Have a look around the site, click on the meet the athlete tab, hightlite the athlete and you will find out information about each of us! Some of it is quite amusing!!!! I will also post a link on my web-page www.jessebeckom3.com
I am currently in Lake Placid rehabbing my leg while steadily weight training and running. Since I have been back my trainers and I re-evaluated what has been going on with my groin/abductor area. They have put me on a new rehab schedule that is focusing on the more supportive muscles in my leg that play a key role when I run and push, which seem to be the main cause of why I have been having this issue so long.
It is my opinion that after my lower leg surgery we concentrated on all the major muscles like my quad, hamstring and calf muscles and did not pay enough attention to the smaller muscle groups in my leg that help with stability that need to be firing correctly and play a key role when I run. Since we have identified this as a problem we now have a good place to work from. I thank God that my leg continues feel better each morning I wake up, my strength, quickness, endurance, and speed seemingly improve as well. My mind is in a really good place right now! I have seen adversity before and I have been groomed to handle it! You DIG DEEP and that is what I am doing I am DIGGING DEEP for all my worth!!!
After I am completely healthy which should be in the next week or so I will race the America's Cup Circuit, push great and with God's blessing show the coaches what I am capable of and that when I am healthy I should no doubt be on World Cup. Depending on my performance and how the guys are pushing on World Cup our Coaches have the ability to call me up to World Cup during the First Half or the Second Half of the season. So if you have time please say a prayer or two that I am finally able to compete at 100 percent of my ability!!! And Like my football coaches always told us "Perform and let the numbers speak for themselves!"
Thank you all and God bless
Jesse
Sunday, October 25, 2009
2009 Team Trials
Good Morning everyone,
I hope you all have had a great weekend and got out to see Saw IV or Law Abiding citizen, I did not get a chance to but I plan on it when I get a chance.
It has been a couple of interesting weeks since last I spoke with you and a lot has happened. Ok, so the week of October 5th I was feeling better my leg was getting stronger, I had spoken with Todd Hays the driver of USA 2 about getting a race off for a spot on his sled which he was going to give me so I was feeling pretty good! Later that week me and some of the other guys he was thinking about using was at the Push Track in Lake Placid training and recording times, well my first few pushes felt great than on my fifth push of four-man we fired out the hole pretty good then on like my sixth step something Popped in my right abductor and I had to hop on the sled early since I was unable to keep running!!!! This is NOT what I needed to happen to say the least!!! I was extremely upset I ended up punching the ground and a nearby wooden sign, I could not believe what was going on!. It was one of those moments where I saw 8yrs of my life just floating by my eyes.
I immediately got dressed and one of my teammates let me use his car to drive back to the training center to have our sport trainers take a look at my leg. The trainers began examining my leg, but it was really tender to the touch so they immediately placed ice on it to take down the swelling. The only weird thing is that it hurt but it felt like something that needed to be loosen got loosened up. Don't get me wrong it was still really sore but it did feel better than it did before (or maybe I just got use to the pain, kind of hard to tell since I am not use to being injured)
From that day on I was in the training room four times a day (twice in the morning, and twice in the afternoon) getting Ice and stem, Ultrasound, Compression, and any other treatment I could do to get my leg back. I was also applying anti-inflammatory cream to my leg and wrapping it with and ace bandage every day. All this and a ton of praying my leg began to recover and really fast pace unfortunately though my chance at a race off had past since team trial race would start next week on the 14th and 15th. Needless to say it was not any fun having to watch team trials in Placid, but like any other brakeman who does not race I helped move the sleds for those people who were racing so that they can concentrate solely on racing.
It was very frustrating for me but I just kept thinking that ok I did not get a chance to race in Lake Placid but maybe that is just God's way of giving me more time to rest for the last part of Team Trial Races the upcoming week in Park City, Utah. Due to the fact that some drivers were not happy with their crews and their start times and some other shuffling that was going on with some crews not happy with their driver I was given the opportunity to race with Mike Bradley USA 5. Yeah of course I would have liked to race with a higher ranked driver but the opportunity came with mike first so I took it! Thank God now at least I know I was going to race team trials at the least!!!
I arrived in Park City on Sunday the 18th, training started on Monday the 19th with some two man training. I pushed on Monday and my leg felt pretty good which I was happy about!!! The next day we did some 4-man training and I was still feeling pretty good. Each day I felt like my leg was continually getting stronger and I was beginning to get back into my running rhythm, it felt a little tight but I just assumed it was because I needed to just warm up longer. The 2-man race was on the 23rd which another guy on my team raced in. The for man was the next day on the 24th. On the night of the 23rd I did my usual pre race day warm-up and stretch, I ran a few laps around the track in the gym and was feeling pretty loose, I did a couple of drills and stretch like usual and left the gym feeling confident for the next day of racing.
The day of the race I began my preparations for the race doing my completed warm-up drills, stretching, and sprints. I was ready to go!!
Me and my team got to the starting block, got in our ready stance and took off!! My running felt fine to me, the load was good but when we got down to the bottom of the hill our start time was 5.12 when other teams were pushing 4.88 and 4.94 or so! We were not happy at the bottom we had the slowest start. When we got back to the top I heard that the coaches thought I had gotten hurt running because I was running really wide and away from the sled as if I was protecting my leg. I immediately let the coaches know that I was not hurt and I was running wide because in training I kept hitting the side bunk of the sled we were using. I was use to racing in a Bo-dyne sled and this one was different and I evidently over compensated by running to wide to avoid hitting the bunk in the race. The second heat I said forget and just got back in my normal running position, if I hit the bunk I hit the bunk! We pushed again and the time was still only 5.10. I was told by a few teammates watching that it my pushing looked a lot better but my coach still thought I was guarding and I did not look like I normally look when I push. Honestly I felt good pushing and I thought our start time would be faster, I know I am not the only one pushing but it felt like everyone was looking at me for the slow times because of my recent injuries. Needless to say we finished 5th out of 5 sleds. We had hoped to prove that we could put up a strong start time with Mike, which would had looked good for myself and Corey(my teammate from last year who was just added to Mike's sled for this race) since mike is not the fastest pushing driver. Unfortunately this did not turn out the way we had hoped.
However a couple of hours after the race my left leg was pretty sore more so than usual after a race, which I know now that I still have some healing to do before I am able to push and run the way I should be.
Later that day on the 24th at 4pm the official announcement of the National Team was made and I was not on it, which was disappointing but with the timing of what has been going on with my leg especially these last few weeks I was not surprised that I was not on the team.
Thankfully there is still time for me to get fully better and continue chasing my Olympic Dreams! How is that possible you ask, well let me tell you!
Each year there is a World Cup Tour that the National Team races on , but there is also a America's Cup Tour for those athletes who do not make World Cup race on! Due to changes in the Olympic Qualifying Process a driver can still make it to the Olympics if he does well on the America's Cup tour. And we have drivers on the America's cup that are capable of doing just that. My job now is to get back to placid, get in sports med and get my leg fully ready and stronger than before! After that I will start pushing on the America's Cup Tour which starts here in Park City three weeks from now, then to Calgary, and to Lake Placid for a total of 14 races in three weeks. It is important that I push the driver I am with extremely well in order to be selected to attend a another Push Championship the month of January over in Germany that will be used to determine the Olympic Team, added with past competition results.
The road would be a lot easier if I was on World Cup but there is a chance slim as it may be for me to make it and that is good enough for me!!! A good friend of mine once told me to just keep pushing, let everything sort itself out and that is what I will do. With God's blessing I will continue to get healthy, train and do my best so that my coaches see that I should be called up!
My spirit is high, my confidence is up and there is no quit in my heart!!!
Thank you all for your support and the e-mails that you send me. You all keep me going
Thanks and God Bless!
Jesse
I hope you all have had a great weekend and got out to see Saw IV or Law Abiding citizen, I did not get a chance to but I plan on it when I get a chance.
It has been a couple of interesting weeks since last I spoke with you and a lot has happened. Ok, so the week of October 5th I was feeling better my leg was getting stronger, I had spoken with Todd Hays the driver of USA 2 about getting a race off for a spot on his sled which he was going to give me so I was feeling pretty good! Later that week me and some of the other guys he was thinking about using was at the Push Track in Lake Placid training and recording times, well my first few pushes felt great than on my fifth push of four-man we fired out the hole pretty good then on like my sixth step something Popped in my right abductor and I had to hop on the sled early since I was unable to keep running!!!! This is NOT what I needed to happen to say the least!!! I was extremely upset I ended up punching the ground and a nearby wooden sign, I could not believe what was going on!. It was one of those moments where I saw 8yrs of my life just floating by my eyes.
I immediately got dressed and one of my teammates let me use his car to drive back to the training center to have our sport trainers take a look at my leg. The trainers began examining my leg, but it was really tender to the touch so they immediately placed ice on it to take down the swelling. The only weird thing is that it hurt but it felt like something that needed to be loosen got loosened up. Don't get me wrong it was still really sore but it did feel better than it did before (or maybe I just got use to the pain, kind of hard to tell since I am not use to being injured)
From that day on I was in the training room four times a day (twice in the morning, and twice in the afternoon) getting Ice and stem, Ultrasound, Compression, and any other treatment I could do to get my leg back. I was also applying anti-inflammatory cream to my leg and wrapping it with and ace bandage every day. All this and a ton of praying my leg began to recover and really fast pace unfortunately though my chance at a race off had past since team trial race would start next week on the 14th and 15th. Needless to say it was not any fun having to watch team trials in Placid, but like any other brakeman who does not race I helped move the sleds for those people who were racing so that they can concentrate solely on racing.
It was very frustrating for me but I just kept thinking that ok I did not get a chance to race in Lake Placid but maybe that is just God's way of giving me more time to rest for the last part of Team Trial Races the upcoming week in Park City, Utah. Due to the fact that some drivers were not happy with their crews and their start times and some other shuffling that was going on with some crews not happy with their driver I was given the opportunity to race with Mike Bradley USA 5. Yeah of course I would have liked to race with a higher ranked driver but the opportunity came with mike first so I took it! Thank God now at least I know I was going to race team trials at the least!!!
I arrived in Park City on Sunday the 18th, training started on Monday the 19th with some two man training. I pushed on Monday and my leg felt pretty good which I was happy about!!! The next day we did some 4-man training and I was still feeling pretty good. Each day I felt like my leg was continually getting stronger and I was beginning to get back into my running rhythm, it felt a little tight but I just assumed it was because I needed to just warm up longer. The 2-man race was on the 23rd which another guy on my team raced in. The for man was the next day on the 24th. On the night of the 23rd I did my usual pre race day warm-up and stretch, I ran a few laps around the track in the gym and was feeling pretty loose, I did a couple of drills and stretch like usual and left the gym feeling confident for the next day of racing.
The day of the race I began my preparations for the race doing my completed warm-up drills, stretching, and sprints. I was ready to go!!
Me and my team got to the starting block, got in our ready stance and took off!! My running felt fine to me, the load was good but when we got down to the bottom of the hill our start time was 5.12 when other teams were pushing 4.88 and 4.94 or so! We were not happy at the bottom we had the slowest start. When we got back to the top I heard that the coaches thought I had gotten hurt running because I was running really wide and away from the sled as if I was protecting my leg. I immediately let the coaches know that I was not hurt and I was running wide because in training I kept hitting the side bunk of the sled we were using. I was use to racing in a Bo-dyne sled and this one was different and I evidently over compensated by running to wide to avoid hitting the bunk in the race. The second heat I said forget and just got back in my normal running position, if I hit the bunk I hit the bunk! We pushed again and the time was still only 5.10. I was told by a few teammates watching that it my pushing looked a lot better but my coach still thought I was guarding and I did not look like I normally look when I push. Honestly I felt good pushing and I thought our start time would be faster, I know I am not the only one pushing but it felt like everyone was looking at me for the slow times because of my recent injuries. Needless to say we finished 5th out of 5 sleds. We had hoped to prove that we could put up a strong start time with Mike, which would had looked good for myself and Corey(my teammate from last year who was just added to Mike's sled for this race) since mike is not the fastest pushing driver. Unfortunately this did not turn out the way we had hoped.
However a couple of hours after the race my left leg was pretty sore more so than usual after a race, which I know now that I still have some healing to do before I am able to push and run the way I should be.
Later that day on the 24th at 4pm the official announcement of the National Team was made and I was not on it, which was disappointing but with the timing of what has been going on with my leg especially these last few weeks I was not surprised that I was not on the team.
Thankfully there is still time for me to get fully better and continue chasing my Olympic Dreams! How is that possible you ask, well let me tell you!
Each year there is a World Cup Tour that the National Team races on , but there is also a America's Cup Tour for those athletes who do not make World Cup race on! Due to changes in the Olympic Qualifying Process a driver can still make it to the Olympics if he does well on the America's Cup tour. And we have drivers on the America's cup that are capable of doing just that. My job now is to get back to placid, get in sports med and get my leg fully ready and stronger than before! After that I will start pushing on the America's Cup Tour which starts here in Park City three weeks from now, then to Calgary, and to Lake Placid for a total of 14 races in three weeks. It is important that I push the driver I am with extremely well in order to be selected to attend a another Push Championship the month of January over in Germany that will be used to determine the Olympic Team, added with past competition results.
The road would be a lot easier if I was on World Cup but there is a chance slim as it may be for me to make it and that is good enough for me!!! A good friend of mine once told me to just keep pushing, let everything sort itself out and that is what I will do. With God's blessing I will continue to get healthy, train and do my best so that my coaches see that I should be called up!
My spirit is high, my confidence is up and there is no quit in my heart!!!
Thank you all for your support and the e-mails that you send me. You all keep me going
Thanks and God Bless!
Jesse
Hello all,
Well I will get right to the point in this e-mail. We had our annual Push Championships last week and unfortunately I had the worse day of testing in my life! I was about .13 of where I should have been. I finished out of the top 10 when it came to pushing. It was by far not my best day. I know what happened, how it happened but not sure why it had to happen at that moment. I let myself get to amped up before I was going to push which, translated to me having bad form when I was pushing. Also for some crazy reason right before I pushed decided to change the hand position that I have been using for the past 5yrs (for some reason I thought it would be faster). These factors resulted in all of momentum and power was not going in the correct direction, it was going east and west when I ran instead of North and South down into the Ice. I looked at the video , output force chart, forward acceleration chart, speed (mph) charts and saw where I lost the time in my pushing and realized what I did wrong.
The next day when we had 3-man combination pushes and I was able to gather my self and correct what went wrong the day before. The trick for me is to get amped up but to breathe and refocus and calm down before I push. The combination pushes I was in on times were right up there with the fastest times or withing .03. However most drivers make their decisions regarding teams based on the individual pushes, so the 3 man combos hold some weight but not a lot.
It has been a trying off-season for me this year dealing with my leg surgery, then a hyper extended ligament in my right knee, high hamstring issues in my right leg, a strained right abductor and groin. My Trainers in Sport Medicine gave me the treatment I needed to get back training normal. But before heading up to Calgary I ended up me receive a shot in my groin to relieve the pain that was still feeling in it. I am not good at discussing injuries because frankly they annoy me more than I can verbally express nor do I like the fact that I have had to take time off in order to heal. I feel that I need to let you all know because I did promise to keep you all up to date with the highs and lows in my journey to become an Olympian.
I know you are all wondering where things stand with me and what my next move is, so let here it goes. Since I did not do myself any favors pushing I will have to talk to some drivers about getting a race off against push athletes that drivers may have already named to their team for National Team Trials. Once I get the driver or drivers to understand that I just had a off day and I have always preformed in races, and agree to a race off between me and one of their guys I will then beat them out of their spot and take their place on the sled, and compete in Team Trials. The bottom line is that if I do not compete in Team Trials my quest for 2010 ends here....But that is not going to happen! I have given up to much and fought to hard to let it end like this! I WILL GET MY RACE OFF, I WILL TAKE THE SPOT THAT IS IS MINE, I WILL MAKE WORLD CUP AND WITH BY GRACE OF GOD I WILL BECOME AN OLYMPIAN!!
Team Trials start Oct 5-10 in Lake Palcid then we had to Park City for a week to finish up Team Trials. I will continue to keep you all up to date with my progress as it happens.
God Bless and thank you all for your support!
Jesse
Well I will get right to the point in this e-mail. We had our annual Push Championships last week and unfortunately I had the worse day of testing in my life! I was about .13 of where I should have been. I finished out of the top 10 when it came to pushing. It was by far not my best day. I know what happened, how it happened but not sure why it had to happen at that moment. I let myself get to amped up before I was going to push which, translated to me having bad form when I was pushing. Also for some crazy reason right before I pushed decided to change the hand position that I have been using for the past 5yrs (for some reason I thought it would be faster). These factors resulted in all of momentum and power was not going in the correct direction, it was going east and west when I ran instead of North and South down into the Ice. I looked at the video , output force chart, forward acceleration chart, speed (mph) charts and saw where I lost the time in my pushing and realized what I did wrong.
The next day when we had 3-man combination pushes and I was able to gather my self and correct what went wrong the day before. The trick for me is to get amped up but to breathe and refocus and calm down before I push. The combination pushes I was in on times were right up there with the fastest times or withing .03. However most drivers make their decisions regarding teams based on the individual pushes, so the 3 man combos hold some weight but not a lot.
It has been a trying off-season for me this year dealing with my leg surgery, then a hyper extended ligament in my right knee, high hamstring issues in my right leg, a strained right abductor and groin. My Trainers in Sport Medicine gave me the treatment I needed to get back training normal. But before heading up to Calgary I ended up me receive a shot in my groin to relieve the pain that was still feeling in it. I am not good at discussing injuries because frankly they annoy me more than I can verbally express nor do I like the fact that I have had to take time off in order to heal. I feel that I need to let you all know because I did promise to keep you all up to date with the highs and lows in my journey to become an Olympian.
I know you are all wondering where things stand with me and what my next move is, so let here it goes. Since I did not do myself any favors pushing I will have to talk to some drivers about getting a race off against push athletes that drivers may have already named to their team for National Team Trials. Once I get the driver or drivers to understand that I just had a off day and I have always preformed in races, and agree to a race off between me and one of their guys I will then beat them out of their spot and take their place on the sled, and compete in Team Trials. The bottom line is that if I do not compete in Team Trials my quest for 2010 ends here....But that is not going to happen! I have given up to much and fought to hard to let it end like this! I WILL GET MY RACE OFF, I WILL TAKE THE SPOT THAT IS IS MINE, I WILL MAKE WORLD CUP AND WITH BY GRACE OF GOD I WILL BECOME AN OLYMPIAN!!
Team Trials start Oct 5-10 in Lake Palcid then we had to Park City for a week to finish up Team Trials. I will continue to keep you all up to date with my progress as it happens.
God Bless and thank you all for your support!
Jesse
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Polo Ralph Lauren update part 1
Greetings everyone!!!
I apologize that it has been a while since my last update but a lot of things have been going on, which is Great but my mind has been all over the place.
About a month and a half ago I received a phone call from Chris Coleman who is a former Olympic Bobsledder, and current Associate Director of Marketing Properties for the USOC (United States Olympic Committee). Chris informed me that Polo Ralph Lauren was doing an Olympic Photo shoot in NYC and they were looking for the right athletes to represent the Winter Olympics. Evidently some of the ladies in the marketing department remembered me from training out there last summer and mentioned to Chris that I would be a good candidate. That's when I received a phone call on Tuesday afternoon informing me about what was going on. Chris explained the situation to me and asked me if that was something I would be interested in. I told him I was not sure I have to check my schedule! JUST JOKING!! I felt like Renee Zellweger I was like "You had me at Po!" lol. Chris was on a tight deadline and needed to know if I had a copy of my biography and some pictures that I could forward him since Ralph and his staff wanted to look over the pictures tomorrow! I was thinking hmmm...does Jesse Beckom III have a few pictures of himself? let me see..... I informed Chris that I might have a few laying around that I can send you.(Yes, Yes sometimes I speak about myself in the third person, its ok everyone does it at least once in their life).
I immediately started shuffling through my pictures looking at some modeling pictures and some lifestyle (pictures from everyday life) that I had on my computer. After finding the pictures that I thought would work, I e-mailed them along with a copy of my biography to Chris who forwarded them on Ralph Lauren and his staff.
Two days later at the Push Track I hear my phone ringing but I did since I was in the middle of training, and I figure if its important they will leave me a message. Turned out the message was important, it was Chris calling to relay a message from the people at Polo Ralph Lauren. Turns out they like my look, my story and they want to know if I would be available from June 17-20th for the shoot!!!! Yup my head may have suddenly gotten a wee bit heavy after listening to that message. Seriously though I was actually feeling pretty grateful of the opportunity God just place in my hands because I knew it was nothing I had done to make this happen. Right after I listened to the message I dropped down to my knees for a quick little thank you prayer to God, then called Chris back to let him know that I would definitely be available.
Soon after I began receiving e-mails form Jill Krizelman the Director of Retail Marketing, welcoming me to the project, letting me know that her and the staff are looking forward to meeting and working with me. The e-mails definitely made me feel really comfortable and even more excited about the opportunity in front of me.
This is where the story gets a little bit embarrassing but oh well I am going to tell it the way it happened........
Now for those of you who do not know it, I like to be as prepared as possible for any situation that I find myself in. That being said once I had the dates for the photo shoot I e-mailed my friend Ari who is former Miss Teen Iowa, and has done a ton of other modeling over the years for some advice. I tell her about the shoot and ask her if she has some tips what I should do to get prepared. Ari congratulated me then preference's her response with "Jesse this may sound feminine but this is what my male model friends have told me works for them!" I was thinking Ok......what is she about to say next? Ari goes on to tell me that I should get a manicure and a pedicure before the shoot, I need to go to a spa a day or so before the shoot and have a soak in Dead Sea Salt because its suppose to make my skin look amazing. Yeah I know right but just wanted to remind everyone out there that I still bench over 450lbs and can squat a small country....just in case some are starting to doubt my membership in the MANCLUB and are feeling a need to crack a joke! (I.E Tate, Bobby Mac, Dean, Atif, and Hayhurst!) Just throwing that out there! Skittles Tate! Skittles!
Ari continues telling me I need to buy some Evian Natural Mineral Water Facial Spray which will help keep my face looking moisturized and soft, and I need to use some teeth whitening products and if I do not have these things that she can send them to me! How great is that?! I was thinking Ari, you no good and well that I do not have any Evian Facial Spray so stop playing with me! lol Ari ends up sending me some bottles of the facial spray and the teeth whitening products. Ari- also included instructions regarding how and when to use the products cause she knew I had no clue what so ever on what to do with them!
As far as the spa thing goes I was not about to spend money just to soak in Dead Sea Salt! However, I did get on line and order a 5lb bag of Bokek Dead Salt, ran some warm water in the bath and soaking in that. Oh and yes if you are wondering I did go get the manicure and pedicure AND WHAT ABOUT IT!!!!?
Leading up to the photo shoot I was strictly buisness every night. I was spraying my face the Evian facial spray, using the teeth whitening products, and doing sit-ups, crunches, side crunches, Jack knife crunches, side crunches, bicycle crunches I mean Everything! The only thing in my mind is that I am going to a 24pack by the time this photo shoot come around, just in case I have a picture with my shirt open I need to be ready!!
June 17th finally rolls around and I head to the airport. Yes I flew from Lake Placid, NY to Ny, NY! Don't judge me! lol Man its getting kind of late I am going to have to finish this another time. Sorry!
This e-mail is supported and backed by the friends of Jesse Beckom III who wish you a happy tomorrow!
God Bless,
Jesse
www.jessebeckom3.com
I apologize that it has been a while since my last update but a lot of things have been going on, which is Great but my mind has been all over the place.
About a month and a half ago I received a phone call from Chris Coleman who is a former Olympic Bobsledder, and current Associate Director of Marketing Properties for the USOC (United States Olympic Committee). Chris informed me that Polo Ralph Lauren was doing an Olympic Photo shoot in NYC and they were looking for the right athletes to represent the Winter Olympics. Evidently some of the ladies in the marketing department remembered me from training out there last summer and mentioned to Chris that I would be a good candidate. That's when I received a phone call on Tuesday afternoon informing me about what was going on. Chris explained the situation to me and asked me if that was something I would be interested in. I told him I was not sure I have to check my schedule! JUST JOKING!! I felt like Renee Zellweger I was like "You had me at Po!" lol. Chris was on a tight deadline and needed to know if I had a copy of my biography and some pictures that I could forward him since Ralph and his staff wanted to look over the pictures tomorrow! I was thinking hmmm...does Jesse Beckom III have a few pictures of himself? let me see..... I informed Chris that I might have a few laying around that I can send you.(Yes, Yes sometimes I speak about myself in the third person, its ok everyone does it at least once in their life).
I immediately started shuffling through my pictures looking at some modeling pictures and some lifestyle (pictures from everyday life) that I had on my computer. After finding the pictures that I thought would work, I e-mailed them along with a copy of my biography to Chris who forwarded them on Ralph Lauren and his staff.
Two days later at the Push Track I hear my phone ringing but I did since I was in the middle of training, and I figure if its important they will leave me a message. Turned out the message was important, it was Chris calling to relay a message from the people at Polo Ralph Lauren. Turns out they like my look, my story and they want to know if I would be available from June 17-20th for the shoot!!!! Yup my head may have suddenly gotten a wee bit heavy after listening to that message. Seriously though I was actually feeling pretty grateful of the opportunity God just place in my hands because I knew it was nothing I had done to make this happen. Right after I listened to the message I dropped down to my knees for a quick little thank you prayer to God, then called Chris back to let him know that I would definitely be available.
Soon after I began receiving e-mails form Jill Krizelman the Director of Retail Marketing, welcoming me to the project, letting me know that her and the staff are looking forward to meeting and working with me. The e-mails definitely made me feel really comfortable and even more excited about the opportunity in front of me.
This is where the story gets a little bit embarrassing but oh well I am going to tell it the way it happened........
Now for those of you who do not know it, I like to be as prepared as possible for any situation that I find myself in. That being said once I had the dates for the photo shoot I e-mailed my friend Ari who is former Miss Teen Iowa, and has done a ton of other modeling over the years for some advice. I tell her about the shoot and ask her if she has some tips what I should do to get prepared. Ari congratulated me then preference's her response with "Jesse this may sound feminine but this is what my male model friends have told me works for them!" I was thinking Ok......what is she about to say next? Ari goes on to tell me that I should get a manicure and a pedicure before the shoot, I need to go to a spa a day or so before the shoot and have a soak in Dead Sea Salt because its suppose to make my skin look amazing. Yeah I know right but just wanted to remind everyone out there that I still bench over 450lbs and can squat a small country....just in case some are starting to doubt my membership in the MANCLUB and are feeling a need to crack a joke! (I.E Tate, Bobby Mac, Dean, Atif, and Hayhurst!) Just throwing that out there! Skittles Tate! Skittles!
Ari continues telling me I need to buy some Evian Natural Mineral Water Facial Spray which will help keep my face looking moisturized and soft, and I need to use some teeth whitening products and if I do not have these things that she can send them to me! How great is that?! I was thinking Ari, you no good and well that I do not have any Evian Facial Spray so stop playing with me! lol Ari ends up sending me some bottles of the facial spray and the teeth whitening products. Ari- also included instructions regarding how and when to use the products cause she knew I had no clue what so ever on what to do with them!
As far as the spa thing goes I was not about to spend money just to soak in Dead Sea Salt! However, I did get on line and order a 5lb bag of Bokek Dead Salt, ran some warm water in the bath and soaking in that. Oh and yes if you are wondering I did go get the manicure and pedicure AND WHAT ABOUT IT!!!!?
Leading up to the photo shoot I was strictly buisness every night. I was spraying my face the Evian facial spray, using the teeth whitening products, and doing sit-ups, crunches, side crunches, Jack knife crunches, side crunches, bicycle crunches I mean Everything! The only thing in my mind is that I am going to a 24pack by the time this photo shoot come around, just in case I have a picture with my shirt open I need to be ready!!
June 17th finally rolls around and I head to the airport. Yes I flew from Lake Placid, NY to Ny, NY! Don't judge me! lol Man its getting kind of late I am going to have to finish this another time. Sorry!
This e-mail is supported and backed by the friends of Jesse Beckom III who wish you a happy tomorrow!
God Bless,
Jesse
www.jessebeckom3.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)