Kimber Gabryszak: - Skeleton racing - Mountain biking (especially downhilling) - Travel - Family - and much MUCH MORE!

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

Altenberg World Cup - part 2

So as I mentioned, I really like the Altenberg track. Challenging, interesting, varied, a mixture of all the tracks elsewhere. Unlike some tracks, there are hardly any points where you go right-left-right-left; instead you have a lot of right-right-right or left-left-left combinations. Tricky.

Our coach gave us a directive, going into the race, that if we didn't perform to a certain standard we would be replaced at the St. Moritz race by newer sliders. (Ultimately, that wasn't the case and no one got replaced, but we didn't know it then.) So, I needed to finish 15th or higher to stay on the team. With my highest finish this season a 16th in La Plagne, I had my work cut out for me. No pressure, right? Positive reinforcement, right? Heh.

Again, the weather decided not to cooperate. Our last day of training was canceled due to snow, and then, after ALL of us had completed our first race run, the jury decided to cancel run 1 and make run 2 our one-heat race. Again, a one-heat race! Never had this many before...

But at least we had a band!


And things clicked for me, to some extent. Curve 4, the notorious sled-eating curve, decided to do battle with me, but it wasn't so bad overall!


Overall, I finished in 14th place. Phew!!! I was STOKED, target achieved! Woot woot!

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