tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74950491446646540002024-03-12T16:55:56.358-06:00Turn Up The Good...Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.comBlogger42125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-75217272179974881722013-02-01T11:31:00.002-07:002013-02-01T11:31:48.406-07:00New WebsiteHey y'all... Thanks for checking the blog! This is being moved to <a href="http://stephenettinger.com/">stephenettinger.com</a> as of right meow. I'm gonna keep writing, hopefully more often for that matter, but I think you'll like the new site a little better. At least I hope you do.Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-16642473676934106582013-01-07T16:13:00.000-07:002013-01-07T16:13:03.108-07:00Gas station coffee is critical<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Something about the holiday season makes me innately aware
that its time to start ‘real’ training again. I don’t know exactly what it is;
maybe eggnog or Christmas cookies act as some sort of subconscious signal. Or
maybe I’ve just been away from big bike hours and sore legs long enough to have
forgotten what riding 4-6hrs a day really means… and for some reason I start
believing it’s a good idea again. I know some who might argue that I am
impossibly obstinate. And I haven’t even gone south yet…<o:p></o:p></div>
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Regardless I find myself back in pop-tarts and gas-station-mocha-cappuccino
season again. Those become two essential staples in my diet. Its beginning to
be that time of year where I really can’t eat enough in the day to replenish
what I burn, and I cant sleep enough to completely recover from my efforts.
It’s a special time where I find myself laying on the floor a lot, usually
staring at the ceiling, and when I do make it to the couch or bed my legs ache.
Conversations can be tough because coherent thoughts and sentences become
illusory. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I had a phenomenal December, during which I continued to
rack up the hours nordorking, snow-biking and touring. I spent a weekend in Bellingham for my cousin Mari's wedding, and as great as it was to be with my family together celebrating something so special, I would be lying if I wasn't scheming about how to spend more time exploring the Galibrath MTB Park the whole time. For the first time I
decided to stay in Bozeman for the holidays, and my parents instead came to
visit me. We had five days to ski and dine as we wanted, and I think we did a
pretty good job for ourselves. I loved being able to show them around in this
winter playground (wait why do I live and train here?!), with stable, cold,
powdery snow and fresh tracks to be had both in the backcountry and on the
nordic trails. They ended up having to take off Christmas day in attempt to
catch my sister back in Washington for a dinner and work the following day. I
joined Keegan and family for Christmas dinner and just enjoyed the hell out of
it. I think it was the best holiday week I can remember.</div>
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We followed that up with a New Years to rival all up in
Cooke City, MT renting out the Woody Creek Cabin. Eight of us found ourselves
in what are some of the most brilliant mountains in North America skiing cold,
dry powder under blue skies. We made it until 10:30 New Years Eve, but it was
midnight somewhere, and having the gas to properly welcome in 2013 the
following day seemed more important than staying awake. Had we eight bottles of
champagne instead of four, this might have been a different story…<o:p></o:p></div>
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Those three days of stupefaction kicked off a week (and
closed a training block) that by Saturday had turned me into a terrifying,
spandex-clad cyclist highschooling pop-tarts and gas station ‘high rev’ coffee in
a Belgrade parking lot. So I’ve got that going for me… There’s plenty more of
that to look forward to in the coming weeks and months. But I’ve also got
Corrine moving back to town sometime this week, and I get to go to Switzerland
in five days time, and I only have to stay for four days! So there are lots of
good thing coming up too. I’m pretty excited for what I foresee myself being
part of in the near future… even the parts where I’m bonking… somehow.<o:p></o:p><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pVBpSYTWy8A/UOtQIe3mX8I/AAAAAAAAATU/qm_DTMF8tHQ/s1600/P1010037.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pVBpSYTWy8A/UOtQIe3mX8I/AAAAAAAAATU/qm_DTMF8tHQ/s320/P1010037.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-7890322360195841492012-12-11T11:58:00.001-07:002012-12-11T11:58:28.385-07:00Training*<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8_E9MVoU9NA/UMd75mtqEJI/AAAAAAAAASI/Nl2byXYehEI/s1600/IMG_0869.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="85" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8_E9MVoU9NA/UMd75mtqEJI/AAAAAAAAASI/Nl2byXYehEI/s400/IMG_0869.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monday ski touring with Allen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
There’s and asterisks in the title for a reason. It’s well into December now, definitely
training season again, and although I’ve been putting in some moderate 20hr
weeks I absolutely do not feel like I’ve been training. That being said I most
definitely find myself in a shape other than round…<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cTt0AN6jMsg/UMd8SOSdN-I/AAAAAAAAASY/1-DUK4m27_A/s1600/IMG_0891.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cTt0AN6jMsg/UMd8SOSdN-I/AAAAAAAAASY/1-DUK4m27_A/s320/IMG_0891.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wednesday singletrack</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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I’ve got this fortuitous upward movement, which I think arose after my recent revulsion of the paradigm I spent last year using. Lately, training has equated
to backcountry faceshots on bluebird powder days, a short lived ski racing
comeback, breathtaking December singletrack, long road rides with friends,
trail runs that last for hours and gym work that is making me feel like a more
balanced human-being (I will never be Arnold, but hopefully the T-Rex arms and
shoulder problems will disappear). <o:p></o:p></div>
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But its not merely powder skiing and being beaten by middle-schoolers
that is making me feel so good right now, but a more profound something they
are feeding. Someone close to me calls it happiness training… and seems pretty
straightforward. It’s powerful, and honest, and transformative. It goes beyond
the efforts I make during training; it is embodied in balanced life I am
choosing and the people I am surrounding myself with.<o:p></o:p></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1x5Q4EMYFZI/UMd9UX3E8OI/AAAAAAAAASg/ylkzEPZScEU/s1600/IMG_0858.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="125" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1x5Q4EMYFZI/UMd9UX3E8OI/AAAAAAAAASg/ylkzEPZScEU/s400/IMG_0858.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Washington</td></tr>
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This Fall was restorative for me, and positioned me to find
myself in this calm right now. I’d been training and playing enough to hide
most indications of my dark beer and cookie diet, but after taking a couple
weeks away from formal training during the first half of Movember I finally
felt like I needed to start working again. I spent ten days over Thanksgiving visiting family and friends while training on my favorite roads back in Washington. After that, and a visit from my close friend (and fellow Olympic dreamer)
Corrine, I’ve got my body and head moving in a new direction looking
toward the 2013 season. This paradigm shift makes this pursuit feel more
sustainable and authentic… two feelings that breed lots of happiness. Absolutely
none of what I am doing feels remotely like the cold, winter drudgery that can
arise out of base training. I feel (and hope) I am on the way to the best
condition of my life. And it’s got me convinced that I am into something
brilliant.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wednesday singletrack</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7TvJ16QRvis/UMd9kCDcpqI/AAAAAAAAASs/KsZmvfEAXKE/s1600/IMG_0905.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7TvJ16QRvis/UMd9kCDcpqI/AAAAAAAAASs/KsZmvfEAXKE/s320/IMG_0905.JPG" title="Perfect Bluebird day up at Blackmore" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunday faceshots</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-680026861853661772012-11-08T13:31:00.001-07:002012-11-08T13:50:15.170-07:00Its snowing where I am<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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I am watching it snow and I’ve got a cold. It must be
November. I haven’t ridden my bike in 3 days, and do not intend to before next
week. The only thing I'm planning to do is drink tea, sit next to the fire and nap.
Then I'll make a whiskey soda, dinner with my friends and resume sitting next to
the fire. Tuesday I left my house for a total of 45min to get groceries. I might go to
some hot springs tonight… that’s assuming I don’t start the napping thing at
3pm on my couch and just migrate to my bed for the night when I wake up. It
must be my off-season. I’m savoring this right now, I only get a handful of
days off every year. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AiIdfh8QkG8/UJwR4sSdI_I/AAAAAAAAAQs/8YOBCS5WH_0/s1600/IMG_0651.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="86" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AiIdfh8QkG8/UJwR4sSdI_I/AAAAAAAAAQs/8YOBCS5WH_0/s400/IMG_0651.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AICiKN8hvSQ/UJwaTzIb1jI/AAAAAAAAARw/hj6h-YfAa7U/s1600/IMG_0547.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="69" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-AICiKN8hvSQ/UJwaTzIb1jI/AAAAAAAAARw/hj6h-YfAa7U/s320/IMG_0547.JPG" width="320" /></a>After Marathon Nationals in September I continued to train,
anticipating a trip to Michigan for Iceman Cometh. It was looking good until
about 10 days before the race, I still had good fitness, and after a month at home I had begun repairing my shattered head. But some logistical walls came up and I
didn’t end up making the trip, which was certainly a disappointment. Instead, I
rode in a silent Yellowstone Park Saturday with Marshall Opel and the rest of
the Montana peloton (meaning a buffalo herd), and Sunday I went out with Sophie (Pete’s
sister…) to ride the Continental Divide Trail. Which is
absolutely one of the most enjoyable trails I’ve ever ridden... Good company
helps. It was hardly a compromise, but instead another incredible weekend in what seems
like a brilliant series of weekends I’ve had since getting back to Bozeman. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z0q9RwUtMwY/UJwTfcCWzWI/AAAAAAAAARU/XyJPm20I5RU/s1600/IMG_0786.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z0q9RwUtMwY/UJwTfcCWzWI/AAAAAAAAARU/XyJPm20I5RU/s320/IMG_0786.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lgCwDL3JJmY/UJwRS2LbbsI/AAAAAAAAAQg/viwhGkE3LRE/s1600/IMG_0608.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lgCwDL3JJmY/UJwRS2LbbsI/AAAAAAAAAQg/viwhGkE3LRE/s200/IMG_0608.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
The best part about training for Iceman was that it was an
excuse for me to go do awesome stuff in the mountains of Montana. I spent 4
breathtaking days in the Beartooth Mountains backpacking with the ‘rents. I
can’t really say anything other than that. Words and photos just don’t do those
mountains justice. The riding has been phenomenal, and I’ve made a serious
point of checking out some places I haven’t explored before. Some of those
rides have been with friends, old and new, and the memories of others will stay
between myself and the grizzly bears I found myself sharing the mountains with.
Before November 1<sup>st</sup> I was already skinning up Bridger Bowl and
getting snow in my face on the way down. And I’ve been running a lot too… usually
with Sophie, who’s short legs always put my much longer ones to shame, in cool
places around Bozeman. We tried to climb Cowen, but with the peak completely
shrouded in clouds, ice and snow, our day just turned into an epic 6hr wintery run (one that
started way too early in the morning, especially after spending the night
trying to sleep in the back of a Subaru). We ran the Bridger Ridge a couple
weeks ago now too, in a windstorm… and on that day not only did I get beaten up
by Soph, but Oli, her neighbors Corgi, also beat me to the parking lot. His
legs are probably 3 inches long. Humbling. <o:p></o:p><br />
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There’s been a lot of that happening in my life really… the
whole humility thing. Everywhere I turn, I run into friends I haven’t seen in
months, all of whom are still the intelligent, good, honest, exciting, comic,
adventurous, loving folks I remember them to be. I find myself surrounded by
brilliant people and things to do. Many are new and all of whom I appreciate so
so much. This is stuff that makes a life. </div>
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And I feel like that’s what I’ve been trying to get good at
again… Life. I’ve had to reestablish myself here after a season away. I’ve had to find a meaningful
routine, and reciprocate to the people who give me so much. I think I’m finding
various degrees of success with the thing as a whole. Its kind of been a grand
jump into the ocean, some of the waves I’ve ridden pretty well, and others with
a little less grace and triumph. I am happy here in Bozeman again, I can’t
really see myself being anywhere else… and although my heartstrings are being
pulled, it’s not by the allure of something or somewhere else as they have in
the past. Probably what’s most telling is that the snow falling outside my
window is my signal that its time to start training again soon, and I’m
smiling.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-56358822846490791702012-09-18T09:39:00.003-06:002012-09-18T09:39:58.310-06:00Figuring it out<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UQRURh462zU/UFiRTlfnMBI/AAAAAAAAAPk/LG8fC4O-aF8/s1600/IMG_0516.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UQRURh462zU/UFiRTlfnMBI/AAAAAAAAAPk/LG8fC4O-aF8/s320/IMG_0516.JPG" width="320" /></a>This time I am not writing from an airplane… I am watching
the road stretch out in front of me instead, along the Colombia, headed back to
Bozeman after racing Marathon National Champs yesterday in Bend, OR. It was a
fitting place to bring my season more or less to an end (I may still try to go
race Ice Man in early Nov). I was back in the sagebrush and Cascade mountains
where it all started for me (in eastern Washington) all those years ago, road
tripping, surrounded by family and good friends. Although my Dad wasn’t able to
make it down, it brought me back to my roots. Wrenching on my own bike the
night before the race and searching out generous souls who were willing to
drive from one feed zone to the next for me out there. It was reminiscent of a
time when everything was new… this being the first time I have ever done a
Marathon race, I had no idea what to expect, no idea how to approach the race.
This brought back memories of my first WIM races, first Sea Otter and first
National Championships. This trip came at the end of a season where I breathed
this sport, not always out of passion, but because it was my job… and as I’ve
mentioned before, a lot changes when your escape becomes the means to
a living. A lot of the purity in pedaling gets obscured. This season I was
distanced from all those things that made this whole endeavor resonate for me
in the beginning, which at times broke me completely… and although I know the
experience will serve me well in the future, it felt good to be home racing
simply because.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As I sit here reflecting on what I experienced this season I
am humbled and oh so aware of what a lucky duck I am. I am beyond grateful to
all the people who helped me get to this point, and though my first season as a
professional. My parents and innumerable amazing friends and family in Bozeman,
Wenatchee, Colorado and around the world, David, Alex, my teammates, Julien and
the Taramacaz family, everyone at BMC, Marc and all those USAC people who
believed in me and helped get me to this point… Jason, who told me 8 years ago
I could do this and be one of the best (I don’t know if I believed him then,
but I do now)… the cycling communities in Washington and Montana. None of us
could be successful in what we do without these essential networks that support
and inspire us. And I think over the past few years, I don’t know how many
really, with so much focus given to school and cycling, I didn't always demonstrate my appreciation for all these incredible people in my life. Thank
you, for all you all do. I hope I can make it more personal to each of you
soon. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-d0OuijKQrDA/UFiSku36YWI/AAAAAAAAAQI/bfTiFvySd2o/s1600/IMG_0458.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-d0OuijKQrDA/UFiSku36YWI/AAAAAAAAAQI/bfTiFvySd2o/s320/IMG_0458.JPG" width="320" /></a>This season was so challenging because I was away from all
those people… and with this seasons chapter closing, what I am vastly more aware of is
that it isn’t necessarily where you are but who you are with that creates valuable experiences (only in some semblance of solitude was I able to really understand that). Reflecting, my most cherished racing moments are road trips
with my dad to the next event, bonking with Gian Dalle on Blewett Pass, blasting Daft Punk in Northern Arizona with Mitch on the way to Bonelli and Fontana, eating
cheep Mexican food with Lydia in SoCal, riding with the National Team in
Kirchzarten, and winning Nationals with my friends and family waiting at the
finish line. What stands out are not the places or scenery or results, but whom
I was with. I think back about the moments that I will carry with me after this
year, and likely waking Keegan up at 2 am after being gone for 5 months will
stick with me more than being the top American in Houffalize. Because what is a
victory or ‘success’ if you can’t share it with those closest to you?<br />
By saying
all this, I realize I am putting myself at risk of being called a hypocrite, as I am sure
I take off for another long trip or move to a new town at some point in the not
too distant future. But I guess I’ll have a better idea of what I need to hold
onto and look for when I make those choices, and I’m more aware of the
perspective I need to maintain in order to keep this pursuit rewarding and
fulfilling. That feels good.<o:p></o:p><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JGgNCyTM4dw/UFiRrhfsu8I/AAAAAAAAAPs/oTZkDCSaV0k/s1600/IMG_0465.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JGgNCyTM4dw/UFiRrhfsu8I/AAAAAAAAAPs/oTZkDCSaV0k/s200/IMG_0465.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GCJUwWJYUdo/UFiSAfYaz0I/AAAAAAAAAP0/rDxjFdVUmQM/s1600/IMG_0466.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GCJUwWJYUdo/UFiSAfYaz0I/AAAAAAAAAP0/rDxjFdVUmQM/s200/IMG_0466.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="200" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P9QimzOWP2Y/UFiSUlZ0QUI/AAAAAAAAAP8/nmbIXNMf2iE/s1600/IMG_0467.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-P9QimzOWP2Y/UFiSUlZ0QUI/AAAAAAAAAP8/nmbIXNMf2iE/s200/IMG_0467.JPG" width="200" /></a>Keeping all that in mind, I am really looking forward to next year... I think not only do I have some of this big stuff figured out, but I have a lot of the little stuff worked out too. Where and how to live, what I need around me, cell phones, bank accounts... all the details that make it click. I know the dynamic of our team, and I am looking forward to racing with Julien Absalon next year. I enjoy the people I find myself around, and look forward to spending my time in Freiburg instead of Valais next year. But for right now, I need some time to rest my weary head, and I think I can find that in the mountains of Montana and Washington. </div>
<!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-10680850668791760202012-07-30T12:58:00.002-06:002012-07-30T12:58:37.358-06:00Montana: Land of goats, sunburns and epics<br />
<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q09Yyi4myTg/UBbYUDsqBtI/AAAAAAAAAPA/0iZVm7Fcpfg/s1600/IMG_0349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q09Yyi4myTg/UBbYUDsqBtI/AAAAAAAAAPA/0iZVm7Fcpfg/s400/IMG_0349.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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There is something about chasing goats around in the brush
and getting sunburnt while building a fence line that is incredibly refreshing after
spending the past 6 months with my nose to the grindstone. Riding with juniors
on CX bikes (and getting dropped), finding myself lost in the mountains of
Montana, running out of food and water with good friends on epic MTB rides, and
elk tacos all also seem to bring me back to my roots and stir my motivation.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YRPAFs91PY4/UBbYIU4pFOI/AAAAAAAAAO4/WGR6RE7-rvw/s1600/IMG_0322.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YRPAFs91PY4/UBbYIU4pFOI/AAAAAAAAAO4/WGR6RE7-rvw/s320/IMG_0322.jpg" width="240" /></a>We all have different things that inspire us to get out of
bed in the morning and motor along with our days… for some it’s their kid’s
futures, for others money, but I think for the majority of us its a little less
tangible… because we have some sort of visceral desire to contribute to society
in some way, and find pleasure in the ways we go about our routines. I know
personally I lost sight of that over the past 6 months. Or maybe I didn’t loose
sight so much as I lost the feeling that what I was doing was somehow
contributing to something larger than myself, and I know that I wasn’t always
finding pleasure in my routine while living abroad. Even with phenomenal teammates and support from BMC, because many of the
things/people/ideas that enrich life were halfway around the globe, living in
Switzerland, living to train and race, started to feel pretty unrewarding at times. I
know that probably seems kinda ridiculous to someone who works in the real
world… but when a passion and escape become the means to a paycheck, a lot of
things get pretty muddled up. And when that passion is all you invest your
energy in, well it means it can no longer be an escape. And that’s a damn
stressful way to live. So after getting sick in MSA, riding like shit at
Windham and Nationals, spending a week on antibiotics and sleeping, I’ve been
trying to find a more healthy space to for training and racing to occupy in my
life. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ophU3ZiMF5A/UBbYpTDHHKI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/s-s92TB7Fwg/s1600/IMG_0326.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ophU3ZiMF5A/UBbYpTDHHKI/AAAAAAAAAPQ/s-s92TB7Fwg/s320/IMG_0326.JPG" width="320" /></a>Two weeks chasing goats around 10 acres at Allen’s house,
building fence, clearing brush and getting sunburnt was my first step in that.
I took 10 days off the bike, took some antibiotics, and used my body in a way that it wasn’t used to. I
was bug-bitten, sunburned, scratched and sore, and I haven’t felt so good in a
while. Once I started to feel healthy again I decided to go exploring with Pete and Lydia on mountain bikes….
And did we explore! We were totally lost as we headed up toward Elkhorn Pass
southeast of Big Sky, but somehow amidst what seemed like dozens of unmarked
game and horse trails we ended up on the right one. We climbed and climbed
toward the wilderness, and away from the rest of the world. We found some
amazing descending and then by chance, nearly 2 hrs into a ride, a sign that
showed us the way to our own mortality. As we climbed up a muddy, horse wrecked
Buffalo Horn trail to what I think was Porcupine Lake, we all decidedly ran out
of water and food. It was one of those days where you pass through hunger and
into exhaustion and come out on the other side stronger than you were at the
beginning. Your body finds a way to make itself go… it’s a transcendent
feeling. At the end of an hour-long, Star Wars descent down Porcupine trail, we
all seemed to have immense smiles on our faces and ample energy for high fives,
wheelies and stoke. I don’t think I’ve ridden anything that cool in a long,
long time. The ride took us no less than 6 hrs and the only people we saw had
backpacked in from a much closer Tom Miner on the other side of the Gallatin
Crest, and gave us strange looks. It was brilliant…<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4590jPlKRTc/UBbYX6ExEFI/AAAAAAAAAPI/_4c8j5uFTFA/s1600/IMG_0352.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4590jPlKRTc/UBbYX6ExEFI/AAAAAAAAAPI/_4c8j5uFTFA/s320/IMG_0352.jpg" width="240" /></a>Since then I have slowly started to get back into a rhythm
on the bike and in my day to day life. Coffee, goats, breakfast, ride, nap,
town, BBQ with friends, goats. It feels really damn good. And I finally feel
healthy and strong again. My legs aren’t the hollow shells they were 3 weeks ago, nor do I carry the mental fatigue that plagued me at the end of May and into June.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I also had the opportunity to go up to Helena and hang out
with a bunch of super talented Junior CX racers at a USAC camp run by Geoff
Proctor this week. I have a lot of confidence in the future of US Cycling after
that. It was humbling. Those kids are fast… and they work hard. They are all so
much further along in their development and the opportunities that have been
presented to them than I was at their age. Some of them are already killing it
over in Europe and are only 16 or 17 years old. I didn’t go to Europe until I
was 18, and I had my ass handed to me over there until last year when I was 22…
I know we all have a different trajectory, but no matter what, those are the
kids who will soon be earning the US medals at World Cups and World
Championships. It was inspiring to see them riding so hard, and having so much
fun doing it. If we could all hold onto that as we grow in this sport, powerful
things could happen. I’m going to try by continuing to put off building up the
SLR01 that showed up on my doorstep the other day. Proud to say that over the
past 10 days of training, I’ve ridden single track each day… and I’m better for
it!<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-19297538344133705332012-07-01T19:31:00.000-06:002012-07-01T19:36:49.014-06:00Taking the long way homeI’m pretty sure I didn’t sleep at all last night... it wasn’t for lack of trying however. I went to bed at a little after midnight knowing that in an hour or two my teammates would come home from the post-world cup party we were at and proceed to wake me up. So of course, once that seed was planted I didn’t sleep. And then once things did quiet down around two, I laid in bed awaiting the sound of my alarm set at three. Yes, your math is correct, that means I was in bed for about two and a half hours. On the bright side it meant that I arrived in Albany with Marc and the US Devo kids with plenty of time to catch the earlier flight to Newark from Albany; an opportunity for fifteen or twenty minutes of sleep. And I surely slept on the hard, dirty, carpeted floor of the C-Terminal at Newark International airport for at least twenty more minutes during the eight plus hours I just spend in that godforsaken airport.
I’m currently somewhere above Indiana I think... en-route to my other least favorite airport, Chicago O’Hare... Where I hope I don’t get to spend the night. My itinerary has changed twice today... not to mention delayed a dozen times or more. I hope my bags show up sometime tomorrow... Its not like I expect to be awake at all though.
It’s a little comforting to know that my competition this coming weekend at US Nationals is all going through the exact same thing... Sounds like Sam might get to Missoula tomorrow. Not that I wish this on anyone, it's just good to know I'm not the only one living in airports today.
I’m kinda proud of how cool I’ve kept through the day to be completely honest. I’m not sure if I am somewhat admirably coming to realize that there are much more important things to worry about (normally I’d be throwing internal temper tantrums if I was sitting on the tarmac for two hours) or if I just don’t have the energy. I’m kinda thinking it’s the latter.
Perhaps though it’s just a comic and fitting way for the universe to get me home. My final destination is a couch in Bozeman, and after nineteen weeks (yes, that’s like four and half months) of being away, what is six more hours really going to do? Nada. It’s been the story of my season up to this point; long drawn out fights getting where I want to go. Whether that means the Olympic selection coming down to the final World Cup and a completely discretionary selection... or examining where I am (physically and emotionally), what I am doing and where I am going... Finding value and substance as I enter this new phase of my life... assessing how to use my energy... All of these and more have been good fights, but none that have come easily this spring.
But now as we enter the Dog Days of Summer on this July first, I am in different place than I was when I left cold Montana all those months ago. Its come at a high price but, just as the snow has likely melted off the Bridgers, I feel like some heavy things have melted away into my past too... I feel like there is some clarity. I’ve got a better grasp on where my roots have grown... what’s keeping me upright.
I had a pretty miserable reintroduction to North America the past ten days. I bounced off a lot of trees and did some penguin slides in the mud in Mont-Ste-Anne, and after being sick all week in New York my legs decided they didn’t want to go go go like I wanted them to. After two laps I saw the writing on the wall and pulled the plug with eerily little hesitation. Time will tell what happens at Nationals and at the Missoula Pro XCT. I know I have it in me to make some crazy good things happen... but maybe this whole Visa overstay is a blessing in disguise, because it means that instead of going back over to alonely apartment and bouncing off trees at the back of a world cup, ill get to take some time off the bike, backpack a little bit and then spend 4 weeks training at home, at altitude for what its worth, before making a final push for the final couple BMC Cups in Switzerland and World Championships. The way I see it, no matter what, amazing can happen both on and off the bike. That is clear too.Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-45788670265650848672012-06-21T15:53:00.001-06:002012-06-21T15:53:44.623-06:00staying up until the sunrises is sometimes the best trainingSo after that little trip I took up to Zermatt, I came to realize I had zero matches left. I was completely exhausted mentally from 3 months of my little apartment, thousands of miles away from my friends, and 6 months of eat, sleep, train. When I arrived on the starting line in Bern at the beginning of June for the Swiss Bike Trophy, I had nothing to give. Its been a couple, few years since I got pulled in a race, and although some crazy rain made the course a complete mess and impossible to ride in places, that wasn't the reason I didn't finish. I just didn't want to be there, I just didn't want to be racing. I wasn't finding anything redeeming in it for myself. I wanted to go ride sweet trails, drink beer, bbq and be a "normal person" for a bit. I <i>needed </i> it. I don't know if I've ever been in that place before, it was really uncomfortable and I was seriously examining the value in racing my bike in circles considering my limited time and energy.<br />
Generally I am pretty resourceful, so I called up my friend Felix who lives in Freiburg, and made plans to spend a few days just hanging out riding trails with him. Allen was also coming through Frankfurt on his way home from Russia and I considered cruising up and catching him up there for a few beers too. I just needed anything but my apartment and Valais. <br />
I woke up that wednesday to rain... and although I was still very unsure about whether it would be worth my time to drive up to Frankfurt seeing as how I would be back in Bozeman in a couple weeks time, but I told myself I had nothing better to do and that it wouldn't be something I ended up regretting. I threw my bags and bike into my car before I had time to think any more about the 6 hr drive.<br />
Long story short, after I picked allen up and the airport, we got lost in the red light district of Frankfurt, ate thai food and wondered around drinking beer. And its something I won't ever regret. I slept perhaps 3 hrs max, before we got up to watch the sun rise, drink coffee and then find our way back to the airport. Its a little trip I will remember for the rest of my life... nothing particularly special happened, but it happened at the right time in my life and with my best friend.<br />
I backtracked down to Freiburg and spend four days riding exclusively awesome single track with Felix, fueled by all that comes with a lack of sleep, espresso, ice cream, and endorphins. I think we were on the mountain bike for 15 hrs over 4 days, and it was all trail I had never ridden before, even after spending each of the past 4 summers in the area... We only rode in the afternoons, because we were staying up each night until the skies would begin to brighten with the approach of morning. My circadian rhythm and body was pissed at the end of it, but I haven't had such a rewarding 4 days in a long ass time.<br />
After spending all week recovering from the trip (bed at 10pm, waking at 11am) I showed up in Grenichen last weekend ready to rip. I was having a lot of fun with the team, and the course was awesome. I for the first time since probably Houffalize I genuinely had fun racing my bike. And it showed. I finished 15th, which on the surface doesn't sound so hot, but 8 of the worlds top 10 were on the starting line, and the other guys in front of me were all capable of top 15 rides in a world cup. I was stoked. I felt better than I have all season, and I think that is only going to continue to improve.<br />
Tuesday we flew to Quebec, which brought me 6 time zones closer to home. And perhaps for the first time there was something redeeming about the sight of walmart. It at least meant I was on the right continent... Even if the language is still french.<br />
We will see when I get back over to Europe... the olympic team has been announced, and I have no hard feelings whatsoever about not being chosen. I think I could have put in a ride as good as anyone, and my results this season have shown that. But I know Todd has the experience, and Sam has a bright future too. Im happy for those guys and will totally be cheering for them on Aug 12! In addition to that, the Federal Police in Zurich pulled me aside as I was trying to pass though customs tuesday and told me I had over stayed my visa in Europe by 4 days... so as it stands now I can't go back until Aug 22. That means I miss the final World Cup in Val D'Isere, but means I might be able to sneak in a little mid summer backpacking trip after racing at the Missoula Pro XCT and will give me ample time to kick it in bozone, and ride epic trails before prepping for the final few BMC Cups and World Championships. It also means I have an apartment in Switzerland full of stuff that would do me much more good on this side of the pond as I start trying to find a place to live in Bozeman again...Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-88224272508279794862012-05-27T14:05:00.001-06:002012-05-27T14:05:48.744-06:00finding my head space, and a little elbow room<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X_MJ83DvPQg/T8KFuvnLg8I/AAAAAAAAAOA/Ir2gwIeCyTA/s1600/P5240067.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X_MJ83DvPQg/T8KFuvnLg8I/AAAAAAAAAOA/Ir2gwIeCyTA/s200/P5240067.JPG" width="150" /></a></div>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_YMnjKKinyg/T8KGCPHwpUI/AAAAAAAAAOI/ZNgSRQdiBtQ/s1600/P5250155.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_YMnjKKinyg/T8KGCPHwpUI/AAAAAAAAAOI/ZNgSRQdiBtQ/s320/P5250155.JPG" width="320" /></a>My body is tired and sore. No I didn't race this week, I didn't even ride a bike until today... but I put some serious kilometers and elevation behind me, and the best part is that it was all on foot! Some of my earliest memories, both good and bad, involve trucking down a trail in the woods. You see, in my parents previous lifetimes were both climbing bums... my dad has first accents in the Himalayas to his name, and for a while my mom was an Outward Bound instructor. And in order to insure they were able to continue pursuing their shared passion for getting lost in the woods once they settled down and started a family, growing up I more than once got to dress up in a swimsuit and raincoat with plastic bags around my feet and hike through rainstorms. Memories like that, as well as arguably brighter ones like standing on top of Mt. Rainier, climbing Prussic Peak, summiting Mt. Hood, sweating up Asgard Pass with Allen and our 70lb packs and breaking ice still incapsulating alpine lakes to go swimming, vividly stick with me, and are some of my most cherished. Those trips instilled a deep passion for hiking and backpacking in me... one that is arguably stronger than my passion on the bike. There is just nothing as humbling and fundamental to me as finding myself alone and surrounded by peaks as old and imposing as time itself.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-teimejfEuX8/T8KHIEvs6hI/AAAAAAAAAOo/XA-0WV-zljA/s1600/P5250177.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-teimejfEuX8/T8KHIEvs6hI/AAAAAAAAAOo/XA-0WV-zljA/s320/P5250177.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
And after the World Cup in La Bresse, thats exactly what I needed... an escape! Its not that things didn't go well in La Bresse, they actually went quite well. I was 36th again, just like in Houffalize, this time just behind Sam and JB. I did exactly what I think I needed to in order to keep myself in the Olympic conversation. Now its just up to the selection committee... and I have no control over that. But by this point in the season, I have been training for six months, racing for three, and I was in need of a break mentally more than anything.<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TEc5GISTCpQ/T8KGVnFUvmI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/bDlug-e4PiI/s1600/P5240019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TEc5GISTCpQ/T8KGVnFUvmI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/bDlug-e4PiI/s320/P5240019.JPG" width="320" /></a>So where better to go than the Matterhorn... the town of Zermatt. I wanted to do some iconic swiss touristing... And thats exactly what I got. I went with the intention of getting away from my bike, and just finding a place to relax mentally; to hike in the presence of mountains that would take my breath away. I wanted to do something different with my body and go places my bike couldn't take me. And I found some of that... for sure... but I also found myself surrounded by Asian tourists having snowball fights, hiking for 4 hrs and then having trucks drive past or gondolas soar over my head, and in the presence of excess everywhere. I took the cog rail up the Gornergant, and sunburnt my forehead... I hiked along the mountain paths under the radiant sun and Matterhorn... I took tons of photos and I ate 25CHF pizza and 8CHF ice cream.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QIaEGhQQtgY/T8KG86r2D9I/AAAAAAAAAOY/dH4MqmzJrU8/s1600/P5250166.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QIaEGhQQtgY/T8KG86r2D9I/AAAAAAAAAOY/dH4MqmzJrU8/s320/P5250166.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BWkEVfXncfI/T8KHDUPJrtI/AAAAAAAAAOg/I-jIYa0wsHI/s1600/P5250180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BWkEVfXncfI/T8KHDUPJrtI/AAAAAAAAAOg/I-jIYa0wsHI/s320/P5250180.JPG" width="240" /></a>It's not to say that I didn't enjoy myself... I did completely, and I am so glad I went, because ultimately I've come home ready to start training again. It just wasn't exactly what I expected... I'm in a much better place mentally, than I was just a week ago... I'm no longer tired and a little bored. But Zermatt and the Matterhorn experience just wasn't as powerful as I had hoped it might be. It lacked some sort of authenticity amongst the throngs of people and video cameras. I don't have words to describe the beauty of those mountains, and on Friday when I was really able to get good and away, ditching the trail and wondering up a glacial moraine below the Matterhorn, I was totally spellbound. And then as I approached town on my way home, I again left the trail and found my own little beach in the sun along the river where I was able to swim, eat chocolate and read my book... after all, my mother would be totally disappointed to find out I didn't jump into freezing water when the opportunity presented itself. In the end, I think I like the solitude of the North Cascades a little better :)Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-30940508448248372452012-05-15T14:04:00.002-06:002012-05-15T14:04:40.434-06:00From Czech with... well disappointment<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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I am a little confused about this weekend. I had amazing
legs. I know the fitness is absolutely there. But I don’t know if everyone else
it just more fit, or my inability to establish a rhythm was the problem.
That’s what I feel like the issue was... After an amazing start where I launched myself up into the top 20, I just know I have what
it takes to have an amazing race, but I feel like the circumstances, i.e.
dealing with traffic, high-speed road sections, having to get on and of the
bike, just threw off any sort of rhythm I would have otherwise hoped to establish. I feel like if I had been able to just
settle in and have my race, things could have gone completely differently. I
always felt like I was racing at someone else’s tempo, slower on the climbs
than I would have liked, faster on the descents that I was able to go. And it
meant I was constantly at the back of groups, missing moves that were able to
move forward and bridge to groups further up. I guess that’s something to chock
up into the memory and utilize in the future. I need to stay at the front of these
groups instead of being content at the back hoping I get dragged along going
forward. the more I can learn the better equipped I will be next time around.</div>
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<br /></div>
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For certain the elites are faster than the U23’s… but I remembered
this race playing out with lots of 2-3 person groups separated by 10-15
seconds, a hard race for sure, but one where I was able to race <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my race</i>… not someone else’s. And that
just certainly wasn’t the case this year. I felt like I was always in a group
with 8-10 people until the last lap and a half when things finally started to
blow up. I think part of that was conditions too, people stuck together because
there was a fairly long high-speed road section where it was important to be in
a group with the wind. But with just one or two people you work together, in a
group of ten people just sit and then attack once the road is over. I have
never been very good at that type of racing. I like to be able to dictate my
own pace and just go. I can leave it all out there that way. So although
certainly there were moments when I was 110% out there, I feel like I averaged
maybe 90%. And that’s not good enough to have a good world cup result. It takes
100% the whole time.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Going downhill like a small child doesn’t help either. And
I don’t really know what that was about. I stayed off the brakes as much as
possible, took the lines that the guys faster than me were taking, but alas I
just couldn’t ever find my ability to shred. I guess I just need to think about
how to race at other peoples pace better. I think that takes a lot of mental
energy, but its there, I just need to tap into that.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I crossed the finish line feeling completely unsatisfied.
There were bright spots (awesome start and legs), but it was mostly a race that
was full of lack-luster moments. I’m ultimately pretty disappointed because
last year I had such a stellar race here. But I feel more focused right now
that I did going into the weekend… and my eyes are more fixed on the Olympics
than ever. I’d like to believe that if I can put together a stellar race in
France, I solidify my potential as an Olympic candidate, which is ultimately
what I am after and all I can extend my control over… from there its just up to
selection committee. I think Sam locked it up this weekend, and Todd finally
showed his cards too, but I don’t think it was any more impressive than my
result in Houffalize. I’m ready to learn from this and see what I can do before
this big spring campaign is over this coming weekend in La Bresse. I think it
would be a little tough to be motivated if it weren’t for the fact that it’s a
World Cup and I have incredible fitness right now! I’ve just gotta keep
thinking about that. Maybe this is the swift kick in the ass I need for this
coming weekend. It’ll sure help me keep my eyes on the prize for one more week!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-22979407420960217342012-05-07T14:40:00.003-06:002012-05-07T14:40:59.442-06:00It is NOT a lonely road to the top<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZYEYMBpzAM0/T6gtEKIUJGI/AAAAAAAAAMk/jMNsz0so1Bk/s1600/IMG_0056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZYEYMBpzAM0/T6gtEKIUJGI/AAAAAAAAAMk/jMNsz0so1Bk/s320/IMG_0056.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
I knew going into this season abroad that at some point the novelty of being in europe full time would wear off. And I knew that I would have to wrestle internally with my justifications for being over here, living a very simple life... day in and day out; sleeping, eating, training and racing. Living in a foreign country, not speaking the language, far away from my friends and family. I didn't know how I would react to it. I knew it had the potential to take what has been a very very good thing, and turn it inside out, opening the door for me to resent my decisions to be over here because they aren't always comfortable, they aren't the same decisions I see my friends making, and they have pulled me physically very far from those closest to me. They have been decisions that haven't necessarily been immediately gratifying, and present challenges I could not have foreseen.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-94DLQnhkKjg/T6gtTHeF-tI/AAAAAAAAAMs/YQt6QWoS_gU/s1600/IMG_0072.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-94DLQnhkKjg/T6gtTHeF-tI/AAAAAAAAAMs/YQt6QWoS_gU/s320/IMG_0072.JPG" title="" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monterey Bay Aquarium is incredible</td></tr>
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That time came as I was sitting in the San Francisco Airport preparing to fly back to Zurich, having just said goodbye to my parents and friends after an incredibly enjoyable week in Monterey at Sea Otter. I had thought it would be a trip that renewed my energy, and gave me a new focus once I got back in europe, but it did exactly the opposite. I found myself suddenly missing all the comfort, laughing and conversation that comes with being around people you care about, have history with... and who share your language. The silence was deafening once I got back into my quiet little apartment in Fully, this shortly after I found out I wouldn't be racing in Heubach that coming weekend in order to focus on recovery and the upcoming world cups... my birthday weekend none the less. I would be sitting quietly in my lonely apartment on my birthday... and at the time that was totally devastating. I went from on top of the world (sans a miserable performance at the Sea Otter) to really really low over the course of a plane flight and train ride. What I came back to wasn't comfortable, it wasn't emotionally secure and to be completely honest, a little boring... which means I had plenty of time to sulk and feel miserable about my "loneliness". Also it was raining.</div>
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As I told a close friend today though, I have a visceral distain for feeling depressed, and generally I am pretty good about channeling my inner Mitch Hoke; that is the ability to view the people and situations I find myself in under very positive light, and not stress over shit that doesn't really matter. </div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-34Go_BungPQ/T6guLrDOknI/AAAAAAAAANU/CURhsMVFIrI/s1600/IMG_0106.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-34Go_BungPQ/T6guLrDOknI/AAAAAAAAANU/CURhsMVFIrI/s320/IMG_0106.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some nice views along the roads here in Valais</td></tr>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IOgaFMebBqU/T6guGyV4OYI/AAAAAAAAANM/hAb90fcdRKY/s1600/IMG_0101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IOgaFMebBqU/T6guGyV4OYI/AAAAAAAAANM/hAb90fcdRKY/s320/IMG_0101.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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After a couple well timed emails, Facebook messages, and Skype sessions with those closest to me, I realized how much my life was anything but lonely. A lack of proximity means nothing. Someone once told me that its a lonely road to the top... and I would argue that's impossible, because it takes the support, love and care of so many for any one person to rise to the top. If it were lonely we wouldn't have the Olympics because only the insane would be able to cope with the hours of training, isolation, travel and emotional toll of competition without a vast, supportive and close network of friends and family. Something I am incredibly blessed to have. And I had lost sight of that for those few days. But you all reminded me that I am indeed not alone over here in Switzerland... not at all! Thank you for that! </div>
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So I found myself on my birthday morning smiling while riding my mountain bike in the sun, surrounded by the Alps, and in afternoon I made my way to Sion to watch the Tour de Romandie finish. I spent hours talking with people at the BMC tent, both fans and the marketing people. I turned acquaintances into friendships, and started new ones as David escorted me through the VIP tent introducing me to people who I look forward to seeing again. I came home exhausted, but committed to making something tasty for dinner (I'd already had a birthday dinner of sorts with Mitch and my parents in Monterey), before retiring to my book and some chocolate. I doubt I will ever forget what exactly I did on my 23rd birthday, it made a big impression. </div>
<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-clUDZ4GkOQw/T6gt7QOTmzI/AAAAAAAAANE/EhDTOTbPpRk/s1600/IMG_0099.JPG"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-clUDZ4GkOQw/T6gt7QOTmzI/AAAAAAAAANE/EhDTOTbPpRk/s320/IMG_0099.JPG" /></a><br />Birthday Ahi<br /><br />In some ways it signified a new chapter turned for me. I've greatly expanded the depth and breadth of my relationships here in just a few days (feels like it took long enough); People to train with, people to go out for coffee with and even though Mon francias est miserable... its getting better :) I'm confident in my abilities, and I have reexamined my motives, both rationally and emotionally. Those are two hard things to separate sometimes... and I have a much better grasp on why I am over here, now that the novelty has worn off!Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-49077096072562639432012-04-19T19:00:00.002-06:002012-04-19T19:04:45.044-06:00Feeling the Olympics<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves/> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:donotpromoteqf/> <w:lidthemeother>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:lidthemeasian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:lidthemecomplexscript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:compatibility> 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mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language:JA;} </style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal">A lot of times you hear athletes say “yeah I’ve always been working toward becoming an Olympian” or “It was a childhood dream to do win this race”. And perhaps it was, but I think a lot of people on the outside see it as this linear path from childhood dream to Olympian or Tour Champion, ect. I think this journey has a lot of different manifestations, each unique to the athlete, but I have to believe for everyone it’s anything but linear. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’m sure I dreamed about being an Olympian when I was a kid, but I probably was pretending I was winning a swimming event, or the Marathon or gymnastics in my backyard; I know I never was envisioning myself as an Olympic cyclist, I didn’t even consider it. And none of that was tangible; I couldn’t touch and feel it; it was just part of being a kid. As I have developed in this sport, my coach Jason and I have always talked about building for the next level of racing… First it was State Championships when I was 14, then Nationals when I was 18, then the domestic pro ranks, next racing U23 in Europe, then racing U23 World Cups, now its Elite World Cups… and suddenly the Olympics too! But a common theme for me has been that none of it has ever felt incredibly grandiose, its just seemed like the next logical step. I couldn’t seriously think about racing Elite World Cups when I was just getting ready to start racing as a domestic pro. Sure its something I could talk about, but wasn’t something I could even really conceive or understand when I was struggling to place in the top 40. I just didn’t know what that meant. Its really kinda hard to put this all in words, but I guess what its coming down to is that in December when I was named to the Olympic Long Team I felt like “wow that’s cool, what an honor to be included in this list! The Olympics are the pinnacle of sport!"<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>But I didn’t know what it meant; I couldn’t feel it or really draw much motivation from it. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">All of a sudden now I find myself in the midst of what is a legitimately an Olympic bid… I was the second American in South Africa, and the top American in Houffalize, Belgium last week at the second World Cup. At one point part of the way through the race last weekend, I suddenly felt the magnitude of this whole Olympics thing. By this point I was the top American on course, and moving forward, and I started thinking a little about how if I kept this up it would be really stellar for my Olympic prospects. The beginning of the thought was totally analytical, but the end was completely emotional. And this all of a sudden this gave me a huge boost of motivation. There were feelings of pride, accomplishment, humility, raw excitement and passion. It was all of a sudden tangible; I could feel it and ride that excitement. Suddenly I better understood what it could mean to represent the USA as one of the best MTBer’s in the nation (the world for that matter), on an international stage…. On <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">the premier</i> international stage! God it was such a cool feeling!!!<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">There is still certainly a whole lot of racing left between now and the end of May when the Olympic committee makes their selections for the team. But I find myself in a good place knowing that I am very much going to have to be in that discussion. I can’t say what is best for the team, experience gets the older guys a long way, but youth and raw excitement plays well too… and Rio 2016 always has to be in the discussion; how does a decision potentially effect the outcome of that race? What I can say, is that I now am much more aware of the magnitude and presence of the Olympics… I know what it will mean to me. I know how I will draw motivation from it. This is stuff I didn’t know 5 months ago, and had little knowledge of even 5 days ago… I know it suddenly seems like the next logical step <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Wingdings;">:)</span><o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-889722365435635412012-03-25T10:49:00.005-06:002012-03-25T11:12:34.173-06:00My window is 53.8km from ChamonixI think I do my best thinking while lying on the floor after a training ride. Today, instead of chocolate milk like I usually have after training, I got a big slice of sober pie. It’s a lot like humble pie, but it tells you less about how cool you really are, and more about what your current predicament means for the coming days, weeks, months, years and ultimately the rest of you life.<br /><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f61ousXLfkk/T29Pks4h9AI/AAAAAAAAAME/O8lCAI8P4TE/s200/P3250017.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5723881143353340930" /> <p class="MsoNormal">You see, I moved into my new apartment in Fully today. Which in itself maybe isn’t such a big deal. I simply packed up my bags, and drove 30 km down the Valais from the comfort of the B&B I was staying at in Miege, to the reality of my little apartment, fully furnished and last decorated probably in the 1960’s. Ok, maybe the 50’s…</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Its pretty hoke’y (no particular reference to Mitchell Hoke, but he’d get a kick out of it…) And although it would be cool to be living in some big flat in downtown Geneva, big cities nor interior decorating have ever big my thing. But there are lots and lots and lots of awesome mountains very extremely close to the said apartment, and those have always been my thing. Also, Julien lives right next door… so I have a great teammate and friend, good mountains, some coffee shops, and a good grocery all nearby, which means I think I'm pretty set.</p><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HOBCcts4jPI/T29Pk4YRorI/AAAAAAAAAMM/4RUHyzRD59c/s200/P3250012.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5723881146439279282" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /><p class="MsoNormal">The past month hasn’t felt permanent (In fact nothing really does… my life is full of various shades of temporary right now). I’ve been unpacking and repacking, catching airplanes, and exploring new places. I have been staying in B&B’s, getting food prepared and sheets cleaned for me. But that takes me back to laying on the floor, because all of sudden this felt permanent; or the closest thing to that recently. Even in college, the most permanent anything got was a yearlong lease… And yes I know I am coming back to the states in October (jeezo) but I’m back here next year too. The reality and magnitude of moving across the pond (in this too the reality that the Atlantic is no pond…) in order to chase some dreams about riding my bike in circles is hitting me. I’ve never lived in a single apartment before… much less in a new town, in a new country… on a new continent. The silence this afternoon was deafening, even with NPR blaring from my computer, the evening traffic outside my window and whistles from kids’ soccer games happening across the street. It wasn’t a bad silence, but one that makes you think; forces you to appreciate where you are and really examine your motives.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-19RMoLqH6ao/T29PlcyzsrI/AAAAAAAAAMY/eLQneXtuidE/s200/P3250008.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5723881156214239922" /><p class="MsoNormal">This isn’t glamorous, this isn’t always exciting… I miss my friends and family. It would be fun to be in Bozeman skiing and partying with my friends for sure. But somehow this seems right, its scary as hell let me tell you, but it too is fun… I had a blast down in South Africa, I love traveling and I put together a solid first World Cup. Not great but good enough to put me firmly in the Olympic conversation. I’m blown away by the incredible beauty of this place every time I step out the door (or look out the window). The riding is incredible. And with time (and French lessons) I will make friends here too, they wont replace the amazing ones I have back home, but they too will make this place a sort of home… So I guess maybe this journey in itself is my motive. I think in some ways riding is just a means to do something different and unique and powerful. Because I like seeing how other people live, and experiencing new places. Because I do like riding my bike in circles. Because change isn’t so scary as people think it is. Because I am done with college; because I would always wonder what if… and because regardless of how much I learn about this place, my friends, the world, I am gonna learn a hell of a lot about myself too. And I think that’s pretty damn valuable. Because I get to sit in this park surrounded by incredible mountains on a clear blue Sunday afternoon, watching kids of all ages kick soccer balls back and fourth, rollerblade and swing. Because I get to be with parents and friends and dogs sitting in the grass and on park benches appreciating just being here in this time and place. Sounds like a pretty good piece of pie. </p> <!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-66145563280010148452012-03-13T04:58:00.004-06:002012-03-13T05:41:00.639-06:00Laying in the African Sunshine<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OiVWsjueK8A/T18xy7qO1vI/AAAAAAAAAL4/FILUwtVNRUQ/s1600/P3110079.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OiVWsjueK8A/T18xy7qO1vI/AAAAAAAAAL4/FILUwtVNRUQ/s200/P3110079.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719344802861864690" /></a><br />The more time I spend grocery shopping, training, and sitting together at meals, the more I realize how challenging, exciting, unique and insightful this phase of my life will be. I've begun the process of getting to know my new BMC teammates, but I learn a lot more form their mannerisms, actions, and laughs than I do from the words and thoughts they share... because those are usually in german or french...So far we have been having a great time down here in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. <div>We've been down here about 10 days now, and its been so much more rewarding than my experience in SA last year when I blasted in and out with Troy Wells. We've gotten to ride with locals, hang out in town, check out local food and coffee, buy bananas from the roadside vendors... We've been able to lay in the afternoon sun, ride in the rain, cook together every night, rally our multivan on a safari and we raced together last saturday. And since I generally have pretty good company inside my own head, the german and french hasn't been too exhausting...<img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2h1ec-8OIO8/T18xxRepxeI/AAAAAAAAALI/lja0N696lIc/s200/P3080005.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719344774359139810" /> I definitely can understand more of it that I can speak, so my ability to be part of the conversation is becoming easier with each day. I guess this is probably how children learn to speak huh... listen listen listen and finally it starts to click. It can be trying at times, but I guess this is kinda what I signed up for.<div>I think I am finally starting to relax after what has been a pretty insane month too. So much happened between coming back from Tucson and arriving here in SA; travel home, emotional stuff in Bozeman, packing up my house. So many little details needed to be addressed, and I feel like finally most of that has been taken care of. Its allowing me to lay in the grass after training, read my book, stretch and sleep well pretty much every night. A good place to be a few days before the first World Cup of the season.</div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1PMHJ54jhU8/T18xx7Uq21I/AAAAAAAAALQ/3SNnn0ddOtA/s200/P3100015.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719344785591556946" /><div>The race we did last weekend was on the same track as the World Cup, and it was great for me to be able to get used to racing my big wheeled BMC... I'm hoping I got my mistakes out of the way for the trip. I had really good legs, but I was unable to escape the whole riding like a hack thing. I found myself not only on the ground due to my own hack-ness, but taking my teammate Reto out with me. It was devastating even though nothing really happened. We lost the Liam group, which would have put us near the top 10 instead of outside the top 15... but that 'what if' is/was still lingering. I think I would have been 7 places better had I not kept falling at very inopportune times, destroying my own rhythm as well as that of those around me.</div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9UAuw8CtjCk/T18xyX_W5vI/AAAAAAAAALs/SDsgVYAfSKI/s200/P3110049.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719344793286797042" /><div>I started some antibiotics last night... I feel fine today, but I think I definitely picked up a little stomach virus from the water or some unwashed fruit or something. We jumped on it though, only 6 hrs or so after I started to feel the telltale symptoms of it coming on. Hopefully tomorrow I'm back to 100%. I am definitely getting some good recovery in right now, so maybe the universe is just trying to slow me down a little bit so I can be primed for this world cup. Seem like it might be a little bit of a roundabout way to do it, but who am I to judge? I'll let you know how it goes.</div></div>Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-72938302399501538732012-02-29T01:16:00.004-07:002012-02-29T01:32:15.717-07:00Balance by default<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tk0JGY5fstg/T03g3_SQV7I/AAAAAAAAAKg/7F-9uho2VYE/s1600/188.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tk0JGY5fstg/T03g3_SQV7I/AAAAAAAAAKg/7F-9uho2VYE/s200/188.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714470754688456626" /></a><br /> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves/> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> 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priority="37" name="Bibliography"> <w:lsdexception locked="false" priority="39" qformat="true" name="TOC Heading"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} </style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal">The other day, someone told me that pursuing balance in life is hopeless, because inevitably you create stressor in this pursuit… and thus never achieve real balance. What instead we should be pursuing is passion, because in this pursuit, all the little imbalances and stressors are forgotten and by default we end up achieving balance. It’s a little backwards, but with a little objectivity its so clearly true. This totally resonates with me right now… I’m finally over in Switzerland… and my ability to succeed is going to be completely dependent on dropping the little things I have no control over, and simply pursue my passion.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I lost sight of this some over the past couple months. I had great training in Arizona, but was trying to control variables beyond my control, and I felt like I was constantly overwhelmed. And then I came back to Bozeman, and had a great 10 days spending time with friends, relaxing and got some good training in what was spring like weather. It was a chance to rest my body after a long 3 weeks in the sun, and more importantly rest my mind. Of course the weather didn’t hold, and so in 24 hrs I had to either purchase a plane ticket back to Arizona or hop into the car for an 8hr drive back to Washington for 10 days. I was a little unsure what the weather would bring back home, but two hours after chatting with Jason about the options, I found my car pointed west. It was an incredibly low stress week at home, exactly what I needed, and completely the right decision because I had some time to check most of the nagging details off my to do list; in addition to getting 9 really good days of training and resting in.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">While I was there the magnitude of what I am doing with myself for the next couple of seasons really dawned on me. For some reason I was under the impression that I would be bouncing back and fourth between the US and Switzerland… spending 6-8 weeks at a time in Europe, and then returning home for needed R&R. I think receiving my plane tickets ten days before leaving for Switzerland was a kind of wake up call though… Feb 23-Oct 18. That’s 8 months right? And yes I will be back in the States, but hardly… for Sea Otter Ill fly to California, for the North American World Cups I’ll fly to the East Coast. Maybe I’ll make it back to Bozeman for a day or two before Nationals, but then I have to be back in Europe for a race the following weekend… I’m over here full time. Big Time. I’m glad I realized it before I left the country!<o:p></o:p></p><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CHb8wmKomBU/T03g5PJi4ZI/AAAAAAAAAK4/Rg-BfXlYVOg/s200/IMG-20120228-00133.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714470776126759314" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " />So last Monday when I got back into Bozeman I had less than 72 hrs to move… I packed up my house (save my bed) with Keegan’s help, and loaded it into what is now an overflowing storage unit. I said goodbye to my new roommates, and spent a great evening with some of the people closest to me… Keegan, Karina, Jamie, Micah, Fix, Mike… It turned into one of those nights that reminds me of what life is really about, and how critically important it is to be able to share our successes and our strengths; and our failures and our weaknesses with one another. Its what gives color and substance to life.<div><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class="MsoNormal">I briefly forgot all this as I was running clear across the Chicago Airport 24 hrs later. I had 50 min from landing until my flight to Zurich. I was sweating and breathing heavy as I cut to the front of the international security line, hearing my name being called over the intercom, and nearly threw a temper tantrum when TSA decided my blackbeans, stew, avocado and cilantro might be a bomb. Good thing they checked it for harmful vapors… sometime I fear for our own security because of our overzealous security. Its enough to push anyone over the edge… But I gained my composure once I climbed onto that flight.<o:p></o:p></p><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-soX1bw7PWi0/T03g4Y-jteI/AAAAAAAAAKs/klk19Ffibe4/s200/186.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714470761585161698" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /> <p class="MsoNormal">The past few days have been incredible… I’ve gotten my new 29’er (that’s right, big wheels!) dialed in, and spent time riding in the sunshine on the trails and roads that wind through the vineyards. Its still totally glacial in the endless Alps that crown the Valais, but in Sierre its been 50 and downright agreeable. Pretty much everything I hoped it would be. I’m staying at a bed and breakfast for the week, which has been a very good setup, until we take off for South Africa on Friday. I feel like I am in limbo, unpacking bags of stuff I need this week, while simultaneously packing for this trip, and putting the things I don’t need away into another bag, to await my return and subsequent move into my Apartment in Fully. I spend all day today at a photo shoot, about an hour and a half from Valais, feebly attempting to stay warm while I wore my new down jacket in between photo sets where we wore nothing but shorts and a short sleeve jersey. You’ll all see the photos later… just keep in mind for the 3hrs we spend taking them, it was maybe 35 degrees out with just enough wind to take to take all the wind out of my sails. It felt pretty pro though :) I hope that’s the way the rest of the season feels!<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment--></div></div>Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-49702121742955889642012-01-23T18:22:00.001-07:002012-01-23T18:22:28.205-07:00going big<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:documentproperties> <o:template>Normal</o:Template> <o:revision>0</o:Revision> <o:totaltime>0</o:TotalTime> <o:pages>1</o:Pages> <o:words>526</o:Words> <o:characters>3003</o:Characters> <o:lines>25</o:Lines> <o:paragraphs>6</o:Paragraphs> <o:characterswithspaces>3687</o:CharactersWithSpaces> <o:version>11.1282</o:Version> </o:DocumentProperties> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:donotshowrevisions/> <w:donotprintrevisions/> <w:displayhorizontaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:displayverticaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:usemarginsfordrawinggridorigin/> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal">Going big on a Friday night in Tucson, Arizona! I just finished up watching 2.5 hrs of PBS (I’m fascinated by politics and world news for those of you who didn’t know), and making curry with coconut rice. I’m wearing recovery tights because my legs ache after bonking out on the MTB today. I’ve pretty much been on this couch for 4 hrs. Its 930 and past my bedtime. Tomorrow I will probably be on the bike for nearly 7 hrs, and repeat this, although the curry dinner will be leftovers because Ill be too tired to stand up in order to cook dinner. Might have the energy to mince some fresh cilantro. Glamorous. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">This has more or less been my life for the past 2 weeks down here. Every day I feel more fit and more fatigued. It’s a weird sensation that only comes around this time of year. I’m on the bike 4-6 hrs pretty much every day, sometimes with friends, sometimes alone. Either one is good. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Fast-forward… Its Monday morning, I woke up at 630 today and all I could think about was a couple cups of coffee and reading the newspaper. I’ve got 7 more days of hard training down here, one final big week. I’m excited for it. I’ll spend as much time on the bike this week as most people spend in office chairs working their 9-5’s… somewhere in the low to mid thirties. On Sunday I went out with Todd, Spencer, Carl, Russell and Morgan for a 6.5hr, 120 mile ride, with a long dirt section south of Tucson; the Box canyon loop. It was stellar, and after 6 hrs on the bike I was still feeling awesome. Yesterday was another big day…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>along ride down the coffee shop 15 min from here, with some cappuccino intervals. Then it was a little nostalgia with football night in ‘merica. My grandpa (who I am staying with down here) was a professional coach for his whole career and won the Super Bowl with the ’85 Bears. His younger brother also lives in town, as does my aunt and her family. So needless to say we had the making for a good ‘ole American football afternoon. I love watching the game, but really have nothing invested in the teams playing, nor can I get excited enough to start jumping up and down, screaming at a TV!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">It’s been incredible to be down here over the past couple weeks. I feel like for the first time since September I have rhythm to my life. As I had mentioned before, last fall was a physical and emotional rollercoaster. I barely kept my head above water. Being down here with some direction, good books, time to reflect and meditate has been so incredibly healing. I’ve been blessed with what has been an outrageously rewarding and exciting 5 years in Bozeman. I cherish the memories, friends, experiences and knowledge I have gained. Its indescribable; and it will still take me a long time to realize what it really all means. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I’m opening a new chapter in my life… I’m a college graduate, and really entering my professional career. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that I’m in the real world yet, because lets be serious I ride my bike for a living. I’m moving in a new direction… I don’t know if I’ll stay in Bozeman after this season. I love it there, but maybe I want to be somewhere more conducive to my cycling pursuits… Bend, Seattle, Santa Cruz… Durango maybe. On the immediate horizon I’m more or less moving to Switzerland for the season. BMC is getting an apartment set up for me in Valais, and I will be spending pretty much my whole season racing over there. It will be weird flying to Sea Otter in April… from Europe, and returning to Europe. I doubt I’ll make it back to Bozeman during that trip. Ill be speaking French… imagine that. Assuming this Rosetta Stone thing works like they say it aught to… <o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-54569729166914821052012-01-06T20:06:00.000-07:002012-01-08T17:17:40.552-07:00Going forwardSo I’m on a plane again. It’s been a while since I’ve checked in… right now I am on my way from Bozeman to Tucson. Ill be spending about three weeks down there training. Then it’s back to Bozeman for a couple days and then I’m moving to Switzerland. Yep that’s right... gonna try to make it over there. But first I want to reflect a little on the last trip to Europe I had last year.<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span> </span>Much of my season was spent in hotel rooms. I traveled around the globe, rode to and from racing venues, ate at restaurants that had menu’s with pictures… hoping someone spoke English. I walked around towns, took some photos while riding, and occasionally sat outside an appealing café. Rarely did I know where the best coffee or food was, nor did I ever know how to find the best trails. I relied on what seems to be my vast amount of dumb luck… I was afterall traveling the world to race a bike for god’s sake. I seem to have a lot of it. So when I failed to stumble on the best trails or was forced to drink the hotel’s Nescafe… I usually just dealt with it. And binged when I stumbled upon something good… I spent the rest of my time, hanging out with my American teammates. We caught up on Facebook, watched bike racing on Eurosport, in languages foreign to our ignorant ears. I listened to NPR and read the New York Times. We napped and read books. We talked about bikes and girls and bikes. We lived in our comfortable American bubble.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>This is the nature of the beast though. I get to travel the world and race my bike. It’s not glamorous, but its what I love, and have always just accepted that for now I don’t get to experience the places I visit in the traditional, often more enriching ways. I don’t see many museums or eat a the mysteriously delicious street food usually.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The tides are turning. I spent two weeks in Czech and Italy, racing with the BMC European team for the final two World Cups. </p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aQAIH9CBQhU/TwoxRflcHOI/AAAAAAAAAKE/2JVCy4OaoWg/s200/P8180115.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695418855369481442" /><p class="MsoNormal">In between racing in Czech and Italy, I traveled to Julien’s hometown of Fully, Switzerland. It’s in the county of Valais, south of Lac Lemon, Geneva and Montroux. It reminds me in many ways of the Wenatchee Valley back home. Apple orchards pattern the valley floor that gives way to bare, Alpen peaks. It’s breathtaking. Fully is a small town, maybe 5,000 people… Julian’s family owns something like 20 hectares of apple orchard. As we rolled into town, we stopped and picked some fresh Gala’s, ready for harvest, off his trees. Their juice was warm in the august sun. It was a little piece of home half way around the world. We had big family barbeques in his backyard, watching the sunset and the moonrise over the alps. And we rode his favorite trails, winding through the vineyards along the Rhone and up the steep mountainsides past massive waterfalls.It was incredible. I was treated as one of their own. We ate dinners, speaking French, German, Italian and English. We shared our success and our failures, we laughed together and we trained together. We drank good coffee and had good food. We picked pears, berries, carrots and tomatoes out of Balz’s garden in Zurich while when we found ourselves locked out of his house.</p><p class="MsoNormal">I was able to do the same thing in Freiburg a couple days later… Hanging out with Markus and Felix and Moritz… making espresso in Felix’s apartment and eating bread from the bakery just across the street from his living room window. I spent time hitting a rope swing into a pond with Moritz part of the way through a ride, and finished with more espresso on his back porch. On our drive from Italy to Freiburg, over the historic little passes of the </p><p class="MsoNormal">Giro d’Italia, we passed through St. Moritz, past massive glaciers and went swimming in Switzerland at beautiful clear blue lake just off the autobahn. I keep saying ‘we’ because I was part of their lives and they were part of mine for three amazing weeks. It was like I was experiencing Europe again for the first time; in a new way with new people. Experiencing these countries as a local does… living it, immersing myself in it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>I ended that trip at Worlds in Champery, with high expectations. I finished 5<sup>th</sup> in Czech and 7<sup>th</sup> in Italy… I think 8<sup>th</sup> overall in the World Cup standings. Good things could happen. Jaroslav Kulhavy crossed my front wheel 15 seconds into the team relay and I went down at 50kmh into the barriers. I broke my hand, ruined a wheel, lost a lot of skin and finished the race. Two days later I made it from 50<sup>th</sup> after the start lap of our U23 race up to 15<sup>th</sup> with my hand completely numb and in a splint when I again crashed and dislocated my shoulder with two laps to go. Glamorous.<o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I flew home hung over… airport ceilings were spinning for the 22 hours of travel home. And that’s kind of the way things have stayed until right now. This fall was the most insane three months of my life. I graduated college, taking 17 credits. I was training. I was a member of the Pan American Games team in Guadalajara. Karina and I broke up. I partied my face off. I made the Olympic Long Team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I signed a two-year contract with BMC. I feel exhausted from the emotional rollercoaster that culminated in graduation a couple weeks ago, and the reality that I am now 100% a professional cyclist. There are too many stories… all I know is that its gonna take some time for me to recover from it all. It was a blast; it was stressful, and trying. It was a lot to digest and I don’t know what it means yet. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I do know that I sit here I am a different person than I was a year ago. I’m headed back down to Tucson, and I have a different understanding of what this sport means to me. I love it more than ever… that I don’t question. But I’m approaching it differently. My emotional investment in it has changed. It’s still my escape; I live it and breathe it, but its also how I’m going to pay my rent. I’m still trying to figure out what it means to have this as my job and find a balance between going to work and going to play. More than anything I know I can do this. There isn’t any question in my mind any longer. I can be one of the best in the world. I’ve shown myself that. Sure their will be trial and error as I go along in this journey, but knowing I have the capacity changes how I invest my energy into this lifestyle. I’m excited to be living in Valais. Its going to be challenging; it won’t be like I have American teammates nearby… or doing a semester abroad with a bunch of other exchange students. I’m going to be living in my own apartment, becoming part of the place and community. </p><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p8wu8w8taes/TwoxRZKveII/AAAAAAAAAKU/YLPQepGZLGY/s200/P8180109.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5695418853646891138" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /><p class="MsoNormal">Just like I did during that final trip to Europe last summer. It’s an incredible opportunity. But first, I’ve got three weeks of sleep, eat, ride here in the desert to realign myself after what was an incredible 2011, so this year can be even better!<o:p></o:p></p><br /> <!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-18591777348051380622011-08-16T14:06:00.000-06:002011-08-19T01:38:33.228-06:00Czech<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PEyGu1yB4rA/Tk4ScW4i6ZI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/XqsmD7d3u0E/s1600/P8170073.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PEyGu1yB4rA/Tk4ScW4i6ZI/AAAAAAAAAJ0/XqsmD7d3u0E/s200/P8170073.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5642467661530196370" /></a>
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<br /><!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal">La vie est grande! Its 8am… I’ve been on the road for 2.5 hrs already. I’m sitting in the BMC Truck with the mechanic Sylvain listening to some Arcade Fire. The plain that Milan sits in, really isn’t glamorous at all. I think coming from America, we have this grand vision of what Milano is, probably from wafer, chocolate cookies and fashion magazines. I can tell you that it is in reality pretty unspectacular. There is a lot of corn, overhead power wires and dirty Italian industry. I’ve never been to Cleveland, but I imagine it is a lot like this.<o:p></o:p></p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Te0mY_9-C34/Tk4SblAkuKI/AAAAAAAAAJc/TPsk1eJUB8Q/s200/P8170078.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5642467648142096546" /><p class="MsoNormal">It’s ok though… because over the past week, I have seen nothing but astonishing beauty. It turns out that the Czech Republic (formerly Czechoslovakia) is phenomenal. It’s a lot like the rest of Europe at first glance… green, and rolling countrysides, a lot of little roads, cows and small villages. But when one looks deeper, unique details appear. The country has found a weird middle ground between the generic western European atmosphere it strives for, and its recent communist background. It’s as if one tried to hurriedly paint a black wall white… you can still see what was there. Nove Mesto na Morave, the city where the World Cup took place, has all the right small houses, pastures and fountains, you would find in any city of 10,000 around Europe.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XINUZ58T2RQ/Tk4SbzKn2-I/AAAAAAAAAJk/9t4ymRsC1Ok/s200/P8170083.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5642467651942341602" /><p class="MsoNormal"> But it also has ten story housing Projects… with the wires, antenne, rusted mental and pigeon stains that are so strongly associated with the former Communist Block. The Projects have just been painted pink and yellow and sky blue, tricking the residents and visitors that things have changed. There are still old wheat and potato farmers, walking with canes through furrowed fields wearing old leather boots and woolen caps and felt hats… just as I am sure their fathers did before them, under Stalin and Kremlin Rule. These old-timers tractors are of the same vintage as the Model-T, and represent perfectly the dichotomy between new and old Czech when they are seen working the fields with their grandsons in new GPS navigated combines. <o:p></o:p></p> <img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BYNrPNSFDk4/Tk4ScDfXupI/AAAAAAAAAJs/xvVZ5vpDi6M/s200/P8170096.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5642467656324332178" /><p class="MsoNormal">It turns out they know how to put on a bike race in Czech too… we raced at a famous Nordic area… I believe the biathalon Word Cup has recently visited Nove Mesto na Morave. There were 25,000 people out for the Men’s Elite race and maybe 10,000 for our U23 race. It was pretty spectacular. The course was riddled with roots, and folded back upon itself over and over again. It was technical enough to be fun, but not so much that it was a battle just to stay on your bike, as it usually is in Mont-Ste-Anne, Quebec. I had a blast racing. It was a brutally hard start, and I had a tough time staying inside the top 15, but by the time we can through after the start lap I was 11<sup>th</sup>. From there I just moved up… the next few laps I gained two or three positions each time, and then going into lap 4 of 6, I was riding strongly in the race for 5<sup>th</sup>. There were some groups along the way, but mostly I was alone or riding with just one other racer. It was a brutally hard race… not only was it fast, but the hills were steep, and we all kept it pinned to stay away from one another. With 2 laps to go, a group of 4 or 5 came within about 10 seconds of me and and ISD guy I was racing with pretty much up until then. I didn’t want to race for 9<sup>th</sup>, so I went for it before they caught us. Got that was a hard lap. I moved into 4<sup>th</sup>… and just kept the gas on. Sebastian, the Belgian Champion was coming though. He was putting about 5-10 second into my lead every lap. And although I managed to hold him off until the final km I messed up. Crossing a bridge with 500m to go, I dropped my concentration and rode off the bridge. I flatted. He caught me and went around after I finished a rock garden on a nearly empty tire. Shit. So I went from 4<sup>th</sup> to 5<sup>th</sup>… and another Belgian was charging hard. I had to negotiate some high speed gravel corners with no air in the front tire. IT made steering impossible, and I crossed over the huge flyover and down a few small drops with 300m to go still only onto 5<sup>th</sup> by only 5 seconds. But I had one more big corner and a long finish straight to go on a flat tire. I held it together though… the Belgian caught me, and I’m sure was preparing to go around me for the sprint, but maybe I had been able to get a little rest with that flat tire and accelerated away from him… not easily, but handedly… my front tire going brap brap brap brap as I sprinted in my new Stars and Stripes Jersey toward the finish line. God that was stressful and stupid. I’m never looking over my shoulder with 1m to go again. From here on out my eyes are only looking forward. Now forward to this weekend in Val di Sole, Italy.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PePr6TraoIQ/Tk4Sawp4wGI/AAAAAAAAAJU/Kgdypakj2RU/s200/P8170098.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5642467634088296546" /> <!--EndFragment--> Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-12550102930342003352011-08-03T17:31:00.005-06:002011-08-03T18:25:49.196-06:00Prep work<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PZD-zJ5mDJk/TjnmmFALQPI/AAAAAAAAAIU/RVE2JEDh5Xc/s1600/P7150048.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PZD-zJ5mDJk/TjnmmFALQPI/AAAAAAAAAIU/RVE2JEDh5Xc/s200/P7150048.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636789950483218674" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ObOEi6HyOeE/TjnmlIng3jI/AAAAAAAAAIE/4zMP22xlb3k/s1600/menspodium3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 133px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ObOEi6HyOeE/TjnmlIng3jI/AAAAAAAAAIE/4zMP22xlb3k/s200/menspodium3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636789934273650226" /></a><br />Im learning what a long season really feels like. Since I last checked in, after my National Championships win, I have been through an emotional gammut. I put a lot into that race. More than I could know at the time. I've put a lot into this season... more than I knew I had. There isn't really a soft way the universe teaches these lessons. I learn on the side of the road when I'm dehydrated, hungry, my legs are sore and I can't complete an interval set. I learn this stuff when I'm racing, my legs wont turn over, and my stomach is turning into knots. I learn this stuff when my SRM says I've been on my bike for over 5 hrs, my feet hurt and there are dead bugs stuck in my helmet.I guess I started really training in the middle of January... I think the 72 hrsI took off the bike last week after my Missoula Pro XCT flop is the longest consecutive stint I have had off since then. No wonder I am sitting in this coffee shop wearing recovery tights. Your legs would be tired too. I just wish they made some recovery tights for my head. Its tired too I think.<img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 133px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IWGWMa-NbkM/TjnmlvklHWI/AAAAAAAAAIM/nwEP5Kozp_M/s200/ettinger1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636789944730328418" /><div>But there is nothing to get me excited to race bikes again like a good family reunion and some good ol' house hunting. It makes me love the time I get to train and travel... </div><div>No, in all seriousness, I loved having the Ettinger Family Reunion here in Bozeman. It was an awesome excuse to sit on the porch in the evening, drink beer, eat good food and laugh. I spent some time looking at dinosaur bones here at the Museum of the Rockies, with my grandparents, aunt and uncle. Although I wasn't riding, I got to point everyone in the right directions, show them why I've chosen to spend some serious time in this town. Its pretty spectacular here when the mountains come out of their snowy fortress. We always have fun, and it was good to spend some more time hanging out with my parents. I'm excited to see them again soon, come Champery.</div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 134px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-67iVl82_48w/TjnmnEFn_KI/AAAAAAAAAIk/KFa4BC29UH0/s200/P7150039_2.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636789967417506978" /><div>I was simultaneously trying to track down a place to call home for the next year. I think I've gotten it figured out now... but what a stressful few days. Knowing I need to be out of my current situation this weekend, so I can comfortably pack for the next month of European racing early next week. I got pretty OCD about it at times too, which doesn't help the situation. I stressed over irrelevant details, and almost created a mess for myself. I've checked a lot of little details off my bucket list. Stuff I hadn't gotten to because of days and months of being on the road. </div><div>Since most of the above happens via computer, I'll have had a couple solid weeks of hard hard training and good recovery before this final trip. I think, if all the moving goes smoothly this weekend, I should show up in Europe as fast as I've been all season. And its given me some time to rest mentally. To just sit on the back porch, read and recharge the batteries some. That hasn't happened in months. It feels good. I'm excited... and I think I am more ready for these World Cups than I was for the North American races in July. Last year I was cooked by this time, but right now I am fit and ready to do some serious World Cup racing. Ill keep you updated.</div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 133px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jkPLHhlpYIU/TjnmmgXMb4I/AAAAAAAAAIc/6mS3UW2QF5Q/s200/P7150016.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636789957827522434" /><div>Oh and all these photos are from Nationals, courtesy of Daimo and Annette.</div><div><br /></div>Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-88240433333165606422011-07-19T21:57:00.002-06:002011-07-19T22:43:24.715-06:00National Champion(ships)So Wells just posted a blog about National Championships... he won his a day later than I did. Guess I am dropping the ball. <div>In all seriousness, I don't even know what to say. I won! I don't have much else about the race to say... I don't remember much... its a complete blur. Not only did I win, I did so convincingly. I couldn't let myself slow down, I couldn't let myself think about winning until I had done it. All I could think about until that final straightaway was pedaling, being smooth (I channelled my inner Tristian Cowie on that decent) and not winning. What would that mean? Really nothing... it wouldn't make me less of a person. But this race held so much emotional esteem for me... its hardly the most important of the season... but to win a National Championships represents so much hard work. So much frustration. So much triumph... its not something that can be felt until it happens. Until you've felt the years and the road it takes to come by one. </div><div>Maybe more than anything its the relief that comes once I crossed that finish line. </div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 133px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jQNLR9vaNlw/TiZcxZ-fYpI/AAAAAAAAAH8/KGes2uIZ16I/s200/ettinger1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5631290387929719442" /><div>This has been the culmination of the first stages of my career. From road trips with my dad at age 15, listening to the Grateful Dead as we drove down 395 through Nevada and California, to now chasing an Olympic dream around all corners of the globe. I've worked hard... no doubt, but I absolutely wouldn't be able to do what I have done without an incredible supporting cast over the years. I will forever remember Rocky Crocker giving me my first team jersey at the Squilchucker race in Wenatchee... it was a white sleeveless Nashbar jersey with Wenatchee Area Racers silkscreened onto the front and back. I think I was 14 and I'm sure at that moment I thought it couldn't get any better. Jason Jablonski has answered hundreds of frantic phone calls over the past decade... why he always seems to be right will forever be a mystery to me. Scott Paton and everyone at Arlberg Sports has really made racing possible. Without his continued support, I have no doubt that I wouldn't be where I am today. He believed in what I was doing. Its cool to now be a role model for his son Cole... he's a super talented kid, and could find incredible success in this sport if he so chooses. It was incredible to get to watch him race this weekend in Sun Valley. I'm glad they came down. Obviously my Parents. They have always believed that what I do is valid and worth supporting, I hope I make them proud. I think I do... but not because I race well, but because I try to be honest, humble and true to myself and my pursuits. I have so many memories from traveling and racing with them.... I will always hold them close to my heart, and look forward to making more. I could go on forever about what their support means to me, but thats for another time. Marc Gullickson has given me the opportunities to race in europe, see what it means to be a professional, and how hard I have to work to be at the top of this sport. Without his guidance, there would be no National Championship for me... nor would I be finding my arguably more important successes internationally. I have so many friends who have pushed me to succeed but more importantly to love this pursuit... Mitchell, Allen, Ethan, Joey, Tad, TJ Owen, Ryan, Lydia, Jack, Kerry, Chloe, Zach... there are too many of you to name. But thank you. And now Karina too... for her emotional support when I am both home and on the road... thank you for loving the person I am. </div><div>So yeah... I put a lot of pressure on myself to win this race... I kept looking back... not just over my shoulder to see where Rob was... but into my history to see why this was the time for me to shine. To put all of that together, and honor it in the best way possible. To give it everything. </div>Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-34990832347180951182011-07-07T15:54:00.003-06:002011-07-07T17:26:33.606-06:00viva la france en que-boo-quaThere is something about French Canadia. Its really a pretty cool place, sweet trails everywhere, especially in and around Mont-Ste-Anne... there's moose, and blueberries too. But for some reason I just cant really warmup to Quebec. I never have been able to. Might be the trailer parks full of Frenchies who think they are better than you, as they smoke cigarettes with unborn children in their bellies... or it could be the miserable food, mostly fried Americana, with cheep caviare or Hollindaise sauce on top. Proscriutto and brie on white bread with mayo instead of a baguette. I dunno. Might be the rain, that never seems to go away, or the lack of country roads to go spin down. <div>I remember a couple years ago racing my very first World Cup in MSA... I got caught by the tail moto only 3 laps into a 6 lap race. It was muddy, and I was pin-balling around the course... bouncing off trees, roots rocks and euros. I'm not sure I have ever ridden a bike more poorly than that. They ended up making me pull off the side of the course at one point so Absalon could go by... I felt like a dick. Completely out of my element, and incapable of riding at that level. Fast forward a year, and I did it again... this time at U23 world's. It was hot and dry last year, but still I somehow managed to ride like an ass... I still believe I was definitely one of the most fit in that race, but I rock and rolled around, blowing through corners. Bobbling on the technical sections and running through the woods like a wounded cow. I finished 34th, completely disappointed and looking forward to some time off of my bike. </div><div>Last weekend, I did it again. The third time is not the charm. Let me start by saying I finished 5th... in a World Cup... not so bad. And my best placing ever. This was hardly my best race though. I lead things out... literally. I was at the front of the race, stringing things out up the first climb. And I lead into the woods... killing the first technical sections... charging at the front. So so so much fun!!! Wowza... but I started going backwards over the next 3 laps. I just couldn't hold it together in the mud. I did some face planting, and lost time. I stalled out over the top of root balls and lost more time. I slipped and slid down the hillside, and and bounced my way haphazardly down the descents. My saddle came loose too! I had to stop in the pit and have Daimo tighten it up... there went another 45 seconds, and a couple places. I never had an issue loosing lots of places... this course was so damn hard that it was a complete race of attrition and things blew up in big ways. No one was riding together it seemed. But that time just made 3rd, 4th and 5th places further up into the woods. I just wasn't able to crawl back into those top 4 spots. I played some leap frog with Konwa, the Milka Bar guy, and one of the Belgians. But it was just a struggle out there... I couldn't make things happen as I wanted them to. The final lap and a half was better... I seemed to pull things together a little and my head got back into it... I think having David Fletcher chasing just a few seconds back helped with the motivation to give'r some go juice. I finished the race with a wave as I crossed the line, but couldn't help thinking about what a miserable job I did of riding my bike when it counted. Or maybe I did a miserable job of not riding my bike when it counted. I think I would have been minutes faster had I just ran the techy sections I continuously flopped and struggled through. Next time I will be a little more calculating in that dept. Its not always faster to ride. </div><div>A good ride on sunday and a good long road trip with some bbq on the fourth of July, got my American spirit going again (maybe thats why I don't like french canada... Maybe I just become soft when I'm there...). A few days here in Windham have been stellar, full of rest and some time to check out a little. Its been good but its back to racing mode tomorrow. </div>Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-8277076049190526972011-06-27T17:13:00.005-06:002011-06-27T22:06:50.314-06:00June has treated me wellVacation. Time away… that was what I needed. This may seem a little counterintuitive, because, after all I had just spent the better part of 5 months, mid January through the end of May, on the road. I think I accumulated something near 70,000 frequent flyer miles, across 2 hemispheres, 4 continents, and 6 countries. I raced 11 of 13 weekends, 9 of them straight through, compiling something like 24 days of racing over the course of my spring campaign.<br /><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h_sP9ylnis0/TgkU4VPoF1I/AAAAAAAAAHo/SQSM7JVma2Q/s200/P6200022.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623048567756691282" /> But once I got home, it felt like I couldn’t get out of Bozeman fast enough! I arrived with a house to empty and clean, as my lease was up 24hrs after my arrival home. I proceeded to clean and move, with little sleep, and ran as many quick errands as possible in the short time I was around.<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Then I packed back up, my Subaru this time, and headed for Northern Idaho (or North Idaho if your from them backwoods parts). Sandpoint. Back in the day we used to race the Schweitzer Mt. NORBA, but for me this visit was all about getting away from racing. I essentially took a week off the bike… I hung out with Karina and her family on the beach, read books, napped and slept in. I tuned out. I didn’t check my email, facebook or text messages. I didn’t answer (too many) phone calls. It was splendid. I drank beer, ate cheese, and delicious rhubarb and huckleberry pies for breakfast, lunch and dessert.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6M7UDWinSl8/TgkU2-toSII/AAAAAAAAAHQ/LowoFzl9YtU/s200/P6090008.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623048544528648322" /> <p class="MsoNormal">That town is sweet. It’s pretty little, everything around it is crazy conservative and weird, but just about any night of the week you can find good music, local beer flowing and young, open-minded people doing cool stuff. There’s a really active group building sweet, flow-y trails right in town too. Karina showed me around some of the local bests… Saringa trails, and Gold Hill, just some really stellar riding. It was the anti-training, and it felt sooo damn good! <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">But Monday rolled around quickly and although I was still pretty checked out, it was time to start training again after a well earned week off. I kept the vacation feel to it all </p><p class="MsoNormal">though… there wasn’t anything too intense, and a couple long road rides were really good for the soul, it gave me some time to think about this next block of big races and do a little motivation searching.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n5SL3LDcLZs/TgkU3BXMa7I/AAAAAAAAAHY/_0hl7ZUfmT8/s200/P6090009.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623048545239854002" /><p class="MsoNormal"> Karina and I blasted back to Washington too… it was good to be home, but it was a nut house. My sister decided she did indeed want to finish high school in what proved to be the 11<sup>th</sup> hour, but it all come together. I am really proud of her, and I hope it proves to be a milestone in her life. This is the first time I can remember than she actively chose to better her life. It seems like she’s always fighting against that current. Anyways, graduation means grandparents, aunts and uncles, family friends and the such. This is all on top of the time I needed to spend training and the places and things I wanted to go and do with Karina. We managed to fit in a good week though. Got to ride the Gultch with Karina, talk politics with my grandpa, did some incredibly good training and testing with Jason and I even remembered to get the Quincy asparagus for my Mom on our way into town and order a new BMC FourStroke 01 for my dad (he loves it by the way… said it felt like a big Cadillac on the bumpy sections, just keeping the ride smooth, but rips uphill and accelerates like a jet!). It was like drinking from a fire hose, in the best kind of way. I think Karina had more time on her hands than I did while we were in Cashmere, and got through a few good books.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-435VtUh-nm8/TgkU3kT9YHI/AAAAAAAAAHg/3avXeA7Qymk/s200/P6180013.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623048554621526130" /> <p class="MsoNormal">But as soon as we were finally able to breath, it was time to deliver Karina back to Sandpoint, and for my return to Bozeman in preparation for 5 weeks of big races. But not before a breathtaking road ride along the Lake Cour’de Lane shoreline. North Idaho really left an impression on me, I’m pretty excited to get back. <o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">All this left only 3 days of my 3 week vacation left, but by the time I got back to Bozeman I was recharged and back on the Blackberry. I had errands to run, laundry, and packing and training to accomplish. It was grand. I caught up with Zach before he left for Colorado, we climbed a big grain silo and spent part of an evening just hanging out, watching the sunset and chatting about everything. Man Date. But seriously I was glad to see him before he took off to finish his Masters thesis in the solitude of his parents home. We also got out for a ride with Tisza, and Nick one evening, up Leverich. Probably the one time this year I will ride that trail.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">4:30 came pretty early on Thursday, and 11pm came pretty late that night, but I made it to Wisconsin for the Subaru Cup Pro XCT safely. And what a sweet weekend it was. I finished 5<sup>th</sup> in the XC… it was essentially the same course as last year, but a totally different race. I battled missed the front group of Wells, Plaxton and Kabush, because JHK’s big 29” wheels didn’t seem to corner and accelerate as well as my 26” BMC teamelite. So although I missed that, I caught and passed Taberlay, and essentially rode in 4<sup>th</sup> just ahead of those two for most of the race (I still can’t believe this is happening), until Adam came ripping past going into the final lap. Remarkably, it wasn’t the descents that caused a problem for me… I absolutely couldn’t hold his wheel on the climbs! </p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RJHAMBtB5lA/TgkU40BA8lI/AAAAAAAAAHw/0Wj0O9ePo5I/s200/P6290036.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5623048576016904786" />The guy has some fitness. And that’s good, he had a tough first half of the season. Looks like he’s doing something right! But man did he pay for it! It took him 45 min to get from the finish line to the team trailer, as his back seized up, and after 2 hrs he was still struggling to walk under his own power. I wont give him too much shit about missing my first ever Pro XC podium. Haha!<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Sunday was tough, I has some pretty saucy legs warming up and although I had a good start, I was just hanging on the back of our lead group in the STXC until 10 min in. The legs came around and I tried to break away with Traboo-hoo, but the chase group brought us back. So I then just hung toward the back and let everyone else do the work. I am getting to understand how this stuff works now… and I can sit in pretty comfortably now. I had a good view when Trebon faceplanted<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>in a sandy corner and then in the next Kabush went down too. That left 6 of us at the front with 3 laps to go… and me questioning my tactics afterward. I decided to sit on Todd’s wheel, believing he would be the one to make a move in the final laps, but instead it was Sid who went, with JHK and Plaxton… I tried to respond, got blocked out by Todd as Sam got shelled off the back. I kept giving it a try as Todd and I ripped around the final lap, but didn’t have another good opportunity until the sprint where Todd drifted and thus forced me toward the barriers. He got me by only a few inches though! I tried. But still, 2 podiums in 2 races this weekend. I know a couple of Olympians who can’t even say that! It means the form I had earlier has hung around. I’m as good or better now, and so excited for the Mont-Ste-Anne World Cup this weekend and then Windham, Nats and Missoula Pro XCT. But first its back to Bozeman for 72hrs to get some mountain air, and a little rest. Pretty stoked going into these next couple of world cups… Ill let you know how it goes. Hoping for an opportunity to win here in North America!<o:p></o:p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-80878082000448019462011-06-01T06:25:00.007-06:002011-06-01T06:48:45.103-06:00World Cupping<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mh1Pawiv4WA/TeYySns1W8I/AAAAAAAAAG8/yaCn5gGnrCY/s1600/P6010051.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Mh1Pawiv4WA/TeYySns1W8I/AAAAAAAAAG8/yaCn5gGnrCY/s200/P6010051.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5613229281039965122" /></a><br /><br /><!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal">Everyone was waiting for me once the elite men’s race was over on Sunday… with all the staff and junior men and women there were probably 20 people loitering around the vans while I went to talk to Larissa at BMC about some tires. After my quick errand there, I said goodbye to David, the manager and the riders of the Euro Team. Things seemed to go well for that crew, Moritz spent the day in the chase group, and although Patrick was going backwards all day, everyone else seemed to moving up. On the way back to the vans though I popped my head into the Rothaus-Poison tent to say goodbye to Felix. He and I first were introduced 3 years ago now, when I first came to Europe. At that time I wasn’t even remotely competitive with him… last year he won the German U23 National Championships, a super talented guy. After 3 years we’ve gotten to know one another better, he’s genuinely a good person, a lot of fun to hang out with… we actually spent all day together watching the elite race with one of the German National Team coaches (who actually used to race against Marc). I regress, anyways while I dropped in I got some shoulder pats, and high fives I realized what an international family I have now in this sport. No only do I have genuine and talented friends around the globe, but people know who I am… I’m becoming a recognizable figure in this sport, and it feels incredible. Especially because I have come from such obscurity, growing up racing in central Washington, my dad and I traveling every year to Sea Otter and Nationals, racing under the banner of a Arlberg Sports, a local bike shop that would give me a deal on products. I never really conceived that I would actually make a name for myself, or be vying for a podium spot in a World Cup… I was hoping for a free frame and jersey! But its so much more than that… regardless of whether I ever have a poster made of my face, I am getting to travel the world, meet people I would never otherwise know, ride in the most incredible places and although I have always know what a treat that is, I am still learning how unique and brilliant this is.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rxZor3ajUng/TeYySXaZsiI/AAAAAAAAAG0/ISxzXxQABwU/s200/P6010059.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5613229276667687458" /> <p class="MsoNormal">As I have kind of eluted to, the race on Saturday was beyond words. I had a good start this time around, maybe 10<sup>th</sup> going into the first lap. I spent the rest of the race between the chase group and the lead… I would bounce between the two. The lead would surge, then slow, it was a sizable group maybe 8 guys, so I was in about the same position I finished Dalby in for the majority of those 5 laps… Just riding at my own pace. I could have forced in and gotten in the lead group, but all those surges would have wrecked my legs. It was better to be between 5-10 seconds off and just riding my own race. But dudes started popping with about two laps to go, and I again got back on the back end of the group. This time I stuck and we widdled it down to just 5 of us, with Fabian Canal about 10 sec back. On the last lap, up the twisting backside climb, zee Austrian surged and it left four of us. He only put in about 10 sec, but none of us could bring that back. I put in a big effort with about 2 km to go… I dropped everyone, but the remaining 3 worked to get me back, and then as we cruised through the final technical sections, Canal came back, and the Focus-MIT kid put in about 5 seconds on us. It wasn’t much, maybe 20 meters, but it was enough to stick on the final short, and punchy climb. I got to the front of our quartet again, fighting now for 3<sup>rd</sup>, but Canal threw some elbows, I got knocked off my line, fell back and lost Markus’ wheel with 500m to go. I just couldn’t hold the effort over the top into the stadium. The 2 meters grew to 5 and then to 10 and I sat up and rolled across the finish line! Sixth though! Damn!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I got picked for Anti-doping… it was my first time, and I absolutely didn’t drink enough during the race so although everything went fine, it took for ever. I think I put down 5 liters of Gatorade. Also, they don’t let the Chaperones go home until EVERYBODY has peed, so they were all sitting around trying to pep talk me and the Austrian while we rehydrated. It took both of us almost 2 hrs. There was some cheering on their behalf once we were done! I think they were getting tired of sitting there playing with their cell phones while all the other volunteers were out partying post race… </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Unfortunately the real world doesn’t care how you finish in a world cup… my flight from Chicago to Bozeman was delayed 3 hrs… so I arrived at 130am, and didn’t get into bed until 230. Jet lag was kind enough to wake me up four hrs later, and I spent 15 hrs yesterday moving and cleaning. Got to bed at 11pm, and again jetlag woke me up with the birds at 4:30… and a bloody noise. Probably too many cleaning product fumes yesterday.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">So right now its 6:20 I have already made coffee and written a blog post. Time to go scrub some kitchen floors I guess.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Heres a photo of Chloe getting gnar on the Wolf Drop. Notice the front wheel off the ground. </p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-w2RIeA1vuvo/TeYySxcuSvI/AAAAAAAAAHE/32olczVUcfI/s200/P6010048.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5613229283656747762" /> <!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-27666338956485628212011-05-24T13:45:00.005-06:002011-05-24T14:05:14.268-06:00<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal">I’m not sure what the hardest thing I have ever done in my short career is… but moving from 43<sup>rd</sup> to 10<sup>th</sup> in the Dalby World Cup might have been it. Without question I have finished races in much poorer condition… pushing myself through bonking, exhaustion and/or being broken. But never before have I pushed through a race relying on my head as much as I did this weekend. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I got called up in 40<sup>th</sup> position, and after spending 3 minutes shaking with excitement on the starting line, I proceeded to go backwards. I don’t know why but I couldn’t make my legs go. Gaps opened I normally would have easily closed, and as euros went blazing past me I briefly thought about the South African WC when I was in other shoes. So after a few wasted minutes standing in the woods waiting for the mob to snake its way through the single track I came through the start banner in 43<sup>rd</sup> place (I was sure I would see 60 something before seeing the results).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Shit… I was supposed to be 40 places ahead of where I was.</p><p class="MsoNormal">So I set out on the task of moving up, which initially didn’t happen, because again those legs just wouldn’t turn over. I spent that first lap contemplating what I though would be an impending implosion and temper tantrum at the finish line. But I didn’t have a whole lot of time to think about that when my upper body started to cramp. It was completely exhausted. I had to sit up, stop pedaling, and pull my hands off the bars. It was bizzare. I think I was so stressed about being so far back that I had just given my handlebars a 15 min death grip without noticing it. God I was pissed about how my race was playing out!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Durnig this time I had to stop my brain and start relaxing. I told myself it was ok, just time to stop messing around and start bike racing. I knew who was in that front group… it was a bunch of those Germans, Swiss and Rabobank guys I had just spent the past two weeks beating. Time to nut up. So I guess that’s what I did.</p><p class="MsoNormal">By lap two things were spread out enough, and I was in the company of enough slow euros that I could just start doing work. Over the next two laps I moved up 30 guys and then in the last two of five I caught 3 more… and was in sight of the chase group! I don’t even really remember much of it… every time I passed Marc or my parents, they were saying lower numbers. I remember being frustrated, and I remember that I kept telling myself to relax. I stayed focused on my body, making my legs turn over fast, but knowing where my limit was. I had to keep this up to get into that top 10. I kept telling myself that’s where I needed to be in order to salvage this race. I thought about my breathing, and I though about where I put my front tire. That was really about it. On lap one I was the 23rd fastest guy out there… on lap three, I was the fourth fastest U23 on course… on lap four I was the fastest! Simple.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 134px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7gIRtzx9w1U/TdwNpPDLo7I/AAAAAAAAAGs/1b2ZsYcOqYU/s200/dalwcu23m_dsc5133_600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610374237862470578" /> <p class="MsoNormal">I crossed that finish line with a smile. I know I belong in that top 5… but the work I did during that race was nearly impossible. I still cannot believe I made that happen… 33 of the fastest guys in the world could not hold my wheel when I rode past them. I wonder how many of that top ten could have hung on to my wheel had I been in their presence from the start. I don’t think many of them could have. </p> <span style="font-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">That may sound arrogant… I don’t know, but I am realizing that I am now in the conversation when people talk about the best in the world. I don’t know what that means really… maybe nothing, I think time will tell. I can’t make it more than it is, that’s too much pressure. I just need to go race my bike, that’s what I’ve always done. Things aren’t different. Whether its for 5</span><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">th</span></sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> place at a junior 14 and under race or for a podium at a World Cup. I guess the latter is where I belong. So I am gonna go try to race there. Maybe I should put away this bowl of chocolate musli though… </span></span><!--EndFragment-->Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7495049144664654000.post-80504641534845311202011-05-10T10:56:00.009-06:002011-05-10T12:56:46.170-06:00<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Dt428m3sJ3g/TclzADjzJQI/AAAAAAAAAGc/-GX9aLwPQD4/s1600/Solothurn%2B2011%2B005.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Dt428m3sJ3g/TclzADjzJQI/AAAAAAAAAGc/-GX9aLwPQD4/s200/Solothurn%2B2011%2B005.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605137656031945986" /></a><br /><div>Last time I checked in I had just returned (or was returning?) from the South African Central time zone (+2hrs) to MST… I’m back in it now… or the European equivalent at least. It was a quick turn around after SA… I had 36 hrs in Bozeman to sleep, unpack, do laundry, ride, and pack and catch another flight, this time to Austin, TX. That’s the same amount of time it took me to get from Pietermartzburg to home.</div><div> <p class="MsoNormal">In Austin I had the opportunity to sizzle in the heat, eat some delish taco’s and get a flat tire. It was a quick weekend, which felt good, out Thursday, back Sunday… The Mellow Johnny’s classic went well, I was raced the Mexican national champion (Ill call him Turbo) for 5<sup>th</sup> place after spending the first half chasing from 30<sup>th</sup>. I had a poor start compounded by a burped tire. At the end of the day, that tire had just lost too much air, I rolled it and went down 4km from the finish, Turbo got away from me, Spencer caught me and proceeded to pin it. Who knows what could have happened.. that could have been my first ever Pro XC podium.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 156px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PIIqRPg7CZE/Tclvbu-KcEI/AAAAAAAAAF8/ytODAyUjlvU/s200/johnnymen123_600.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605133733495205954" /><p class="MsoNormal"> Turbo went uphill pretty quick, so maybe not. The race finished on a climb. But anyways, I finished 7<sup>th</sup> and proceeded to put it behind me. I feel like Austin and Lance’s ranch was just a side not in a whole lot of bigger more important shtuff. However, downtown </p><p class="MsoNormal">Austin is amazing… Daimo, Mitch and I went out moderately big on Saturday night and started some dance party’s downtown. It was crazy… a twenty-block strip of downtown (Sixth Street I think) gets shut down and people go nuts, including us. I hadn’t been out until 2am in a long ass time… it felt good. I was with two good friends and we danced in the streets and I’m sure all the bro’s with popped collars were thinking ‘how lame are they!’ while their girlfriends were probably like ‘I wish my man was that self confident…’ Even if they weren’t, we had nothing to loose.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">After another short stint home, I think 60 hrs this time, I was on another trans-continental flight.</p><p class="MsoNormal">I arrived in Germany for the first time comfortable, confident and relaxed. This is my 3<sup>rd</sup> rodeo here, and I am feeling like Kirchzarten is becoming a home away from home. I know these roads well now and I know what kind of ship Marc runs.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X93FjdMXscQ/Tcly_-Vfp0I/AAAAAAAAAGU/UBxTVjpTnds/s200/Solothurn%2B2011%2B004.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605137654629771074" /> <p class="MsoNormal">We kicked things off with the Solothurn Swiss Racer Cup. This was the 3<sup>rd</sup> time I had ridden there, my resume including two near DFL’s and a flat tire. I got lapped both times. The third time proved to be the charm however, because after a good start I settled into the lead group and spent my day witling away at the group I found myself in, until only myself and Giger of Rabobank remained fighting for 10<sup>th</sup> place I think. He decided to put the hammer down on the final climb, I was expecting it, but couldn’t really react, but his skinny ass did help get me up to Litscher (who was 2<sup>nd</sup> at U23 Worlds last year) and then he and I did some battle. At this point my legs decided this would be a good time to cramp, so he caught me, and passed by when my chain took another disastrous bounce (the same move it pulled in SA)… but either way, I had 2km to go, and I just rode it in. I finished 12<sup>th</sup>.</p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IDIKokXLK-0/TcmJlObvGkI/AAAAAAAAAGk/yG8bEL4i0vo/s200/Solothurn%2B2011%2B009.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605162483861887554" /><p class="MsoNormal">This has got to be one of the best rides I have ever put together… and one of the best an American U23 has done in recent memory. When I look at the results list, I am completely blown away. I think at least 3 of the guys in front of me have World Championships bars on their arms.. these are some of the modern day legends of the sport… its incredible.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I finished the weekend up with another short, but tough race in Witneau, just south of the house here… I won, which is sweet, it was a fun little race, lots of family fun out there. It was cool to rep the US win again, this was the third year in a row, I follow Tad and Rob, and Marc was stoked too. So much pressure for that one.. haha, not serious there, but it was hard, especially after Solothurn, and it was tough to get my head into the game for it. But whatever, it was cool. First win in Europe!</p></div><div><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p></div>Stephen Ettingerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03988074022124377226noreply@blogger.com0