Down Time!
Down Time
My 6 weeks of rest and recovery are now over. This is the only time of the year that we do not have any bobsled obligations nor structured workouts. I spent this time catching up with friends and family and doing activities with them that I do not normally get to do while training for bobsled. Being home in warm and sunny Georgia was an absolute blast!
While at home I got to go out to eat at my favorite restaurants with my family as well as enjoy some home-cooked meals, hang out with my amazing brothers whom I adore, play with my family’s 2 dogs and cat, sleep in my own big comfy bed, play tennis, attend my mom’s step aerobics class with her that she teaches, babysit my favorite kids in the world, go to the Georgia Aquarium and Sixflags (by the way.. roller coasters feel so slow to me now compared to a bobsled ride!), go to a friend’s wedding shower, attend my first Kentucky Derby Party, and go to World of Gymnastics (the gym I practically grew up in) and bust out some old tricks! I also spent a lot of time planting a garden with my mom. We planted a ton of tomatoes, squash, okra, green beans, peppers, cantaloupe, and watermelon. There is something about digging in the dirt that is therapeutic.. it was so relaxing. It truly is the little things in life that make it so great!
I also drove down to my Alma Mater, Auburn University, for a weekend. I stayed with my bestfriend and teammate from gymnastics, AJ. Just to brag a little bit on her.. she now works for the AU athletic department and is working on her Ph.D.! She is an incredibly inspiring person and it was great to catch up with her! While there I attended a Track & Field meet as well as the NCAA Regional Gymnastics meet. I got to catch up with several old friends, teammates, and coaches! It was a trip down memory lane and I loved every minute of it!
I flew out to Chicago for a couple days for a photo shoot for one of my sponsors, McDavid. The photo shoot was at the south side of Grant Park by the Monroe Harbor. I had to do an “urban workout” while modeling their gear and apparel with their new logo on it. I can’t wait for you all to see their new logo.. it looks awesome!! I am not sure what they are going to do with the pictures yet but when I know I will let you all know! My trip to Chicago was brief but I learned that Chicago is such a cool city and I want to go back someday and do the whole tourist thing.
I am going to be doing my off-season training in Lake Placid, NY so I spent the last week of my down-time on a roadtrip with my mom driving up to LP. We stopped in Virginia Beach for a couple of nights (bc I was CRAVING the beach after being up in the mountains for six-months) and then we stopped at my Aunt and Uncle’s house in Delaware for a couple nights before making our way up to LP. We had so much fun and I can not think of a better person to have shared the experience with! I am so thankful for the relationship that my mom and I have. I love you, Mom!
I had so much fun during my down time but most importantly the best part about it all was being with the people I love!! I was soooo sad to leave and good-byes never get any easier. However, it is time to get back at it and strive towards the goals that lie ahead. As always, I can not thank you all enough for your support. I hope you all are as excited as I am to continue this journey with me!
Training for the 2012/2013 season starts tomorrow morning at 9AM.. LETS GO!!!
A fun video made by rookie brakeman Nicole Vogt with some behind the scenes clips at the America’s Cup in Calgary from November of this past season. Enjoy!
Seeking Sponsors and Donations
Hello all! I am reaching out to each of you because I am seeking sponsorships and donations to help fund my off-season training as well as to purchase the equipment I will need to be competitive next season. If you know anyone who would be interested or have any ideas of companies I should contact about seeking a sponsorship please let me know!! You can email me at either meg@megbobsled.com or MegBsmilen@yahoo.com. Sponsors will have the opportunity to advertise their company logo on my sled, helmet, uniform, jacket, travel gear, my website, and here on this blog. Sponsors will be able to use my face and name for promotional purposes as well. Also, donations can be tax-deductible through the USBSF Athlete Training Fund http://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-and-Skeleton-Federation/Resources/For-Athletes/Athlete-Training-Fund/Donate-Online.aspx or a simple donation though PayPal. I truly appreciate all of your support and thank you for taking the time to read this! More blog posts coming soon!! God Bless! :)
That’s A Wrap!
Ladies and Gentlemen, that’s a wrap! The 2011/2012 season, my first season as a pilot, is now complete! After the World Championships I stayed in Lake Placid to train and get on the ice as much as possible until the track closed for the season. It was a long few weeks. My brakeman Nicole was in driving school for the majority of the time so I took several non-bobsledders down the track so I could get as many runs as possible. I put up a sign in the Olympic Training Center that read “Does anybody want a bobsled ride? I need a brakeman. Thanks, Megan” and sure enough I had several people offer to go down the track with me! Thank you to everyone who slid with me!!! Then, the week before America’s Cup we had some oddly unusual warm weather which really put a damper on the track. It reached 80 degrees one of the days! Amazingly enough, the track workers were able to keep the track usable.. but when it is that warm outside it makes the ice very soft and very frosty.. which means we go very slow!! However, by the time the AC official training began, the temperatures cooled down and I was able to have real brakeman push for me. Another positive.. my coaches upgrade me to a new sled!! The sled is part of the Bo-dyne fleet and I absolutely love driving it! Also, Proactiv came out to Lake Placid and filmed me on the track. They got a lot of neat footage. I am not sure what they are planning on doing with it yet.. but as soon as I find out I will let you all know! It was a ton of fun to work with them again and I am so thankful for their support!! The America’s Cup races for the women ended up being cancelled because we did not have enough nations to get points and have the the races count in FIBT standings. They put us as forerunners for the men’s 2-man race. My teammates and I decided that we would still go at it as if it was a race so we brought out the speedsuits, sanded our runners, waxed the sleds, and called it a scrimmage. Nicole Vogt pushed for me the first day and we set a new Personal Record in both the push and the downtime. On the second day Brittany Reinbolt pushed for me and we went even faster and PR’d by even more!! It was an awesome way to end the season!!! I am already fired up for next season and so ready to get after it this summer for off-season training.
I had an incredible season as a first-year pilot and I could not have done it with out all the help I have received! HUGE thanks to my sponsors Proactiv and McDavid, my family, my friends, and my personal support system.
“No matter what accomplishments you make, somebody helped you.” -Althea Gibson
I also owe a huge thanks to every single person who broke for me this year! There are too many people to name but you all know who you are! It takes a very brave and courageous person to slide down the track with a pilot who is just learning. Thank you all very much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
As for now I will take the month of April off of training to rest, recover, relax, and enjoy time with family and friends as well as fund-raise for next season. I will begin the off-season training in May.
I hope everyone haves a Happy Easter!
God Bless,
Megan :)
