Breakthrough Podium in Ruka

What a day.  After a week of food poisoning and emotional turmoil, I am so pumped that I was able to pull through and stand on that podium today.  It was a feat just to be up there, let alone place 3rd.  I was feeling my emotions from the Games all week long, but I charged my way through them by keeping my focus simple on the hill, and taking time for yoga, meditation and breath.  I am so thankful for my coaches, Stephen and Darcy, as well as my boyfriend Mark and my parents.  They were all so supportive of me all week, and I stand on the podium for them.  If I can get through that, I know I can get through almost anything. 

I had a lot of fun today, focusing on the pureness of skiing.  I took notice to things like the wind on my face, the bitter cold, the snow crunching beneath my skis, and the sun setting at 2:45pm.  I was focused on the here and now.  For my runs, I visualized myself feeling my toes off of the jump, pointing my skis directly down the course on landing to get through the big moguls, looking at the corners of the moguls, and standing up off of the bottom air for my back flip.  Simple, right?

I am looking forward to next week's contest in Meribel, France.  I will keep my focus simple again...  enjoy the experience.

I am excited to see our entire Canadian Team perform so well out there today, with Jenn Heil capturing 2nd place, and Michael Kingsbury experiencing his first World Cup podium.  There were many other victories on my team today like Audrey skiing with a much different technique (and placing 6th), and Chelsea making finals in her debut season on the World Cup tour.   These are great victories, and there will be many more to come from our young, but strong Canadian Team.  This is just the beginning... 

CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO SEE THE RUNS OF THE TOP THREE LADIES!

Ladies Moguls - RUKA from URTUR on Vimeo.