Switzerland: Training Camp Pre Paralympics

Hi folks, 

I was thinking how important the preparation for the Games is, it was so crucial. After consulting our options, we travelled to Lenk, in the Switzerland alps.

We were in the same mountain / course where I had just had a SBX race a few weeks ago, so it was exciting to be back there! And I sort of had “unfinished business” on that course -when I raced there a month prior, I had food poisoning upon arrival, so I was riding that course very “shy”, (weak!) with low energy. I left there thinking I could do so much better and improve so much on that course, had I been 100%. 

A “revenge” is what I was hoping for, or, better put, do that course justice. But, as it turns out, after our races the course had been opened to the public, so they had to tame down the features, it wasn’t super high performance like I had wished. Still, after being frustrated with that detail, I noticed in riding that track there was still so much to improve, and I focused on that. 

On top of that SBX course, they had also specially built a Banked Slalom course for us, with a similar degree of difficulty as the one we would have in Cortina at the Paralympics. That training was GOLD!!

So all in all, it was excellent training pre games. The important thing was to have a balance of training on both courses, I had to be careful to not over train and then get to Cortina too burned out before it even started. Because it was so exciting and fun, I really wanted to go all out, thinking I could still improve! But in those moments, you just want to train some more specific details or things you believe you’re still lacking. It’s not the time to go all out on jumps or whatever, and risk getting hurt before the most important event of your life. 

We got onto a good rhythm, training from about 9-12(ish). Couldn’t burn out that way, with so little snow time. And training in the afternoon was not advisable – it was so hot for that time of the year that the snow started melting fast in the afternoon, and the courses deteriorated fast then. So, really, in the morning was the good window we could take advantage, and we did. Then afternoon was reserved to recovery (sauna / cold / swim) & strength training. 

It was a perfect camp pre Paralympics, I got to Italy with exactly the confidence I needed to perform well. Little did I know that in a few days I’d suffer a nasty injury… it’s frustrating, but things happen the way they’re supposed to happen, there’s nothing we can do, besides accepting, adjusting and moving on.