This word could just as easily describe today's racing action as it could the weather!! When I walked out of my hotel at 7:30am with my jacket on and started sweating before I got to the car, I knew immediately we were going to be in trouble with the heat. I could not believe how hot it was. I called my husband and asked him to look up the weather. It felt like it was in the 70's+ and all it would do is get hotter.
I actually woke my husband up (it was 6:30am in California and Saturday so I guess he's off the hook!! lol) and he told me he would call me back in a few minutes. By this time I had turned the air conditioning on in the car and I just couldn't believe it was only 7:40am. When he finally called me back he said that "weather.com" said it was 63 degrees in Colorado and it "felt like 63 degrees". I said, "if this is what 63 degrees feels like then I'm 25 years old and 40 pounds lighter! And how does "weather.com" know what 63 degrees feels like??????
I finally arrived at the track to see many spectators with their umbrellas opened up and tents already set up along the banked track. In fact I counted 16 pop-up tents.
That is the largest amount of pop-up tents that I have witnessed before at the Outdoor National Championships. Along with that, the number of spectators was much larger too! But enough of the weather.... we started the morning off with the 10K Points/Elimination race. I have said many, many times that I feel that this race is the toughest race there is to skate and even tougher race to win. I respect each and every skater who steps up to the line to challenge themselves and their peers to try and outlast them, try and out point them and possibly even set a record. Although no records were broken in any of the 10K points/elimination races, the competition was tough and close.
Each division had their challenges. The Jr World Class Ladies would be the first to the line. I am still not sure what the hold-up was, but after the ladies had been standing at the starting line for what felt like 5 or 10 minutes, they released the ladies to go and roll around. After another 5 or 10 minutes in the early morning heat, the ladies were back to the start line and ready to go. Once the gun went off, it instantly became intense. With one lap down and starting the second lap, two girls went down hard. One of them being Kristen Attipoe. It appeared that she had hit her head..... but I couldn't focus on her for too long because the first set of points were coming up. Although I didn't have any skaters in this event and I am not working with Team USA this year, I find it almost impossible to just watch the race. I don't know if it's just become habit or if I have a need for knowing exactly where each skater is during every lap of the race. With that said, as the girls came back around Kristen had gotten up and was being help by the trainer over to the middle of the track.
Briana Kramer stopped on her way out yesterday and told me that she was not pleased with the way she had skated her 1000-meter race. She was disappointed in her performance and knew she could have done better. She then stated that she knew what she needed to do for the points/elim race and that she was going to win it. Well if determination had anything to do with it, I knew that she would in fact win the race! She then turned and walked out of the banked track area.
Briana brought her "A" game to the table. Once she settled in, I knew the race was hers. But the skater who caught my attention and was new to me.... was Sophie Webb. Where did she come from??? This meet was the first time that I was aware of Sophie and her drive. I know that I don't know EVERY skater... but I do get around and I love to watch speed skating so why hadn't I noticed her before??? I need to make a note to go and talk to Sophie and find out a little bit more about her! This event would finish with Briana Kramer finishing 1st - 40 points, Sophie Webb collected 23 points to finish second and Alex Harris 3rd with 4 points. There would be questions as to the girls who actually finished 4th through 8th. Some of us saw one thing and others saw the finish another way.
On to the Jr WC Men. They didn't even get through the first corner when at least 5 skaters went down. They all got back up but when that happens in the first turn with that many skaters, in MY opinion.... it would have been nice to call all of the skaters back and restart the race. Those skaters that fell had a very tough time trying to catch up and in fact never really did. But controversy wouldn't stop there. Andrew Shatzer started racking up points (he had 3, but at the time he was in 2nd place by only one point and skating great) when an official blew him off the track. For whatever reason the official called him off... it was a human error and we all make them. I believe they pulled him out with 38 laps to go out of the 50 lap race. I was glad when they figured out that they had made an official error and that they were willing to rerun it... I just didn't like the fact that the other skaters on the track had been racing for at least 4 more laps before they were stopped and Hank Galbraith and Kevin Quandt had actually scored big on the points during these laps. Well to make it fair the officials decided to take away all points earned after Andrew was pulled off of the track. As I sit here now... I still don't know what the right answer is, but it didn't seem fair to take away all points earned on lap 36 and lap 34 (that was the only points both of those boys had) and yet Andrew didn't have a chance to earn points during those laps... so what do you do???? Well all of the skaters that were left on the track at lap 33 were allowed to restart the race. BUT they didn't restart the race like you might think.... at lap 50. They restarted the race at lap 36 and everyone who had points prior to that, that was still left in the race, got to keep their points. If you aren't confused by now you are MUCH better off than I was. Next thing I know... bang.... the gun goes off and we are trying to figure out what lap was what and when , how, who and where!! It was a tough race for me to watch as a coach and once again I didn't have any skaters in the event... but somehow it just didn't seem fair. It would finish with Hank Galbraith in 1st, Jake Powers 2nd and Justin Mannon took the 3rd.
Senior World Class Ladies would be a whole different race!!!!!!! If you were fortunate enough to listen to the live feed provided by USARS, you know just how close this race was. It honestly was the most exciting race that I have seen out of the World Class Ladies in over 5 years!!!! It was the talk of the track for several hours! Back and forth the ladies went.... Chelsea Creveling is a new woman! I don't know what she did this past year, but she needs to keep on doing it. She has been successful in the sprints as well as the longer distance races. Several times Chelsea led in points only to have Emily Scott take it back. At one point Katelyn Horning was right in the mix and Erin DiJulio had scored points as well. Near the end of the race Xion Akana from Idaho jumped out there and grabbed enough points to put herself on the board. In the end the top three would be Emily Scott, Chelsea Creveling and Katelyn Horning.
By the time they started the Senior World Class Men the heat emanating off of the track was enough to cook lunch if I would have had time! The guys all lined up and when the gun went off, they sounded like a herd of cattle in the middle of a stampeded. I actually closed my eyes (I can't believe that I did that) and just listened for "the fall". It never came! I was happy about that. Joey Mantia started off early collecting points followed by Jonathan Garcia. Next grabbing points were Harry Vogel and Chris Creveling. At some point Michael Cheek and Josh Wood decided they better start going for points. It's funny. Some skaters have the strategy to go out early and grab points and hope to just hang on and there are others who wait and start taking points at the 2/3's mark or the halfway mark. For me, that is leaving way too much to chance. It always makes me nervous!! A few point laps after Josh and Michael took off, Dane Lewis made his move. Points would go back and forth and it would be close several times, but it would finish Michael Cheek 1st - 22 point, Dan Lewis 2nd-11 points and Josh Wood 3rd-10 points. But the highlight of this race belongs to JASON KORBEL!!! What a way to end the race. With 5 laps to go, Jason takes off and grabs 1st place points with 4 to go, then 2 more points with 2 to go. He's coming into the last lap leading with 4 points. Jason takes the win with Harry Vogel chasing him down. At that point Harry had only 5 points... and as he finished 2nd across the line... he received 2 points. This meant that Jason and Harry were tied, but since Jason crossed this finish line first... he beat Harry overall. What a race!!!!!!!!
Next it was onto the Freshman and Masters. Some super racing out of all of the skaters. But it is now after 11pm and I have not been to sleep before midnight for the last 5 nights. I will write about these two divisions first thing tomorrow. I have been downloading the photos and writing this article since 7pm, so hang in there skaters... I have some great stories to tell about both of those divisions!! Have a great evening and hope you are all getting more sleep than I am!! Linda :)
