Breezing into Fall

It is officially Fall. The goal sheets have been turned in, School is in full swing and racers are making their final approach into the season. With that comes, yes, physical testing. We all learn just how far we have to go before the season starts and we realize that lying by the pool all summer did not make us stronger.

School has started and for me that means that I have moved back down to Salt Lake City and have started my Junior year. Rowmark has started up too—with us taking our annual Rowmark trip—this year we went river rafting down the Green River in Southern Utah. The trip was relaxing and fun—I learned how to stand up paddleboard and even went down some rapids on one. We also are back to the gym, physical testing and lifting weights.

We now have a four-day weekend and we leave next week (snow providing) for Loveland for our first fall camp! Yes Fall is here and it is time to use all of the conditioning that we did in the Spring and Summer to really build up to the season.

Yes, the season—it does have a nice ring to it. Racers are getting ready for camps—our post-graduates left last week to train a little at Mt. Hood—and after that we I am going to jump (literally, I am going to a Beaver Creek camp right before my first race) into the season. So racers dust off your skis (assuming that they have even arrived), get down to the gym, and get psyched for the season—that is what I am doing.

.)) Breezy Johnson

Snow-FIA Report: Welcome to the Team

Hello everyone!!! This is my first year with SRD and I am very honored to have been chosen to be a member of the SRD Team!

This summer was very exciting!!!!! I got to go to Florida to see my cousin graduate, and spend a lot of time with my family and friends. Now here is when my summer really started: After I got back from Florida I had to get all my stuff ready for ski camp in Mammoth with Rowmark Ski Academy. We skied some slalom for 3 days and then we had a break and went to the local Hot Springs for our day off and then finished off the camp with another 3 days of G.S. It was a lot of fun and I learned tons.

One highlight of this camp was getting to see former SRD racer Mikaela Shiffrin, train G.S. with her U.S. Ski Team coach. I was hoping to try some skis but unfortunately none of the companies there had any of my sizes. After this camp, I had a break for about a week and with my parents we went back to Long Beach, California where I was born. While there I got to see my cousins and some of my old friends. Then it was back to Mammoth for another ski camp with Park City.

One of my coaches was Ben Sinclair, who is a really great coach and he taught me a ton of things. I wanted to test some new skis at that camp and got lucky as Atomic and Head had my size for G.S. skis. They were pretty good. It was a 5 day of G.S. camp and I got to meet some new kids from other ski teams. While there the USSA NDS "Flight School" camp was taking place. It was exciting to watch the J2 and J3 athletes including our SRD teammate Breezy Johnson training Super G. I also got to see Ted Ligety and the U.S. Tech Team training slalom.

After this G.S. camp I had a break for a couple weeks to hang out with some friends and play with my yellow labs named Bode and Maggie before I had to get ready for Keely's Ski Camp for Girls!!! This was a great experience.....I got to travel on a plane with 5 of my good friends and that was so much fun! When we landed in Portland, Oregon Keely Kelleher, Jess Kelly, and Katie Hitchcock all former U.S. Ski Team members picked us up. We arrived at Mt. Hood Academy in Government Camp where I got to meet my room mates from Montana. Keely's mom was a really great cook.

The first day of skiing happened to be my birthday!!!!! That first day we skied slalom and my coach was another X-USST member, Libby Ludlow who was really great!!! That night we went to a pizza place in Govy and Keely's mom made me a birthday cake! The next couple days we ripped up some slalom turns and then we got a break day. We went to Hood River to learn how to do stand up paddle boarding, which a was a lot of fun. Then we finished the camp off with another 3 days of G.S. While there I got to try some Nordica skis, thanks to Nordica's Ethan Korpi. They were really great and those are the skis I am skiing on this year.

After the last day of skiing I had to say goodbye to all of my friends and coaches and then we flew back to Utah. I also compete in Martial Arts and not even a day passed before I had to get back in the gym and get ready for a karate tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In Vegas we met up with our karate friends from El Paso, Texas. I had a lot of fun with all my teammates from Pinnacle Martial Arts and also got to meet new people from all over the U.S. at this tournament. Once I got back I had to get ready for my Black Belt test at the end of August. As part of the Black Belt test the other candidates and I had to do a series of 200 push ups, sit ups, and jumping jacks, run 2 miles, and sit in a "horse stance" for 15 minutes. I was the first to finish this endurance test. We went back to the studio and had to perform all the basic karate kicks and punches. On one of my floor kicks I landed wrong and later found out that I broke my finger. We also had to do all these fundamental "katas" or forms, self defense moves, grappling holds/releases, and break bricks & boards and slice vegetables with our Katana swords. My best friend from California, Gigi and my Grandpa flew into town to cheer me on which was great!

The Black Belt test lasted like eight hours and after surviving that the next three days were really a whirlwind & crazy. I had to go to my new school for orientation, attend the official Black Belt ceremony to be awarded my Black Belt, get x-rays of my hand, get a splint made by an Occupational Hand Therapist and to top things off I had to get my braces.

The day after that I started my first day of school at Rowland Hall in Salt Lake City, where I will be skiing for Rowmark Ski Academy. Now, I am back in the gym getting in shape for this ski season. I am really excited for this upcoming ski season and especially trilled to be representing SRD. I can't wait for this November when we go to Copper Mountain for our Fall camp with Rowmark. I am super stoked and looking so forward to ripping up some turns after the snow falls and I really hope to meet all my new SRD teammates!

.)) Sofia Yubero