Self Arrest: Slowing Down to Train for Selection

As Larry plunged backwards head first down a steep icy slope, I watched nervously hoping he could stop. Flipping over quickly and orienting himself properly uphill, he plunged his ice axe into the snow. He laughed and said, “I’ll try that again, cleaner this time.” I giggled nervously and said, “You want me to do[…]

Meeting the challenge: Fields of Flowers and Selection 017

It was 2003 and I had claimed my very own seat on a city bus in Chengdu, China. I had already won a small battle; this was the first time I wasn’t stuck under some sweaty shirtless man’s armpit standing pressed against another 100 people trying to see the street from the fogged up windows.[…]

Altitude Training

With the absence of oxygen, a human will die. But, strangely, with just a little oxygen the human body will become stronger. Ever since the 1968 Olympics, which were held at about 7,000 feet altitude in Mexico City, Mexico, people have been curious about what competing at or training at altitude does to the body[…]