Covid 19 - What's Happening Around the World?

A few weeks into having the United States go into a stay at home order, I was scrolling through my social media feeds and my mind started to wander. I was curious as to how each country around the world was handling the same crisis, and started talking to some of my international friends about it. Sure, we all see worldwide news and have seen how each country has handled things in different ways. But I thought that getting a direct answer from some of my friends living in those countries would be a really cool idea to show how we are all in this together.

I sent out a short survey first asking: "what is it like in your country right now and how are you dealing with the changes?" 

Second, for those who are athletes (which is pretty much everyone) : "how are you handling your training with your country’s isolation orders?"

  *question 1 answers are in blue, and question 2 answers are in purple*

Australia

Social distancing.  No gyms, cafe’s, sporting events.  Actually any kind of event.  But being out in nature (solo) and shopping (“essentials”) is fine.

Not going to the gym sucks.  But otherwise it’s training as normal.

Leave the house for essentials only! Public gatherings of more than 2 people. 1.5m social distancing, bars, restaurants, shops are closed. Only essentials like supermarkets and select retailers remain open. Riding on Zwift, have some home weights but without any racing this year my motivation is lacking!

Austria

Well the shops are all closed. Everything except supermarkets and life necessary stuff is open. I stay most of the time at home!

I train at home all the time. Or running around in the woods but most of the time at home!

Belgium

I'm currently studying from home because universities and schools are closed all over the country. Everyone has to stay home, except for essentials like grocery shopping, or work if it's impossible to work from home and the social distance can be guaranteed. All shops and restaurants are closed but many local restaurants offer delivery at home or take away instead. It's not allowed to meet with other people unless you can keep 1.5m distance. Outdoor physical is allowed as long as you are alone, or with one friend, or family members living in the same house, but you can't take stop along the way, to avoid people coming together in one place. So far I haven't had a lot of problems with my training. We are lucky to still be allowed to train outside, as long as we train alone or with a family member. Because I live at home, I can do most of my trainings with my sister so it hasn't been much of an issue to stay motivated and keep training like usual. Until now, even the skating track is still open but no more than 2 people can skate at the same time.

Canada

Grocery, gas, pharmacies, hospitals - essential services are running well. Restaurants are doing pick-up, a lot of stores are doing curb-side pick up. Schools are closed, playgrounds are closed too, and most city services (pools, libraries, arenas, city hall). Concerts and sports are shut down.

I train on Zwift in my basement, so there's no change to my routine. I do a few easy rides with my daughter, about 1 hour a day. I also have free weights in the house, so I'm fine.

Colombia

Yes, you cannot leave your house to do anything except go to the grocery store. You have specified days that you are allowed to go to the store(mask required) depending on the last number on your national id. Only one person per household can leave. No exercise outside of your home or any other non necessary exits allowed. Everyone is training indoors on trainers and slideboards.

England

Supermarkets are open, but not many people are allowed in. Can still get takeouts using Deliveroo/Ubereats etc. Police will break up groups larger than 2 in public parks... not allowed to sunbathe in public parks, can only be used for exercise! The official government guidance is to only go outside once a day for less than an hour. I have no home gym equipment 😰 and all the gyms are closed! My Wattbike is being delivered from home this week though 🙏🏻

Germany

We are requested to stay home if possible. No visits, no travel, no visit of relatives in Nursing homes or hospitals.
If you traveled home from any other country you have to stay home for 14days, no exemptions (also not allowed to go to the grocery or a doctor, you call the doctor and he will come to your place if needed).
Grocery stores are open normal, no masks or gloves needed and also not recommended.
As soon as you leave the house you have to stay apart 1.50m from everyone, also in grocery stores or in the streets. Pharmacy take away is open. Other shops and restaurants have to closed or offer delivery or take away also with 1.50m distance. Which means they put it on a table or anything and you need to wait until they are 1.5m away before you are allowed to pic it up (yes looks funny). No cash payment required.
Hairdresser, Nail studios are closed. 
We are allowed to leave the house once a day to exercise alone or with one other person living in the same household. That means to run, jog, bike, walk, skate... on the roads, bike path. Parks, Kids playgrounds, Sport fields, tracks and so one are closed.
(Woods, bike paths are full these days, because people have nothing else to do) 
If you are outside for no reason and with more than one other person you have to pay 200€.
Schools, Kindergarten, Universitys are closed and have online/home schooling. 
Young children of nurses, doctors and people working in grocery stores can bring them to certain kindergarten or primary school classes. 
The "big test" for finishing high school took part last week, there was one teacher and 4 students each room, 1.50m apart from each other.
The German government organized flights to get people (who want to) back home from all over the world. 
Boarders are closed, also to all other EU countries (normal not even passport check at the boarder). 
The German government organized a few flight from east European countries to get the seasonal workers to make sure the farms are able to do their work. They have to have be in quarantine for 14days after they arrived. 
Self employed people get support from the state if their shops or company need to be closed. 
Companys can apply for short shift programs. That means the people have less work and get payed less from the copany, but some extra money will come from the government. (It's not allowed to just fiere people in Germany)

I do my gym and off skate training at home. I go out to jog, skate, bike alone or with my bf. 
The football clubs from 1.Bundesliga are allowed to train on their private property ot the club in groups of 5 (including coach) with a minimum distance of 1.5m apart from each other. Other sports don't have any special regulations. 

Guatemala

From 4am to 4pm you can be out of your house just for go get the essentials. After 4pm if the police sees you, they take you to the station and depending on your economic status you can get a ticket or even go to jail. The open business are just restaurants with delivery or pick up (they can choose if ala work late or not) pharmacy, super market (until 2pm), hospitals and like essentials services and to be out after 4pm you need a special permission and like banks they can work but following the healthy rules and they have to have transportation for their workers because public buses and all that is not working and because normally no one should be out, they shouldn’t take their car.

I just train in my house, I have a small gym (at least something) off skate and bike.. (trying really hard everyday to do it 🤣 too lazy)

Hong Kong

Restaurants / bars are open. but gyms, parks are closed and limit to less than a group of4. all i can do is run, no skate/ bike. do as much as i can.

Hungary

Social events are cancelled. Some shops are closed but some are still allowed to be open. Schools and universities are closed. Most of the people are encouraged to work from home if they can. We are still allowed to go out to shop, to work, to the pharmacy and do outdoor sports but only alone or with people you live together with.

I was ill in the past weeks so i have just started training at home a few days ago.

New Zealand

Only essential businesses are open such as supermarkets and chemists etc and you can only use your car if you are accessing those. You can go outside and exercise either by your self or with members of your household only. Training load/hours as per normal but have my program adapted to suit the equipment I have at home.

Portugal

I can only go buy food, everything else is is forbidden even exercise outdoors alone…

Working on stuff I usually wouldn't focus as much and developing other skills :)

South Africa

Complete lockdown. Essential services only. We manufacture custom cycling apparel but have moved to manufacturing high quality face masks to try survive the economic downturn.

A lot of Indoor and specific training. Found an abandoned road behind my house for Standing starts. Built a MTB trail in my back garden (1.3km long) to try train outside a bit. I don't have Zwift. Thankfully I have my Dad who loves to train with me. ❤️

Switzerland

Homeschooling the children.  We're allowed outside for exercise. Swiss media isn't like USA. In Switzerland you can exercise outside as long as you don't cross the borders.

Taiwan

Basically the same for us, we can still go out but just need to wear the mask and watch out the social distance !!

Some core , indoor cycling and dryland while when I was quarantined !!

United States

Stay at home orders, only essential businesses are open 

Only essential businesses are open and it SUCKS

Fresh meat and produce is only available if you're there in the morning. A lot less traffic on the roads. Metered amounts of people in stores.

Each state in the USA has different rules, as each state has very different amounts of cases and have all had to react different. My friends back home in PA, NJ, NY, etc, are all on almost a complete lockdown and most have not left their houses at all. I am currently in CO, where there are still a lot of people roaming around, traffic still seems heavy places, takeaway from restaurants is still available, etc. They are actually planning to start reopening the state tomorrow, which includes nail and hair salons, tattoo parlors, dentists, and retailers may start to open back up as well as a few other things. Let's hope that is a good idea... 

Stay safe out there everyone! Thank you for reading this if you made it this far. Praying that the world becomes a safe place again and that I will be able to travel the world without hesitation once more. Love you all! Thanks to everyone who helped me out with this! 

Something new..

Today is November 10, 2019. I think the last blog post I wrote was an update about my 2016 racing season, so here we are, updating you all three years later. I'm not sure why I stopped writing these, but my guess is somewhere between trying to graduate from college, training full time, and being a dog mom... time to write random blog posts just wasn't there.

Flash forward three years later, and here we are, sitting in a new apartment in Salt Lake on a Sunday night with no assignment due at 11:59 that I forgot about, no school assignments to worry about in the near future, and my only worry about work is selling shoes to people at Dick's. 

The past few years have been full of adventures, to say the least.  I stopped skating for a bit to only race my bike for a full year, decided it wasn't worth giving it up for, and found my way back to skating again after only taking off the 2017 season. I went to worlds two more times, 2018 in The Netherlands and 2019 in Barcelona, Spain, where I placed top 15 in the 100m both times.

I transferred from Penn State LV to Kutztown University, where I ended up graduating this past May with a B.A. in Communication Studies and a minor in Public Relations. The degree is currently hanging on my wall in front of me, so I guess that mean's it's legit. I also somehow graduated with Cum Laude, even though I was literally never there.

I also ended up missing my graduation for this year's world team trials.. go figure, my luck. Lucky for me, I ended up winning 4 gold medals, winning every sprint race at trials, due to my best bud Erin being injured. But hey, like she said to me, a win is a win. I was super upset about missing graduation, so that made it just a bit less sour for me.





After trials, I decided to keep riding my bike even though I wasn't training full time, and had a killer summer in Ttown. Made some race money, figured out I could actually race enduro stuff, and met some of the coolest people I know from across the world who made my summer.
"Hakuna Matata B**ches, this is America"

Before I graduated in May, I made the decision that I would be moving to Utah to switch to ice once the cycling season ended. It felt so far away, but the summer absolutely flew by, and suddenly I was packing up the final bits of my townhouse in Kutztown and driving to Utah. I knew that I would be leaving PA eventually, but boy it came way faster than I ever expected it to. A year and a half prior to this, I was training full time at the velodrome trying to be a full time track cyclist. It's insane how quickly things can change, honestly.


But yeah, September 9th, I packed up my life into my Subaru and a Uhaul and the 40 hour drive across the country began. Four days of driving later, I arrived in Utah on September 12th, my 24th birthday, and went immediately to a Florida Georgia Line concert with my friends. And that was the beginning of where we are now.

2 months later, I've settled into being back on a full time training plan.. for my third sport. It's definitely a huge challenge every day, but I'm taking it one step at a time. Each day is better and better, and this place is kind of starting to feel like home. Kind of.

 

I keep walking into my new Dick's Sporting Goods store and expecting to see my old coworkers, who truly were some of my absolute best friends back home. I keep walking into Target and expecting to run into everyone in the world that I know. Stores like that are really trippy.. they look the same, feel the same, but then when I don't see the Philadelphia sports apparel in the corner, I know I'm not really "home". But my new store is pretty cool, and I'm sure I'll adjust to seeing the Jazz stuff all over the walls.. eh, who am I kidding. Go Sixers!

Although I severely miss Wawa, Bagel Bar, and good pizza.. Koda and I have adjusted pretty well so far. He loves hiking in the mountains, where there is already snow he can zoom through, and the view isn't so bad either. This year will be about the process, so I'll try to keep updating this when I can. 

I actually kind of miss having to write for school, so this passes some time and makes me feel like I'm using my brain for more than rewatching Degrassi, again.

-Kenz :)

2016 Update

Since it's been almost a year since my last blog post, I figured it was time for a 2016 season update.

This year was my first year competing at a high level in both skating and cycling, and it definitely wasn't easy. I had originally planned to not skate this season and only focus on cycling, but I was easily convinced otherwise and decided to keep doing a few races just for fun.

I ended up competing at trials again, with no intention of going to worlds, but again, I was easily convinced to go one more time before fully shifting my focus to cycling.
On that note, here are some race updates from this past year.

Arena Geisingen- Geisingen, Germany - April 2016

At the beginning of the season, I didn't think I'd be competing at worlds again, so I wanted to compete in at least one more high level international competition. I had been wanting to go to the race in Geisingen for a few years now, but school always got in the way, so I decided I was going to make it work this year.

This quickly became my favorite competition because of the slightly different race format. Instead of a 300m time trial, we raced a flying 200m, which I loved because we do the same event in cycling. I ended up in 14th place in this event out of 55+ senior women.
The next event was the 500m sprint, but this was also raced in a new way. Instead of qualifying the top 2 out of each he
at, the first round qualification went by the fastest times. I ended up qualifying 4th overall after skating the best 500 I've ever done. My teammate Erin Jackson and I ended up in a stacked quarter final with girls from Colombia, Equador, and two girls from Germany. We raced hard but failed to qualify for the semis.

UCI Races - Trexlertown, PA - June 2016

Back in June, I finally got to compete in my first UCI Cycling event in Ttown. Week one held the sprint tournament, and week two was the keirin. 

Week 1-

I rode a PB for the 200m qualifier to place me into the sprint tournament. I ended up racing the 5-8 final where I placed 7th.

Week 2-

My first UCI Keirin.. not going to lie, I was pretty nervous, but that's the nature of this event. I knew no matter which heat I was in, it was going to be a challenge, but I ended up racing it how I wanted to, but just fell short of making the final. Instead, I raced the 7-12 final with Monique Sullivan (Canadian Olympic rider) and a few Americans, and ended up in 8th place right behind Monique.

There was also a third week of racing, but I decided to compete in world team trials for skating, so I had to miss it.

World Team Trials - Colorado Springs, CO - June 2016

This year marked my 8th time trying out for the US World Team, but this year I went into the competition with a different mindset. Every other year I was honestly so stressed about making the team that I forgot how much fun the racing can be. Going into it this year, I was planning on declining my spot on the team if I made it, so I really had no pressure on me.
When I stepped up to the line for my 300m time trial, the only thing going through my mind was "this is either going to be the best 300 I've ever skated, or it's going to be terrible. Here we go!"
It turned out to be the best 300 I ever skated, as I beat my PB from 2015 by .8 of a second. I ended up in 3rd behind Erin Jackson and Brittany Bowe.
I also earned a silver medal in the 100m drag race, my favorite event.
Upon completion of the racing, I earned the title of second sprinter, which qualified me for my 6th World Team.

Elite Track Nationals - Trexlertown, PA - July 2016

Following skating nationals, it was time to zone back into cycling for this year's National Championships. After racing my first cycling nationals in LA last year with 9th overall being my top placement, I really wanted to podium this year. 

I definitely exceeded my expectations, earning 3 medals in 4 events. After a hard fought sprint tournament, I earned my first elite medal taking the bronze. Following the sprints, I also earned a bronze in the 500m TT, and a silver in the Team Sprint with Nissy Cobb. I also made the keirin final, but ended up in 6th.

Friday Night Lights - Trexlertown,  PA - August 2016

After nationals ended, it was finally time for a bit of downtime.. which also meant it was time for some fun Friday night racing. The first Friday night back after nationals was the keirin cup, but after that, there were no more sprint events. However, I decided I still wanted to race even though it was 3 weeks of endurance events (and one 500m chariot).















It went way better than I thought it would, and I actually even ended up placing 3rd overall in the Omnium one night.

World Championships - Nanjing, China - September 2016

This year's World Championships didn't end up going as well as I would have hoped, but it happens. I competed in the 300m time trial and the 100m drag race, where I placed 18th and 14th. 

I was definitely not happy with my 300, but the 100m wasn't all that bad. 

I also raced the marathon.. well, 10k of it anyway. But this year I actually got into the pack and held my ground, which I was always too scared to do in previous years. I also won the start, so my last race at a World Championship ended up being a good one. 

Milton International Challenge - Milton, Ontario, Canada - September 2016

To wrap up the 2016 season, a few of my Sprinter's Edge teammates and I headed up to Canada for one more UCI event. This event was a bit harder for me, as I hadn't been on the bike in 3-4 weeks because I was in China for skating.

However, I got right back into the swing of things and got better every race. I made the 5-8 final for the sprints, where I ended up in 7th. I also took 6th in the 500m TT, and also placed 6th in the keirin final.

It's been a great year, but now it's back to work to prepare for 2017!! Can't wait to see what's in store!

2015 World Championships Update 1

Now that we've been overseas for about a week, I figured it was time for a quick update on how Team USA is doing before the competition gets started on Sunday.

Travel

So to sum this up.. flying to Asia sucks. 

I spent a total of 23 hours up in the sky to get from Philly to Kaoshiung. The flight from San Francisco to Hong Kong was 15 hours, and it was without a doubt the worst 15 hours I've endured. First off, I flew by myself without any teammates, which is something I'm definitely not used to doing as we usually travel as a team. Second, I had the middle seat between two people who were together, yet neither of them offered to switch seats with me. Third, there were no TV screens on the seats, and only a small tv that was about 7 rows ahead of me that I could barely even see. Fourth, the wifi was broken before we even took off. Not the best flight, but I made it.

Jet Lag

The time difference from the east coast to Taiwan is a wonderful 13 hours. No matter what you do before you leave, there's no way to adjust to this right away. I slept from 3:30am-6am the first night, 11pm-4:30am the second night, and since then I have woken up in the middle of the night every day for at least 2 hours. Hopefully it gets better over the next two days going into racing.

Food

The local food here isn't terrible, but being American, we have found every American food option in town. So far I've had Starbucks, McDonald's, Subway, Coldstone, Outback Steakhouse, Pizza Hut, and even went to a few 7-11s. It's nice to have those options when you aren't sure what the options on the street are going to be, though I found an awesome place at the mall with some wonton soup and dumplings. We also went to an awesome buffet last night set up by our buddy Itay from Isreal, which was a much needed meal. 

Training

Team USA is looking good. Everyone came prepared to go fast with great mindsets to get after those medals. The track is amazing, as is the road course, and I can't wait for the racing to get started. 

I will be racing the 300m time trial on Sunday, along with the 100m drag race next Friday, with other races tbd. 

Kaohsiung 

It's hot, humid, and the air quality is terrible, but it's a pretty cool place. We haven't done too much exploring, but what we've seen around town is awesome. We found a place called the "Dream Mall" which is 11 stories, including an amusement park on the roof. Not too bad, Taiwan. 

Being at worlds is one of my favorite experiences, and this year is definitely going to be another great one. Nothing beats awesome racing, seeing friends from around the world, and making some new ones too.

There's Only One Southern Lehigh

“It’s the oldest story in the world. One day you’re seventeen and planning for someday. And then quietly and without you ever really noticing, someday is today. And that someday is yesterday. And this is your life.”

I'm 20 years old. At 17, I was beginning my junior year of high school and planning for "someday". As a kid in high school, nothing matters besides that week's football game, going undefeated in field hockey, next month's homecoming dance, who you were going to go to prom with, and how far away graduation seemed. Fast forward three years later, and now none of that matters. 

This past weekend I decided to go to Southern Lehigh's homecoming football game. I saw so many of my old friends and teachers, but all anyone could say was "this is weird", and it was. We were no longer a part of the student section, and we only knew the seniors. A place that was all we knew for 4 years of our lives was no longer what we knew. The friends we knew from our small hometown were now out in the world making their colleges their new homes, with new friends and new stories. 

As I stood on the fence with my old friends and teachers, I realized that the Southern Lehigh Middle School football stadium will always be the same, the faces just change. It's and endless cycle. I used to go to the high school games as a middle schooler and look up at the big student section, the huge players, and the cheerleaders and I couldn't wait to be a part of it. Finally, you get to stand all the way at the top of the bleachers. Over the next 4 years, you move your way down to the bottom. Then you graduate, and you're kicked out, left to stand on the side again, looking up at the student section with a sense of jealousy, but this time it's all different. The kids seem small, the players young, and you realize that you're getting old. As great as it is to be out of high school, they really are some of the greatest years of your life. I never thought I'd be saying that when I was there, but two years later, you realize how much you grew up in those 4 years. No matter how far we all get from Coopersburg, it's still our home. The faces may change with the scenery, but the memories we have will never fade.

Watching One Tree Hill brought back so many memories, as it was the most relatable show I think I've every watched. The town the show takes place in is almost identical to Southern Lehigh, which honestly kind of freaked me out at times. It's your typical small school in a small town that revolves around sports. You have the jocks, the cheerleaders, the nerds, etc., and most people think that only exists in Hollywood, but it couldn't be any more real. I went to preschool, elementary school, middle school, and high school with the kids that I graduated with, and I knew every single person. Most school's don't get to experience that, and some say it's a terrible thing, but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

In my short life, I've been fortunate enough to travel to 9 countries and 31 US States. I've seen some incredible things and wouldn't trade those experiences for anything, but there's nothing like returning home after a trip. Every time I come home, I put up a postcard from wherever I just visited on my wall to add to my collection. That way when I'm at home, I can look up at my wall to see all of the incredible places I've been and all that I've accomplished while at the same time knowing that I'm safe at home.

“In your life, you’re going to go to some great places, and you’re going to do some wonderful things. But no matter where you go, or who you become, this place will always be with you. "

There's only one Southern Lehigh, and it's our home.

2015 Collegiate National Championships

On September 15, the three members of the Penn State Lehigh Valley cycling club took off for Colorado Springs, Co., to compete in the 2015 Collegiate Track Cycling Nationals. McKenzie Browne, James Mellen, and Nikesh Patel competed over a three-day span from September 17-19. Each athlete competed in four races, earning a collective total of six medals and one national champion jersey.

The first two days of competition held the sprint tournament which began with the flying 200m qualifier. Out of the 45 women and 64 men, only 18 riders moved on to the sprint rounds. Freshman McKenzie Browne and sophomore James Mellen both qualified in first place overall, giving them confidence going into the sprints.  

“It’s always a confidence boost to qualify first,” Mellen said. “It’s nice knowing I have the speed, but I also know that I have to be careful in the sprints because of how thin the margins are separating me from the other competitors.”

The sprint tournament is a series of two-lap, best of three, one-on-one races where the mission is simple: cross the line before your opponent does. Seems easy, but if you don’t have the correct mix of strength and endurance, you’re going to be struggling by the end of the tournament. After winning a total of six rides each, both Browne and Mellen raced their way into the gold medal final on Saturday night.

The men and women’s sprint finals featured a grudge match between two schools as each matchup was Penn State Lehigh Valley vs. Marian University. Mellen came up just short of a National Championship, finishing in second as the Collegiate Sprint silver medalist. However, Browne came out victorious after winning two straight rides against her more experienced competitor, earning the title of the 2015 Collegiate National Sprint Champion.

Day three of the competition held the scratch race, 500m/1000m time trials and the coed team sprint. The team sprint was a six-lap event in which a team could have up to six people. While almost every team did, Penn State Lehigh Valley was the only team to compete with fewer than six. The three riders placed tenth out of 11 teams, but were within seconds of a podium spot, which is incredible for having only three riders. Overall, the small team placed fourth overall out of the 11 Division II schools that competed in the championships.

Coach Mandy Marquardt, who is a former Penn State Lehigh Valley cyclist and 2014 graduate, was extremely pleased with how the team performed.

“They’re full-time students and cyclists and all work really hard on and off the bike,” Marquardt said. “Collegiate Nationals was a great experience for each of them, and I’m really proud of the overall team’s performance. We are a small but mighty team!”

Overall, the small but mighty team had an extremely successful weekend of competition. Although the competitive track season is over for the year, the cycling club is still looking for new riders. No experience is needed and not all club members have to compete.

The cycling club is also holding a fundraiser on November 2 from 11 a.m.- 11 p.m. at the Buffalo Wild Wings in Whitehall. Ten percent of your check will be donated to the Penn State Lehigh Valley Cycling Club.

2015 Cycling Nationals

This past week I competed in my first national event that wasn't speed skating. As everyone knows, I've been involved in track cycling for just about 2 years now. I spent the first year just having fun with it and using it as a great way to cross train for skating. During my second year, I fell in love with it. 

After racing up in Toronto twice this year and seeing what it's all about, I knew that I wanted to race nationals and see where this sport can take me since I'm always up for a new challenge. 

I went into nationals with basically no expectations, but being an elite athlete you still want to do the best you can so I set small goals for myself such as beating my old PB times, qualifying for the sprints, and getting a top 10 finish. By the end of the week, I accomplished all three things, and had fun while doing so.

I started the week off with the 500m time trial, placing 12th with a new PB. On day 2, I raced the team sprint with Katie Uhlaender who is a 3 time Olympian and world champion in the sport of skeleton. Both of us are very new to the sport so it was really cool to be paired up with another multi-sport athlete!

On day 3, it was finally time for the sprints. The top 12 girls qualified, and I qualified in 12th.. again. I have qualified 12/12 twice at worlds in the time trials, so it was really nothing new to me. However in skating it just means that you run your final first, in cycling it means you get to race the top qualifier in the sprints. Of course, that happened to be my teammate and good friend Mandy. I lost the first round and went on to the reps to barely miss qualifying onto the quarter finals, so my day was done. 

Day 4 was the day of racing I was most excited for: the keirin. I had only raced one keirin ever before this one, so I was pretty nervous but also excited. I ended up winning my heat, automatically moving me into the semi finals. Top 3 were to qualify to the 1-6 final, and the other 3 would race again for 7-12 place. I ended up in 4th place, so I raced again for 7th but ended up with 3rd place across the line in a very close finish giving me 9th place overall, which I am extremely pleased with. 

Overall, it was an amazing experience. The US has a great group of girls I was happy to race against and become friends with. 

None of this would have been possible without all the hard work my coach (Andrew Harris) puts into our team's training. There were a lot of long days, early mornings, and days where I just didn't think I could do it, but thanks to Andrew and my amazing teammates, I made it through the rough winter of training in the dungeon. 

Who would have thought 3 years ago when I started training with Sprinter's Edge in the gym that I would become a cyclist? I guess it was just fate! 

Up next are collegiate nationals in Colorado Springs September 17-19 where I will be racing for Penn State Lehigh Valley!