"our story"... www.adammorka.blogspot.com

I know its been a while since I have updated and you may be wondering why. I know I would want to know why the sudden disappear after suck a big and exciting event.
Partially the amount of traveling and lack of internet. I do apologize for this.
I do want to thank everyone that sent such supportive emails over the last week. This means so much!
Now that I am settled in Champery Switzerland for the 2nd last world cup (tomorrow) of the year, I thought I would catch up on my usual blog readings. Because Adam isn’t with me now, his was the first to read.... wow! Reading his latest post I cried and cried.
My plan this afternoon was to write a post about our time in Australia but quickly realized that his post was one that was so beautifully written and should be read by those who fallow us. I think they were happy tears... maybe because of the way he puts things into perspective that had me so emotional. Whatever it was, it is so well written and would love if you took a minute to read.
thanks so much... :)

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Australia 09 MTB Worlds
I am finally back from Australia....and what a fun trip it was. I so wish I could be going over to Europe and racing but I am now home and recovering from 27 hours of travel.
Today I actually got out for a ride on my Trek TopFuel Dually which was great. I hit short hills provincial park and did some easy mtbing...
My LCL is coming along great as I am riding fully again but conservatively at the same time. I feel really bad for long time no update so I am gonna try and give everyone something to read this time around.

Worlds was great, it is like riding an emotional roller coaster you get to witness, glory, defeat, satisfaction, and pretty much every other emotion in the book. Being a injured racer on the sidelines is hard to say the least. Its to bad every racer doesn't have a blog because if there is 100 racers on each start line in every category you know that each one of those people have a different story to tell on how "their" race went.

I wanted to write about worlds not because I make excuses of what could have been but because It is one of the 100's of stories that should be heard for what it is.

Emily's Race.....

As they say in Australia "we had a good go at it" and as I said earlier how Worlds was an emotional roller coaster I think this is the most definitive word for me to describe Emily's race.....not only as her boy friend but as her coach as well.

We Started the Season so great in so many ways, and it was a chapter in Emily's Career Not only as an athlete on her bike, but probably off the bike in many ways as well... It was almost 1st at every race. As she is young with how we trained and focused I think it was appropriate for the rewards we reaped. We had nothing to prove to anyone at Worlds, or any other event, even though all eyes were on Emily.

It was time for the Canadian World Cups. She had been out of the top level for so long, it was the perfect opportunity for me to figure out where her fitness actually was, one month before Worlds. After watching Emily, I knew she had lost a good chunk of her fitness since the spring World Cups. Too much racing, lead to too little maintained, and %drop in fitness. We don't test so, we use racing as a gage to rate her fitness. For her age right now, when Emily is at her best, she is with in 4-5 minutes of a World Cup win, and at St Anne, and Bromont World Cup she was with in 9-12.

Going into Worlds I knew no other u-23 women this year had been with in 4-5 minutes to a world cup win other than Davidowiches, and Engen. This made Emily, and the other 2 girls, major favorites. I think that sometimes people forget that the odds of winning that hour 1/2 race, that comes once a year, at World Championships,
is very slim.

It doesn't matter if your Julien Absalon or Gunn Ritta your odds of winning in that single 1:30 window are always against you. Its one of those things where yes maybe you are the best, but just around the corner there is somebody else coming that is maybe the best too.

We knew the build up for Worlds would take everything she had to get back to where she was in a matter of 4 weeks. It was a feat, that only very few, talented people, could accomplish. All eyes were on her and what she was going to do.

So, we left to New York where TREK TORONTO owner Barry Near, gave us accommodations to do a training camp. Emily trained, ate, slept and lived to get fitter for this event. She poured her heart into it, everything we did was relative to either getting fitter, recovering from training, or even just maintaining what we had.

She had to get 5 minutes faster in 4 weeks when the first 1 and 1/2 weeks where just getting use to training again, and the last 10 days was a taper into worlds??? Time was not on our side but our approach was what it took and accomplished she did. Maybe its good that Worlds only comes once a year because to be that focused all the time I think would shorten your career by half.

We arrived in Australia early. We rode the course for the majority of the week. Come race day we had it dialed, I have never seen anybody, including myself, want something so bad. For anyone that knows Emily, she gets really nervous for the start of races, and after having numerous talks with each other on controlling your mind, and not letting your mind control you, I saw her on the start line, and on this day she was controlling her mind, she was ready to win, it was her turn, I knew it was. She was so happy to be there in Australia, standing on that start line, for that race.

We did comfortable 22 minute laps in training from the start, and I knew for her to win she would have to average 21:teens's. After following her for this I know it was achievable.

Finally race day was here.

She went out as planned, she came through the feed zone 3rd place, and 30 seconds back from the leaders, I could see the fight in her today, she had the same punch as Offenburg when she was 10th. Comfortable looking on the bike, I knew she could close 30 seconds in a matter of one lap, I thought for sure It was going to be a good day.

As she went by the first time in 3rd, I then ran to my other viewing spot on the steep climb. I see 1st, then 2nd, then 3rd, 4th,and 5th, I start to feel not ok, then I see the entire top 10 and no Emily. She comes by me and she says her gears aren't working, I say ok, just stay positive. By this time, I knew in my head 1st was gone. Yes she was fit but, she would have too fight for what she wanted today. The course was such a high average speed, and a single mechanical would take you out of contention for good.

From then on she turned slow laps due to her rear shifting mechanical, Finally once fixed half way into lap three, she came back from 21st, to 11th, putting in the last 2, 4th fastest laps of the day. It doesn't sound like much, but when your dreams are crushed in a matter of minutes, any comeback at all, is the showing of a true athlete with desire. It was hard for me, and I am sure for everyone else to watch, as there is nothing you can do to change the situation, in the moment. In the end she made a great comeback, and fought it out for the best out of the situation.

I think at the end of the day, she was maybe not the 1st place Champion, and It wasn't her turn on that day but, I think there will be many more, she is still u-23. For Her, and myself, walking away knowing that we could prepare so perfectly for a one day race on, and off the bike meant alot. Everyone watched, and asked, and she still came to the party, with interviews, and great composure. Its one of those things where you wipe your tears from underneath your sunglasses, smile, and you just carry on.

In the grand scheme of things, it was a small bump in the moment of life but, in the lead up to the moment we learnt so much, and took so much more from it, than a gold medal. It will help us prepare for the next opportunity around the corner.

I think she will always be a true champion, and for this, I am so proud of her.

Everyone has a story to tell.

Australia was great!!!
www.adammorka.blogspot.com

World Championships 09' Austrailia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sWrKXu3qRQ

last minute.....

Hey everyone....

Last few minutes before I get suited up and put my bike in the car.
The weather seems to be nice and sunny and calling for a high of 18 (feels more like 10 max)

Getting pretty nervous... or maybe just anxious to get started. Im sure I will be fine once Adam gets here to my place.

Just called home and got my last few modivations talks... love them ;) thank you again!
I know they arnt doing live video on http://www.freecaster.tv/ but http://www.canadiancyclist.com/ will be uploading lap by lap to keep people up to date

Cross your fingures for me... and I will try my hardest to make Canada proud :)