No, of course that is not me, all giddy trying on my new racing suit and posing by my sled with bare feet in the hotel room.

It would be easy to lie and say that I haven’t update my blog since my bruising incident, because I have been so terribly busy being an athlete on a national team. And that would be mostly true. But if you are one those people who have been dutifully trying to follow my blog for the past year, you would see right through my noble excuses and know that really, I just haven’t gotten around to it because I have given in to the lure of a hot bath, or chocolate, or chocolate in a hot bath on my way to the computer (ignore the fact that I have a laptop, which can be conveniently carried to the bathroom and used to update a blog while taking a hot bath and eating chocolate – a task that I am sure many would be slightly startled to realize has been completed on more than one occasion, until they think more carefully about who is actually admitting to completing this task).

So, to begin: After my skeleton school, the last week of October, I was invited to be a member of one of Canada’s three national teams, and race on the America’s Cup circuit for the 2006/2007 season. Seeing as I had only been down the track from the top a total of five times, when I received the exciting news (and one of those trips down resulted in bruises that I have had to explain more than one time are not courtesy of my husband … ) I can only imagine that my invitation is based on a combination of how good I look in spandex and the fact that I was the only willing to go down the track again after we finished our school. (I kid … there were a good dozen of us crazies, not only willing but excited to get on our sleds again …)

So I stayed in Calgary for two weeks, through to the end of my first race on the circuit, this past Thursday and Friday.

Here is a summary. I was going to post them all in seperate blog entries for reading convenience, but then I couldn't decide in which order I shoudl post. So you know what? Here is the whole kit and caboodle, in all of its overwhelming, unapologetic, this-is-much-longer-than-is-desireable inconvenience.

October 31–afternoon

Received my invitation to the America’s Cup team. Went out and bought a shadow box to display my inevitable future Olympic gold medal.

October 31–evening

Went to evening training runs where I promptly slammed myself into the aforementioned notorious corner nine and received some previously mentioned bruises. Returned my shadow box and bought bruise tape.

November 7

Picked up my new-to-me sled. I have reallocated a sled that belongs a BC provincial sports organization, which has been well looked after by a fellow BC-er, slider and friend, Rindy Loucks (who I have noticed has a very nice Web site … ) Rindy has moved up a notch to join the club of they that slide on the noble Davenport … and I am absolutely thrilled to take her trusty Rocket sled off her hands!

November 8

Had a doctor’s appointment so I could get my skeleton license signed and be cleared to race with the team. That’s right – add another license to my name ...

I felt it appropriate to censor my signature, so as not to tempt anyone to try to fraudulently access the overflowing accounts of this Canadian National athlete (accounts which runneth over almost as much as they did when I was a university aviation student …)

November 9th

Tore my sled to pieces! Sleds are padded and molded to custom fit the rider. So I had to take the sled apart, get the saddle bent so I could wedge my genetically well-endowed hips into it and then re-pad the whole top. It was a process that I am sure Erin (my home-away-from-home in Calgary, much to her good-natured boyfriend’s chagrin … !) will be happy to never have occur in her basement again.

November 12

After two training days, we started our week on the America’s Cup circuit with a local race, called the ASA Cup, so that we could learn about how races are run, and not look like idiots five days later by asking questions like “What the hell is parc fermer?”

I had a fairly acceptable evening, finishing eight overall and second in my category, the recreation class, for sliders who had not represented Canada on a national team. Good thing the race was Sunday, since that class standing was null and void by the next day and I would have finsihed dead last in the "pro" category!

November 13

This was our first day of official training for the America’s Cup race. We got two runs down the track each day for three days before the races. The thought that all we had to do each of the three days was show up, take our two runs and then go back to the hotel, leaving us with ample free time to soak in the hot tub and chill in front of the TV, is about as misleading as thinking that the only countries showing up for the America’s Cup are Canada and the U.S. (Try Russia, Japan, Australia and Great Britain, along with the Americas … )

We were at the track every day for a solid eight hours, doing track walks, sled prep, training, ice house time, warmups, warm downs, warmups for our second runs, finsing helmets that fit and sleds that worked and clothes that didn’t make us look like the ghetto team from Canada.

November 15

Our amazing coach and former world-cup racer, Deanna Panting, tracked down a bunch of race suits for us to wear, so that we would look a little less like the Mighty Ducks and a little more like a national team. How cool is this: the suits we got are the same ones that the Canadian sliders wore for the Olympics this year!

Shannon and I gave the suits their due appreciation in the hotel room that night …

What? Liek you don't put on newly acquired spandex and try to capture a perfect mid-air moment in your hotel room.

November 16 and 17

My first big skeleton race, and the first time in my athletic career that I have represented my country! It was as exciting and nerve-racking as one would expect.

You are required to have your sled to the top of the track and in a designated place known as “Parc Fermer” one hour before race time. Up to half an hour before race time you can adjust your runners, but after that you are not allowed to touch your sled until it is your turn to race.

I felt like a world-class athlete – our coaches moved our sleds for from Parc Fermer to the start line for us, where the runners were polished and wiped with acetone to remove any, um, questionable coatings. The temperature of your runners is also taken, and if they are too warm your sled has to be put down on the ice for a minute, a process called ice boxing.

You are called to the start line over a loudspeaker as the person ahead of you takes the track. Our coaches made sure our spikes were clean, helped us buckle our helmets and took our jackets when the track was cleared for us. It all felt very … umm … offical ... and kinda luxurious!

But once the track is cleared … well, it’s all up to you!

Each race consists of two runs down the track, and your times are added up for your final placing. In the women’s race the top 20 move to the second run of the day.

I finished 11th of 27 the first day and 13th of 27 the second. My first run down on the first day I PB’d with a time of 61.54 seconds. My last run on the second day was almost a PB (61.60) and good enough for ninth place. All in all, I am pretty happy with my first set of races and induction into the real world of skeleton racing. But more importantly, geez, it was a lot of fun!

And that’s that …! I am back in Squamish now for a few days before leaving for Lake Placid for my second set of races. Stay tuned, as I am sure I will have more bruises to show you!