Calgary training under way!

The dog days of Salt Lake City and Russia are finally at an end. Honestly, Salt Lake was long and dry, Russia was a nightmare, and I'm so happy to be past the month of January. This month felt less like skating fun and more of a "job" than ever before.
For those who were concerned about the Moscow trip, all was well and we made it safely to our hotel in time. There was a suicide bomber in another airport and it went off just hours after we landed. Thank God the rest of the team was not flying into that particular airport. There were also 2 suicide car bombings that happened during the week as well. It is so sad to think that this is "normal" in Russia.
On a good note, I did my job by earning enough points to stay in 3rd overall in the 3k and top 10 overall in the 1500. We also qualified for World Singles in the Team Pursuit. Yay for the ladies!
Thankfully I'm back in Milwaukee and trying to regain some strength for the Big Show...World Allarounds. The past 8 weeks have been really tough on the body and mind but it feels like I'm going to come around just in time. Last year I was able to earn 5th place. I'm hoping to at least match that or even podium. We will see!
Until then,
Peace.

New Season

Honestly, the start of the season was pretty rough. I was a little zapped from the 2010 World Cup and Olympic chaos. It was a good chaos, but chaos nonetheless.
I was frustrated, I couldn't keep up with anyone on the bike, and I was running like a 10 ton tank. On top of all that I was still dealing with the loss of my mother. By the time fall came around I just came to grips with the fact that skating just might not be too stellar this year. I became determined to keep my outbursts at bay and just go with the flow.
Boy did I have the surprise of my life when I came out on top at the World Cups! I came out a winner and topped it off with November Athlete of the Month.
God sure does keep things interesting! I never know what he's going to pull out of His sleeves.
I DO know that there were a lot of lessons over the past 6th months. Most of them were on patience, perspective, and staying quiet enough to hear His voice. Selfishness and frustration can be so deafening.
When the drive for success gets loud I really need to stay focused on the calm. Things like "why didn't I get that?", "that's not fair", "I wish this would've happened" are so cloudy.
I'm very excited to tackle these new goals. They are not necessarily goals of higher placement, but mental goals. I guess we'll see how it goes this second half of the season with slightly higher pressure.
Starting tomorrow is the US Championships followed by our Regional Qualifier for the World Allarounds. I've been eating cookies, not actual food, for the past several days over Christmas...so we shall see how much trust I can muster up! It was not looking so pretty at this morning's practice.
Stay tuned.

Jilleanne Rookard - Salt Lake City

Febuary2010 006

post Olympic thoughts

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who followed me at the Olympics! People have been asking me if I had the time of my life at the Games. Of course, I say 'yes' but not for the reassons most people think. Most of Febuary and the months leading into the Olympics was pretty stressful. The media was hounding and exausting, the training was intense, the mental game was draining, the politics was an absolute nightmare. It was not what I expected at all!
The first night I arrived at the village I went for a walk down by the water. I was reflecting and thinking about how beautiful everything looked at night. I was also thinking about the paralympians for some reason. Some of them are blind and they would not get to see the city, the mountains, the venues, the ceremonies... At first I felt sorry for them. But then the only thing they get to experience is the raw excitement of their accomplishments along with the people that hear their story.
So I found myself so thankful to God that I get to do all that as well as see the beauty of the Olympic experience. In some ways I thought that the blind may be the lucky ones. They probably compete with a heart that all athletes should have and are more thankful than many of us with full abilities.

Rookard Racing in Vancouver Olympics!

More Rookards Roll into Vancouver

Well, the rest of the Rookard clan finally made it and the entire city certainly is aware. I walked onto the oval and I could hear them cheering from every corner. It was a proud moment to hear their voices in the stands cheering my name and cheering for USA.
After racing we all headed down to the P&G to meet and grab some dinner. Most of them were already hitting up the bar and taking lots of pictures. No children and free drinks lead to embarassing moments. We got it all captured at the Crest studio upstairs where we all posed for different winter sports backrounds. Of course, the married couples got a little carried away. But it was all in good fun and will make some great memories.
While some of the family came to the village, Brian rented a car for $20 to drive into the mountains alone and with 15 cans of Coca Cola. Rosanna mentioned she wasn't sure if it was $20 per day or $20 per mile. Brian didn't seem to get all the details. He tried to call me but the call was dropped. I guess I'll see pictures from the adventure tomorrow...hopefully. He may have gotten eaten by a bear or got lost in the wilderness or ran out of gas or passed out from the caffeine/sugar overdose. Nothing has been confirmed as of 13:00.
Trevor is finally done with his individual races. I'm happy about that because I get more nervous for him than I do for myself. Because of him I may be more known for my screaming than for my own skating. That is something I'll have to work on that for next season.
So, the 5k and pursuit are next. The distance race has been my best performance of the season so I hope to rip off a good race. Wish me luck!