Measuring Success

Im currently sitting in Salt Lake City airport after a very long two weeks of sliding, with some very big lows and some highs to match. It has me thinking, how do you define progress in achieving goal? We toil away, hour after hour, in pursuit of a passion. In my case, I lift endless amounts of weight, run sprints, sand runners etc. all for the pursuit of excellence in the sport of skeleton ( if you are not working towards your passion I would suggest making a change in life) The work either brings us to our goal or we fall short of our expectations. But is it this simple?

Looking back on the last two weeks, the first was one of the toughest weeks of sliding I have ever gone through. I prepared all summer for the season and was physically prepared, but my problems came in the form of sled setup and sliding errors. I slid very fast in initial training, but raced very poorly. For a few days I was really down on myself. During the next week I set a plan to fix all of the issues I had in team trials. I systematically attacked each weakness that led to the poor result and by the end of the second week, had one of the most productive sliding weeks of my life. Its only when we are truly challenged at the edge of our limitations that progress is made and sometimes it takes having your face pushed in the mud to realize what needs work.

I observe many results focused individuals in the athletic world that surrounds me. There is a sense of hyper-focus on medals within this community. People attach attach their identity to their results which makes the highs higher and the lows lower. While it is tempting to forget about a poor result, there is a proper response to failure. I have always loved failure. If failure is responded to properly it is yourbest friend. It will teach you more than you would ever learn during success. While results have to be the gauge by which we measure ourselves, I believe there is more to the story. As we head down this road of self improvement, we improve ourselves in ways unseen even to ourselves, and even unrelated to the task at hand. The challenges of today are molding us for a tomorrow we may not fully understand what that picture looks like. In this way the process is more important than the result.

Ill look to continue this process based momentum next week in Lake Placid, before I leave for Intercontinental Cup tour in Europe on Novemeber 21st.

Perfection and Wine

When you think of the words perfect and wine, what do you think of? Most people identify this with 100 point wines. These are wines that stand atop the world of wine. In human terms, they are comparable to the Einstein’s and Mozart’s. They are the exception to the rule. They include the likes of La Landonne, Latour, Insignia and Romanee Conti. They share immeasurable complexity, length, texture, aroma, flavor and make it hard to believe that a mere grape could produce something so transformative. Their presence in the mouth makes it hard to believe there is anything else that exists in the world at that moment. These wines come from highly specific terroirs, where grape is matched perfectly to site, where the human hand has acted as the perfect compliment to relay the perfect essence of the wine to the consumer. The perfect wines of the world are a minority, a product of unique circumstance and abilities, just as the Einstein’s and Mozart’s of our world are. But how do the masses experience this type of perfection in wine? Unfortunately, it requires enormous financial outlay beyond the reach of most.

The question for the rest of us is, are there other ways to experience perfection in wine? Can we find a way to match the sheer power of the 100 point wine experience?

I believe the answer is yes! Some of my most poignant experiences with wine were not the La Landonne and Latour’s of the world. They were perfect “moments” with wine. They involved a 92 point barbera, Josh Groban, egg noodles, a sage and butter sauce and good friends or a perfectly seared rib eye steak enjoyed in the comfort of a beautiful woman with a 90 point Malbec. While I have been lucky enough to experience perfect 100 point wines, where the wine commands total attention, the perfect “moments” where wine serves a supporting role can be just as powerful. Whatever the moment manifests itself as, the wine flows, the food simmers and passion burns. Caring, genuine conversation flows as minds escape the everyday to loftier purposes. Here, as wine plays the supporting role it weaves in and out of the conversation of friends and lovers. It is the lubrication to the experience. It allows us to let go just enough to let the perfect imperfection of our lives to be just enough for us in that moment. We don’t have to be Mozart to be part of something that is just as powerful. Not every wine can be perfect, but every wine can serve a perfect role.

Switching Gears In Life

The question I have on my mind these days is when do you let go of a good thing to pursue something better without fully knowing what that better thing looks like? You know there is another passion within you that is tugging at your soul, but how to get to it? How do you let go of your current passion, something that defines a large part of you, something that is comfortable, something that you love? At what point do you stop growing because you arent being challenged enough in that current state? At what point do you let go? You could be missing the next phase in your life...when and how do you make the change? These are certainly not easy questions.

These are the questions I face as I look beyond my career as a skeleton athlete. I am lucky to have a passion that I love just as much as my sport and that is wine. There is a special place in the world of wine that holds my soul and it is Barolo Italy. This is a truly special place in the world of wine that combines a unique combination of people, food, wine and passion that I have never seen duplicated in all of my travels. This is a place I MUST live for a portion of my life. When I choose to let go of sliding I will be headed to Italy to start a life that I know very little about, except that I will be doing what I love in a place that I love. For now my abilities and passion lie with sliding as an athlete, but as time continues I see a part of myself growing, and it is growing quickly, that yearns for something new. A new place, new people, new stimuli, new life. Every day my spare time is filled with reading about wine and teaching myself italian. I guess thats all we can do. PREPARE. Not just for what is in front of us now but for the other directions that we feel ourselves being pulled. If we are not preparing ahead of time for the next stage we might just miss it. HONEST introspection is critical. It will take faith, risk and planning. Follow your heart. Easier said than done.

My competitive nature and love for the sport of skeleton will make my eventual departure from the sport difficult, but paying attention to my heart will tell me when the time comes to switch gears. When I make this decision there will come a time every year when the feelings and scents of the cold air that usher on the sliding season will undoubtedly stir my emotions. And as the vines sleep I will feel a nostalgia for what was the last chapter of my life....and if im lucky it will signal a time to return to that world and coach other skeleton athletes to pass on the knowledge that I gained over the years. For even if you make a drastic change in direction in life you take with you what you left, whether you remain a part of that world or not. It is a part of you and will remain so forever.

As I get ready to return home from my Olympic season, thoughts of friends, experiences, and memories overwhelm me with emotion. The smallest things bring me to tears as I think of the magnitude of the life I have lived so far. The contrast of disappointment with the beauty of the life I live. Why was I so lucky to have this experience for the last 14 years of my life? I feel truly blessed. As my mind wandered I thought about home as I read Adirondack Life on the plane. I thought about how diverse the culture of the Adirondacks is and how much it still means to me after 14 years of traveling around the world. The richness of the Adirondack experience, the layered complexity of the existence. The remarkably unique behaviors of the people who live there and the activities they pursue, the opportunities for creativity that lie before them in the vast Adirondack landscape. The stories, the adventure of past years. While the Adirondacks are becoming more trendy these days as well as being outfitted with modern luxury, they are so vast that they should never lose their character. If the uniqueness of Adirondack life has given way to such a complex and interesting brand of people, I have to believe s that the richness of life all across the world goes mostly unseen if it has taken me 26 years to only scratch the surface of the Adirondack park. The little nuances of lifestyle, the stories that sprout and the culture of these places are based on the local environment, history, tradition etc. I think about how complex America must really be, how much we miss when we zoom by the freeway, when we don’t engage people, when we stop at mcdonalds instead of the local diner. The world is a very rich tapestry with layers of color and complexity and this seems to be why I have been so drawn to exploring it, as well as blessed to have the opportunity to do so.

A little recap of the trip to Mosel wine country before tour started this year.

Stokes and I arrived in Frankfurt at 700 am with the normal feelings of jet lag, dazed, confused and not really sure where my place on this earth was. Luckily this is a transition I’m used to making. After stokes and I successfully procured our luggage we hopped into our 9 passenger Mercedes bus and took off onto the autobahn hoping that a day of inspiration in wine country would be just the remedy we needed.
The first trip on the Autobahn every year is as big of an adjustment as the jet lag. You think you’re going fast and then your passed by a 7 series bmw doing 200 kph. Before you know it you’re up to speed and it becomes a little more normal but the first time back is always a shock. The drive into the Mosel river valley from Frankfurt is fairly uninspiring, that is until you reach the switchback roads that drop directly down to the Mosel through some of the steepest vineyards in Europe. At our first switchback we could see thick fog blanketing the town of Traben in the river valley below, as a vineyard plummeted off to the right side of our car. What a welcoming sight.
Our hotel was on the waterfront in Traben, perfectly situated and one of the nicer hotels I have stayed at in Europe. Our room was extremely spacious by European standards, with two floors and a deep soak tub. I took a shower to rinse myself of the days travel, followed by a 45 minute nap that was extremely difficult to wake from, before our 100 appointment at Markus Molitor.
Our drive out of Traben gave us a great idea as to what Mosel is about, perfectly sandwiched towns along the river, abutted by towering vineyards to the rear, oxbow turns in the river and what felt like a very gentle way of life. The blue slate in the vineyards was so intense that during this time of year, without leaf cover, the soil appears blue. Like Cote Rotie, you can tell that there is substance to the people that handwork these vineyards, simply by looking in awe at the ruggedness of the vineyards.
I arrived at the Molitor estate only to find it under construction. I met Markus Molitor, who was in the middle of a meal with his wife, and he kindly redirected us to the temporary tasting house in the town of Zeltingen, two kilometers away. After zigging and zagging through the tight streets of Zeltingen we arrived at the Molitor offices to taste some wines. Naturally, my jet lag limited my attention span, but I managed to take quite a bit away from the visit. Molitor is a very large winery by mosel standards. Our guide told us that Molitor makes over 50 different wines. I was struck by the flexibility and individualism that is allowed under the German wine law, more so than its old world counterparts with their “DOC” restrictions. The control that the winemakers have on when to harvest and what to produce varies so much from vineyard to vineyard and producer to producer. One year a vintner might produce a kabinett from a vineyard and the next year that same vineyard might produce auslese, it all depends on the vintage and what nature gives them. It also gives the winemaker a lot of flexibility to tell the consumer about his vineyards terroir through his decisions on when to pick and what to produce. In Mosel there is a lot of single vineyard desgination, the terroirs are unique and demand individual representation. I also noticed a lot of varying vineyard orientations, something that was strange to me being so in touch with piedmont where most nebbiolo vineyards are planted south-southeast. Riesling classifications (from kabinett to TBA) are done by must weight, or density of liquid (sugar concentration) so within a category, say auslese, you can have a huge variation of must weights within the range that defines auslese, as well as the resulting sweetness based on how long fermentation is carried out. Sometimes you will see stars that will indicate the level of must weight within the range. A few producers, including Molitor do this to help their consumers.
We tasted through 8 or so wines, with varying levels of sweetness. Urziger Wurzgarden, Zeltinger Sonnenuhr, etc etc. All wines were very strong examples of mosel Riesling with some pushing 93-94 points. I did not take many notes here as my attention was limited by the incredible exhaustion I was feeling.
After our trip to Molitor, it was off to a pizzeria for a late lunch as we tried to tackle the challenge of not falling asleep too early. 800 rolled around and I was struggling, stokes suggested we hit the town to try and stay up a little longer. From our hotel we could see a neon sign, which turned out to be the only disco in 50 km. I hesitantly followed Stokes into the night. We sat down and had some drinks, greeted by the pungent scent of cigarette smoke that seems to cling to some European bars, despite recent rules to ban smoking. It was a slow night at the disco, but we immediately began chatting with a German kid named Chris. Chris was the dj here, but he also worked selling Audis, this was just his hobby. He grew up in the area and was very welcoming to Stokes and I. Eventually we met his friends as well. We passed the evening drinking and talking about all the things you talk about with someone from another country that you meet for the first time, ways of life, families, hobbies, oddities of each culture etc. Before we knew it we had stayed up far longer than we thought was possible, thanks to new friends and new culture. We made plans to meet up the following night.
The following morning I awoke early to a beautiful morning. The tranquility of the Mosel flowing by our hotel was too much for me to resist, so I threw on my spandex and set out on a run. I stepped out the door of the hotel only to be broadsided by the smell of fresh baked croissants and other German breakfast delicacies. I fought the temptation and headed down to the Mosel where there was a perfectly paved bike path. The path was lined with small houses, almost Hansel and Gretel like, with wood piles stacked to perfection as only Europeans do. After each bend in the river new olfactory surprises greeted me, the steep blue slopes of the vineyards, swans passing time by effortlessly floating down the mosel, an old lady walking her small dog, greeting me with “guten morgen”. This run was sensory overload and I loved every moment of it in the still peace of a Mosel River morning.
After getting my blood flowing we headed off for a day in Bernkastel. We wandered the beautiful Christmas markets, a sensory overload that every human being should experience. I took some photos, but quickly became bored and needed some enological inspiration. I spotted a gluhwein stand. Gluhwein is normally red, but here in Mosel it was white, made from Riesling. Quite tasty might I add. Stokes and I sat down to sip our Gluhwein and take in the sights when a small blue pellet clanked off of the bench. We looked up and two small German boys were shooting at us, nervously poking their heads out from the edge of window when they realized we had spotted them. We managed to cast half joking, half threatening looks at them each time they poked their heads out to prevent further assault. As I looked down I saw pellets everywhere, this was obviously sport for them, one that I envied being too old and mature to partake….well I guess that is debatable.
We felt the urge to head into the vineyards that tower over Bernkastel. We wandered up through the streets until we broke out above Bernkastel into blue sky and vineyards. The view was stunning, the sweep of mountains that followed the Mosel’s oxbow turns, the bustling city below us, castles on distant horizons, vineyards on almost every slope. I headed up into the vineyards to check out the famous blue slate soil. Stokes and I had a bit of a touristy photograph session as the beauty was absolutely stunning. As we headed back into the city I counted myself blessed to be here.
After our descent into the city, we continued on across the bridge over the Mosel to the wine museum. The museum was well appointed with self service interactive displays that covered all of the facets of the region and Riesling production one could imagine. It seemed like part of the museum was closed as it was the slow season, but the interactive displays were enough for me. After acquainting ourselves with the region, we then headed over to the enotec where one can taste up to 150 rieslings in season. There were only 50 or so for us on this day, but I figured it would do. The basement of the building houses large metal racks that ran down two corridors that must have been 150 feet long. On each rack was the producer information, pictures, background information etc. In front of each rack was an open bottle of each producer. To gain entry you pay 5 euros for your glass. The wines are all self service and there were a few groups of people who were clearly taking advantage of the Riesling glut! I tasted through most of the 50 or so available wines, quickly becoming bored with the kabinett section. I generally enjoy these with food rather than on their own which is why I was having a hard time tasting through so many kabinetts. My Riesling sweet spot is something with balanced sweetness and a little more tropical essence as well as that racy acidity to balance.
We headed over to the next corridor where the spatlase and auslese wines were hanging out so I could get my fix. I tasted the first two and clearly we were on the right track. As I proceeded through the room I noticed a lot of empty bottles to my dismay. I then looked to the corner and a group of 8 or so had staked out the room for what had to have been a very long time, because most bottles were empty and they were smashed! Not bad for 5 euro! Shortly after a staff member came through opening more bottles. I tasted through all of the wines. I was still quite jet lagged so my attention and record keeping was not what they normally are. Rather I was just trying to get a feel for the styles and terroir differences between the vineyards. Finally I looked at stokes as we seemed to share the same target, the Zeltinger Sonnenuhr auslese from molitor. We were both on the same page, tasting time was over and drinking time was now. We grabbed the bottle and sat back and enjoyed the 93 pt wine ( my palate). The auslese and spatlese levels from Molitor are wonderfully rich and tropical with bracing acidity and deep aromatics. These wines age beautifully as well. It was a treat to spend the afternoon with this bottle in musty cave under Bernkastel.
We headed back to traben to meet up with our friends that we had met the first night. Michael picked us up and we headed to Chris’s house for homemade pizza. Chris lives in a beautiful apartment that looks over the mosel from a perch high on the west side of the river. We started out with some kabinett Riesling, passing the time chatting about video games and the differences in movies in America and Germany. It turns out that the titles of many movies we would find common get changed for foreign markets…interesting and funny because the translation back to English can be hilarious. I popped a special bottling from molitor, 2004 vintage, and poured it to all at the table. The young lady picked up her glass, and at the same time I looked at stokes, thinking the wine was corked, she pronounced that the wine was corked and that it was too bad. All I was thinking was “that was hot”. I guess women with acute wine sensory abilities are my thing! I complimented her on her wine tasting abilities, but she shrugged it off saying that her family was in wine and saying everyone here knows about wine. We had a great evening and headed off to the disco for more entertainment. The evening passed with dancing and merriment. I felt weird drinking Riesling in a club, but hey, when in Rome! Our time in Mosel came to a close in the same way it started, partying the night away. In the morning we would head off to winterberg for the start of tour.

Headed to Vancouver

Im headed off to Vancouver tomorrow night to get my first look at the Olympic track. Im looking forward to good look at what has become the fastest and most dangerous track in the world. Im flying into seattle and driving up to save $. I hear it is a beautiful drive and I am looking forward to it. Ill update everyone when I get there!

Conclusion of Team Trials

Our four race team trials series has concluded and we are now into our season. Team trials were a very mixed experience for me. I had problems in Lake Placid which is usually my stronghold and slid well in park city which is normally more of a challenge for me. My first race in Lake Placid was a solid 3rd place, but was followed by a freak 5th place after I made a very big mistake in curve 4, which cost me a half second on my first run. I placed in 4th both races in park city, which numerically is not the position I want, but I was very close to the fastest sleds, more so than in the past, as these two races were incredibly close. On a more positive note all of my summer training has paid off big time. I am the fastest I have ever been, as I set a personal best in Park City on the start at 4.87. I am currently staying on the west coast until I leave for the intercontinental cup on november 19th, which starts in Winterberg Germany. I will be doing some sliding and alot of physical preparation for the Intercontinetal cup. With both the world cup and intercontinental cup teams named, the next step in the selection process begins. We will have 7 international races before the jan 20 date when the Olympic team is named. On this date the points that everyone has earned will be added up and the top 2 or 3 ( depending on how we perform as a team) will go to the olympics. Im headed up to Whistler to the Olympic track on the 3rd of November to get a good look at the track to prepare for later in the season. I hope all is well with everyone.

Caleb