Working to keep up.....

This is a post to share an amazing thing that I have enjoyed during the last two season. In Melbourne here we have a great environment with numerous boat sheds right next to the city on the Yarra River. What's amazing is that for most of the athletes we can combine training and work. Many of the guys that are in the squad here are very conscious of gettig the balance right, but more improtantly not throwing away careers that are developing. So there are two things I want to mention here, first many of the rowers that I know in Melbourne are focused on keeping the balance and some normality to life. We are all working to keep our careers up and running and this is critical for being productive. The other aspect involve here is that currently we have a remarkable group of athletes. I reflect on this because tonight I trained with the guys group in our state eight. We are preparing for the inerstate Kings Cup event in a couple of weeks. The core of this group has been working together for two years now and it's excitting to be involved with them. They have a professionalism that will be greeted with much success in the future as they all have great capacity. It's is not that I have spent a great deal of time training with them, but I am aware of the drive they have and it's inspiring. What was noticable tonight was the impact the state teams have on all the rowers on the river bank. The Yarra is a fantastic location and this current group of guys and girls in the senior ranks are setting some high standards for many of the young rowers to look up to and admire. Being one of the older elite rowers offers me a luxury of having seen a few of the recent developments and changes in our sport. It's cyclic and right now this wave performers are challenging the system and setting a trend that is critical not only for their success, but also for all those young athlete who hope to follow in their foot steps on and off the water. So I know I am working to keep up and loving the challenge.