Thursday, January 26, 2012

Members of the Mens USA Bobsled National Team Training Videos

Hey Everyone

Really quick I just wanted to make you all aware that in hopes to get more exposure for the sport of Bobsled and to show the hard work it takes to be a member of a National Team we have created a channel on Youtube.

Please Check out some of the Training videos posted by members of the USA Men's National Bobsled Team!!! at http://www.youtube.com/user/TeamUSABobsled?ob=0

We have a handful of videos up now but more are to come!! Be sure to subscribe to our channel so you want miss out on any future post!

Thank you

Jesse

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Part 2 First Half Update

It’s been a good while now, I trust everyone has fully recovered from your Christmas and New Year Shenanigans!!! (Hey Favra what’s that restaurant you like to eat at with all the stuff on the wall!? Oh you Mean Shenagigans!? OOoooooo!! Lol ) and are well on your way in fulfilling your New Year’s Resolutions.

Now where were we…hmmmm…..starting memory enhancing…Enhances…..Enhance……Enhance! lol

Ah yes, the interesting people that I met coming back from Germany. After the last race we drove two hours to Frankfurt where we spent the night in a hotel five minutes from the airport. Just a quick FYI throughout the season there are really only two nights during the season where we as athletes get a chance to relax a bit; the first is the break after the first half of the season and the second is the night after World Championships. It just so happened that the Canadians were also staying at this hotel for the night, making for some good fun challenges that ended with a few people sleeping in later than they originally planned. I can neither confirm nor deny the reports of one of the Canadians missing his originally planned airport shuttle and allegedly running after said shuttle in an attempt to board it! Once again this is purely speculation! Lol

After successfully waking up to catch my shuttle from the hotel to the Frankfurt Airport I was looking at a sixteen hour travel day!! My first flight I managed to squeeze in a few hours of sleep in between watching movies (this would pay off later in the story). Ironically enough as I searched for a good movie to watch it dawned on me that I may spend a little too much time watching movies and T.V shows! Why do I say that you ask? Ding! Ding! Survey Say!! Because I had literally already seen 95% of all the show they had to offer T.V and Movies, Das ist Nicht Gut! Actually as I type this I just turned off the T.V next to me!! Lol I may need to read a bit more. Curse you Hollywood you mother of all temptresses with your shows of wonder and amazement!

Sorry I'm back on track now. Unlike others on my team I was not heading home to be around family for the holidays although I would have greatly enjoyed that. Instead I was heading back to Colorado Springs in preparations for the second half of the season and any possible testing/race offs the coaches may throw at us. The longest leg of my trip was the nine hour flight from Frankfurt to the Washington Dulles Airport, which as I mentioned was not to eventful but ironically very important. From there I caught a three hour flight to Colorado Springs where I had to pleasure of meeting Stuart W. Symington. I’m not sure if it’s due to the fact that I have traveled so much over the last ten years but I can now tell when I am going to have a good conversation with a person sitting next to me on the plane, this was the case when I met Stuart on the flight to Colorado Springs.

As I boarded the plane I was in straight Zombie Mode equipped with headphones in blaring music from my iPod. While I was preparing to sit down I noticed this guy who looked to be a good 6’4 in a suit behind me motioning as to say he was sitting in the window seat next to me. I took one of my ear buds to better hear what the guy was saying. To my astonishment I heard a booming voice come out as if this guy was the White House Speaker. He was holding his suit coat in one hand and a drink from Starbucks in the other. Without hesitation he looks at me and says “Hey you mind holding this for me?” I’m not sure if was just his general candor but something told me I was about to engage in a good conversation. At that moment I agreed to hold his drink and decided to take my other ear bud out, wrap up my iPhone and place it in my pocket. Immediately after we sat down the conversation begins. We exchange normal pleasantries ending with both of us respecting each others career choices (I have to admit I was astonished at what all Stuart had and is currently accomplishing). It turned out that Stuart is currently working at NORAD/NORTHCOM and was previously an ambassador to Rwanda and several South American Countries. There is a ton of things this man has accomplished but instead of listing them all (sorry Stuart I hope you don’t mind me talking you up) here is a general link about him http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/115603.htm .


We began talking about City Planning, Foreign Policy, Domestic Policy, how to effectively build relationships between communities, and how to address gang and drug problems that we are having in both the USA and Mexico. Keep in mind people I am physically and mentally exhausted from a brutal first half of racing and travel. As I was listening to every bit of insight that Stuart was providing one of the main thoughts going to my head is “Jesse please use some five dollar words so you don’t sound like a dumb athlete!” lol. Nothing against any of the conversations that I have had since beginning Bobsled but I had forgot how much I enjoyed in-depth mentally challenging conversations, it was by far one the best conversation I ever had. Halfway through the conversation we conversation we actually came up with a project of similar interest that we could assist each other with so we exchanged business information. As we continued to converse I could see the gears turning in Stuarts mind; and each time I asked what he was thinking one great ideal after another came from this man including the Name of the book for my Autobiography. To say I was in amazement was an understatement, Stuart possessed an honest general concern for his common man and I find that rare. The conversation continued until touchdown and ended with us exchanging contact information before parting ways.

After grabbing my luggage I hopped on the OTC shuttle that was awaiting me. I was very happy that it was only a twenty minutes ride from the airport to the OTC since in New York it’s a Two and a half hour shuttle from Albany to the OTC in Lake Placid. Upon my arrival I was pleased to see that dinner was still being served. I have to say that after a long day of traveling having fast food as my sole source of nutrition a good meal at the OTC was more than welcomed. (Come on that’s a line you would see in a fancy novel or a T.V stars inner monologue! Lol I am handing out gold here and no one wants it? You’re killing me smalls you’re killing me!)

Once I was done eating I went to my room to begin unpacking my bags along with everything I had packed in my car and that I had in storage in the OTC. By the way have I mentioned it was 9pm by now and I had been traveling since the crack of existence the day before!! But for some reason I tend to have OCD when it comes to settling into my room. Because I can never really seem to sleep until every little thing is unpacked, in its correct place and my bags are stored where they need to be. Jesse what time did I eventually go to be you ask…? Why 1am naturally but thank you for asking. What’s that you say….What time did I wake up because surely you slept in right? Sleep in? Are you kidding me you talking about SLEEPING IN!? SLEEP IN?! WHAT YOU REALLY ASKING ME ABOUT SLEEPING IN!? Being that I am brilliant and all Naturally woke up at 6am ready to eat breakfast and start my normal training routine.


As usual after I was done training I hit up Sports Med to stretch out, Ice down, and spent 30 minutes in the Normatec Recovering pants (Air pressured compression pants that aid in muscle recovery). I then returned to my room and figured I would shoot Stuart an e-mail to revisit what we had talked about the previous day. Later on that evening I received a response back from Stuart which eventually led to him inviting me to an annual Holiday lunch for his family and some of their close friends the following week. Yeah Exactly I was blown away by the invite myself so of course I accepted it.

The following week I met with Stuart and his group at the Garden of the Gods Club house for lunch. Unfortunately I did not have a blue blazer to where which was preferred, but I did have a nice shirt and tie which fit the occasion. For the record I have been to many luncheons to date but ironically and no offense to anyone but this was one of the most impressive luncheons I had been to. Not to mention the fact that the Symington’s as a family have their ducks in a row!! This was not your average luncheon! From the parents down to the kids in high school everyone here were world travelers and were fully aware of what was happening socially and economically. I want say any specific names but the high school kids were doing well in sports (golf, basketball, football and I believe swimming) and in their class work. When it came to those children college age and older, one was going to film school in Singapore, another was studying to be an actor in New York, one as a paralegal at a law firm, another was working on her Doctorate in Microbiology. Since Stuart was now working for NORAD/NORTCOM I also meet Lieutenant General, USA Deputy Commander Frank Grass, as well and a very successful multiple restaurant franchise owner named Christopher. Yeah yeah when I type it out it sounds like a random group of people but in actuality the thing that everyone there had in common was their ability to turn their work ethic and drive into success!

Among the general lighter get to know you conversations that you would expect at such a gathering Christopher posed a very thought provoking question. He asked us “Considering all of individual success how could we use our motivation to inspire others around us? He also asked us if we thought that the majority of our piers possessed the same since of pride in country as generations before us?” Once again I was thrilled to express myself in another format other than squatting an ungodly (That was a play on words because we were at the Garden of the Gods Club…..come on people!! Gold I tell you Gold! Lol) amount of weight or pushing a sled fast as Hermes!! (Gold again people!) After the lunch we exchanged pleasantries, I left and went to go workout. Another day in the life of the International Man of Mystery that is Jesse Beckom III! lol (come on that is funny!). The conversation was great and full of several good answers.

If you cannot tell I had a blast at this lunch getting to know Stuart , his family, and some of their friends. I may have only been in Colorado Springs for ten days, but in those ten days I met some great people, started a new project that will be very fruitful, made headway on a current project and had some solid training days! It was a Great Christmas Break.

God Bless Everyone

Jesse

Friday, January 13, 2012

2011-2012 Bobsled Season First Half Pictures

Greetings everyone I have posted the pictures form the first half of the season just paste the following link in your browser. http://www.jessebeckom3.com/37.html

Thank you