Great Teammates are Worth Admiring (especially in comparison)
Lately, I've given several examples of what I don't like to see when I come to the Oval, and in my last post I even made a list of what not do do if you want to avoid getting written up on The Protocol. Now, who wants to see some real-life examples of GOOD behavior, for a change?
Two of my favorite American teammates are Jen Rodriguez and K.C. Boutiette. Jen and K.C. are the kind of teammates that anyone would want to have, because they really love the sport and have enough confidence in their own ability that they are not afraid to help the people on the team who are coming up.
A couple of seasons ago, when I was training with the National Team, I sold my old road bike for $50 at a bike swap and was unable to find a reasonably priced replacement. When Jen found out I had no bike to use for training, she let me borrow her spare bike - a really nice Trek OCLV - for the entire training season.
At the World Cup final in Heerenveen this February, one of our teammates hadn't been too happy with her races, and Jen said to her, "Why don't you skate behind me and K.C. in Inzell next week? We'll help you." I thought that was so nice of her.
It's pretty amazing to note how much K.C. has done for his fellow skaters as well. It was K.C. who arranged the deal with DSB and Orbea that got road bikes for the entire US National Team. Once, he even arranged a sponsorship for a young Belarussian skater, enabling him to continue training at the Utah Olympic Oval.
K.C. seems to realize that life is hardest for the skater who is just on the verge of making a major breakthrough. He has also proven that it's not too much of an imposition for him to fire off a quick email or phone call to one of his sponsors, which, in many cases, is all it takes to get the ball rolling on a deal that could really help someone.
There hasn't yet been any Olympic glory for K.C. Boutiette, but I can't think of any other skater who has done more for this sport in recent years than he has. K.C. was the pioneer of "inline to ice," breaking into a sport that was pretty reluctant to accept him at first. I believe he deserves a great deal of credit for paving the way for all of the ice speedskating champions who had started their careers on inlines.
K.C. and Jen seem to have learned one of the most important things in staying on top of the world of speedskating: That other skaters will come and go, but there is no need to try to keep the next generation down in order to succeed. Those who think otherwise may be dismayed to learn that the next generation will come up anyway, and some of them might even remember how they were treated by the ones who came first.
So, thank you, K.C. and Jen, for being The Protocol's ultimate examples of How to Be a Good Teammate. I wish you both all the best in this upcoming season.
Lately, I've given several examples of what I don't like to see when I come to the Oval, and in my last post I even made a list of what not do do if you want to avoid getting written up on The Protocol. Now, who wants to see some real-life examples of GOOD behavior, for a change?
Two of my favorite American teammates are Jen Rodriguez and K.C. Boutiette. Jen and K.C. are the kind of teammates that anyone would want to have, because they really love the sport and have enough confidence in their own ability that they are not afraid to help the people on the team who are coming up.
A couple of seasons ago, when I was training with the National Team, I sold my old road bike for $50 at a bike swap and was unable to find a reasonably priced replacement. When Jen found out I had no bike to use for training, she let me borrow her spare bike - a really nice Trek OCLV - for the entire training season.
At the World Cup final in Heerenveen this February, one of our teammates hadn't been too happy with her races, and Jen said to her, "Why don't you skate behind me and K.C. in Inzell next week? We'll help you." I thought that was so nice of her.
It's pretty amazing to note how much K.C. has done for his fellow skaters as well. It was K.C. who arranged the deal with DSB and Orbea that got road bikes for the entire US National Team. Once, he even arranged a sponsorship for a young Belarussian skater, enabling him to continue training at the Utah Olympic Oval.
K.C. seems to realize that life is hardest for the skater who is just on the verge of making a major breakthrough. He has also proven that it's not too much of an imposition for him to fire off a quick email or phone call to one of his sponsors, which, in many cases, is all it takes to get the ball rolling on a deal that could really help someone.
There hasn't yet been any Olympic glory for K.C. Boutiette, but I can't think of any other skater who has done more for this sport in recent years than he has. K.C. was the pioneer of "inline to ice," breaking into a sport that was pretty reluctant to accept him at first. I believe he deserves a great deal of credit for paving the way for all of the ice speedskating champions who had started their careers on inlines.
K.C. and Jen seem to have learned one of the most important things in staying on top of the world of speedskating: That other skaters will come and go, but there is no need to try to keep the next generation down in order to succeed. Those who think otherwise may be dismayed to learn that the next generation will come up anyway, and some of them might even remember how they were treated by the ones who came first.
So, thank you, K.C. and Jen, for being The Protocol's ultimate examples of How to Be a Good Teammate. I wish you both all the best in this upcoming season.
posted by Eva at 2:01 PM
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