100 Mile skate - Rosh-Hanikra to Tel-Aviv

Five skaters, myself included took advantage of the closed roads during "Yom-Kippur" and skated from Rosh-Hanikra to Tel-Aviv. I continued to Rehovot, setting a new Israeli continuous skate recored at 100 Miles (160 Km).
Watch the video:

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21K race in Jeonju, Korea

Today was the much anticipated 21K race - the peak of the 5th annual Jeonju International Skating Festival.
When we arrived, the atmosphere was amazing. The amount of skaters was incredible, and even more surprising was the fact that nearly all of them had speed boots and skinsuits.

As part of the Foreign group, we got to start at the very front of the pack, alongside the local champions.

I had a great start, and hung on to the pack. After I got comfortable, I started joining in attacks, and improving my position. At first I was shifting around within the first 20 skaters.

As opposed to my competitions at the Worlds - this time I was in a pack of skaters with similar ability to mine, and was able to hold my ground among the leaders. This being the first time I was truly in a high level pack - every second was a valuable lesson.

I learned a lot about how to join the paceline properly, how to prevent people from cutting in front of me, when to rest, when to attack and how to anticipate attacks. Gavin Pullocks advice of using the momentum of a skater pushing you from behind to initiate an attack was especially useful. During the downhill sections the pack would really compress, and if you chose the right moment - you could slingshot out right in to 5th place or so, on the push offs momentum alone.

15 Kilometers into the race, the pack seemed to accelerate (or I might have lost power) and I began to lose it. I tried to catch a few attacking groups and get back in the game, but only ended up zig-zagging along the track and losing more power.

After a minute or so on my own, I fount a "late train" and joined in, keeping the pace, and sometimes leading until the last kilometer, where we all broke out into a sprint.

 All and all, it was a great race, and I learned a lot. I think I finished 30th or so, clocking about 36 minutes for the 21K (average speed of nearly 35). Official results are not yet in, but I'll be sure to update when they are.

After the race, we toured the local expo, and saw the Style-Slalom finals - which were amazing. There was also a friendly slide and jump competition - those guys had moves!

Pictures and videos will come soon.
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Korean culture and track races

This morning our hosts took us for a tour of Jeonju and the nearby area, in order to sample some local culture. First we visited a Buddhist temple just outside the city - it was absolutely amazing. be sure to check out the pictures.

Next we had lunch in a Korean restaurant - they seem to be very fond of "do-it-yourself" type meals. We had raw beef, vegetables, noodles and seasoning served to us on a metal plate, and then cooked on a gas stove installed right in the middle of the table. The food is very odd (acorn jelly - need I say more?), but also very tasty.

After lunch, we toured the "Korean cultural experience" and saw traditional housing, made Hanji (hand made paper), learned about Korean medicine and visited the last emperors grandsons residence.

Finally, we head out to the skating track. Located outdoors, in a large sports center, and alongside a hockey rink - we found a beautiful 200m banked track. After a short skate, we found that it was a bit bumpy, but nevertheless had great grip.

Roi decided not to risk injury on the banked track and decided not to race today. I, on the other hand, raced for 500m, 1,000m and 3,000m Elimination.

500m
I had a bad start, and couldn't catch up. I spent the entire race (all 2.5 laps of it...) trying to get back in the pack rather unsuccessfully. I burned out during the last lap and finished last and far behind.

1,000m
This time I had a good start, stayed 3rd or fourth for a few laps, and managed to take the lead for the 4th lap. While I led for nearly the whole lap, I didn't notice the attack brewing behind me, just before we started the 5th and final lap, the whole pack just whooshed by me. By the time I got my act together and accelerated, I was left fighting for 5th place.

3,000m Elimination
By far my best race. I got into the center of the pack right from the start, and kept my position for a long time. at some point I started fading back - but managed to sprint up to 8th place or so. Unfortunately I was unable to cement that achievement, and was quickly pushed back to the rear of the pack. After about 7 laps, the back of the pack began to thin out, and elimination became a real threat. I lasted for three or four more laps, until finally losing an elimination lap sprint to a skater that was behind me.
All in all I had good races. Roi caught everything on Video, and I even recorded my point of view with a helmet camera. I'll be sure to post the videos soon. It was really great to get some more pack experience - I'm sure it will help me in my upcoming races.

It's very late, and the half marathon tomorrow is early in the morning, so the rest of the pictures and videos will have to wait... be sure to check back tough!
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Opening Ceremony

Tonight was the opening ceremony of the Jeonju Inline Festival. There were quiet a few guests of honor, including the Mayor of Jeonju. All the international delegates were presented - China, Taiwan (Chinese Taipei), India, Great Britian, France and of course Roi and I from Israel. We were personally introduced to the Mayor, and recived a small gift from the federation. The interviews were not to late to come.

During the coming days we will compete at 500m, 1000m and 3,000m track races. a 21K road race and will watch the Slalom and Hockey competitions. I'm preparing an extensive video report, wich will probably be prepared a few days after my return to Israel.
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Toto, I don't think we're in Incheon anymore...

After landing in Incheon, were were greeted by a very courteus Mr. Kan. The latter informed us that the event we came to participate in will not take place in Incheon as we thought, but rather in nearby Jeonju. Just how nearby? a four hour "express" bus ride away...

Finally, after over 24 hours in transit, we arrived in Jeonju. The local federation greeted us with open hands, treating us to lunch, and hooking us up with the event organizers. We were later chauferred to our hotel - the Jeonju Riviera, wich is quite nice.

Tonight there will be the official dinner and opening ceremony, tomrrow there will be slalom qualifications and track races. Roi and I will probably participate in the track races as well. In two days we will race the Half marathon, the race we travelled so far to participate in.
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En-route to Incheon

Roi and I just landed in Bangkok, Thailand. En route to Incheon, Korea where we will be participating in a skating festival and marathon - courtesy of Gyro Wheels and Endless-Roll Israel.

The event is part of the KIC - Korea Inline Cup, and I am quiet sure this is the first time Israeli speedskaters will be participating. The race is on the 9th of September, so be sure to check back for results and reports!
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Results are in!

I just managed to pull up the official Senior Men Marathon Results of the www.cali2007rollersport.com website, and I did much, MUCH better than I thought. At 56 place, out of 105, I'm nearly smack in the middle of the list. Placed ahead of quiet a few athletes from Colombia, The USA and South Korea, who had impressive results in all the other races. That just goes to show how far a little bit of perseverance can take you.

Here is a copy of the results, in case the official site goes down:

POS	NUM	DELEGATION	NAME AND SURNAME	MEDAL
1	120	United States - Estados Unidos	JOSEPH MANTIA R.	ORO/GOLD
2	85	Italy - Italia	LUCA SAGGIORATO	PLATA/SILVER
3	83	Italy - Italia	FRANCESCO ZANGARINI	BROCE/BRONZE
4	84	Italy - Italia	GREGORIO DUGGENTO
5	86	Italy - Italia	LUCA PRESTI
6	53	France - Francia	YANN GUYADER
7	39	Colombia - Colombia	JULIAN ANDRES RIVERA MENDOZA
8	40	Colombia - Colombia	NELSON GARZON ORDONEZ
9	52	France - Francia	THOMAS BOUCHER
10	68	Holland - Holanda	SJOERD HUISMAN
11	115	Spain - Espana	NICOLAY GARIKOITZ LERGA
12	125	Venezuela - Venezuela	DANIEL ALVAREZ
13	37	Colombia - Colombia	JORGFE LUIS CIFUENTES MENDEZ
14	137	Switzerland - Suiza	SEVERIN WIDMES
15	117	Switzerland - Suiza	NICOLAS ITEN
16	33	China Taipei - China Taipei	WEI-LIN LO
17	57	Germany - Alemania	PASCAL RAMALI
18	38	Colombia - Colombia	JUAN NAYIB TOBON CUERO
19	121	United States - Estados Unidos	JOSHUA WOOD R.
20	129	Venezuela - Venezuela	JOSE A. BASTIDAS
21	116	Switzerland - Suiza	ADRIAN LEEMANN
22	51	France - Francia	JULIEN SOURRISSEAU
23	1	Argentina - Argentina	DAMIAN FERNANDEZ
24	94	New Zealand - Nueva Zelanda	REYON KAY
25	2	Argentina - Argentina	DAVID SIANO
26	128	Venezuela - Venezuela	JAVIER OYALBIS
27	49	France - Francia	FABIEN HASCOET
28	5	Argentina - Argentina	RUBEN MARTINEZ
29	56	Germany - Alemania	NICO WIEDUWILT
30	126	Venezuela - Venezuela	FABRIZIO ERVITTI
31	87	Italy - Italia	MATTEO AMABILI
32	118	United States - Estados Unidos	JAMES CHEEK M.
33	31	China Taipei - China Taipei	LI-TSE TANG
34	63	Guatemala - Guatemala	EDY EDUARDO CAROL VILLATORO GOMEZ
35	77	Iran - Iran	AMIRREZA BAHRAENI MOGHADAM
36	47	Ecuador - Ecuador	LUIS CHICAIZA
37	42	Costa Rica	ALBERT ARCE
38	76	Iran - Iran	AMIN MOHAZEBNIA
39	17	Brazil - Brasil	GELBERTO VELOSO
40	101	Poland - Polonia	BARTOSZ PISAREK
41	64	Guatemala - Guatemala	MARCO VINICIO TZUL LOPEZ
42	91	Mexico - Mexico	MARCOS MOTTA SANCHEZ
43	44	Costa Rica	JHONSON ROJAS
44	103	South Africa - Sudafrica	MARCEL LOUW
45	74	India - India	SATHI BRAHMA TEJA
46	21	Canada - Canada	SERGIO ALMERALLA CALVA
47	15	Brazil - Brasil	EDINAZIO DE OLIVEIRA
48	16	Brazil - Brasil	EDSON ALMEIDA
49	102	South Africa - Sudafrica	BRIAN BALOYI
51	60	Great Britain - Gran Bretana	GRUIN POLLOCK
52	75	India - India	VIKRAM BACHU JAGANATH
53	30	China Taipei - China Taipei	CHUNG - WEI CHIANG
54	140
55	99	Pakistan - Pakistan	MEHER EJAZ AHMED
56	81	Israel - Israel	BOAZ ARAD
57	100	Panama - Panama	GABRIEL ALEXANDER CISNEROS GóMEZ
58	71	India - India	DEO SUYASH SUNEEL
59	70	Hong Kong - Hong Kong	DANIEL YEE KAI YEOW
60	61	Great Britain - Gran Bretana	SIMON DAVIS
61	69	Hong Kong - Hong Kong	BONE HO CHEUNG LEE
62	50	France - Francia	JULIEN DESPAUX
62	104	South Korea - Korea del Sur	HOUN HE LEE
63	122	United States - Estados Unidos	JUSTIN STELLY J.
64	112	Spain - Espana	FRANCISCO JOSE PEULA CABELLO
65	65	Holland - Holanda	MARK HORSTEN
66	12	Belgium - Belgica	FERRE SPRUYT
67	119	United States - Estados Unidos	JONATHAN GARCIA A.
68	123	United States - Estados Unidos	SEBASTIAN CANO
69	35	Colombia - Colombia	CAMILO ANDREZ OROZCO FUENTES
70	73	India - India	MARUVADA CHAITANYA
71	98	New Zealand - Nueva Zelanda	WAYNE BEGG
72	89	Mexico - Mexico	ALAN CORONADO FIGUEROA
73	11	Australia - Australia	SAMUEL EVANS
74	7	Australia - Australia	COREY PRICE
75	130	Venezuela - Venezuela	JUAN JOSE JARDINE
76	18	Brazil - Brasil	PAULO MARQUEZ
77	133	Cuba - Cuba	TONY GARCIA ACUNA
78	55	Germany - Alemania	MATTHIAS SCHWIERZ
79	54	Germany - Alemania	DENNIS DRESSEL
80	107	South Korea - Korea del Sur	MYUNG KYU LEE
81	58	Germany - Alemania	VICTOR WILKING
82	66	Holland - Holanda	MICHEL MULDER
83	3	Argentina - Argentina	EZEQUIEL CAPELLANO
84	4	Argentina - Argentina	GONZALO SEGUEL
85	6	Australia - Australia	ANDREW FINSTER
86	9	Australia - Australia	EDWARD DIMMACK
87	14	Brazil - Brasil	DOUGLAS DONATO C
88	28	China - China	HUO JIAMING
89	32	China Taipei - China Taipei	PEI-HSUAN HO
90	34	China Taipei - China Taipei	YEN-SHENG LIAO
91	41	Colombia - Colombia	OSWALDO SAEZ PERNETT
92	43	Costa Rica	ALVARO GUZMAN
93	48	Ecuador - Ecuador	PEDRO COELLAR
94	59	Great Britain - Gran Bretana	CHRISSTOPHER STAFFOR
95	67	Holland - Holanda	RONALD MULDER
96	82	Italy - Italia	FABIO FRANCOLINI
97	93	New Zealand - Nueva Zelanda	PETER HOMBURG
98	95	New Zealand - Nueva Zelanda	SCOTT ARLIDGE
99	96	New Zealand - Nueva Zelanda	SHANE DOBBIN
100	97	New Zealand - Nueva Zelanda	SHAUN PERKINSON
101	105	South Korea - Korea del Sur	JUN HEE LEE
102	106	South Korea - Korea del Sur	MIN HO KIM
103	109	South Korea - Korea del Sur	YOO JONG NAM
104	124	Venezuela - Venezuela	ALEJANDRO SILVA
105	136	Switzerland - Suiza	RAPHAEL PFULG

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Finally - The Marathon!

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia.

Yesterday I raced the marathon in Cali, it was the race I was most anticipating to race. Even more so after I was unable to complete the full leanght of any other long distance race during the championships.

The day began with pouring rain, all the skaters, myself included, changed over to rain wheels. The junior ladies skated in the rain. Followed by the junior men who skated in the remaining mud. Senior ladies skated in rather dry condition, and finally, for me in the senior mens division, the road was completely dry, and the sun came out - way out.

After waiting for over four hours for the previous races, we finally lined up on the staring line. There was quiet a crowd lining the street from both sides for as far as the eye could see. Excitement mounted as the motorbikes took their place, and the official judges gave out final instructions.

Without much warning, we were off. Due to the huge amount of skaters and tight quarters, the start of this race was snail paced compared to all the other I participated in during the worlds. I manged to get in the pack, and kept the pace for a few kilometers.

A tight turn with a wet strip at the apex nearly sent me to the ground. A quick jump averted the disaster. As the pack began to shuffle and pick up the pace, I began to fade farther and farther into the back of it. After another kilometer or two, I finally lost the last skater - staying in the pack for what I estimate was no more than 6-8 kilometers.

I skated alone for a kilometer or two, during which a Chinese Taipei skater began catching up with me from behind. I tried to fall in behind him and take advantage of the draft, but he clipped my skate as I was moving in behind him - nearly sending me to the ground again. By the time I recovered, he was long gone.

After that, a pack of Indian skaters, along with one from Hong Kong, caught up with me. I joined them, and together we caught up with a Costa-Rican skater that subsequently joined our pack. After changing leads for a while. All the skaters in the pack faded back but one Indian skater that stayed with me.

We changed leads for 12 kilometers or so, but towards the end my new partner began loosing power, and pulling less and less. I finally decided to take my chances, and pick up the pace at the price of loosing my drafting partner. He held on to me for a few kilometers, staying in my draft, but faded a short while later. If your reading this #71 - Thanks for the pull!

At this point, less than halfway through the race, I found myself alone, in blistering heat, and battling wind that seemed to always blow opposite to my direction of travel, regardless of which way the road was going. In other words - exactly like I was used to training in Israel :)

Even tough I was slow and alone, the thinner crowd along this section of country road cheered me along waving flags, yelling "go Israel" or "Vamos Israel, Fuerte!", making me feel great and giving me the energy to keep going.

As I was skating alone, I saw quiet a few pro skaters who had lost the pack and given up. I saw skaters from New-Zealand, Australia and more. These pros, who beat me in every race up to now, were going to lose their placing in the marathon to me - simply because I had the willpower to continue regardless of my final placing, and they didn't.

When I finally reached the finish line, the crowed cheered me in, even though I arrived over half an hour after the first skater. Crossing the finish line I felt amazing. I had a good race, and probably scored my best placement in the worlds so far.
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More news coverage!

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia.

On the 25th, the "El-Pais" (translates as: The Country) newspaper published a full page article about me in the sports section. This time the main point of interest was the fact that my mother was born in Bogota.

Click the picture to see the full article. You might also notice, that beside the main article, there is a small "spotlight" section on Joey Mantia (upper left). I really got a kick out of seeing my picture plastered on a whole page, while Joey got a passport picture sized square :)
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20K Elimination Race

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia. 

I just got off the track after the 20K Elimination race. Keeping in mind what I have learned from competing with all these world class skaters the past few days - I started as fast as I could (which still opened a gap between me and the skater in front of me) and dived into the pack full force.

By the time I cleared the first curve, I couldn't believe it, but I was in the pack. Not tailgating the last two skater, but actually in the pack, with about 10 skaters behind me. Keeping up to race speed was much easier in the pack, but I quickly found out that I have a lot to learn about pack dynamics. Every few seconds the pack would shuffle, and it seemed like everybody knew exactly were to go but me. Every time this happened, a skater or two would pass me, and then I would catch up, sometimes riding in two of my overtaker.

After about two or three laps of this, the pack behind me began getting quiet thin, and I lost my draft during a pack shuffle. On my own now, I took comfort in the fact that I saw at least one Indian skater behind me. I then focused all my energy, both mental and physical on staying ahead of him, and not being lapped out before the next elimination.

"Push, Reach, Push. Keep your hands of you knees, stay low, repeat". This mantra kept me going for about three more laps against a vicious headwind, until the anticipated elimination got me off the track. When I got off, I counted at least four skaters that were already waiting on the sidelines.

Having improved the amount of laps I actually managed to skate, and maybe even my overall ranking compared to the last race, I'm quiet happy with the results. The official ranking has not yet been posted, I´ll be sure to update when they are.
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Local Media Star

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia.

The local media is making quiet an issue about the fact that I am here in Cali alone. Pumping the angle that I function as Delegation leader, Coach, Photographer, Skater Etc. Today I had another TV interview, during which they insisted on shooting some videos of me taking pictures of myself.

I've uploaded quiet a few new pictures, mostly of the 10K and 500's.
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500m Road Race

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia.

This morning I raced the quarter finals for 500m track. I was up against athletes from the USA, France, Brazil and Mexico. The first two of each heat qualify for the semifinals. I had a good start, nearly hanging on to the pack for about 2/3 of a lap (the whole race is 1.25 laps). Eventually I lost them completely, and continued to concentrate on getting the best time I could.

Being last in my heat, I did not qualify for the semifinal, but I think I had a good run, and I have a feeling that I won't be last when the final results are announced (disqualified athletes are ranked by the qualifying runs time).

Tonight I race the 20K Points Elimination Road Race, and I'm hoping to do better than the 10K last night.
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10K Points Road Race

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia. 

Yesterday was the 10K Points Road race. I had a better start than the last races, only nearly avoiding a massive crash on the starting line, that left an Ecuadorian skater lying bruised on the ground. I managed to stay with the pack for about a round and a half, then once I was alone, focused all my energy on not being lapped by the lead pack.

While I was alone, The Equadorian skater who fell earlier actually managed to get back up to speed and pass me. He was quiet impressive and probably would have done well if not for his fall. I managed to hold out for nearly 5 laps, until being eliminated for being overtaken by the lead pack. At 54th place, I'm 4th from last which is the best I've done so far.

I found out this morning that there was a TV interview of me broadcast last night, Since my Spanish isn't great, I couldn't quiet figure out what channel or what was the content of the broadcast. Either way, I'm getting quiet a lot of media coverage here.
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Front page news!

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia. 

An article published today in the "El-Colombiano" newspaper featured me on the front page of the sports section. My Spanish isn't all that good, but I believe it is part of a larger article about how all the different nations at the competition are getting along. It also talks about the fact that since I am alone here, I function as the Israeli skater, delegation leader, coach, photographer and so on...

Click the photo for the full article.

Today were my 200m Road time trials, scoring 24.41 left me last in the senior men category. Cutting two tenths of a second off my time would have placed me second from last, ahead of Hong-Kong. Still, I'm having a great time, and hoping to do better in the 10K points race tonight. My goal is to last at least 10 laps before being lapped out of the race.

I also just heard that the marathon will not be a point-to-point race, as I though it would, but will have a 8K roundabout at the end of it. This means that slower skaters might be lapped out and eliminated even in the marathon. I am truly hoping to be able to complete the marathon. At least the possibility of being eliminated is great motivation to skate faster :)
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500 Meter Track Race

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia. 

Today I raced the 500m Track, I was in the first heat, along with two Koreans (who have been putting on amazing performances so far), Two Americans (Joey included), and one Brazilian. So just keeping up would be very, very hard.

Again, I didn't have a good start, but nearly caught up with the pack on the first corner, after that, I lost them completely. By the end of the race they gained nearly half a lap on me.

Regardless, it was a great race, and just being there was worth it. Click the photo for a very nice larger version!

Later I got casted by Jason McDaniel for a custom boot. He owns his own brand, and makes the customs for Cado Motus as well. Haven't decided if I'll get the boots yet, but since I probably won't have another chance to get casted, so I figured its worth 15 minutes of my time.

Tonight I'll be watching the relay races and tomorrow is our day off.
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Finally some photos!

I´ve finally got some photos up, check them out here.
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Baptism by fire

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia. 

During the Junior Ladies 15k track elimination race, a crash left two skaters rather severely injured. I doubt they'll be racing again this Worlds. They may not be able to race at all. These two were only the worse of the lot - there was quiet a pileup.

After similar events occurred during the Junior mens race, I began to think that it may not have been such a good Idea to race track after all. Nevertheless, after the senior ladies race, I took my place at the starting line. Second row from the start, two guys to the left of Joey Mantia, and in front of Peter Doucet of speedskateworld.com (and Canad, for that matter). This was the first time the caliber of skaters I was racing with really sunk in.

With the Indian skater just 30cms or so in front of me, and the memories of the recent pileup still vivid, I was afraid to start at full force. I and figured I'll start just slightly slower so I don't bump into the guy in front of me. This was a fatal mistake, I was quickly pushed pack right from the start, and found myself skating the course left to right, fighting to find someone to draft.

Without a proper draft I quickly faded, managing to skate less than three laps before being eliminated along with Cheung Lee of Hong Kong. At least I managed to stay ahead of him, thus ranking second from last. Later during the race Mick Byrne of Austrelia was disqualified for fouls, thus pushing me up to third from last.

On the bright side, this was a learning experience. During my upcoming road races, I'll be sure to start with all I'vegot, and if I end up running into the guy in front of me, I'll give him a push. I'm sure he'll appreciate the boost.

Being my first ever international race, it truly was baptism by fire. I really was hoping to complete at least six or eight laps, but all in all, 56th place in the Worlds is not that bad...
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Racing Today!

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia.

Today I finally got my first chance to have some track and road time at the stadium. The skaters here are blisteringly fast, and most of the ones I skated with during the warm ups were juniors...

Still, I don't think I'll find myself finishing last at the races.

After giving the banked track a go, I started feeling pretty comfortable with it, and decided to enter into the track races as well. This means that my first race at the worlds will be tonight! The 15k points elimination at 17:00. I'm going to try my best to stay ahead, and avoid elimination for as longs as I can. Being one of the 17 skaters to finish the whole 75 laps would be amazing, though I'm not counting on it.

I'll also be racing the 500 meters tomorrow morning, so be sure to tune in.

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My first days in Cali

World Inline Speedskating Championships, Cali, Colombia.

I haven't been able to get at a computer (or a phone for that matter) since I landed in Cali on Thursday (the 16th). The past few days have been amazing, and I'll try to recap a bit of them for you. Unfortunately there will be no pictures, as I have no way of uploading them just yet.

On Thursday, an official transport picked me up from the airport. I was taken to the Mudejar hotel, where I met the Pakistani, Moroccan, South African and Polish teams. They are all very nice people, and we have since become good friends. Sebastian of inlinenews.de was also part of our group - he came over to Coach the Moroccan skater.

On Friday morning I went to see the track the Colombians had prepared for the races. It was quiet impressive. A pristine asphalt 400m road track and a shining new, masterfully constructed 200m banked track.They also had all the participating nations flags flying alongside the road track.

The first event I participated in was the technical mini-congress - a meeting where all the delegation leaders were briefed as to how the events will take place.  Every country had a small flag on it's desk (yes, even Israel!) and I felt like some sort of ambassador. There was a lottery to determine the order in which the countries will race. Later during the meeting  I was taken aside by one of the organizers in order to listen to the national anthem they had prepared in case I win any races. The Colombians apparently had no difficulty getting our flag and anthem right. The Italians on the other hand, had some trouble, as their flag was hung upside down at the track.

We returned to the hotel for lunch, and were quickly shuttled back to the track for the opening ceremony. At the track, there were flags waiting for each delegation, and Colombian army pilot cadets in full ceremonial dress were there to carry banners with the countries names. There was also a full brass band. We ended up waiting to begin the ceremony for over three hours. We passed the time by playing a multi national game of ball tossing. I have never seen so many people so excited by a simple ball...
When it was time to finally march out, each nation was also assigned a girl in what they belived to be "customary dress" for that nation. The Israeli girl was not far off (if you consider the Givatron bands outfit custom Israeli dress) - but had something on her head that I can only assume was supposed to be a Yamaka. I was quiet amused by this.
Marching out into the arena, I couldn't be prouder of carrying our flag. The stadium was packed, and the crowed was cheering. I later learned that there were quiet a few people from the local Jewish community in the stands.
Once all the nations completed their march a Guinness world record was set by having over 1,500 dancer dance to Salsa music in the stadium - It was really a sight to see.
You can see all this and more, here in this video of the Opening Ceremony.

After everything was over, I was invited to Shabat dinner by a locat family. I really enjoyed meeting some of the local community, and it was a pleasure to feel a bit at home even this far away.

Saturday was the first day of races. We had the 300m solo track time trials, and the 10k track points elimination race. The solo skaters were blisteringly fast, with times of under 25 seconds. The 10k races were most exciting. Especially the 10k Junior Females, in wich two Korean skaters made a surprise move at the start - LAPPING THE ENTIRE PACELINE and thus eliminating all but 8 skaters very early in the race!
The lap times for the 10k were very impressive, between 18 and 20 seconds per lap - that means 36-40 kph!

There was a bit of a tragedy at the 300m solos, when Cailin, a New-Zeland skater and former world champion, pulled a muscle at his startoff, and probably will not compete again this world championship.
You can see the complete race results here.

Other than that, I've been meeting some real interesting people, to name a few: Joey Mantia, Nicole Begg, Diedrik of Cado Mutos, Alexander Bont and many many other coaches and skaters that are very accomplished abroad but less known in Israel. It's only been two days since I got here, and it's been damn amazing!

Tomorrow I'll probably get some track time for the first time since I got here, that will still leave me plenty of time to get used to it before my first race on the 22nd. I've also decided to enter into the 200m solo road time trial, and the 500m road race even though I'm not much of a sprinter.

I'll try to upload some pictures soon, though I don't know when I'll get my next chance to write.

Best regards to all my friends that are watching the championships from home - I really appreciate your support!
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Go Team Pines!

The afternoon started early today, as I head out for Brian Piccolo Park.
I made it there just after 5pm, and by the time I got my gear together, it was about 17:30. First I tried the velodrome - the banked track was tough as I was not used to that kind of skating. It really took the wind out of me. My Stomace was also politely but firmly reminding me of the 20 ounce hamburger I had earlier.
On the track, I met Wayne - A very interesting guy from Jamaica, who turned out to have friends in Hertzlia.
I quickly gave up on the Track, and went out to the road course. I skated a few short intervals. There was quiet a headwind, and it was very hot. So by 18:30 or so I was already rather tiered.
At approximatly 19:00, though I had nearly given up on them, the Team Pines gang began showing up. Mostly 10 to 16 year old girls, with better skates than what most Senior skaters have in Israel (Simmons, Hypers, Pinnacles and such).
I met Vanessa, the coach filling in for Juan, and Ayo (I hope I got the name right) - who were very hospitable and welcomed me to their practice.
Later I met George of Liberty Sports (inline speed frame manufacturer), along with his wife and son. streetsk8r from the Skatelog forum, and of course, the famous Panch0 - also from the Skatelog.
We had a great training session - Ayo, George and a kid, whos name I belive was Alex, really gave me a run for my money.

Just before I left, I met Zack - a Pakistani Living in the states that will be coming to Cali with me tomorrow to represent his country. We'll even be staying at the same hotel.

I Shot some great pictures, and even tried out my new ATC-2K helmet cam. You can see the resulting Video here. As you can see I still need to work on getting the viewing angle right...

Before he left, Panch0 gave me a small sovenier from our rendevouse, I'll be posting about it when I get home, it's a surprise :)

Finally meeting some speedskaters from abroad was a true delight, especially thoes that I've been talking to for almost a year on the skatelog forum. All in all, I had quiet a great day!
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2007 Inline Speedskating World Championship in Cali

This years Inline Speedskating World Championship will begin on the 17th of August, at the Colombian city Cali. I have been selected by IRSA (the Israeli Roller Sports Association) to be the first ever Israeli speedskater to participate in the world championships since they begun in 1979.
I was most honored to be selected, and hope to represent my country respectfully.
On the 12th of August, I shall begin my journy to Cali.
During the next month, this website will become somewhat of a "racing blog" where I will try to post my expiriances, thoughts and of course pictures from the trip and competition.
Be sure to check back often after the 12th!

Boaz.

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