![Ross Flowers, USOC Sports Psychology consultant, enjoying the Antholz weather](http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee164/lowellcbailey/P1230105.jpg)
Dr. Ross Flowers, USOC Sports Psychology consultant, enjoying the Antholz weather
It’s Tuesday, February 3, 2009 and I’m back in Ruhpolding, Germany after a two-week swing through the southern part of “Biathlon World”. Our latest world cup took place in Antholz, Italy – a beautiful venue and one of my favorite courses to race. It’s sits high up in a mountain valley, about as far north as you can get without hitting Austria. Even though the venue is at about 5,000 feet above sea level, I still enjoy the racing here because the course flows really well. Most of the climbs are longer gradual V2 sections and there are a lot of transitions. This is quite different from other world cup venues like Oberhof and Ruhpolding which feature steeper ascents and descents.
![An afternoon trip to Vipiteno, Italy during our post-Antholz camp in Ridnaun, Italy. That clock tower was around before Columbus!](http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee164/lowellcbailey/P1250118.jpg)
An afternoon trip to Vipiteno, Italy during our post-Antholz camp in Ridnaun, Italy. That clock tower was around before Columbus!
Although my ski time (compared to the rest of the field) improved in the Antholz 10km Sprint, I had an awful day on the shooting range and fell out of contention for the 12.5km Pursuit the following day. This was a big dissapointment but it forced me to step back and re-evaluated my training going in to World Championships in South Korea. It was nice to see Tim come back to form, placing 15th and 11th in the Sprint and Pursuit.
![Weissbier = Carbo loading](http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee164/lowellcbailey/P2020127.jpg)
Recovery.
So now, I find myself back in Ruhpolding, Germany, preparing for the biggest races of the year, World Championships. We’ve spent the week focusing on longer intensity sessions and a lot of highly-monitored shooting training. Ruhpolding is a great venue, both during it’s annual World Cup event but also as a place to train. The staff is passionate about creating world-class skiing and shooting range conditions whether it is World Cup Race Day, or just another training day for the local Bavarian teams.
![A tough day at the office. Ridnaun, Italy.](http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee164/lowellcbailey/P1280125.jpg)
A tough day at the office. Ridnaun, Italy.
Just a few more days here, and then we head across four more time zones to Pyeong Chang, South Korea!
Cheers,
Lowell
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