2021 has come, and an overview of 2020 as well
The year 2021 is here, also the end of February - the most important since the beginning of the year and an overview of 2020.
We opened the year with dignity with Anette on January 1st - we went kayaking! 😊
01.01.2021 Pärnu River
04.01.21 we went back to Jõulumäe Sport Centre to do another training camp (we were in the camp at the end of 2020). That was awesome and I hope to give you a more detailed overview someday, because I don't want to prolong an already long blog post.
09.01.21 Training Camp at Jõulumäe
The most important information I want to point out is that on January 24th, it became clear to Anette and I that we are not going to the Yukon River Quest this year either. The competition can be held primarily for locals. 85% of start-up fees are refunded to foreign teams. The waiting list can be re-registered, and if the travel regulations become clearer and there is an opportunity, it would be possible to go to the competition this year. We made the decision not to plan our actions during such a confusing time and tender hope. Canada's 715 km will be postponed for another year for us - a new destination 2022! This year, the focus is on the Võhandu Marathon, and time will tell which competitions (in the Baltics or also in Europe) can still appear on our calendar. What we sure do - tainings, getting better and stronger.
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Now, if you have the interest, the effort and the time, read my review for 2020. For me it feels like a pretty multicolored year 😉 Situations from edge to edge.
Situations from 2020 and the people around me
2020 January: Anette and I started the Taliharja Vanakuri - Winter Ultra Endurance competition with the aim of training. I had to quit at the 60th km because my left knee didn´t let me move forward. Anette ran 101 km to the end. At the time, I had no idea I would be on the operating table with my knee this year. Professional rehabilitation and the journey to healing began under the guidance of physiotherapist Jaana Torp. I also realized that I needed a coach next to me, who would help to draw up a systematic training plan, make sensible decisions about the races (meant with training purpose), etc., so that the Yukon ride would be the best in terms of well-being. In January, I still had a definite (in reality: absurd) plan to compete in the Yukon River Quest around Midsummer day.
2020 In February: the cooperation with my current coach Eiko Toom started. The results we achieved by the autumn of 2020 were, in fact, far beyond expectations for me. Of course, Võhandu's last performance was not solely related to physical training. But most importantly: very good communication with my coach; finding solutions for my problems; overall Eiko's support, when the knee surgery was right in front of my eyes, was very important to me. In addition to Eiko and Jaana, Külliki Taylor helped to decipher my world of thoughts (since the end of last year). In addition to the previous main topic (which was nutrition problems in competitions), a knee injury, recovery, organizational issues in the light of the Yukon, and extremely fast-moving time arose.
2020 March: it became clear that due to the situation of Covid-19 in the world, Yukon River Quest had been canceled and registrants had a choice: either let themselves be moved to the start list by 2021 or get back 80% of the registration fee. Anette's and mine joint decision was to move our registration of Yukon River Quest immediately to 2021. In fact, for me, it was a real drop in tension with this extra year. At that moment, it was not quite clear what had happened to my knee. According to my coach´s words, it was known that during such a long marathon, such injury problems can hinder the performance a lot (incl. a higher probability of quitting the race). It also became clear on March 13th that the Võhandu Marathon will not take place in April. All the spring competition plans disappeared like a hoop into the water. Looking back, I wouldn't have had any competition on the subject in April anyway (due to my knee situation). But the training continued. We were considering the situation of my knee.
2020 April: I received initial feedback on an MRI scan of my knee. Nothing looked good. Together with the coach, I found out that I needed a more professional look at the story of this whole knee case. The first call to Dr. Madis Rahu was quite frightening, but on the other hand also reassuring, because he deepened into my problem and did not focus on a quick and unsustainable solution. I also had some relief from physiotherapy at that time.
Recovering from the knee surgery
2020 May: it became clear that I needed to go to the left knee surgery. On the operation table and under Dr. Madis Rahu's firm hand I was already on 19.05 morning. The fear had big eyes. I had never had any surgery before. Fortunately, everything went smoothly (arthroscopy was performed: partial excision of the knee meniscus and partial synovectomy of the knee). And oh how sweet sleep that hour (general anesthesia) was. Immediately after surgery, I had close contact with Jaana and Eiko. The schedule was busy. Change of cooler bags, exercises, arranging meals, going to the shop with crutches, etc. In retrospect, this time went smoothly and the recovery process was very successful.
2020 June: the focus was on knee recovery from surgery. But already around Midsummer's Day, Anette and I were able to train a bit. It turned out that the Pühajärve Regatt would take place on July 11th, and the added 10 km distance (Heino Kurvet´s memorial competition) seemed suitable for the first competition of our common season.
2020 July: appeared that if the situation in Covid-19 did not force the cancellation of sports events in the autumn, the Võhandu Marathon in September would be one of the most important performances for us. Anyway, the Pühajärve Regatt (on the lake), which took place on July 11th, was successful for us, I felt good and the knee did not show any noticeable pain (less than two months after surgery had passed). We paddled 10 km in ca 50 minutes, 7th place in the general classification. For me, it was a largely controlled ride, with a good feeling (except for the start, because I raped properly, like a sewing machine).
Pühajärve Regatt 10 km
Photo by Jüri Jõepera
2020 August: became quite tight in terms of activities. Between 09-13.08 I participated in a training camp (focus on general physical preparation), where Jaana accompanied me at my request. There was a bit of concern in the air, as the surgery had been performed only about two months before. For me the best option was to participate in a training camp under the specific eyes of my physiotherapist. The camp was very fierce! The camp company warmly welcomed me. I realized that it is super great to do sports together! I liked that there were challenges during training. It was clear that my weakest side was running, because just before the camp my longest distance in jogging had been 400 m. It was a pleasure that the knee promised to do almost all the activities and the general capacity had increased since the beginning of the year. (After my own training camp, I run the Taevaskoja Youth Camp for youngsters, where I have helped to organize camps since 2012).
Summer training camp at Jõulumäe
On August 30th, the Estonian Championship in Seakayaking took place, which Anette and I included in our plans so that we would get a competition feeling before the Võhandu Marathon (even though it was on the sea). It is no secret that the will was definitely to take the first place in our class, because unlike the multiple Estonian champion Anette, I did not have a single Estonian champion title at that time. (While I have compared this race with Võhandu, the latter is many times more valuable to me personally, and I believe it will remain so).
The fierce thing was that in 2020 there was a real sense of competition at the start of the sea marathon. It seemed strange to me that I was unusually calm somehow. I have also told Anette that she brings me such a peaceful mindset, a mental balance. Anyway, before the start, we were faced with the choice of which kayak to go with, either the WK 640 Marathon (provided by the World of Kayaks) or the WK 640 Sport we got from Aix Team Estonia (also WK production).
The WK640 Sport was chosen and we confirmed while racing that we had made the right choice (as it is way more stable in the sense of keeping balance). There were waves, and we were able to focus on the paddle pull with peace of mind "like sitting on my mother's lap." With a decent ride, we became Estonian champs in sea kayaking in the women's double kayak class. It was more of a good confirmation for next week's Võhandu Marathon than an euphoria in itself - everything seemed to fit!
2020 September: 15th VÕHANDU MARATHON is a big keyword. How did we do on the Võhandu Marathon, swing from here: "What's coming, is coming ... but in full" - Võhandu Marathon 2020.
I also started acquiring the profession of EKR-3 assistant coach, specializing on kayaking.
Before the start of 15. Võhandu Marathon (100 km)
Photo by Gunnar Baum
2020 October: Anette and I managed to do a lot of training together. We did a proper training on the Emajõgi River. The goal was to paddle the Suur-Emajõgi River for 100 kilometers with so-called one story, i.e. without leaving the kayak. This training included separate objectives: 10 consecutive hours of sitting, organizing systematic nutrition / fluid intake, and emptying the bladder in a kayak. Maybe you would want more information here, how did we as women manage this in a kayak? Well, we used an aidtool (check the picture below) that works very well. The experience of 10.5 hours in a row in a kayak turned out to be a very valuable experience, especially for Yukon.
An important aidtool
All in all, we managed to go paddling together in Tartu or Pärnu for 7 consecutive weekends. The Yukon River Quest (2021) was still in sight.
In October, Anette and I also went to Tartu to measure body composition and take a test. The test was performed on a kayaking ergometer.
2020 November: my focus was on self-development on entrepreneurship (business) topics. I attended the training "Entrepreneurship, business plan preparation - a full course that works". Trained by Maison Solutions and Tuuli Stewart. It was a very exciting and, in a good way, brain-intensive month. Sport training was done in parallel.
Picture by Tuuli Stewart
2020 December: we were hoping that a winter camp in Jõulumäe would take place. At the beginning of the month, I had a training break. I dealt with my business plan, took time to read, and to be with myself. Christmas was lovely and peaceful with my own family. On December 25th we gathered in Jõulumäe and the training camp started. My workload was a little lower compared with others. The camp was very private, as the center could not afford 100% occupancy. The artificial snow trail allowed us to ski even when the underground forests were green. At the end of the year appeared the opportunity to make another training camp right from the beginning of the year 2021. It was immediately certain that we took this very good opportunity.
Us at winter training camp :)
Well, that's how multicolored 2020 was in short. 😎
We are moving on. Although we are not going to Yukon this year, we are still preparing for it (for 2022)! 💪
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