The X - What ?

This season ends now. Everyone rest or start the basic training. For yourself or with someone you think about that happened this year. About advantages or disadvantages, failures or victories.
Some moments you have as a little clip in your mind. I remember me at the incrediable races in Gera - where all the top athlets skated in amazing times the 200m round. WOW
More memories are for example the 200m of Wouter Hebbrecht in Gera, The roadpointrace at the eurpeans of the senior men or some heats in Groß Gerau.



But one memory let me think about it in a special way. Of course it has something to do with Joey. Yep the most of us are fans of him. But had you seen the sprint of Berlin. That was unbelivable. PS Alessi leaded the hole pack. I hadn't Joey in my mind - i saw Alessi winning. But what was this on the left side?
After some days i could download the sprint in the internet. Thanks a lot for this.
So i watched it in slowmotion. After that i realized what he did.
Joey skated from the 1/3 of the page to the first positon. Incredibable...



They exist moments in your life, which you often can't believe really. "What happened?" - I had often gaps in my memories. Probably it was the right or wrong decision, no matter it's / it was in sport or other parts of life.
But what i believe that these creates your "good small chance". Not like i described some weeks before. I mean that this feeling/moment/chance/idea or what is something by coincidence.



Take the X and make it. If the 1st X didn't work got, take the next.

friendship goes to the next level - 2009

The season 2008 is finished & it was a fantastic year for Juju and me & friendship. This is a little summary about the skate season, a great friendship and the fun which we had together =) I will tell you something how important is friendship in sports!

Friendships like ours are very helpful to get better results in races and other things you talk about with your friend!
For example in training: It´s better to have a partner who coaches or even better a friend who trains with you! It felts better than you could imagine & it is very helpful. You think in your mind “I don’t give up”. And the others says it too. So you get a harder training & it´s more profitable for you and your friend.



The 2nd thing which is important and without a friend it doesn’t wont exist. The thing is FUN, HAPPINESS & you should never lose your way of life and the question why you SKATE ! That’s the real and most important thing to be a great & perfect skater.
“Everything is possible”, but without a friend who stands behind you there´s no chance to get better and the victory will be move in distance…

I have found my friend. His name is Juju & he´s my BEST skate friend. I think we know us for perhaps 1 ½ year. Now he´s a part of my life & a part my passion – Speedskating. It´s sad to know that he lifes in Hamburg and I in Erfurt - so far away. We couldn´t train together - it´s a fact but no obstacle !
He is every time in my mind. When I got to school – he is in my mind. When I go to train – he is in my mind. When I go to a race – he is in my mind. Look! He gives me the power I need to win.

Juju and I talk about every fuckin´ shit. About Girls, School, Parties =), Skate competitions, rumours, skate things and other stupid and funny things we ever heard or read or seen. And I will tell you that I think that he is the best calling partner of my girlfriend. =)
That´s why he´s my real best skate friend and that is it why a friend is so important to be a good people and skater in one person!

Please - no family

Somewhere in the world....


30 minutes left ...
You're on a competition right now. See all the other athletes while everyone warming up and preparing theirself for race. You do it to...

25 minutes left ...
You did a few practises by jogging etc.

20 minutes left ...
"Ohh only 20 minutes" think you. You have time. No hectic or stress.

15 minutes left ...
You feeling good right now. The body is warm; the muscles are ready to explode by movement; your mind is free. You do some exercises which bring yourself a few seconds to your limit - only some seconds - maybe you do it again.

10 minutes left ...
"So now it's enough" - You relax now - stretch a little bit. You check again your mind. Think about what could be in the competition. Millions of different situations - but don't be stress. Keep it easy baby ...

5 minutes ...
Now you're in the competition feeling; ready to suffer; ready to risk; ready to life.
You see all the people, who are interest to see the race ... to see the sport ... to see passion ... to see good and bad times ... and some want to see you.
Some will say "Good luck!" while smiling to you - some will clap their hand with yours ...
And a group of people will remember you ...

No matter what will happen the last 5 minutes - in the deepest level of your mind something moved. Something really special.

The race is over - „The result is strange....." you say to yourself“I though I would be better - ok I had some problem with _____ and the ______ wasn't so good. But ok, next time I try to do it better"

Other trainer, athletes or friends start to small talking with you. Nice or? I like it very much. After a race to start talking. Maybe you get a tip or a push of your supporters. I will check these, what could be good for me. Or maybe it's a point on which I thing about it and this lead me to another discernment. Good for me...

„What’s up with you?!" - Screw someone behind you - "It's that the honour which you give me?!" - You turn around and think „Who is that?"

The answer: your family

Little kids are happy. Little kids are sad or angry. Little kids dreaming. Little kids are inquisitive. Little kids are trying. Every minute ... every second.

But the thing which I like most is that little kids not tell you a lie. You think in this moment that this isn't true - that I tell you wrong thinks and be self a liar. But that is true. Maybe they start to joke - but without a bad ulterior motive. They want to have fun - no matter which age you're - you want it to.

So what would a kid do when you criticize by persons like your parents? And remember - you're the little kid who influence of everything. 10 opinions - Which you would choose?


A basic fact of education is that a person can learn everything. It's not like the ethical thinking- in which every person has a destiny or biological austerities from the parents.
I give you one example:
- in the Nazis time (30's and 40's): kids and youth were a tight part of the society. They were in the Hitler Jugend in which the government force them national socialistically thinking.

What every you want - you can teach it the kid(s). Whether they are the beautiful blond girl or the sporty active boy. Tell them it, show it.... but first - listen.
Without the details about a problem you can do nothing. No matter what they'll tell you - because there is a reason why they tell it you.

Every one of us has problems.
Some people more or less. But we have.
Every one of us has different problems.
Some people more or less. But they're different.
Every one of us has special way to work with the problems.
Some people do it good or not. But a problem is problem.

Every one of us has different problems in their part of life which every one of us works different.
Kids don't know in there short life time without big experience about belief, motivation, risk or defeat.

This is for all parents - in the next sentences I don't want to criticize you. It's your kids who you love more words can say. You all want only the best. You want to see your children shining.
But in one point some parents destroy it. They destroy it by involving theirself into a thing were they aren't able to do the "right" choices. We all now that the word "right" or "wrong" is relative.
Without a dominate coach or leader (dominate in a good way) what a young person should think about a race. Without tips of experience of a known people.
But please don't criticize your kids in sport! That is a thing which I hate. Really hate. At home is at home. Don't talk about the problems from home. Don't do it! It destroys in less than 1 second all the time of preparations. It's the weekend - it's the time to shine. It's the time to make dreams true. So be a supporter with the though „what sever you do - I will stand behind you. Whether it was bad or good - I will support you. It's your life and your decision - If you have a question - I will tell you my experience if I can". So if you were a sport person too - you could be able.

Everyone of us can have a bad day. Heavy legs or not the mental power to day.
People make mistakes - mistakes make people.
Don't be angry of sad. Sleep one night and try to be better.

My heart is a phoenix

A phoenix is a mythical bird with a tail of beautiful gold and red plumage. It has a 1,000 year life-cycle, and near the end the phoenix builds itself a nest of cinnamon twigs that it then ignites; both nest and bird burn fiercely and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix or phoenix egg arises, reborn anew to live again. The new phoenix is destined to live as long as its old self. In some stories, the new phoenix embalms the ashes of its old self in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in the Egypt city of Heliopolis (sun city in Greek). The bird was also said to regenerate when hurt or wounded by a foe, thus being almost immortal and invincible — it is also said that it can heal a person with a tear from its eyes and give him/her temporary immortality; a symbol of fire and divinity.

What for nice myrrh. Image: you were hurt of sth. or someone, when you're sick or mental down - you should burn by yourself. To stand up at the end and to be 100% back. 100% of beauty, 100% of belief, 100% motivation, 100% of dreams, 100% of . . . . . . Of yourself.
If you would regenerate by your tears - no matter it would be your family, friends, and people of trust or deprecators - How often you would cry?

In life sometimes you come to a point where nothing works. No matter it's in school, sport, work, family or........ . You're feeling bad, sick or weak and maybe you aren't proud of yourself. Perhaps you made a mistake - maybe not.
Probably you hurt yourself or by other people. You crashed in a race, you didn't shoot while standing in front of the football goal or didn't learn for a class test and get back the worst mark which exists.

In all of these cases you should burn - burn in yourself - to make a restart - go back to your basics. You will be born again out of your ashes - you'll be 100%
Do what you want to do - run, scream , cry , smile , read , listen , dance , skate , jump around , cycle ,swim , ....
This will be your time in flames.
! But don't destroy something or hurt someone!

After your rebirth you help people with your phoenix tears. Without a rebirth - with no 100% of yourself - you would kill yourself. If I haven't much money, I can't support friends or another people. You would break your neck by yourself.


It isn't changing.
It isn't a comeback.
It isn't medicine.

It's you.
It's your heart.
You are the phoenix.

Do Whatever It take to Communicate

The biggest advantage of race radios isn't what you think it is.

In the middle-90s in cycling only the leader were connected by a radio/headset to the team manager who sat in the car and told the leader what he had to do while driving. Or only riders who had a reputation as being the eyes and ears of the pack had a radio too. But not the domestiques („servants") had a radio -they were the unconnected part of the team. That means that only a little part had information for the tactical plan or the next kilometres of the race.

But in 1999 changed something. There were one team where everyone had a race radio. Everyone was connected to everyone. The name of the Team was US Postal Service. The American team had this advantage of technology first. Because of that fact they could react faster.

Some of you know the discussion after a race where everyone said "I though you would go with the breakaway".

I thought that all trainers, managers or coaches tell her athlete brilliant things- like tactical things he/she has to do for winning. But I was wrong.
After time of thinking I came to the conclusion that if I would be the voice in an athlete’s ear - I would push them mental. I would be the voice which remembers to your basics, which is a support for you mind. How often your body tell you that here is the end? And how often you continue and continue?
I agreed to often to my body and I didn't continue that much how I would like.

The good small chance

We all know the millions of tactical movements.
We all know the strengths and weaknesses of us. Maybe you could have an idea - maybe you have help of teammates or a loyalty cooperativeness of friends.
If you try to win - you lose.
If you don't try to win - you lose for sure.

So if you're at the start line and you image that you haven't any chance for the victory - you're beat at the start line.
In a basketball game you have to point for win. In football you have to shoot goals.
So what you will do? What you have to do?

In my (juju) skating career I tried one time to break away. It was 2007 in Berlin. There was the XRace which was a WIC B- C races. It was after the half of the race. Every round there were point sprints and I don't know but I was 900m before a points sprint in front of the pack. I broke away - a reaction of..... (I don't know what it was) - But I tried. And skated and skated - push after push I came closer to the finish line. I looked behind me - to see what the pack it going to do. Nobody followed me. There were 2 things - The pack with all the big names and I.
At the end they caught me - 1 meter before the line 2 skaters pasted me. That was my good small chance.

Trust People - Not Products

Technology can help you win. So can a team bus.
A solid recruiting program, an inspiring mission statement. But none of those things actually do the winning. A million dollars can't ride a bicycle. Neither can a million bits of data. Races aren't contested in wind tunnels. It's the people who perform.

Many people think that it's the technology which made you to a winner. A full-carbon time trial bike, custom made skates, a 1500$ swim suit or time trial helmet. All of these things could be look very cool and very professional. Maybe these things push your ego too. But they can't give you the power, endurance or believe.

In Paris, at the end of that Tour de France in 2003 Lance Armstrong had only a cap of 61 seconds to the 2nd Jan Ullrich - the smallest cushion every. Lance won in 1999 by 7:37 ; in 2000 by 6:02 ; in 2001 by 6:44 ; and in 2002 by seven minutes flat.
Lance said to this manager Johan Bruyneel „That was too close".
Johan: "Never again so close"For the next tour they wanted to ratchet up the intensity for their race preparation for 2004. They analysed everything. Lance told Johan what he wants to do for his preparation of training. It was a near insane level.
But they heard things about Jan Ullrich's time trial bike. Some experts said that this bike is the fastest on earth.

For this reason Johan and Lance started a program, the name was F-One, in which they wanted that all sponsor of Lance come together. He wanted that every company customize their products with the other company. So Nike, Giro, Oakley and Treck worked together.
The result of F-One sounded good. Of course very good. It was a multimillion dollar development initiative.But at the end Lance didn't rode the one million dollar bike. He said that for him it was an uncomfortable bike. He didn't like it. Viatcheslav Ekimov (a rider of Lance's team) borrowed the 1million dollar bike and rode to a silver medal in the Olympic time trial.
But for Lance and Johan the real million-dollar payoff was the reminder that the heart of winning lies heart. Technology can help you winning. But it's the people who perform - out on roads and all across the world, whether their ambition is to win the Tour the France or to break a 300m time trial record or open a restaurant or find a sponsor for the youth-league uniform. And it's the people who have the heart to ignore the distractions - of money and technology and managers and everything else that to be part of our lives - who win the most.

Start to begin

Hello Blog,
we are Paddy and Juju. Two normal guys who love sports and life their passion of speedskating. On our site we want to bring you closer to our points of viewing. The texts could criticize some opinions - mabye yes or maybe not. This page is for normal people like you and me. We want show you, that sport on a high quality level isn't an impossible goal or kind of life. There so much more things and will talk about nice experience of us and of course bad ones. So we hope that you'll click next time on our site again.

paddy & juju