Katie Koczynski, Part Two
Express: Can you describe your training regimen?
Katie Koczynksi: During the season, we will slide every day. We will take two or three runs. It takes a lot of time though because sometimes there are 30 people in a session. We do a long warm up before we slide and then usually a cool down afterward. Later on in the day, we will go to the gym or the running track and work out.
Express: When you're training/competing, what's an average day like for you?
Katie Koczynksi: Wake up, eat, warm up, slide, eat, run/lift weights, work on sled, watch sliding video from that day, eat and hang out, and go to sleep.
Express: Do you change your diet as part of your training throughout the year?
Katie Koczynksi: I don't really change my diet. I try to eat protein with every meal. I find that if I eat a lot of carbs, I am hungry sooner. I also feel light headed. Protein makes me feel energized and strong.
Express: Does this sport favor small/light people or big/heavy people? Or is there some complex dynamic between weight, drag and strength?
Katie Koczynksi: Right now, this sport is open to all body types. I think that either the weight limits (for sled and athlete) will change or we will start to see a trend towards bigger women. In the past, we had women who were big but not fast at the start but would make up time down the track and we had little women who could run fast. Now we have big women who can run fast. I think body type has something to do with it. If you are aerodynamic (you look flat when you lay on your stomach), you have an easier time.
Express: Does the sport favor a gender? If so, is it males or females, and why?
Katie Koczynksi: Guys usually have faster times because they run faster, are heavier and their sleds are heavier. If all things were equal, I don't think there would be a difference.
Express: Is there a track you can practice on in the summer? Is it made of ice?
Katie Koczynksi: There is no iced track in the summer. There is an ice push facility in Calgary, Alberta Canada. My team and I usually go there several times throughout the summer to work on our starts.
Express: Is there some kind of rig or short track that lets you practice "getting on the sled" over-and-over again?
Katie Koczynksi: We work on loading in the push facility or sometimes on an ice rink. I do special push up exercises to make my core stronger so that I can load onto my sled even if I am off balance.
"Guys usually have faster times because they run faster, are heavier and their sleds are heavier. If all things were equal, I don't think there would be a difference."
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Express: When someone wipes out, does the person generally stay on the track or actually fly off it? And, if someone can actually fly off the track, which is worse - staying on or flying off?
Katie Koczynksi: I think people have flown out, but it's not the norm. Typically, you stay in the track. It would be VERY bad to fly out -- some tracks are 20+ feet above the ground [so] it would be hard to survive.
Express: Is there anything about the suit that protects the slider during a wipeout?
Katie Koczynksi: Bobsledders wear "burn" suits that protect their arms and shoulders from ice burns. The ice burns occur when the heavy bobsled flips and pressure is put on the athlete's shoulder. Some Skeleton athletes wear pads that protect their arms and hips, some do not. Typically, on race day you do not pad because it makes you thicker.
Express: How much do you worry about wiping out? How many times have you wiped out? Have you suffered any injuries while sliding?
Katie Koczynksi: You worry about wiping out when you are on difficult tracks that you are not comfortable on. I have had some hard hits, but I have never "wiped out" and lost contact with my sled, knock wood. I have had bumps and a lot of bruises but no serious injuries, knock wood.
Express: Sprinting plays a big part in skeleton, getting a fast start is important. Are you exceptionally fast compared to dedicated sprinters? When you're training, do you repeatedly do 50M dashes pushing a sled? Or do you just practice sprinting without the sled?
Katie Koczynksi: We do a lot of sprint training. We also work on sprinting in a bent over position. We do a lot of 30's, 40's and 50's. It is important that your upright speed translate to pushing a sled. We have seen fast upright runners who were not efficient in pushing a sled.
I have worked hard to make my upright speed translate into pushing. I am pretty quick, but I am in no way a track athlete.
