December 6, 2007 - Rider Alum Making Big Push for 2010 Olympics / Rider Newswire
December 6, 2007 - Rider Newswire
Rider Alum Making Big Push for 2010 Olympics
When Jazmine Fenlator ’07 was twice the Rider University Athlete of the Year, she was good at throwing things. She threw the discus, the hammer, the shot put and the weight throw far enough to set Rider and Conference records and to qualify for NCAA Regional Championships.
Now she is learning how to push things, one 860-pound thing to be exact. Fenlator is one of 12 members of the United States National Bobsled team currently training in Lake Placid, N.Y. and Park City, Utah.
“When I was invited to try out, it was in the middle of track season so I declined the offer but told them to keep me in mind,” said Fenlator, an eight-time All-East selection in track & field at the ECAC Championships. “When I got the call again, I wanted to see if my training in track & field could turn over into another sport.”
Apparently it has. At Lake Placid in October, driver Jamia Jackson of Lake City, Fla. and pusher Fenlator twice finished second with times of 2:01.18 and 2:00.36 in the two-man event. At the U.S. National Team Trials at the Utah Olympic Park in Park City where the 2002 Olympics were held, driver Bree Schaaf Boyer of Bremerton, Wash. and pusher Fenlator placed third with finish times of 51.45 and 52.08 for a total time of 1:43.53. The winner had runs of 50.43 and 50.55 for a combined time of 1:40.98.
“I am really happy for, and proud of, Jazmine,” said Rider track & field coach Rob Pasquariello. “Her experience with the U.S. Bobsled team exemplifies the type of person, athlete and competitor she is.”
“I think it also should serve as an example to everyone that one has to be open and ready for new challenges and changes in one's life,” Pasquariello said. “Take a risk now and then and see where the journey leads.”
The two-man bobsled team is made up of a driver, or the person who steers, and the pusher. Jazmine is a pusher. “I push off the blocks and stay tucked in the back the whole ride and at the end I pop up and pull the brakes, nice and hard,” Fenlator said. “You count the turns to know where you are on the track. The track here in Park City had 15 turns, and by turn six you are going 80 mph. I just hold on for the ride, but you have to be very relaxed in the back to make sure your body is moving as one with the sled. If I jump in and am not seated properly, I have to wait for a curve to adjust or I could cause a fishtail. But pretty much I just sit down for the ride for 50 seconds.”
This sport isn’t for the faint of heart. “It was scary in the beginning,” Fenlator said. “Every time you go down you have to prepare for a crash. You have to know what to do, how to hold on into the sled, and be prepared for a long trip down. The tracks are a mile long. I’ve crashed already and got some ice burns, so I have a nice scar and story to go with it for my grandkids someday.”
The crash took place at Lake Placid in October. “We didn’t do a full out, 100 percent push, because it was my first time with this driver,” Fenlator said. “Curve four at Lake Placid has a lot of pressure; it pushes you down in the sled so your chest is hitting your thighs because of the ‘G’ forces. We call it Devil’s Highway because curves five through nine are very fast. Coming out of curve four the ice is frosty, so the steering sticks, and so we tipped over on our right side heading into turn five. We slid three-quarters of a mile down, all the way down to curve 19. I was really sore. As you are being dragged you alternate between giving your head and giving your shoulder. Half my body was hanging out and my shoulder took most of the force. I went back down the next day and it was fine.”.
“Our new push athletes are doing very well and it is necessary for them to learn now how to handle their nerves while under pressure.” said Sepp Plozza, the U. S. women's bobsled head coach. “Jazmine has great athletic ability, and I expect good things from her this season.”
“Jaz has always been willing to put herself in any competitive arena and compete fearlessly,” Pasquariello said.
Jazmine’s future depends on how she does in these team trials. “Now I will either go to Europe for the Euro Cup competition in Italy and Germany, or go back to Lake Placid and train heavily until Christmas for the America’s Cup,” Fenlator said.
“Jazmine will most likely be sliding in the America's Cup circuit this year,” said Plozza, “and has the chance to move up within the team.”
All of the female bobsled athletes who were invited to attend national team trials, which included Jazmine, will be competing on a team this season.
“I love it,” Fenlator said. “I realized this is a full time job, and it is a lot of hard work but it is like being on a college team again. The people are great here. They are very welcoming, always giving advice and helping out. It is a nice environment.”
Jazmine’s long range goal is to reach the Olympics. “The ultimate goal is to get to Vancouver in 2010,” Fenlator said. The United States will send two teams and an alternate to Vancouver in two years. “I’m prepared to put two years of work into getting there.”
-RU-
