The temperatures for Barrhead’s Blue Heron Fair Days might have hovering around 30 degrees, but for Melissa Lotholz all she could think about was ice.
Not ice to cool off, but ice from the bottom of a bobsled.
That is because Lotholz is part of Canada’s bobsleigh team and with about two months left until the start of the World Cup and less than 200 days until the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea it doesn’t take long for her thoughts to return to the track.
“There’s not a lot of time left to prepare for the season,” she said, during a break between talking to visitors.
Lotholz was back home in Barrhead for Blue Heron Fair Days, partly in an effort to fundraise and add local sponsors.
As a carded national team athlete, Lotholz receives a stipend through the Athlete Assistance Program (AAP) of roughly $1,500 a month for a senior athlete and $900 for a developmental athlete. In the spring, the federal government announced it would boost the fund by 18 per cent or $5 million a year, however the fund also goes towards funding other items for athletes besides monthly stipends.
If all of the new money from the 18 per cent increase were to go directly to the monthly stipend, that would bump a senior card to $1,770 a month, and a development one to $1,060. National sporting federations cover team expenses, but athletes, in addition to living expenses, have to cover their own individual training costs such as gym memberships.
However, for Lotholz the bigger part of being part of the fair is the chance to get to meet and talk to residents in her hometown.
“I love to talk about the sport of bobsledding and let them share in my journey,” she said.
As for how the offseason has been, Lotholz said, “busy.”
Since the end of the World Cup season in early March, she has had about three weeks of actual time off.
“And even then, you are always looking for ways to train, especially when the Canadian team is as strong as it is,” she said, adding she will have to be on top of her game if she hopes to make it to the Olympics as part of Canada’s top bobsleigh. “Right now we [Canada One with pilot Kailie Humphries] are in a very competitive spot and there are a couple of really great athletes in addition to myself who want to be her brakeman. It keeps you on your toes that’s for sure,” she said.
One of the athletes Lotholz is referring to is Cynthia Appiah who she shared brakeman duties as part of Humphries team last season. When they weren’t paired with Humphries on Canada One, they were usually teamed with up-and-comer pilot Alysia Rissling.
Currently Lotholz is training five days a week, with Thursdays and Sundays off, at the icehouse in Calgary. The icehouse is a state of the art facility that allows bobsleighers to practice their push starts in real world conditions, despite the lack of snow or ice.
“We use a training sled. Actually it is heavier than the sleds we use in competition,” she said, adding when she isn’t at the icehouse or in the gym, the majority of her training time is spent with the physiotherapist, nutritionist, coaches and other professionals who help athletes attain maximum performance. “Bobsled is definitely a full-time job.”
In late September, training will move from the icehouse to the actual track before the World Cup season starts in early November. In early to mid-January coaches will announce who will go to the Olympics.
“It will be an exciting year that’s for sure and it is always great to share my sport and my journey with my community,” Lotholz said.
To follow Lotholz’s journey go online to www.melissalotholz.ca. She is also on Twitter.
