Dear blog and dear BMX. I have really being missing you. Do you remember the time this all started? I was living in Sweden and I had to hold myself from writing every day. It felt like I were stoked everyday from some new experiences I had. *grunt* Life still does offer those things! It just gets covered something "not that breath-taking" what I have to do. I can't understand how this busy-feeling gets hold of me all the time. Well I do have one funny story for you: Novadays I do have few mice. I got them when they found me, or actually they found a banana that I had forgot on the table while I were visiting my parents. In the beginning I find them really cute and harmless. We got along pretty good but as you know after the first crush goes away becomes the problems. Every morning mice wake me up around 7! The worst was when they woke me up and I turned lights on and saw two mice standing on their back feet and holding each other with the front feet, just like dancing. And they did go round and round!! I said aloud: Hey, excuse me", but they just kept on dancing. I had knocked the floor to get the run away. The next day I bought ultrasound repel for mice and toxin that they eat and it makes them go outside (they get thirsty I guess).

In the life outside of my cottages I were listening my favorite reggae artist yesterday and today I'll go to see circus show "will have sex for love". It has been directed by my sister. I'm really proud of my sis. Government also gave her artist grant for his work. They are supporting her to keep on doing the art for next half year.

My friend visited my and asked how we all , me and my sisters, have become some kind of artistic persons. I kept on thinking that after she left. My auntie comment that we used to always to something connected to self-expression. My hobbies from childhood have been: balet, break dance, football, ice hockey, gymnastics, art school, squad, cooking school, track and field, baskett ball, judo, karate, motocross, folk dance, playing piano and guitar, some kind of religion club (like what?), sometimes I tried orienteering.. can't remember anymore. There is also some artistic hobbies but also pretty many which have nothing to do art. I think that the main thing we were teached is to enjoy what you do. You didn't need to specialized to one sport. That has made me think that if someday I'm having a kid to raise, am I able to keep myself from over-educating him or her. That I wouldn't play classical music while baby is still in my belly, or putting her to foreign language daycare, so shild would grow up with at least 2 languages, also thinking about the sports you can over do everything. Or could I take it easy; teach her to enjoy listening the birds singing ect. If you are better than other you pretty easily builds up your self-esteem, still a person who loves life sounds better. Also letting the kids to grow up and learning nothing is a shame..

Well, let's go back to my love of life. Leg (which was broken) feels heaps better! I think that after the next physioteraphy I'm allowed to start to ride my bike again. I hoping wednesday to come fast! I also had meeting with Spanish coach Marc. This on he will be my BMX technical coach for BMX. I'm really happy for that because next season he is taking only 5 riders to work with. Kari Ormo will continue as my fitness coach and I'm really happy about that too! Marc gave me few home works by watching race videos. I think everyone can learn a lot from BMX by watching. Things like race lines, trying to find the mistakes and good moves that riders do. Somehow samekind of question than what I had about raising the kids, is should people concetrate on getting themselves fast or concetrate on learning good technic (manuals and jumps). Those are two totally different ways to ride and to practice.. I know what I want to do, but I think everyone should give that a thought on their own practicing!

Little extra hype of last weeks races. Here the trophy I got for being 4th :) I can be glad to not get any better, because we couldn't fit any bigger trophy in car :)

Health care in Usa is totally weird. I'm going here by bike and distances between places are little different than back in home. First place I went put me turn away right when they saw I was foreigner. Second place almost took me in, but then they told me to go to hospital.. Hospital was sending me to the place where I were first. So I told them that this is emergency! Lady look me to eyes. I said; I think I broke my collarbone when I went over the bars. So they took me in. They took xray of collarbone. I was trying to explane that my cough is really bad, that it's hard to breath. They gave me resept for cough medicine and throw me out. So now I been two days drinking codeine syrap and it doesn't help at all! In Finland they would never give codeine for cough!

Okey, right now I'm back in Huntington Beach. Internet is not working and I'm on my way to home from the doctor. Nothing major, only tired to being sick for 3th week.. Updates is little late cos after the race we started to drove back.. 20 hours in row :O

In Tulsa. Getting place in finals didn't come too easy. Anyway after getting it I had 8 hours waiting before the finals. Finally it's on. I don't put my gear on yet, cos I have still time. There is first open classes and then comes cruisers. I go to parking lot to warm up. Couple sprints.. I feel just great! One more sprint, I unclipped, hips too handlebar and I fly over. I hit my head to ground, roll over. My other shoe it still clipped in so bike rolls over with me..

I'm lying in the groung. Ou shit, did I brake my bike?? I get up, bike is ok. OMG, am I ok?? I feel pain in my head, it's not that bad.. I sit down for a while. Elbow and shoulder are stiff but those get better soon. I go to fix my wounds and put gears on.

Hey, pull yourself together now! I get back on bike. Couple good gates could make me feel better. I go to practice to get-a-gate place. Couple gates.. and I unclip again! Nothing happens, but I'm starting to get really unconfident!! Cruisers have started so I got go.

It tooks like forever that they get us to gate. On the queue girls are talking how track is worn out. Inside of the first turn is really slipery. I see from the screen how everyone are crashing in first turn.. I'm going from gate 1

Ok we go. I planned to push other ones out on the first straight but that's not really happening. Turn comes. I don't still push others. I come out as 4th. Couple extra pedals and I can pass the 3th. I take those, even on rythm section, but it doesn't help cos I just spin out. My gear is way too small 39/18.

I finnish 4th. I'm not dissapointed but far from happy also. I wish I could remember everything I have learned during this Olen neljäs. En kovin pettynyt, mutta en tyytyväinenkään. Kumpa kaikki opitut asiat saisi taltioitua johonkin.. Mahtava viikonloppu!!

Ok, today is already over for me.. There was race, where they took 2 straight to main.. Damn. I got really good start. Then I take some weird easy turn.. didn't pull up and loose it all. Atleast my first straight was way better than yesterday. I were second in the first turn. That means I beated all those girls who race with me yesterday. After the first turn I just loose it all.. by all I mean all :) LOL

Tomorrow still change to make it to the main.

-- I was supposed to download video here but I guess youtuve is having perioids again or something. Cos it's having some hard time.. so no videos this time --

President's Cup is done now :) I got 2nd and huge trophy to take to home. First I took saver stamps but boys send me back to get trophy. LOL

Races were excellent experience. There were about 530 motos!! Today is starting Grands with 678 motos! President's Cup with 530 motos were runned thru in 12hours. (means 2 qualify rounds, quarters, semis, finals..) There is good goal for race organizers in Europe.

I'm pretty happy for my own racing. I made it to the finals from 2nd round.. I got gate 8 and took straight way in to the first turn, so others had to break down. In the finals I got inside gate so I just push otherones out from the turn.. or atleast the ones who were having race with me :)

Now I got to hurry to the parade at the track. See ya!

Ok, we are in Tulsa! Track looks great! I really like these USA track. These are fast and really technical. These are more fun than track in Europe because of they are technical. Starting hills are not high, but they don't have to be. Tracks are super nice to ride! And works for pros and kids!!

In this track, pros has a burm jump. They are going to use our third turn as a take off and then they have a own turn. I just love those tricks what they make to these tracks :) It doesn't have to be always the same super cross start to step up, speed pumps and triple on the second straight some doubles and step-up.. We have seen that already.

Tomorrow is warm-ups. Half an hour time on the track! And all races can be seeing alive in internet.

BTW. People really do drive a lot in here. That might be the only reason why I don't wanna move here. Shawn has about 1 year old car and he has drive over 60 000miles. This is not his only car, he has also truck and his wife got own car too. So 60 000miles/year is far from the truth.

The first 12 hours are done of our 20 hours way to Oklahoma. We are travelling with Shawn O'gorman and his kid. I got to know Shawn during my last trip in USA. Shawn has open up the USA BMX system for me. I'm not gonna look too far back in history. But important change happened about year ago. I wrote about this already in the beginning of year, but now I feel I understood the change better. There used to be two BMX organisations; ABA and NBL. Those were created about the same time, I guess ABA was like one year before. Just guessing.

NBL was more runned by families and volunteers. Also I have got the idea that NBL track were little better, more European style. I don't say that European track are better, but in this case it's better. ABA track were pretty flat. One reason for that might be that ABA was pure business. If there is 60 motos at night you don't want to have many crashes to slow down the races. NBL were also more common in east cost, hardly nothing in west.

Anyway, NBL got to financial problems. They tryed to fix that by selling monthly tickets. You paid monthly price and were allowed to race as many nights as you wanted. You got your points from races but not trophy. And I can tell that some times it feels that here in BMX everything is only about the points. People are hunting points to get District 1, or NAG 1 plate. Mostly people are just running from race to another to get points. They have NAG 1 plates in their eyes and no one cares about dollars or enjoying the sport. What ever, people find the idea of monthly payment too weird and didn't buy that.

It was the end for NBL. ABA took over whole organisation and became USA BMX. Now there is over 370 tracks!!


SORRY PHOTOS ARE ONLY ON FINNISH SITE

Look who is here? Oudi came back. Finns are in the house. How did boarder let you come back? Mike Redman is announcing at Lake Perris track when I go to say hello to him :) I love those USA style talks!! :)

Mike Redman has started to run Lake Perris track. There is some small changes made on the track.. the biggest difference is anyway that track is open. There is lots of riders on track and also races are runned! That's great!!

If someone doesn't know, the last time I was at Cali Lake Perris was closed. I was meant to practice at Perris, but that didn't happen. Actually now I feel that it was good thing. I have got to know so many nice people who I probably wouldn't got to know if would have been staying there, middle of no where :) LOL, just got to remember there is always two sides on things!

Anyways, bikes are clean for tomorrow, when we start the trip to Grands. We gonna drive from LA to Oklahoma, so I see some thrill ahead :D

Some hard core practice has been going on for this week. So not much time left for posting here.. Just crazy stuff.. Now I have to slow down a bit. Anyways, today was Thanks giving pot luck at Bellflower. The track was full of people, we had even own class for girl cruisers :D

You need minimum 3 riders to have a class. We had that exact 3 riders; me 19 years old girl and 11 years old chick (who is just unbelievable good).

After I had loaded my stomach to be more than full I was rolling down the starting hill so fast that I was able to win whole race :D LOL First place anyhow!! It was tight racing and OMG how I was shaking on a gate.

Last days it has been a challenge to get to tracks. Closest track is 15miles away, so about 25min by car. Riding bike it would take 1,5hours and with public transportation it takes 2h! That's unbelievable! Well, atleast there is some busses.. We have make half by bus and ride bikes the rest. Problems comes ones you get lost 45min ride turns to 1,5hours. 1,5hours with ultra light saddle doesn't make rider feel ultra light.

When you add there 1,5hours practise on track and way to home that's the day :D