Hello to all our Family and Friends!

Casey has had a rough past 10 days on and off the ice. Arriving in Heerenveen, Holland this past Monday...Casey came down with an extremely energy draining type of flu / head cold! :( He made it to the rink to skate once during the week to touch the ice. Other than that...he has been in his room resting and trying to save up enough energy each day to go down to eat three meals. Talking with him on Saturday for 15 minutes was very draining for him...and we had to end our conversation early because of his exhaustion. So you can imagine how tough it was this weekend for Casey to make it to the rink and skate three races in three days.

Casey has been extremely frustrated with his performance this past weekend...and obviously wishes he wouldn't have been sick for the last World Cup races. He needed to hold the overall positions he had going into the weekend to qualify for funding from various associations. Unfortunately, he did drop a few places overall and that funding may be on the line now. We'll have to wait and see. All in all, Casey is resting and the team trainer has him on medicine now that will hopefully help him get better for the World Single Distance Championships held in Inzell, Germany in two weeks.

Day 1 500m race

Casey finishes tied for 13th in a time of 35.70.

Day 2 1000m race

Casey finishes 20th in a time of 1:12.19. He was so cute on the phone when I chatted with him this past Saturday...laughing as he said this, "It's great when you're sick and you come across the first 200 meters in a 16.9, and think this isn't so bad...but then come the last lap and I completely hit the wall. I thought I was on this amazing race and then end up so far back!" This race takes so much endurance... and when he's fighting an energy draining flu, results aren't going to be pretty.

Overall, this final 1000m race of the season dropped Casey down to 9th overall...only 4 points out of 8th and 19 points out of 6th. UGH! You can see where the frustration comes in.

Day 3 500m race

The final 500m race of the World Cup season...Casey finishes 18th with a time of 36.23. These last two World Cup 500m races drop Casey down to 10th overall in the standings only 18 points from 8th overall. Ugh!

The team stays in Heerenveen until Thursday and then it's off to Inzell, Germany for the final competition of the season, World Single Distance Championships. Ruthie, Jeff and Jessi will be joining up with them in Inzell...those lucky ducks;)!! Have a safe trip you three...give him hugs and kisses for me!

Hope all is well with everyone else! Happy President's Day!

Jennifer Fitz