#78 Corey Vaughn: Adapting to Challenging Conditions

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Lynn, Welcome to Creative spirits unleashed, where we talk about the dilemmas of balancing work and life. And now here's your host. Lynn Carnes,

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welcome to the creative spirits unleash Podcast. I'm Lynn Carnes, your host, after a brief hiatus caused by Hurricane Helene, the podcast is back with guest water skier Corey Vaughn.

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You may remember that he and I spoke this last spring where Corey was describing his 1000 day plan to see just how far he could take his water ski goals, that is, if he chose to really go for it. Now in that conversation, he laid out some specific goals for this coming season in 2024 and then promised to return in the fall, which is now to review the season. And he promised to do so regardless of outcome. So we are in keeping with that promise having the conversation here. Now in this conversation, we reviewed the season and we dove into some of the high and low points. Now I and I don't want to spoil the outcomes of his goals. We're going to talk about that in the podcast, but I am going to just give you a couple of things to say. All right, if you go for it, and how you go for it matters. He went from 28th at the beginning of the 2023 season to third in the world at the end of the 2024 season. That kind of change in ranking in the Water Ski World doesn't just happen.

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There has to be some intention behind it. Now I will say this, though, if you listen to this conversation, you're going to hear that Corey isn't just skiing to gain in the rankings or even just to win tournaments.

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Yes, he has goals, but as he said in our conversation in the spring, he said, I'm deeply curious to find that edge, meaning he wanted to see what happens if he approaches the sport with the intention to see how far he can take it. Another way of saying it is he's making the journey as important as the outcomes in this conversation, Corey takes us behind the scenes of several highlights from this season, including the heartbreaking moment in the Masters qualifier, which happened right after our conversation in the spring, where the handle slipped from his grip at the juncture that would have qualified him for that tournament. It was the kind of event I know from my own experience anyway, that can get stuck in your mind and, frankly, poison everything else. But Corey describes how he walked himself out of the disappointment so that this, and I'm going to put this in quotes, mistake, did not poison his thinking for the rest of the year. He also gives us a window into the ingredients that he has found that have improved his outcomes, but also the process towards achieving those goals.

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We devoted a good bit of this conversation to the subtle mindset distinctions that make a difference when operating at the tip of the spear. In fact, he was really generous in revealing what he has found to be the ingredients that matter the most to both improve his performance, but also improve his well being, which he talks about in this conversation. So as always, I hope you enjoy this episode with Corey Vaughn, and if you enjoy it, please take a moment to rate it and share it. That's how we get the word out. And I think we're putting out some really great stuff for people that will make a difference in their lives. So we appreciate you sharing the word and with that, enjoy this podcast with Corey Vaughn. Corey Vaughn, welcome back to the creative spirits unleashed podcast.

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Well, I'm so happy to be back for a third time. I feel so honored.

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I know you might i You may be my only three time guest, but this one was was set in the clouds back in April when we recorded before we were just for history, we were back at the beginning of the 2024, water ski season. We had an really deep and meaningful conversation about life and goals and what you were setting out to do with your 1000 day plan, as you called it back in that podcast.

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So April is like, just about to start. We're getting ready to go to the Masters qualifiers, and then the season is going to be on its way. And the season ended just a couple of weeks ago, and we declared we were going to do this. So I'm going to have you describe what you set out to do for the season, and then what you actually did, and then we'll peel back the layers from there.

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Yeah, well, I went back and I listened to our last podcast just to refresh myself, and I'll say, like, I'm glad that it has aged decently as well. I feel like both of ours did, which is good news. And so in that one I basically I laid out four goals, one of which doesn't apply until next year, because it's to do with the World Championships. And there was no. Championships this year.

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It's only in every other year sort of thing. So that still remains for next year. But I had three goals for the 2024 season, and they were lofty. But of those, I managed to go two out of three, which I'm I'm very happy about. Would have loved three of three, of course, but they were big ones. And the one that we, you know, started off with that you just mentioned, I was just about to go off and do this series of qualifying tournaments for the Masters, because the ski and the Masters was one of my primary goals. And that one was the one that didn't pan out, and it was by the narrowest, flimsiest, most annoying of margins, like it was one of those, like I was there and I saw it like I thought I had it in my hands and and literally, the handle slipped right out of my fingers when it was right there. I mean, it's a matter of centimeters from from making that one come true. But, you know, it was the first thing. And so to kind of come up just short, you know, I had some fear. I was like, Oh man, let's not have this be the tone of the season, just like coming in with all this intention and passion.

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And you know, I put myself in the right position, and then it just didn't quite happen. And I've had that feeling plenty of times before, and I was like, oh, man, come on, not this again, you know. But as I got back home and collected myself, and, you know, try to get some perspective, talk to, you know, my wife and the people closest to me, my other training partner, Brad, you know, we try to frame that as, okay, this is what happened. It was kind of fluky, almost like it seemed like it was going to work out, and it didn't. So maybe there's something in that that needed to have, that needed to happen so that the other goals, you know, could could go forward. And, you know, I just tried to adopt that mindset. I was trying to give it some positive framing, because I guess, what's the other choice, you know, to think that it's poisoned the season at the outset, that's not going to bode well. So I tried to adopt that mindset and just get back to work, get back into the process, get my attention fixed on what was to come. And so that's what I did. You know, I kind of dove back into things, and I can go straight into the other two, I guess. Yeah, which are? So one of the goals was to win a pro tour stop that I thought was probably the highest hurdle, as far as being the most difficult.

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And, you know, I was back in the training was training pretty well. I went over to Europe with my wife. Actually, it was our first trip away together since having our now three year old.

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So it was a long overdue getaway for the two of us. We went to Italy together to ski in a Pro Am. She skied and I skied, and we both skied. Well, I came away with fourth place, and again, like kind of on the precipice, like the winning. I had it in me to win. I felt like I thought things were going a good way, and when it all shook out, I felt like, gosh, that could have been me, and it was, you know, just came up short, not quite, not that time, but, you know, then we, we booked a couple of nights after the tournament just to stay in Italy together, we got an Airbnb and just kind of enjoyed a little bit of vacation time, which is something that we've had sparingly little of in three years and and that was just really nice. You know, we just got to wake up at our own time, go have a coffee, walk around, see the sites, and just talk all day and really connect which, which, I think, you know, one was just incredibly enjoyable, and to just help provide some grounding, as we were kind of in, this was in July, so I kind of had all this activity in May, almost, you know, trying to qualify For the masters. Then the month of June was really all training. And then this was going out and and putting it to the test again. So fourth place in Italy. And then after our our couple days together in Italy, she flew home to come back, get back to work, get our get be back with our son and I continued on to England for the next pro tour stop, which was the final stop of the European tour. And we had this very big transition from the hot, sunny weather of Italy to all of a sudden, like a very cold, overcast, rainy, you know, England. Even the English people were complaining about what a lousy summer it had been, and the water exactly it was, you know, we were, I was bundled up in basically all the I brought some clothes for England, and I was wearing all of them the whole time to stay warm. And so as soon as we myself and other skiers who came from Italy started taking practice sets. It was pretty eye opening right away, like we're not in Italy anymore, like it felt very different. You know, we're used to adapting, but this was a big swing, and I kind of had it in my mind from the first practice set. I was like, Well, whoever is going to do well in this tournament is going to be the one that that can make the adaptations. Basically, during the tournament, we don't have a lot of time to practice. You're going to be adapting pass by pass, buoy by buoy, almost. So that was kind of my mindset going into it, like, be open, try to be in a learning process as I'm going through, even the tournament rounds don't feel like my game is set and I'm just going to apply it. It's like we're going to have to be a little more open. And not only that, the finals. The unique part about this tournament is that the finals took place at night, under the light. So it was and of course, in England, in the middle of the summer, it doesn't get dark until at least 10, like, about 10 o'clock at night. So I made it through the prelims. I skied pretty well. I was the fourth seed going into the finals. I think on the night of the finals, the women took to the water. It was about 10 o'clock, and it was, you know, just starting to become, you know, dark as about the second or third woman skied. We've kind of got the full full darkness, and I think the men took to the water at about 11pm so I was also, during the week, trying to transition my body clock a little bit and but take some midday naps and wait, you know, stay up a little bit later, wake up a little bit later, to the extent that I could, just so that I would have some energy at 11pm and not be yawning and feeling like it was time to go to bed. So to get to the point, you know, I went off the dock there fourth seed. I knew what the lead was. Two skiers had run two buoys at 39 and a half off, the scores were lower at night, because everything felt tremendously fast. I mean, it felt like a boat might as well have been going 40 miles an hour. Your depth perception was way off, and it coming into the lights. It's very bright, almost blinding, and then as you turn, all of a sudden, you're going into darkness. So you kind of have these big contrasts. So again, very unique, very much a situation where you have to be adaptable. And so I was actually announcing for the women, so I was watching it on the webcast as they were going, seeing what the struggles looked like. And but as they all came off, they all seemed kind of nervous, going on a lot of anticipation.

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You know, many skiers hadn't done in night finals before, so kind of flying blind, not sure what this is going to be like.

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And as I got out of the broadcast booth and started gathering my things to get ready to take to the water, I just paused for a moment, and I thought to myself, What a great what a cool thing that this is, you know, the child in me, the 10 year old or 13 year old, who had these pipe dreams about being a pro skier, would never have imagined that I would be in England getting ready to take to the water at almost midnight to ski in A in a finals of a pro tour stop, and I just stayed with that thought for a minute. I said, you know, that's my goal for this set. Is that this is going to be a great experience. I've been skiing Well, I can't count on the normal keys and technical components that I would often bring into a tournament. I just want to as a kid, I didn't have that. I didn't have a coach. I didn't I just went out there and I had fun. I just did the best that I could. I was like, let's find that approach, you know?

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And I thought about the I always skied with my granddad as a child. He was my ski partner.

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And I thought about what he would think, or how he would see this, if he was able to be watching, you know, that I'd be taken to the water under the lights, you know, in this, in this kind of intense finals. And I said, Okay, you know, this is going to be my, my mindset for this. So I went out there, got a taste of things in the opening two passes, which, you know, like they felt pretty good. I was like, okay, you know, this is definitely tricky. I can see why people are are having some trouble, and the scores are a little bit lower, but, you know, we're going okay here. Then I came to 38 off, which was my third pass, and had an absolutely atrocious one ball.

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The skier who was after me told me, You. After the tournament was over, he said, I could see you turn one ball from the dock.

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He said, As soon as I saw that turn, I started putting my ski on. I thought that was the end of your runway right there, because it was, it was not good, and seemed like a lot of people were struggling at the two ball.

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So I go over to that two ball, what people didn't see and where I lost some nerve, it's coming out with two ball. I only got two fingers back on the handle, so now I'm I'm on the handle, but I'm heading to three, and I really can't get my full power.

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I've got one my right hands on but on my left hand, only two fingers. So I kind of have to take this very strange position where I'm out of, you know, out of position underpowered, going to three, and as I'm coming in, it's like, okay, this is really the make or break turn. I'm either going to get the turn, I need to reset this pass, or I'm going to go down trying. And I went for the turn, and thank goodness. As I finished the turn, the line came tight, both hands on, and I hooked up and went and then I was able to finish out the run. And if, you know, felt like I dodged a bullet, I was like, okay, whoo.

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Oh, got that. We got that one done. So now I'm waiting at the end of the lake, basically in the pitch black, you know, at that far end of the lake, it was, you're just sitting in the water, in the darkness. I said, Okay, survive that. I know the score to beat right now is two.

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There's some great skiers coming after me. So the more I can get past to the better. So I get up, it's a long run in to the course. So I got up. I had this thought to myself. I was like, All right, you have a chance here. Like, this is what all of those workouts in the off season, all the discipline, all the hard work, the sacrifice for years it comes to this, like, let's channel that and and go.

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And I got what I thought was, you know, a pretty decent one, better than the prior one. It gave me a chance to, you know, at least get across. Have a look at two turn. Two was not a great turn. I got in pretty deep. The rope came tight. I had it in my hands, and I knew I had to get outside of three to take the lead. So I wasn't in a great position, but I basically just put every fiber of my being into that pull across the lake, got a lot of speed, managed to get the ski outside of three, tried to make an S turn and get back to the middle. I was going too fast. I couldn't quite get back.

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So my I had the score of two and a half, which took the lead, and I skied back to the dock, holding the lead. And then it was just the waiting game, you know, let's wait and see what happens. I had, like I said, there were three guys to come after me, all of whom had been skiing, you know, at the top of their game in those conditions.

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And I just watched one by one as as they didn't quite get there, like Joel Poland was looking great. And then all of a sudden, you know, something about the darkness, he had a mishap at 38 off went down. Same thing happened to Aaron Davies. And then Sasha desk gun was the top seed. Goes out there, runs opener. You know, I at this point, I know I'm guaranteed at least second. It's going to depend on what Sasha does. He's coming back at, you know, 35 off, which is a pass that, you know, he runs literally 100% of the time in training, in the daylight. And again, something about that darkness and just not being able to to get the depth perception. He had a weird turn, had a fall, and all of a sudden, like, it's announced, like he's down and and I'm standing there,

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I just won this tournament. Yeah,

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I mean, it just it hit me. It's still pretty indescribable. I had to take a knee. You know, I was, I was standing there briefly, and then I just needed to drop down onto one knee, because I've the feelings going through my body were a little too much to manage standing up and, you know, I put my hands down on the ground there, and the first thought that came to my mind was, was just about my granddad and that lifelong that I had managed to do, what I had hoped to do, which was find that that inner child sense of play and fun, and then also kind of merge that with on that final run, a sense of determination and just an appreciation for the hard work and sacrifice that it took to get there and bring those two things together in a performance that, you know, it turned out to go my way. And you know, then, of course, I knew the next step is the camera is going to come to me. They're going to put a microphone up to me, and I'm going to have to say something which sounded i. That sounded harder than any of the skiing part. I was like, I didn't have any words, you know, at that point in time, and in many ways I still don't, you know, for the just the raw emotion and the feelings that were were washing over me right then, I did manage to say some things that I can stand by, and some of the right words came thankfully. You know, I got to thank my wife, first and foremost, because it is with, you know, without her support and across the board at all turns that would not be happening. I got to thank my grandfather, which was top of mind, and dedicate the wind to him. But you know, as I think about it, even now, like I said, I don't have words, but maybe the best way of thinking about it is that, you know, I've been at this for a long time. I found out afterwards somewhere on the flight home, or something like that, but I I'm actually the oldest skier to ever win their first pro tournament. And I really like that title.

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Actually, I'm proud of that one, I mean, because I think a lot of people with with maybe more sense than I have, would have hung it up beforehand, like there's something in me that that drove me to keep going and believing that this was was a possibility and and the whole way along, like I feel very fortunate that, because of my ski school and coaching in a variety of places, meeting folks from all over the country, all over the world, and forming friendships and relationships, I have, you Know, we'll call it a little bit of a fan base. I don't mean that to be self aggrandizing. I just have friends that are supportive, you know, starting with my family and close friends, and then out through the skiers that I've come in contact with over the years. And I've always felt like, you know, I know what it's like to be a fan. I have a favorite football team that I like to root for, and when the game comes on, I feel like all the possibilities are on the table, and I want to see him win. And I've had the deepest desire, you know, yes, to do this for myself, to prove to myself, I guess, that I can do what I told myself, that I could do. But on top of that, that, you know, all these people that have stuck with me through thick and thin, and definitely plenty of thick. You know that I've wanted to have this moment to to give everyone the cause for celebration, and it was almost like in that moment where it came true, there was so much emotion going through me. It was almost like I was experiencing the emotions of everybody, like all of those people. It's like it channeled right through me.

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And that's like, I felt like I was gonna explode, you know, like, and it was a special moment. I wouldn't want it any other way. I wouldn't do it any other way. Like, that's just kind of been the nature of my path, and it's been, you know, something that's been important to me the whole way along, so to kind of finally have that happen. It it all came together in that one moment. And that's an experience. And I don't think I'll ever be able to, you know, relive or or it's one of a kind.

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It'll never happen that way again.

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Yeah, wow. I I'm sitting here. I heard so many threads as you were speaking the the balancing act that you had, especially on the run in, when you said you had a long run in and you sort of felt the all the preparation and all the expectations, if you will, all that time. For some people, that would have actually been the pressure that kept you from doing well, as opposed to elevated you, which it did. What do you think gave you made you be able to do so well, given that you actually went into the preparation side just then,

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I think it was lucky that it just happened to flash up in my mind in that short moment where I was already up on my ski, the boat's moving. I'm coming into the course. There's not, I'm not like thinking about it. I think if that thought you were ruminating, yeah, he was ruining if I was in the water at the end of the lake for two we were waiting like two minutes because it was a little rolly.

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Also, that was another factor, was kind of rough water, which, again, very much like my childhood. I skied on rough water. And you know, if I've been thinking about it for two minutes, like, Oh, I did this, and I made that sacrifice, and it's been this. And can it all just come together for once? It came more as, like, you know, right now I'm reading the Raphael Nadal's autobiography, and he's kind of famous for vamanos, you know, vamos, let's go like, that's that one moment of like, that's kind. How it came to me is like, you know, this is it. I've done all this.

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Like, come on, you know, come on, let's go. And so it was that type of just flash thought, like, let's bring it together right here, and concentrate and seize it, because it's now, you know. So it pulled me into now instead of, you know, yeah, a longer open ended, well, I, you know, I have done all this. I've been there before, and it has gone the other way, where I'm just like, well,

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it normally does, but, but you're, you're, you know, on the tip of the sphere, which is where you're living in this journey of yours, on the tip of the sphere, you're just a micro millimeter away from the other thought, that would cause you to go the other way, but you caught that moment, as you said, and it strikes me that you use the word appreciation for all you have done, rather than expectation for a payoff of all you've done.

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And that seems like a minute distinction, but at the tip of the spear maybe makes a difference. What do you think?

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Yeah, I think you're right. And I, you know, I feel like we don't often have that much conscious control of how our thoughts form. And so so many other times I've had them form in that way of like, oh my gosh, I've sacrificed so much, and my wife has sacrificed so much, and whoever else that their expectations are this, and this could be all the potentialities of what might happen. And then that can be unsettling, that can, you know that forms an expectation, like it should work, or like, if I don't do it now, then what like Will it ever so it's I'm just, I feel fortunate that in that moment, that's not the way it came it, it popped up like a flash ball moment. And it's like, you know, now let's, let's do this. Now, let's, let's cultivate, you know, it's going to be a test of wills and a test of strength in this particular format, and I've trained hard for that, so, you know, I didn't even have that many thoughts.

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But like, that's kind of how it felt. It pulled you

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into the moment. Because I think a lot of us don't realize, I know I'm catching myself all the time, especially as I'm working with horses who show you immediately, whether you're in the moment or not, is we sometimes live even three seconds out of the moment, either before or behind, like what happened three seconds ago is still with us, or what's about to happen? You know, we're ahead of it or behind it, and it's almost like it magically put you in the right now moment.

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And then, as you said, you were able to make it around, you know, a lot further than anyone else did. And I was watching, I could see how hard it was, and never translates on the screen.

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You know, I almost have to, like, know how to see what you're seeing on the screen and then make it real.

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You know, darkness, the speed the rollers, you know, and the pressure of just being late. It's so late at night for you, it wasn't that late for us because of our difference. But still,

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yeah, yeah, yeah. So, I mean, it was, you know, like I said, just a one of a kind moment, one that I'll I'll never forget, one that I think I got a barrage of text messages and emails and Instagram messages of support, which I appreciate greatly, because, I mean to me that was that those meant a lot more than the the trophy or, I mean, I didn't even remember that I was going to get paid for this until we were walking to the podium and, oh yeah, Jack Thomas the Gasper. He's like, Wow, your first win, right?

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Like, oh, you're going to get the big check. And I was like, Oh yeah, there's money. Like, cool. That's, that's never, that's really never been a part of the motivation for for doing this. And so that was just a nice bonus on top. But all of those messages and folks I hadn't had a chance to communicate with for some time, you know, popping up. I mean that that really, I've said this to a number of people on the flight home. I'm very glad that the passenger next to me in the airplane was asleep for the most of the time, because I was getting text messages. And every 10 messages or so I'd read one, and I would just start, you know, tearing up and, you know, my my eyes would be watering, and I'd be choking up just replying, and they would have thought that I was a lunatic, just breaking down in tears about every five or 10 minutes.

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So fortunately, they were asleep. But I mean, it had that type of emotional impact. And you know, just for for those who I didn't express it well enough to at the time, you know, I do so deeply appreciate those messages of support and the people that gave me hugs and stopped me on the back, because it was like that win was for for those people, as much as it was for me, like that. That was such a huge part of it going in or or this whole time. And then finally happened.

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It finally happened. I know I was one of those people.

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I heard. A new term this morning from one of my friends, Chantal Pratt, who used the term watering the ground with her face, and I watered the ground with my face, you know, after that and I reflected on the your granddad and the journey that the two of you took together from the beginning of your life, and just what, what, how much it meant to him, you know. And I knew he was, however it works.

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And I we, none of us really know, but I knew he was watching,

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yeah, so this, I might not have even shared this with you, Lynn, because I, as your listeners wouldn't, wouldn't know, but you were there when he passed away. Took place at a water ski tournament at Mystic waters. The last thing that he ever said to me, as I was kind of tucking him in, was he said, Hey, pal, I got good feelings about tomorrow. I think you're really going to do great. And then I said, thanks, I feel good too, Granddad. And we said, you know, I love you. And then we went to bed, and that was the last thing we ever said. And so it kind of has hung on that note and and I would be lying if I didn't didn't believe that all this time. I was like that statement, like he believed, despite what any like, because of bias, because he was my guy, he believed that I could do this. And I think that's what made me believe that I could do this. And so that has just stayed with me. That's why I'm the oldest person to get there because I was too stubborn to stop. And that belief came from him. So like, you know, he left this world never, hadn't gotten to see it, you know, here in real time. But like, the way I feel about it, like he knew that the day would come like he didn't have to be here to see it. And and I just have been working and wanting to to deliver that promise that that he believed in, and that, you know, has motivated me all this time to keep believing, keep working and keep pushing for that. And so, yeah, again.

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Another reason that the emotions were just overwhelming when it finally happened is it's like, okay, we we did.

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And that idea of believing, you know, are you?

00:32:31.640 --> 00:32:33.019
Are you a fan of TED lasso?

00:32:33.798 --> 00:32:38.179
You know what? I haven't watched it. It's one of those ones that I don't have the right subscription, Apple TV,

00:32:38.900 --> 00:33:43.240
I mean, and who wants to add a subscription? But the first thing he does when he goes this guy, that's not a soccer coach, he's a football coach. To coach a soccer team, he puts the word believe over the door in the locker room. And, you know, I think it's way underestimated the power of belief, and by the way, on both sides of the coin, because so many of our beliefs actually get in our way, but they also can move us forward, and just today, you're on my new subscription list. The coaching digest went out today, and I posted as my favorite of the week a six minute video from Andrew Huberman, who is describing the power of belief scientifically where they gave milkshakes to people, and one group were told this is not healthy, and the other group, I'm going to really bastardize this, because he can tell it better, but the other group that it was and so those who believed it was better had better health outcomes than those who didn't.

00:33:39.380 --> 00:34:05.220
It's and he describes how it's even more than the placebo effect that it literally at a cellular level, changed the way their body processed the thing that went in it, and that goes against all science, right? What are we trying to do is prove that things work, regardless of our belief, without realizing that the most powerful medicine we have is our belief

00:34:06.900 --> 00:35:01.860
100% I mean, it's, it's paramount, and it sounds, I mean, I've listened to and read so many different, you know, masters in the, you know, the self help space. And you hear this message over and over again, but, and it can almost seem, you know, almost seem trite, like, okay, yeah, we know we're supposed to believe, but like to to embody that and really be able to believe in yourself when the chips are down, or when you're In an intense scenario, or or you just need endurance just to keep going. I mean, there's, there's nothing else that can take you there. I mean, discipline will you'll fall off. You know, hard work, just pushing, pushing, pushing, pushing, if you don't see the results in some amount of time you're going to you.

00:34:57.280 --> 00:35:27.980
You're going to stop there has to be this very stubborn, the stubborn belief somewhere in there. Because I think if you were, if you were a betting person and a astute water ski observer, you know, just of the sport, neutral, unbiased. And we go back just a few years, you know, 2022 2021 2020, you know, if you ask people to bet money, you know, is Corey Vaughn ever going to win a pro tournament?

00:35:29.300 --> 00:36:22.639
The smart bet, and the one that most people, I believe, would have made if they were truly unbiased, is no, you know, they're not going to bet on that, you know, not, not any real sum of money. It'd be a much safer, you know, bet to bet no. But on the other hand, I bet my life hours and hours and days and days and weeks and months and years against that. And those are, you know, that's my time that I'm never going to be able to recover. That's to me, worth a lot more than money. And it's not because it is a smart bet. It's not because it was calculated and the odds looked good. It's because I had this very stubborn belief that it could happen and that I was willing to, I was willing to lose the bet in the in the effort to try and all that time, I guess it's still not wasted.

00:36:22.639 --> 00:36:56.320
You know, I think that's an important point too. It's not that, you know, if this didn't happen, that the effort and the striving and the ambition was for nothing. There's there's still gains, there's still growth, and there are things to be proud of for the effort. But that's why we stated back in April. I mean, these goals, like they're tangible, like they're written down in a document, like I know what I wanted, and this is what I was chasing and and so, you know, it's the belief that carried it to the finish line.

00:36:56.980 --> 00:37:28.280
You, you said something in our last podcast that I think is maybe how you can sort of balance those two, those two parts, the journey versus the goal. And it was you said, I am deeply curious to find that edge. And with that, what you also said, without saying it in my mind, this is what I also heard. I trust myself to be able to handle what happens when I get to that edge.

00:37:29.900 --> 00:38:27.800
That's right. Of course, I want all of the objective outcome. I want the outcomes that I, you know, I've dreamt up, but the way I've kind of been framing it is that if I don't, if I believe these things, and I can apply every best effort and intention possible, and they don't work out, then I can walk away without regrets, and then I'm going to have a lot more years of life once this whole pro skiing thing is over and done with, then I am going to in these next however many days, or 400 days in this plan. And so I don't want to live all of those years being like, you know, maybe if you had done X, Y or Z, if you just had believed a bit more and been willing to sacrifice do this or that, that it might have been different.

00:38:25.519 --> 00:41:31.639
Because, I mean, that's, I'll eat you up and and so I'm very heartened that, you know, again, this was kind of year two of three out of 1000 days, three years, whatever. Year One was a good step. Year two, where, I guess we're still breaking it down now, but this was a great additional step. And I mean already, just based on we'll talk about the rest of this year, the good things of this year, I'm much closer to that place where as I'll move, you know, beyond the pro skiing days into a more reflective stage of life. You know, having this goal and the way that this season went, I can already tell that. I know I'll be satisfied that I've applied myself. And I think this is maybe a whole other topic of conversation, is that, now that like that, to me, was, if not the biggest goal. One of them, you know, one of the hardest getting it to happen fosters more confidence and belief it's like that that really has come to my benefit. Where before I sat, you know, just on the other side of the fence, where it's almost like this, invisible fences, invisible line, where it's like, you just don't know what it takes. I always like, I didn't have the recipe, you know, it's like, I've tried this, and I've tried that, and I've tried so many things in so many ways, and I've tried so hard, and it hasn't worked. So I don't have the sauce, like, I don't have. So I gotta keep trying things. And that can be maddening. You know, it's frustrating to apply all these different things like that, still, wasn't it. You know, back to the drawing board. So to to eclipse a couple of goals breeds the sense that, okay, I'm on the right track. I have, you know, I know a little bit more about the formula that's required for the type of success that I'm looking for and the way I'm feeling it now, you know, and I'm still trying to remain curious and open, and the next year is going to bring new things. For sure, is that I think hopefully, I can be a little more efficient in my process, and I can let go of thinking that I need to try everything under the sun, so much where maybe that creates a bit of a spreading thin effect, and doesn't push me all in the direction of where I'm trying to go and really hone in on the specific pillars that are the most important and fortify those, you know, identify maybe a couple of the others that are in a partial phase of construction that could be helpful to prop up the rest. And then take, you know, somewhat, take my eye off of, well, I must need to do this and this and this and this other thing. It's like, okay, I've gotta, I know the the main ingredients of the recipe now to make it come out the way I want. So that is very helpful in

00:41:31.818 --> 00:42:39.139
you know, I, I can assure you, everyone listening right now is going well, what are those main ingredients? And you may not be willing to share them, but I'd be curious. I have a theory about how you approach that tournament you won, so I want to speak on that in a minute. But if you're willing, and some you know ingredients are I'm learning this with sourdough bread. By the way, there is an entire world of people trying to make sourdough bread with basically, what is it? Three ingredients, flour, water and salt, and how you combine those things is the infinite possibilities. Is unbelievable. Time, temperature, how much water, when to make your starter, when to use your starter? Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, and starter is nothing but flour and well, oh yeah, the random ingredient called yeast, that whatever's in the air, and that's, of course, sort of like the secret sauce. But the reason I mentioned that is, even if you gave us the ingredients, none of us are going to be able to nobody could copy you, because somehow you've figured out how to put them together, if that makes sense, to make your own version.

00:42:40.280 --> 00:44:45.159
Yeah. I mean, I'm willing to share anything I would say to try to get closer to the formula. It's that a calmer mind has been a really big part of it. You know, as we said, when you start formulating those expectations and ruminating the word that you used, I think that's great when there's all of this mental churn and background noise and the the hypothetical scenarios, if this happens, and that'll happen, if this person does this, and this will be like this, all of that I I've been I have gotten myself lost in that in the past, and you know, that has been counterproductive. So I think that I've done a better job, or something that's been helpful to me, and this is to people are different before the before competing. I mean, I have a set of rituals that, I guess, that I go through in terms of my warm ups and some mental imagery, you know, and that the mental imagery is new this year, the warm ups have been the same for years, but that is like a pillar that I know works for me, that I really want to stick with, but I always got lost in this space about an hour leading up to taking to the water. We spoke about this a little bit in the last conversation, and it's like I didn't really know what I wanted to do at that time. I've done my warm ups, I've done my imagery. I need to kind of pay attention to what's happening out there so I'm ready when it's my turn, but I don't want to pay too much attention to it. That I'm so focused on what other people are doing out there that I'm really not in my own head space. And I, you know, every tournament's a little different, the circumstances, the environment is a little bit different. But the the part when I'm feeling at my best is that I'm just in a calmer state of mind and almost not not thinking about rehearsing what I'm going to do. I've already done that.

00:44:42.820 --> 00:44:55.539
That's mental imagery helps, because it's like, well, here's the concrete time where I run the mental tape of what I'm going to do and really focus on that with full concentration.

00:44:53.079 --> 00:44:57.760
Okay, and now that's done, I know what that's going to be.

00:44:55.539 --> 00:45:47.440
And then when I put my ski on and jump in the lake, we can bring. Bring that back to the forefront, and I can, you know, remember the simple one or two or maybe three primary keys that are what I'm taking into this set, whereas in the past, I would be overthinking in that hour. It's like, oh, well, this and then this factor, maybe I need to change this, and then I'm just going around the wheel of possibilities, and that's that's too much, and being concerned about what other people are doing and saying. And so I just quiet time as much as I can, kind of maybe keep to myself, and then at least long enough to then when I'm going to go down, I'm going to start putting on my shorts and my gloves and my whatever people are going to be chit chatting, then I can just be loose. I and be open to if people are going to have a chat with me or not.

00:45:44.860 --> 00:45:51.460
I'm quite happy if I find a little secluded spot and I can do it on my own. That's great.

00:45:51.460 --> 00:47:05.519
So that's been a big one. Just the mental calm and again, skiing overall better even before the win, having some better results and better performances. There was just a state of confidence that helped bolster that mental calm and and so, and I've already touched on it then, like, when it's when I put my foot in the binding and I grab the hand and I'm going to jump in the water, that's like a moment that is like, okay, you know, we open the curtain, so to speak, it's like, and now the performance begins. There's not this kind of blurring of the days and weeks and hour right before, and all the thoughts that have kind of been churning through those times are just carrying over onto the water, and my head's still spinning out there. It's like, that was that the preparation is done. I'm ready now. It's show time, and we're going to get in the water and and perform another one that's, you know, specific to water skiing. And this is going to sound really obvious, but it can't. Maybe everyone's already doing this. That's a skier, but I wasn't for a long time, so maybe everyone's not, is that, you know, we're going to go through a sequence of passes.

00:47:05.519 --> 00:47:22.579
Typically, I'm going to start a tournament at either 32 or 35 off, and then 38 off, so at least two or three passes. 39 is a hard pass, but one that I'm running almost every time, and then 41 is where the tournament is really going to be decided.

00:47:23.179 --> 00:48:13.199
And instead of all of the hypotheses beforehand, get in that in that gameplay mode when I jump in the water, but try to learn we're going to drop at the end of the lake after every pass. So use that time to take a brief review of what that what the past was like. Was it a headwind, tailwind? What was the gate scenario like? What do I need to factor in the next time I come from that side of the course? You know, make put a pin, pin in that for the next time, and then just kind of quickly, okay? And here are the things that I want to make sure I either adapt or put into practice for this coming pass, you know, just a quick, you know, it takes 20 seconds, just run through those things, and then, you know, get up and go.

00:48:13.320 --> 00:48:43.300
So I'm going to have seen the lake before I get to my hardest pass, where things are on the line. I'm going to have seen that end of the lake before, possibly twice. So that's all data. So like, I'm actually just trying to use the end of the lake to integrate that data and take what I need from it and make that time productive, which is very different from what before would be. I'd get drop in the water. I'd have a very emotional response, which is, either, well, this is going really good. I feel great today.

00:48:40.539 --> 00:49:47.440
Yeah, and this is, you know, I think this is going to be great, which, that's not a focused that's, that's fine if you're feeling good, but when you get to that tip of the spear, like you talked about, feeling great is, is on your side, but you also kind of just need a framing of what you're going to do, or what has, what is it that's made you feel good, just so you have something concrete to stake that on, um or, or many, many times in the past is, uh oh, this is not feeling good. One Pass, I'm kind of then I'm nervous, and the next pass is nervous and tense, and then it's kind of survival, and then I'm getting to the harder passes, and I'm just all worked up and tense that each No Pass has really felt back great so far, and like, Oh, I'm off my game. Well, that's a terrible thought to be bringing into the performance, because, again, you have no touchstone of, well, what do I need to do to turn this ship around? You know? And you've gone through four passes and you've never even made an attempt to turn the wheel in the other direction, because all you've done is worry about how badly it's going. I mean, that's foolish, but that's what I did.

00:49:43.840 --> 00:50:02.159
You know, I'd be overcome by the nerves and emotion of it, so just kind of using that time in the water to to frame up, all right, if it didn't go well, you know, we'll talk about the Nationals in the minute, because that was the next tournament.

00:49:58.539 --> 00:50:19.980
After the win in England, and that was another prime example of moving pass by pass, to try to put the pieces together, try to weave the fabric together in a way that's going to work. And it sounds very intuitive that this is what we should be doing.

00:50:15.960 --> 00:50:40.039
But I think in a sport that's so moment to moment. Do or die, so cutthroat you can be out at the drop of a hat. It's very easy to succumb to the emotional resonance with the past that you just ran, rather than the data points from the past that you just ran. One of them gives you tools, and one of them gives you nothing. Well,

00:50:40.039 --> 00:52:05.699
so Exactly, I think you have maybe hit on the greatest key for performance there is, at least in the world that I'm playing in right now. And the one thing I think, for those people listening that aren't familiar with slalom, water skiing, it's the only sport I'm aware of that the minute you make a mistake, meaning you quit scoring. You're out, yeah, like in tennis, you get you can miss your serve, you can lose a point. You're still in the game almost any other sport, and it's not nearly as fast either, because your your your PASS is, what? 16.9 seconds, yeah. 1608 Yeah. 16 eight. And you think I know that driving can be six every day in the summer, but I never look at times, and you have to, you know, go very, very fast, very little room for mistakes. And I think what you described when we make mistakes, and it could just be that you stepped on somebody's toe in the grocery line, or it could be that you almost backed into a car as you're pulling out of the grocery store. Or it could be that you almost that you have two fingers on the handle going from two to three at 38 off in the dark. You know, it could be any kind of mistake, but I think it throws our brains into that emotional ruminating. Oh, my God, this isn't feeling good.

00:52:01.438 --> 00:52:49.358
What do I do now? Mode and keeps us, causes us to over and under react rather than be right in the moment, going, Okay, I'm off, but here's how far I have to correct to get back where I need to be. And what you described going into the tournament, talking about adapting in that tournament, I'm going to be feeling happy, like, how cool is this? But man, I'm going to have to adapt while I'm out there. And then what you just now described is I'm adapting almost buoy by buoy, because I'm listening and paying attention not to how I felt when I walk in the water and making a judgment call. Am I feeling good or bad? But okay, how far this way? How far that way? In other words, the language I use is calling it be the conduit, letting it tell you what to do, when to do, how to do. Yeah, and

00:52:50.500 --> 00:53:25.159
I'd say when you're in that emotional space, or when the nerves have the control, you almost you can't even collect the data points, because if you made a mistake during the run, even it's when your early passes and you don't fall, you continue scoring. You get through the pass. You're it's very easy as you drop in the water to remember the feeling of how bad that mistake felt, the embarrassment, shame, nerves, and that's, that's what stays with you, rather than, okay, well, what, what was the cause?

00:53:21.380 --> 00:53:50.199
What was the actual thing I need to implement to do something better? You're blinded by the emotional side. So, you know, I again, that wasn't even a conscious I mean, I guess it was a conscious choice in that I kind of realized that this is something that I should be doing, and this is kind of the more the way we do it in practice. And if you see with the coach, that's what they do, the coach does that largely for you. It's like, well, yeah, you made a mistake right here.

00:53:47.320 --> 00:55:14.340
Here's what you did. Here's what we want to try to do on the next pass to improve. Yet you you go into that cauldron, and all of a sudden that mindset is gone, and it gets replaced by, you know, the emotions take the controls and so, so that's been a huge change. And then, you know, as far as the rest of the recipe, just to try to tie that up, it's, it's a that same sense of calm, calm confidence, I would, I would describe it, trying to find that in some other walks of life, off the water, like I think I used to, we mentioned this in the prior episode, trying to make these 1% gains where I used To. I used to make some gains, but then subtract them from myself by some deviant behavior over here, or some, oh, I'll cut a corner with this. I found that just by, you know, between exercise, sleep, nutrition, just the fundamentals of. Uh, athletic performance. I don't have to go at 110% in any one of those categories, if I just am basically consistently doing my best in all of them.

00:55:12.300 --> 00:56:12.420
Like, sometimes we get interrupted sleep. I've got a three year old. It's going to happen. Sometimes we're in somewhere that we can't get the food that you want it's going to happen. You know, some days, you know, you're not going to get in the workout or whatever based on factors that are going on beyond your control. And those things used to really stress me out, and I'd be like, Oh my gosh, you know this or that happened, and now I'm one day behind where I am. My overall scheme had me because I didn't trust myself that I would do my diligence across the board. I had this, you know, little bit of self destructive tendency to like, Well, that happened, or maybe even because that happened, and I got stressed, you know, because I I didn't get enough sleep, then I didn't have the same amount of willpower, and then I would reach into the cookie jar because I didn't have the willpower. And then it's like, comments like, well, now it's all kind of going to hell, so I won't even do my workout or what, like, it would just kind of unravel, eat all the cookies.

00:56:12.420 --> 00:56:17.039
That's what, you know, right?

00:56:12.420 --> 00:58:00.360
And so, you know, I would kind of allow that initial false step to derail the others where now it's like, okay, some of these things are going to happen some of the time. Perfectionism is, is not the goal here. It's okay if I didn't get enough sleep last night, let's try to get really good quality nutrition to the best that I can today. Let's try to, you know, move my body, get the blood pumping, you know, to the extent that I can today, and if I can't, then I'll do that tomorrow, or I'll, you know, I'll try to get to bed extra early tonight. Whatever it may be that this, the factors allow for just, you know, those are, there are opportunities available if you stay looking for them rather than kind of get into, like, the throw your hands up, mode of like, oh well, the plan went out the window. So today's lost cause, and I might as well just blow it up and we'll and then and then tomorrow is never as good either, because now you're waking up tomorrow not feeling as good, physically, emotionally, you kind of beating yourself up, or feeling some guilt or whatever. So just curtailing those you know life happens, and just kind of having a healthier appreciation for that's going to be the case, and just staying true to the plan that was a calmer mode of living, because it came from a fundamental place of trusting myself to stay with it to the extent that I could and not sweat it so hard, not get stressed out if this or that thing popped up and, you know, kind of foiled my best made plans. It's like, Well, okay, new plan still to do the best with with this scenario, right?

00:57:56.800 --> 00:58:27.380
Again, that sounds so simple, but I was no good at doing that for a long time. And I had such lofty, I guess, expectations for how perfectly I was going to do everything, that when one little block got removed, it felt like it got removed right from the bottom, and everything just crumbled down like, oh, you know, to hell with it all. So that's been another one, and that staying in that calmer state of mind and trust has paid big dividends.

00:58:27.920 --> 00:59:26.960
That's huge. Every all of us can take a lesson from that, because, you know, when we get in that cycle of beating ourselves up, I think every cell in our body hears it. What I've experienced working with horses, and it was a huge insight for me just in the last few months. Is the minute I start, you know, going in my head, yelling at myself, the horses can actually feel or hear that. I don't know exactly how it works, but they're very tuned in, and then they're confused, because it's like, can you just tell me you want me to go left or right, as opposed to what's going on up in your head? And as I've thought about you know that for myself, it's like it we think we're trying to make ourselves better by doing it, but what we're really doing is telling every part of our body to to, like, get into defensive mode. Because what would you do if somebody came up and started beating you up on the street. Yep, you have to go into defensive mode, Yep,

00:59:28.039 --> 00:59:59.920
yeah. And Andrew Huberman, I know you're listening to us, this very important conversation that we're having, I want some research to be done. I've almost this is just a hunch. This is like a theory that I think when you're in that positive frame of mind, knowing that you're doing what you can. And then, in my case, like approaching a tournament where you kind of, you know, where you're trying to peak, you know, the date, the time, more or less, I felt this thing this year that I I'm my suspicion is that it's maybe.

01:00:00.300 --> 01:01:26.360
Hormonal which is a part of our system. I know that we don't fully understand that well, how all these chemicals inside of us shape us and our behavior and our mood and all this, but it's I noticed as I would be approaching events this year and very differently from in the past, with a greater sense of calm and confidence and readiness that I was excited to go out and perform, rather than eating up with nerves about the impending competition, I almost I felt like I could almost detect a change in like, like my skin and my to a small degree, like my body composition and my clarity of thought, those things actually started without any change per se in what I was doing. As far as eating, sleeping, whatever I felt like, I started to notice just subtle, you know, not sweeping, but these just kind of small in the in the three days, I'd say, leading up, I started to feel a little bit better, and I've started to feel a little more vibrant, and I have no, no way of tying that to a lifestyle factor. And I'm just kind of curious, of like, what you talked about, as far as having the milkshakes, if you think that it's good for you, and you're kind of framing it a certain way, your body's responding differently where I know in the past, I think it actually worked the other way.

01:01:22.699 --> 01:01:39.920
It can cut both ways, where I'd be so nervous as the day of the tournament approached, say I maybe feel more bloated or more like flabby, or more lethargic or more cloudy in my thoughts.

01:01:36.079 --> 01:01:46.900
So I'm like, I don't know where that comes from, but I found it super interesting. And I think that there's something there.

01:01:43.719 --> 01:01:54.340
And I try to, you know, listen to humor in lab and things like that. I'd love to hear some some science about what is that like, what's going on there?

01:01:54.820 --> 01:03:16.199
I would, I would too, because, interestingly enough, when I'm working with Bruce, we talk about breaking things frame by frame. And he is always saying, like, for both the horse and for me, notice that at the success of each frame, not the end goal, there's an endorphin kick. I did that. And what I want to know from Huberman is, okay, what is that endorphin kick like? Is it dopamine, or is it the actually, I've had one biologist say to me, first you have to have the adrenaline or the epinephrine, and then you get the dopamine. So it's sort of like, is it going to work? Oh yes, it did. Is it going to work? Oh yes, it did. But I think we scoot right past that in most of our work because we're so focused on the end goal. So one of the things I've been playing with, I call it banking endorphin kicks. And I give it I do it as I'm unloading my car, because it's a pain in the butt to unload my car every day as I go back and forth between the floor, you know, Mystic waters. And here is, pick this up, endorphin kick. Move this into this hand. Endorphin kick. Assess, is there another you know, am I gonna have to make a second trip, or can I load it all in, as opposed to just being annoyed that I just want to get everything out of the car and get it in the house, and just like you said in other parts of my life, practicing before I put it under pressure.

01:03:12.059 --> 01:03:30.199
And so, yeah, we'll send it. We just, we're just committing. Now I'm going to somehow get this podcast, at least to a woman, Andrew, we need some help with what's happening. But I have no doubt that there's something to that and and what I also think, and there's a new Netflix story.

01:03:30.320 --> 01:04:11.880
We often joke, if you don't like allow yourself to get that natural endorphin kick as you accomplish things day by day, move by move throughout life, throughout whatever goals, somebody else will come in and substitute it by selling you something. Mm, and there's a new Netflix show called buy now, and it's almost impossible for me to watch because it's so it's so true and so convicting about how we have substituted all the external get a new iPhone, buy some new shoes, get a better car, get on Facebook, whatever, to get your your endorphin kicks versus getting them naturally.

01:04:07.500 --> 01:04:22.099
So my theory is that what you've done as you shifted is and made everything different this summer for yourself, is that you've gotten more of a natural endorphin kick, rather than looking outside yourself for it.

01:04:22.940 --> 01:04:26.719
Yeah, that sounds reasonable. We're doing our own science

01:04:26.719 --> 01:04:52.119
experiments. So like we'll get this, we'll get this little old podcast to Andrew Huberman, but we, I don't want to run out of time before we talk about because there's at least a couple of more big things, one of which is huge, and I don't want to take away for those who are listening about what it is to win a pro ski tournament, I don't know. I don't have the records for who won tournaments this year, but it's generally concentrated among a few people.

01:04:48.880 --> 01:04:52.119
There's not that many people.

01:04:52.119 --> 01:05:15.780
There's a lot of really, really good skiers, like who clearly are the best in the world that don't win tournaments, but that ski better than. Most other people, and so to win a tournament is huge. So let's not take away from that, but you did a couple of other things this year, and one of which is also putting you in very rarefied air in the Ski World. So tell us a little bit more about your other experience. Yeah,

01:05:15.900 --> 01:06:38.480
well, I'll just briefly put one before we get to what I know you're talking about following that tournament in Oxford, the next tournament, which was about three weeks later, something like that that I participated in was the US nationals in California. And this was a little bit of a, you know, had a different flavor to it, because I this time, my wife and my son, we all went together. My wife was also going to compete. And, you know, kind of following off of the back of this big win and then riding that sort of high. But, you know, here we go. We got to go back into competition again. And to keep the story short, I managed to come away with the win at the nationals as well, in a in a tie break with Nate Smith, and that was my first ever nationals title. Like I've been skiing the Nationals. My first one was 1995 I was nine years old. Wow, Yep, I've had some seconds and thirds along the way. But I actually had a tie breaker with Nate Smith the prior year, but he won, I got second. And then this year it went the other way. So that was a that was a special moment, kind of piggybacked right on the other one. And then what really made them,

01:06:38.480 --> 01:06:44.739
by the way, against Nate, who has had a record of winning, just really dominating, yeah,

01:06:44.798 --> 01:06:51.338
yeah, the world record holder and the most dominant skier of our time, for sure.

01:06:47.918 --> 01:07:09.659
Yeah. But what really made that trip then special like that, we flew out there, and then the next day I skied, and then the following day, my wife was up to ski, and this was only her second nationals. She did it last year as well, and only began skiing when we started dating. So

01:07:09.840 --> 01:07:14.460
I was there for this, yeah, right, walking her learn to ski. Yeah, yeah.

01:07:14.460 --> 01:07:56.559
So only came to it as an adult, and then, you know, she went out there. Nationals is tough because it's one round, and that's it, like you fly all the way to California and you got one shot, and then you ski or nose. It's it's very possible to come up far short of your your average or your best. For sure, she went out there and performed really well and ended up putting herself third place at the National so she was on the Yeah. So, you know, we both got to have our time on the podium out there. And, you know, our son, Seth, was, in some way anyway, at least able to appreciate, you know, he got to climb up on the podium too. He knew that was exciting stuff.

01:07:56.559 --> 01:08:27.199
Got to take some pictures. So now that just made for a very special family trip. But then moving on past that, the we're kind of getting into the final portion of the season now that kind of ran through the fall, September, October. You know, I guess the quick snapshot is that of the last four tournaments, I placed third in three of them.

01:08:20.779 --> 01:08:36.199
So that was, to me, very good to more podiums. You know, just really exciting. You know, different people, as you mentioned, taking away titles.

01:08:36.260 --> 01:08:49.180
We had. Dane Meckler won one of them and I got third. Lucas Cornell won one of them when I got third. These are first time champions as well. This was kind of the year of new people finding their way to the top, which is great for the sport.

01:08:49.539 --> 01:09:36.500
Makes it a lot more exciting for everyone that's that's tuning in. And I guess I can, I think I can plug it right here that the twbc is going to release a little documentary series, like a three episode or three or four episode series over the winter in the new year sometime, kind of talking about this special season and some of the new winners and various things like that. So that's something, yeah, something for the ski world to look forward to. But then, yeah, I think the one other moment that really stands out from the summer, which was one of the stated goals that we touched on when we spoke in April, was to run the full 41 off pass. Again.

01:09:31.100 --> 01:09:49.600
I'd done it in 2015 one time and 2016 one time. So I wasn't the ninth skier to ever do it, and then since then, a few more have, I think it's up to 13 now that have, that have ever done it, yeah,

01:09:49.720 --> 01:09:56.319
I think, depending on if it was in a runoff, yeah or whatever. But I think 13 is the official

01:09:56.619 --> 01:10:13.020
yeah number. But I. So the but it had been like an eight year drought for me. It had been since 2016 and it was like, you know, come on, I know this one I could believe, because it had happened before.

01:10:09.659 --> 01:10:16.199
And I feel like, in many ways, I've improved my skiing game.

01:10:13.260 --> 01:10:39.380
And it's like, okay, well, let's, I want to go out there and and, you know, do this again. And so the way that happened, though this time, was far more extraordinary than in the past, which were, you know, they were record tournaments, which are great but, and there were other great skiers there, skiing really well, but there's no cash prize on the line.

01:10:36.859 --> 01:11:20.520
There's no webcast. There's nothing really riding on it, and that's takes a lot of the pressure off and makes it easier to get those types of performances. But this time, we were at the king of darkness, which was taking place basically the weekend right before Halloween in Florida, isles of Lake Hancock, and people started skiing lights out, like I went out there in the first round, and I ran three at 41 which is a pretty good score, but I think at the end of that round, it had moved me down the the running order, you know, the seatings, because so many people had, you know, run more than that, which is, you know, just exceptional.

01:11:20.520 --> 01:11:35.539
People were lighting it up. And then as we get into the second qualifying round, a couple of people who went out before me, which means, I doubt you know, three at 41 had been more than what they did in the first round. Ski their brains out.

01:11:35.539 --> 01:11:47.199
Will Asher runs five at 41 huge score on the board. Thomas the gaspreet goes out, runs five at 41 it's his highest score of the year. And I'm just like, Oh my gosh. You know this

01:11:47.739 --> 01:11:50.439
outrageous scores, by the way, yeah, at this

01:11:50.439 --> 01:13:04.198
point, four at 41 is going to be a runoff to get in at best. And that's just bonkers. I mean, that that's rare air enough. So as I was taken to the water that time, it's like, well, we pretty much have to go for broke here. And I was texting with Amelia, my wife, you know, beforehand, and she's like, You got this, I know you can do it. And, like, the last thing that she texted me before I was putting down my phone to start putting my gloves and things on. She She said, just run the dang thing and, you know, and some emojis or whatever. And I was like, huh, God, that would be so nice. And so then we got out there, and I felt, you know, pretty good in the warm up passes. I had Trent Finlayson as a driver. It was his first time really pulling a full pro men's tournament. And he's great guy. I think just kind of having a driver up there that you know and you feel familiar with, you feel comfortable with, that just takes one more edge off. I mean, we also had Scott Greenwood, who's the best of the best. So it was, that's part of the reason the scores were so great.

01:13:04.198 --> 01:13:31.458
You have two of the best up there, but And Scott also is so easy to to be out there on the water with, you know, so again, you know, just kind of like having fun, making a little bit of a chat with the drivers in between. You know, as I do my little drop down, kind of rehearsing my mind, you reflect on the data points and so forth.

01:13:26.298 --> 01:15:01.198
And, you know, we worked our way through the past. Has got to 41 I was like, All right, Trent, well, this is it. I'm going to go for it, you know, let's, let's run this thing. And he's like, alright, buddy, yeah, let's do it. And I kind of had rehearsed what it was going to take. You need the gate. You need everything, basically, to be at 100% and got the gate in the one ball, I was off to the races. Two ball was okay, that's usually the ball. That's a little make or break for me. It was pretty good. And I asked, like, it wasn't perfect position, but I just accidentally fell into a great lean position, got the line and ended up with a great look at three, which is probably my best turn three ball. Got the really good three, then I knew I was going to have to turn four, because getting four was maybe out at this point. So I was like, Okay, we're just fully committing and going for it here four connects, and then as I'm going over to five, the only thing that managed to flash through my mind was that that last text from my wife that said, just run the dang thing. I mean, the safe move would have been to know that you're going to five. Yeah, I was going to get in most likely, like, just stand up, take the full five and and take the safe road. But that's like I said, the only thing that registered was just run it. So I went to five in full commit mode, and it was.

01:14:57.819 --> 01:15:39.259
Probably the best turn of the whole pass. And as soon as that line comes tight off of five, like I knew, I knew, then it's like, well, we're gonna put the pedal down, make sure that I'm going to get to six. If I have one skill that's probably my best asset is that I can typically hang on to any amount of slack out the gate. So I was just going to hit the afterburners to six, not worried about the speed. Get back to the center. Had a nice, big hit waiting for me, but that I was like, I checked I had enough time with the rope, you know, laying in the water like, okay, both hands are on, full grip.

01:15:35.059 --> 01:15:39.259
Get ready for it, you know.

01:15:39.259 --> 01:16:13.078
Boom, there's the hit and and then that, that was a that's another special moment of this year that stands out, just like, kind of let loose a very guttural, raw scream that came just came out because of that, after being denied for eight years. And kind of, you know, coming to the end of the tournament season, which this was, you know, pretty much there, getting down to the last chance to to do that, which was one of the goals for the year.

01:16:08.819 --> 01:16:20.458
You know, like, I knew I had one more tournament afterwards Miami. But everyone said it's harder to get good scores there.

01:16:15.479 --> 01:16:29.538
So, which is true, no one run 41 there. The highest score of the tournament was four. I kind of knew that set was basically, you know, that was my last chance.

01:16:29.538 --> 01:16:32.538
If I didn't do it, it was going to have to wait till next year.

01:16:32.719 --> 01:17:00.099
So just a very, you know, unique way that it boiled down, you know, that it was, it was the last opportunity I kind of had this, this mantra in my mind from my wife, like, just run the dang thing and then, you know, sure enough, it all came together when it counted and and there was, yeah, that's, that's another one that that I'll get to savor for a long time again.

01:17:00.099 --> 01:17:16.019
I'm, I'm so appreciative that both, both of those great experiences were captured by the twbc, and they'll be housed on YouTube for perpetuity. So you know, I'll have the opportunity to go back and and see them in the future

01:17:17.039 --> 01:17:44.260
that I actually didn't get to actually watch you run it. I came, I think, onto the webcast a little too late, but I think I scrubbed back so I could see it, because I was like, holy cow, because I knew, you know, the back of my mind your goals. And I was like, he did it. And again, it's pretty rarefied error. Not that many people even ran it this year. Many of the 13 that have run it, only three people, is what you're saying.

01:17:44.260 --> 01:18:03.779
Okay, yeah, three. And many of the people who have run it aren't skiing anymore. So, you know, there's not that many that are contenders to run it. And so you know, you're, you're three people did something this year of the whole people on the planet, and you're one of them.

01:17:59.800 --> 01:19:02.340
I mean, that's cool. That's beyond cool. Like, you're like, Well, I have to say, but you do, you know, it's in what's I think maybe the coolest part is, yes, you wanted to run it, but that's not really been what these 1000 days are about which you, I think you said earlier you had 400 days left of this, of this thing. So just reflect on like that, because also you have to kind of keep yourself up. I know it's rest season now. We've all put our skis away. At least most people have. I regretted putting my skis up as soon as I did, because just until today, we've had ski weather. Yeah. I mean, this is the longest potential ski season we've ever had, but we had flooding a couple of months ago. It took a while to get our light back, so I only skied a couple of times since then. But you know, it's rest time. And then pick yourself up and go into next season. So any last reflections on last year and then tell me about what's happening next year.

01:19:04.739 --> 01:20:50.140
I feel like, as this season was marching along, there wasn't a whole lot of time to sit and reflect on the I mean, fortunately, I'm very thankful it was mostly highs, not a lot of lows. But, you know, even coming away from those experiences, it's like there is still the next thing to focus on. And like, I don't want to, you know, I'm having a good year, but I don't want to take my eye off the ball. I want to stay sharp and stay in the process. So, you know, getting to do this, just sit down and and break it down a little bit, kind of helps to integrate. And like I said to many people you know, especially that that moment of the win in England, I think that that's something that I will likely, I'm going to appreciate and savor that for a lifetime, like I I almost couldn't feel. All the emotions, and haven't been able to, you know, they all bottled up very intensely in that first that one night, you know, that it took place and and I, you know, was able to kind of get my arms around them for that night, and they're just washing over me, even on the plane ride home. But then as I got back here, you know, it's kind of back to business. I'm back to being a dad. You know, knows that something good happened. Dad skied well, but like, you know, he's still doing his thing. He doesn't care, you know, and, and, you know, business marches on. I got a ski school to run, and, you know, I got a lot of great hugs and things from from my skiers that come out. But ultimately, you know, the daily tasks of living were fill in the days and without a lot of time to just sit around in the glory.

01:20:45.279 --> 01:22:37.039
So, you know, I'm kind of content with that approach that I think, you know, looking back and being able to cherish this in 10 years and 20 years and have that validation, that one, I wasn't crazy for the having this belief and and two, I was willing to make the sacrifices and put in the work required to find out, you know, and ultimately, check off some of these goals, that's going to be much more favorable than the regret that would have been had I not invested the time and the effort towards that. So I feel like these are gifts. These are gifts for a lifetime. These are gifts for the ages, and only something that I've spent minimal time dropping into the feeling of it at as of now and and even now. Yes, it's moved into the off season. But the season ran long. I mean, here we are in November. I mean, we just finished and, but I also know the way that time goes so fast, especially with a little one in the house, the next season is going to be upon us in almost no time, and in that same way that I was describing, not allowing myself to to make gains, only to subtract somewhere else, like I feel like, okay, I've I've gotten, you know, my body and my mind, more or less, in the right place to do what it what I want it to do, what I don't want to do right now is go through this holiday season and undo that.

01:22:37.039 --> 01:22:56.319
Like I used to that kind of was my thing for a long time. Like, I try to push, push, push, really hard through the season with a lot of intensity. And then it's like, once that last tournament's done, we hang up the ski it's like, Ah, okay, it's the holidays. It's time for a break. You know? I'll take all of the indulgences and so on.

01:22:52.659 --> 01:23:27.319
And look, I mean, absolutely, am I going to eat some Christmas cookies and have some of the delights off of the heavy hors d'oeuvres platters that are going to be out, you know, at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Of course, am I going to stuff myself on Thanksgiving night? Of course, I am. I'm going to have pie with ice cream and the whole gamut of things. But that used to kind of be like a, you know, like a month and a half long, you know, just kind of get on the gravy train, and, you know, get that sugar tooth going, let that addiction kind of set in.

01:23:24.079 --> 01:23:48.340
And I'm a little more committed this year. And also, like, you know, I kind of table some of the workouts and the intensity be like, you know, what I've been pushing I'm just going to take some time off, whereas right now, I'm trying to find a better middle ground, like trying to keep up, you know, a very solid nutrition regimen.

01:23:48.520 --> 01:25:32.239
Don't have to be as strict as what I would be in the week of a competition. But, you know, I don't want to lose all that steam. I don't want to have to rebuild a body from a deficit come January, I want to, you know, have, I'll have some work to do, but not dig a hole and, yeah, so that, and with the workouts, it's like, I'm not going to put down the ski and just fling myself into full blown off season. You know, let's see what Max deadlifts look like right now, sort of mode that's unnecessary, but I'm not going like, I've been on a pretty good, you know, weekly training program at a level that feels good for right now, like actually building some some strength, some mobility, but without taxing myself to the point that come February, I'm going to poop out and feel burned out from all of it, at least, I hope that's kind of the the middle path that I'm shooting for right now. So that that, to me, kind of represents a different difference from the past. And again, it's, it's kind of a calmer confidence from feeling like I have the something closer. The recipe, I still want more. But also, like this is part of the way of doing it. In past years, even last year, I'd say I let my appetites take a little deeper hold than I intend to, you know, this November, December, I plan on enjoying, you know, and to your milkshake analogy, like, when I'm going to eat some some pie and some cookies, I deserve those pies and cookies, and I'm going to eat them when the time's right, and they're going to be good for me, darn it.

01:25:28.880 --> 01:25:49.899
Everyone needs my my stepmother in particular, makes some, a whole array of delicious Christmas cookies, and I'm going to taste all of them numerous times. But that's what you should do at Christmas. Like, those are, those are going to be good for you, cookies and at the time, yeah, at the time that is that they're supposed to be.

01:25:49.899 --> 01:26:08.279
What I'm not going to do is, you know, sit here on a nightly basis at my house and watch Netflix and go through tubs of ice cream or something like that. So, like, to me, it's with that's not a big ask, a little more discipline and diligence, with some treats along the way.

01:26:03.960 --> 01:27:36.140
And that's already, I think, going to hopefully provide a bit better momentum into the new year, where, basically, then I do hope to, you know, I look forward to, like, firing up the intensity, you know, carving the the curving the sugar cravings and ratcheting up the intensity of the workouts. With the idea, in my mind, basically, that this is the final year I've been working myself when working hard, doing this type of training in the off season for like, 16 years now, and you know, but this is the final time at at this level, and so let's make it the best, the best one at this level. Let's come in strongest, healthiest, most energetic. I mean, I'm aware that that gets harder as the years go by, but I think as long as I don't dig myself a deep hole, and I kind of have some of the mental and emotional boon of knowing that I didn't do that, I'm hoping to, you know, carry that into a good winter time training program, and then I'll be looking forward to some point in January, I hope to make a, at least a short trip to Florida, touch my ski, get out there, see what that feels like. And then maybe some more in February, you know, and then ultimately, we'll be starting here in late March or early April.

01:27:37.279 --> 01:27:54.279
So Interestingly though, as you're as you're speaking, you're also peaking. I'm looking at, okay, all these years of skiing, but you've sort of found the formula, the recipe, as you call it, and you're driving towards an end at the same time.

01:27:54.279 --> 01:28:43.600
So help me reconcile those two things that you know, as you're peaking. You could be saying, and I'll skip, keep skiing as long as I feel good. But you've, you've pretty much declared this is you're going into, you know, this last year so, and there's so much to the idea of planning for an end as well. There's something stoic about that, actually, because, you know, the Stoics, you know, prepare for death. And I mentioned Maury, yeah. And I very much am a big fan of that, because I think we only can live when we prepare for death, honestly. But Go, go, like, riff on that a little bit about as you've gotten the recipe you're also planning to retire. What does that look like for you? And why are you doing it then? Yeah,

01:28:43.600 --> 01:30:02.760
I mean, look, if, if I had come to this state of affairs 10 years ago, then it's fun to imagine what might have been, but that wasn't my path like I'm, I'm, if nothing else, I'm, I'm very it's taken me all of the mistakes and mishaps and learnings to refine. I mean, a lot of bad sourdough batches have come out. A lot of discus shaped things that are that are hard and stale and, you know, just amounted to nothing. You know, I had to go through all of those to try to get some decent loafs to come out. But I think, in essence, it's that the the intensity and sense of purpose and intention that I plan to bring through this off season and into next year is not one that I think that I would ever because I know that it's ending, I will be able to apply that much. Whereas, if this was open ended, I'm like, well, let's see where it goes. Maybe, you know, we'll keep at this for another three or four years or whatever, like, I wouldn't have the will to, I mean, some there's going to be some suffering along this winter. I mean, in a good calculated way, but just.

01:29:58.119 --> 01:31:29.720
Disciplined, you know, deep in a workout somewhere, some night when I really want to open a box of cookies or whatever that might be, you know, I'm not talking about bad, bad suffering. I'm talking about just the sacrifice type that's that's moderate. But to be able to to have a touchstone to say, Nope, you know, we have a, there's a plan here, and I'm going to stick with it, you know, and it's in its full expression. I don't, I don't have it in me to do that to that level for three more years. I'm 39 years old, and I have a little one, and we want to maybe have another little one. And there's just too many other things in life to to try to apply so much energy and time towards this. And so now that I want to be clear that that doesn't mean I will never ski another pro tournament after the coming year, but I'll never put myself through like this gauntlet that, yeah, that this has been and this is going to be now again, because my life has other facets that are ultimately, many of them more important, and it's a privilege that I get to do this. I heard one thing, and it was, came from a young kid. I don't remember.

01:31:26.000 --> 01:32:07.560
He was like a race car driver or something, and he was like 16 years old 15. But he was so wise, and he said something that that stuck with me, which was, I have to remember that I'm privileged that I get to make these sacrifices. And that's really the case for me. I'm so privileged that I have the opportunity to be where I am now, that I can make some sacrifices towards these goals, like, if you know, if, whatever, I broke my leg tomorrow, and I was never going to get to ski again for some reason, like I'm still going to have a good life.

01:32:04.380 --> 01:32:07.560
It doesn't all hinge on this.

01:32:07.560 --> 01:32:44.739
Like water skiing has been this thread of my life, that it's been a core thing, but I have so many other good things, and I'm so fortunate for that. I'm so grateful for that, that it's those things that allow me to make sacrifice towards this thing that I get to do, that I have the opportunity to do, and and so I'm prepared to to go ahead with that, and then I'm interested to see again, back to a sense of curiosity in years to come. I hope to remain healthy.

01:32:39.319 --> 01:36:30.859
I mean, I've been doing I've been working out and training and trying to get to a higher level for a long time. I'm going to try not to just turn into a couch potato, and it's like, I'm never going to ski again. I'm going to be involved. I'm going to be running my ski school. But I basically, right now I'm in a position where it's a 365 day a year, 24/7 sort of obsession that never fully turns off. You know, every every time I'm going to eat a meal, I'm having some thoughts about, you know, and it could be in the middle of January, you know, I'm thinking about how it's going to affect me come, you know, September, it's going to be nice to let some of that go, and it's going to be essential to let some of that go for my own quality of life and for my sense of time to there are many days where I will force the training into my schedule, where it's not an easy fit. You know, where you say, my son's home sick from school and, you know, kind of have to just be a parent and make him some soup or whatever it is. I can't let down my guard that I'm still striving towards something where it'll be nice to just not or not have the stress over it. It's like, oh, I'm trying to straddle these two worlds, like, can I be the nurturing parent and the pro athlete at the same time and figure out where to strike the right balance? It's just like, I'll be able to come down clearly, much more clearly on one side of that, because there's, there's some element of stress in my life around this every single day, and to divorce from that will be a relief when the time is right, and so but in the meanwhile, it's all the more incentive to pack it in, not miss a beat. You know, go all out and, and then know that I left nothing on the table and and remain curious. There are other elements mentioned the workouts, because that's a clear example of time when you need discipline and motivation. But I. Also need to remain open and curious to what other elements can I improve, and kind of keep my my radar around what those are, and dig into them when I find them in a way that when I don't need to try to find the tip of the spear, my experience of daily living can just be a lot more open to everything that's going on, including my friendships and my relationships. And I mean, I feel like I sometimes have to put on my blinders and I get into my little tunnel vision mode that's geared toward a performance outcome, and I have to say no sometimes to being able to be at a family gathering or, you know, and as time goes on, more important moments with my son, being able to coach his sports teams and things like that, and other other endeavors that I'm simply curious about that are beyond skiing. To try to see if I can, you know, apply my hand to some other interests that I have so for all those reasons, it's going to there's going to be, it's going to be time, I feel very, very good about it now, even better about it, having had some success in checking off some of those goals this year and and it'll be nice to get to a place where skiing is for Fun, which is that's basically a return to where it started. For me, it just started out as something that was all for fun, and that will be a great place for it to land.

#78 Corey Vaughn: Adapting to Challenging Conditions

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