By: Katherine Reutter

By: Katherine Reutter

By: Katherine Reutter

By: Katherine Reutter

Say hello to Katherine Reutter, a short-track speedskater with gold-medal potential. The Champaign native has been kind enough to give us an inside look at her quest for Olympic glory by writing a monthly diary for The News-Gazette. Her second entry:

August 2009

July is always a favorite time of year for me. It´s hot and sunny, full of good training, and I turn 21 at the end.

 This July I´ve been spending my time, outside of the rink, enjoying all the great things that Salt Lake City has to offer. Lately I´ve been doing most of my shopping at the farmers market. The market in Salt Lake is rivaled by no other. It takes up an entire park a city block long. I try to make it every Saturday, as long as it doesn´t conflict with training, and bring home whatever fresh fruits and vegetables catch my eye. Sometimes I end up with an eclectic menu all week long, but it´s fun to come up with new recipes using whatever I have on hand. I mostly love the farmers market because I feel like I´m giving back to the community.

 Sustainable living (trying to reduce the use of natural resources) isn´t something that most people pay attention to, but it´s pretty easy to cut down transportation costs and pollution by buying locally grown goods. Buying food locally is also more nutritious because the fresher your food is the more nutrients it has to offer. Many small farms grow organically but can´t pay the fees for official paperwork, so you get top-quality ingredients for a fraction of the cost. Growing up with my grandparents owning a dairy farm I appreciate the support needed to run a small farm in America.

At the rink, I´m more focused than ever. We´re finishing our last high-volume training cycle and transitioning into good, quality performance. This phase is difficult every year. My body is worn down from nonstop training the last three months, but the on-ice workouts are getting faster and faster. Just last Tuesday Shani Davis (Olympic champion in long track) led a 13-lapper for the women´s team that matched the world record for the 1,500 meters. I also set a personal best following Shani for a seven-lapper, which is the main training for a 1,000-meter race. And it´s only July! I won´t be reaching my peak until February, which means there are still improvements to be made.

What I´m most excited about right now is that I turned 21 on Thursday. It actually makes me kind of sad to think that I´ll never be 20 again. Twenty years is such a long time, but I don´t feel like I´ve gotten 20 years worth of living done. I´ve never thought before that I really should try to get more out of life, but as a 21 year old I hope to have no regrets, less fear and more fun.

 That should be no problem considering my parents and I are flying to Vegas to celebrate. I´ve never been there before and am so excited to see everything the city has to offer. We´re going to see the Broadway hit "Disney´s Lion King," something that I´ve always wanted to do, and I plan on trying every new thing possible. I won´t be getting too crazy since the Olympic Trials are only five weeks away, but I´ll be seeing if I have any luck at the casinos for sure!

 Be sure to check out my new Web site at katherinereutter.com. It´s up and running. Usspeedskating.org has all the details for the upcoming Olympic Trials and World Cups in Marquette, Mich. - (have you made your plans to be there yet?). Keep an eye out for my next diary entry