So it’s lunchtime in Finland, and I’m in day two of a training camp in Kuortane. My back’s aching, my arms are tired, I’m generally run into the ground, but I got told yesterday by Jozef Gonci that if I change my jacket (it’s binding in some spots) I’d be shooting around 580 or so. Which wasn’t quite worth the 1500 euro I’ve paid to be here, but put it together with the shooting and the coaching and it was 😀

The gang getting set in Dublin Airport…

The apartments we’re staying in here are enormous. They’re meant for residential athlete programmes with athletes staying for 8 to 10 months at a stretch, so they’re basicly a small flat. This one is 46 square metres, with a full kitchen, sitting room, bedroom and balcony.

Yes, balcony 😀

Oh, and something we’ve been making heavy use of –

The sauna. I don’t know why we don’t have more of these in Ireland, it’s the size of a shower, it’s all pre-built kit stuff bought off a shelf, and if there’s something better for you after a day here than a half-hour in the sauna, I don’t know what it is.

And the days here are rather hard (on me at least). Breakfast at 0800, lectures form 0900 to around 1030, 15 minute break then shooting until lunchtime, there’s a two hour lunch so you can eat and then relax (and in my case email home or blog), then back to the range until 1700, an hour’s break then physical training for an hour, then dinner, then usually back to the room, phone or email or (in my case) some work (there are deadlines back in the world, so work had to come with me 🙁 ), then sauna and Deep Heat and sleep and then back up and do it again.

Why we don’t do this in Ireland I don’t know…