After the selection races in Whistler concluded last week, I packed up Fiona the Ford and headed out to Calgary, for a second set of selection races, one of which doubled as the 2009 Canadian Championships.

The week of training and racing can be summarized by my subsequent collection of Facebook posts:

Michelle Bartleman Loscher ... does not have feelings of love toward the Calgary track ...

Michelle Bartleman Loscher ... Dear Calgary Bobsleigh Track ... I still hate you. With love and friendship in my eyes. Sincerely, Michelle.

Michelle Bartleman Loscher ... Dear Calgary Bobsleigh Track. I don't want to fight anymore. Let's be friends tonight, okay? Love Michelle.

Michelle Bartleman Loscher ... Dear Calgary Bobsleigh Track. See? That wasn't so bad, was it? I'm sorry I yelled at you. Although, to be fair, you were acting like a total jerk. Maybe we could get together again? How about tomorrow? Maybe heat things up a little? It could be fun ... Love Michelle.

Michelle Bartleman Loscher ... Dear Calgary Bobsleigh Track. Man, the starts of our time spent together are really great, but then things go downhill slowly. I haven't given up on you though. Wanna meet me again tomorrow afternoon? Maybe see if we can keep things rolling after our steamy first glances at each other? I'll be there waiting ... Love Michelle.

Michelle Bartleman Loscher ... Dear Calgary Bobsleigh Track. I love you. Yours always, Michelle.

The week was ... classic Bartleman. In summary, train so poorly that all your competitors completely write you off as a threat, have a complete meltdown so that your coach thinks you are certifiable, then on race day, pull yourself together so that you've got everyone wondering whether you are ridiculously lucky, or have mad skills and are just messing with their minds.

Whether it was mad skills, or luck, or a combination thereof, in the end I managed to eek out (and I do mean eek, as in 5/100ths of a second) a seventh place finish at Sunday's Canadian Champs, including two personal best downtimes and a personal best start time.

After a week of soap opera drama between me and my boyfriend, Calgary Bobsleigh Track, 7th place behind the six senior national team members, definitely constitutes classic Bartleman.