Attention all Park City Farmer’s Market fans. Many of you don’t know me. My name is Carlos Gonzalez, and have been helping Volker with this website and his bakery website for some time now. Last Wednesday at the market while taking photos for this site, I met a young gentleman and athelete by the name of Mathew T. Lints of World Cup Dreams Foundation that we were very impressed with and Volker has sponsored several years. I told Mathew that I would try to help him through the market website.

Please take a look at the following that I received from Mathew:

And any Park City athletes out there, I’m sure you can appreciate the words from the athletes themselves, so I am going to copy and paste Mathew’s email for you to read right here:

July 6, 2011

Dear Carlos,

I hope this letter finds you well and as excited as I am about the coming of Summer. 2011 finds me ever committed to becoming a member of the U.S. Speed Skating Team and competing in the 2014 Winter Olympics.

My goal is to raise $30,000.00 for the 2011 season which starts April 15, 2011 and goes through March 21, 2012 with a three week rest period during March 22 through April 14, each year.

The funds I hope to raise will cover training costs, equipment, coaching and ice time at the Utah Olympic Oval, and other travel costs for the season. With your help, I have the chance to make the U.S. Team and representing our country in the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.

I am currently working with a local non-profit, World Cup Dreams Foundation. The Foundation was started by former U.S. Ski Team members Erik Schlopy and Bryon Friedman. Erik and Bryon created the foundation 5 years ago with the goal of raising money to provide financial support and disability insurance to the top alpine skiers in the country. The foundation has provided over $250,000 in athlete grants.  Their foundation has reached out to offer support to me and I am proud to be a part of such an organization. Thanks to WCDF, I too am going to be able to focus on my “World Cup Dreams.”

I understand the magnitude of support and backing required for this undertaking, and I have not entered into this lightly. Recently, I made “B” level ice, which is just a step below World Cup athletes. I am 1.6 seconds away from tying the fastest time in the men’s 100 meter start for the men’s 500 meter all-out sprint race. I have worked hard to shave 10 seconds off of my 400 meter flying-lap time in just one season. I’ve been told this is relatively unheard of so I take that as a positive sign. On March 20-22, 2009, I competed in my first Americas Cup Speed Skating event hosted at the Utah Olympic Oval and shattered four personal records in the men’s 500m, 1,000m, and 1,500m races. I had the fortune of living in North Carolina, from July 22, 2010 until September 15, 2010, training one-on-one with Speed Skater Dan Jansen and USA Bobsled 1 Randy Will. Also, I was fortunate to have a meeting with Dr. Eric Heiden, 5-time speed skating Gold Medalist at the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympic Games. Dr Heiden is willing to teach me the techniques and dry land methods that made him so successful.

I continue to improve, and I’m eager to raise the funds required to train at this level. That is why I’m asking for your help. Any amount of support to help me reach my goal is greatly appreciated. Please share this information with others you may know that would be able and willing to support my endeavors. If you have any questions or concerns please contact me at any time. I appreciate the time you have taken to read this letter. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Mathew T. Lints
mathewlints@gmail.com
(435) 640-7120

World Cup Dreams Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax ID# 20-4647706. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Please make checks payable to: World Cup Dreams Foundation and indicate “Athlete: Mathew Lints” in the”Memo” portion of your check. Please send check to: World Cup Dreams Foundation, c/o Megan Kramer Executive Director, P.O. Box 684017, Park City, Utah 84068