After being gone for nearly two weeks with preseason trips to the warm climates of Las Vegas, Nev. and Ventura, Calif., the Rapids were welcomed home over the weekend by a snow storm that brought nearly a foot of snow to area. With more snow possible for Tuesday, the team has altered its training schedule for the week as they prepare for Saturday's regular season opener at FC Dallas.
"We were prepared for a situation like this," coach Oscar Pareja told ColoradoRapids.com Monday afternoon. "We're going to train in another location, and we're going to go to Dallas earlier. When we looked at the forecast we anticipated the possibility of a week like this, so we had a backup plan in case it happened."
On Monday the Rapids sandwiched a video session in between two weight and gym workouts. The team will train at the South Suburban Sports Dome in Centennial, Colo. on Tuesday and Wednesday before leaving early on Thursday morning for Texas. The final two sessions before Saturday's opener will take place in Texas.
Pareja said the change in training locations isn't an issue for his squad.
"It's normal preparation," he said of the week. "We want to get our season routine started and we don't want to miss any trainings. But we're ready for Saturday."
Pareja said that the team is considering signing "one or two" of the trialists that were in camp with the team in California. However, for the time being, Pareja said that only Marcos Pirchio and David Cortes will train with the team this week as the focus will be on continuing to prepare for Saturday.
The Rapids kick off 2013 season on March 2 at FC Dallas Stadium at 4 p.m. MT before returning to Colorado to host the Philadelphia Union on March 9 at Dick's Sporting Goods Park.
