Blog by Coach Dan Bell… yet again!
Mtn Bikes, Ropes Courses, Sled Hockey and Cold Baths
After a morning run, 50 push-ups and bellies full of eggs and fruit, the campers were geared up and ready to go at 8am. Those who went mountain biking yesterday had the opportunity to use the high ropes course today. And those who were dangling from the ropes course yesterday had the chance to ride some beautiful trails over to the Trail Side Bike Park. Everyone in the high ropes course accomplished three team elements and two individual elements that pushed everybody’s limits. And when asked about the mountain biking Emma said, “After four years of ELITEAM biking, I can finally stay on my bike the whole time”.
After a filling lunch of Chef Eric’s bagel sandwiches, it was down to the Center of Excellence to hear a talk about the importance of nutrition from Troy Flanagan, head of Sports Science for the US ski team. Troy explained to the campers the importance of hydration. He told us that if an athlete is “just 2% dehydrated, it will negatively affect performance.” We learned that no matter how hard we train during the summer, it could all be wasted by forgetting to drink a glass of water.
After that, once again the camp split in half with one group heading to the Park City Ice Arena to play sled hockey. This was not only a great workout and a blast to play, but it gave the campers a perspective on how disabled athletes not only play, but excel at sports. After the hockey game, Sydney declared, “Sled hockey rocks! And it was really hard to get up when you fall”. After sled hockey it was off to Coach Andrew’s grueling leg routine workout. One of the boys noted, “Every time you run a little harder, you feel better about yourself and the effort you put in.”
The other half of the camp stayed in the Center of Excellence where the campers got in some extensive agility training. Following the agility, it was all about intensity as the USST coaches taught the group how boxing is a great workout. To end the training session, those campers got a well-deserved opportunity to regenerate their muscles in a series of hot and cold pools. At 45 degrees, the cold bath produced some high-pitched yells and some shout-outs including, “Help me! This is Freezing!”
After a little down time and some dinner to refuel, the campers were back to the archery and cooking rotations. The cookers made homemade granola bars while the archers competed in a Biathlon by combining an agility course with the archery. Finally, it was a relaxing Yoga session with some visualization thrown in.
Tomorrow we hike to the top of Deer Valley in the morning and more hockey, agility and cold baths in the afternoon.
