Friday at ELITEAM is all about adventure, and today’s mission was the climb to the top of Sunday River’s infamous White Heat peak!
Campers split into teams of eight and tackled the 2.5-mile trail and 2,000 vertical feet to the summit. Of course, this was no ordinary hike. Each team also had to complete 100 burpees along the way, carry two gallons of water while sharing the load, write and perform an ELITEAM poem featuring words like “Every Win Counts,” “6-7” and “Core,” and sing a song on camera. Sweet Caroline was a definite crowd favorite!
Reaching the summit under clear skies and a cool breeze was pure magic. Campers enjoyed the lunches they packed and definitely earned, along with the banana bread they baked on Wednesday. Somehow, it tasted even better at the top of a mountain!
After some much-needed quiet time, including a few actual naps, we headed to the field for our own World Cup soccer tournament. The championship ended in a tie, which meant penalty kicks! Team Jabooty defeated Spain 4–3 in a dramatic finish featuring precision play and absolutely zero flops.
Next came the legendary Weird Foods Challenge. Teams were first tested on the nutritional benefits of crickets, caviar, sea grapes, Vegemite, sardines, and more. Then every camper had to taste at least one item. There were plenty of nervous faces, surprised reactions, and a few campers who discovered that something strange-looking could actually be nutritious and not taste half bad!
After dinner, Coach Jimmy led a wild round of Crazy Relays filled with effort, laughter, and some hilarious team skits. We finished the night with another time-honored ELITEAM tradition, the Jell-O Drop. After all the coaches were eliminated, a pair of ELITEAM rookies captured the championship!
Tomorrow is SUFFERFEST, the ultimate physical and mental challenge of the week. It will test every camper, but it will also bring this group even closer together and show them just how strong they have become.
Dark Blue team Poem:
We did lots of core
But we wanna do more
Even though we’re sore
We wanna do more
How many minutes did we plank? Four!
Now we’ll do 67 more.
A quick banana bread break
Along with a couple blueberries for Jake.
Well shake out our bodies and then, we’ll dig deep.
To conquer something steep.
We tore down some trees,
It wasn’t a breeze,
But with the muscle we gained we’ll start to bounce,
And remind ourselves that every win counts.
What was the best and hardest part of the hike? Why?
- Quinn M. – The best part was eating lunch because I was very tired and we made our own sandwiches. THe hardest part was pushing through the end because my ankle was hurting and it was slippery.
- Bryce P. – The best part was when we used the rope to climb the steep rock. It was scary and fun at the same time. The hardest was walking down and it was slippery.
- Finley G. – The best part of the hike was the top and the wild blueberries. I liked the view because the trees at the top of the mountain are cool. The worst part was getting stung and the way down.
- Finley D. – Going up was the worst part and going down was better but lunch was the best part.
- Evelyn S. – My favorite part of the hike was the top and because it was a beautiful view of the surrounding mountains. The hardest part was the hike up because it was steep and uneven.
- Ellie M. – The hardest part was going down because my legs hurt from the soreness.
What did you have to eat at the Taste Test? Describe what it tasted like?
- Quinn M. – I had to eat mini crabs at the taste test. It tasted like semi-sweet seashells and they were disgusting.
- Bryce P. – I had the kimchi, it tasted like lettuce that was soaked in hot sauce.
- Finley G. – I had caviar, it tasted like a dead fish and really moldy sea water. It was good and bad.
- Finley D. – Vegemite, it was the grossest thing ever. Salts, sour, acidic and it was so bad I almost threw up.
- Evelyn S. – I had to eat sea grapes, they tasted like the ocean.
- Ellie M. – I ate sea grapes and crabs (for fun!). The sea grapes tasted like very strong salty seaweed.
How hard were the Burpees today vs Monday?
- Quinn M. – I was tucking because my ankle hurts, on Wednesday the Burpees were already getting easier though.
- Bryce P. – They were a lot easier today, we did 5 sets of 20. On Monday we did 10 sets of 10.
- Finley G. – They were easier today because I had better mental strategies than Monday and I’m getting in better shape.
- Finley D. – They are definitely getting easier.
- Evelyn S. – The Burpees today were a lot easier than Monday. The ones on Monday were really hard to complete but now 100 is easy to do.
- Ellie M. – The Burpees on Monday were hard but today they were easy and fun.
