As I write this, the entire camp is in the GMVS student center watching perhaps the greatest sports movie ever, “Rudy”.
Yes, it poured again today, but we were able to get everything in that we needed to, including a fantastic bike ride. Coach Andrew took the advanced group of eleven to some hardcore single track here in the Mad River Valley, along with Counselor Jake and Coach Jena. The rest of us hit the trails at a local high school for some great trail riding. The rain held off for about 15 minutes, and then it started up again, but the kids were into it and welcomed every drop. There were lots of muddy legs, backs and bellies. One standout was Tasha, who was quite tentative about the mtn biking going in, but decided to stay out in the rain, hammered out some extra loops, and did not fall, despite the slippery conditions. Awesome.
Back at school we all had to take showers to clean off the mud and warm up again. Then it was a great lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup. Yum.
After our Notebook session covering Sports Nutrition, it was time for circuit training. Sixteen stations of exercises. 30 seconds “on” and 30 seconds “off”. Three sets. By the third set, you could tell that we had finally tired them out. So we dialed it down a notch and set up the ropes courses. Those who wanted to, could try them again. Essentially it was choice time where they could wander between activities on their own. We also set up some smoothie stations in the dining hall so they could whip up their own fruit smoothies. Most were very tasty. A few groups were adventurous and tried some of the more unusual ingredient options… cinnamon, nutmeg, sunflower seeds, wheat bran. Some of them seemed to miss the mark. Ugh.
Right before dinner we were treated to a softball pitching exhibition by Counselor Liz, who is a top High school player. As a pitcher this year she had a .23 ERA with six shut-outs. She also has been clocked at 61 mph!!! The kids were in awe of her pitching. Coach Matt actually caught a few, but after a few stingers, let the backboard handle the rest.
Dinner was Hawaiian theme night and the boys came to play. They looked great. Every single camper wore a lei and some of the shirts were out of this world. It is our one dessert night and we treated everyone to frozen yogurt on the field. Following that was our Limbo contest, won by Mary Clare and Christian, and our pig race won by Anders. Then it was movie time.
Somehow, despite the rain, we are back on schedule and everyone is looking forward to the hike up Mad River Glen and the Sandpit slalom tomorrow. And, I think the forecast is for something other than rain.
Back to “Rudy, Rudy, Rudy…”
