Day 1 - Assembly
Today we came together from different parts of the country to Minneapolis for a weekend training session before we travel up to Edmonton together. I know many of us had to work hard to get everything done before leaving. The day before leaving for a tour is stressful, especially trying to pack for 4 weeks of crazy weather in Canada.
I think just getting here is part of the victory - we've all been training super hard in the last few months preparing for this and I think we're all happy (and a bit anxious) that today has arrived. As I was leaving work yesterday, the question was "Are you ready?"...
Of course we're ready. We've been meeting as a team over the course of the last few months, working out really hard, practicing our kicking, crossing our t's and dotting our lowercase j's. Each one of us has put in countless hours at the gym, sprint sessions at the track, meeting up with teammates to pass or do lactic acid workouts. We've rehabbed our injuries, taken care of our bodies, watched video, and have been incredibly focused on the task at hand.
We've also been emailing a lot as a team in the last month - topics like "what does it mean to be an American?", or "what does it mean to be an eagle?", or "what does it mean to be a forward or a back (or halfback!)?". Everyday, for 30 days leading up to this trip, Jamie Burke would write a few paragraphs about each player and how great it is to have them as a teammate. Today, many of us exchanged waterbottles we decorated for each other and were genuinely excited to see each other.
As we hugged each other hello, you could almost feel all the hard work each person has put in and see the determination and anticipation in everyone's eyes. There is a lot of love and energy as we begin this adventure, knowing that we'll put it all out there for each other and give it all we've got. I am proud to be an Eagle with all of these amazing people.
Go USA!
I think just getting here is part of the victory - we've all been training super hard in the last few months preparing for this and I think we're all happy (and a bit anxious) that today has arrived. As I was leaving work yesterday, the question was "Are you ready?"...
Of course we're ready. We've been meeting as a team over the course of the last few months, working out really hard, practicing our kicking, crossing our t's and dotting our lowercase j's. Each one of us has put in countless hours at the gym, sprint sessions at the track, meeting up with teammates to pass or do lactic acid workouts. We've rehabbed our injuries, taken care of our bodies, watched video, and have been incredibly focused on the task at hand.
We've also been emailing a lot as a team in the last month - topics like "what does it mean to be an American?", or "what does it mean to be an eagle?", or "what does it mean to be a forward or a back (or halfback!)?". Everyday, for 30 days leading up to this trip, Jamie Burke would write a few paragraphs about each player and how great it is to have them as a teammate. Today, many of us exchanged waterbottles we decorated for each other and were genuinely excited to see each other.
As we hugged each other hello, you could almost feel all the hard work each person has put in and see the determination and anticipation in everyone's eyes. There is a lot of love and energy as we begin this adventure, knowing that we'll put it all out there for each other and give it all we've got. I am proud to be an Eagle with all of these amazing people.
Go USA!
posted by Lee Knight at 9:06 PM
2 Comments:
Sounds so exciting! Just like when the Fellowship first meet at the Council of Elrond at Rivendell before setting off on their great quest to destroy the Ring.
I'm glad we're dating so I already know how dorky we are. But yes, it's kind of like that...and Sauron and the Nazgul doesn't stand a chance against the USA!
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