"REGULAR" GYM

So I'm in San Jose for a few days visiting my parents, who by the way left two days after I got here to go home to The Bahamas. Great timing, right??!! Anyway, because I don't have access to a college weightroom, I was forced to go the local 24 Hour Fitness Gym to get my weight workout in yesterday. Any athlete who lifts weights seriously, particularly any females out there, can appreciate what I mean when I say that lifting weights at a "regular" gym, is something I'd rather not do.

I don't mean anything offensive by saying this, but it just never is quite the same as when you lift at a University athletic gym or say at Disney. In these types of environments, everyone is on the same page, with a specific workout goal in mind. It's not social, well maybe a little, but work gets done! In the "regular" gym, there is soooo much more going on in there.

There are the muscle men who only lift all these heavy weights on their upper bodies and want to make sure that everyone else hears and sees them; there are the glamour girls in the latest spandex outfit and tons of makeup without an ounce of sweat to be found anywhere; there are the people who really don't know what they're doing, just taking their sweet time to figure out the machines; and there are just the socialites who have decided that the gym is the best place to find a date or just have conversation. Of course, there are some people in there who really came to workout too but, they seem to be few and far between.

So a female athlete comes in, who they realize is NOT a "regular" and the first thing you see is all the eyes following you, then everyone wants to come up and ask "if you run track", or if you're a police woman, lol, or why you're doing power cleans or if you need a spot?! So nice of everyone and I know people have the best of intentions but a workout that normally would take an hour ends up taking one and a half to 2 hrs by the time you politely answer all the questions and wait for the one squat rack to open up.....can you sense my frustration:) Oh well, in the end, it's just part of the deal I guess and you gotta do what you gotta do to get the workout in.

I have to go back tomorrow but I think I'm going to wear my I-pod and see if that helps. I've tried that tactic before and people usually just come up and tap you on your shoulder to make sure you hear them, lol. Oh well, good thing I don't have too much else on my schedule.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Here is a quote that I read today on a track website called LetsRun.com. I couldn't have said it better had I said it myself so I thought I would share it.

Quote of the Day:

"I am as passionate about sport as ever. It is not about winning at all costs but about fulfilling one's potential. When I lined up I was never thinking about getting one over on my opponents - I was concerned with bettering myself as an athlete and as a human being. That is the essence of sport"

-David Hemery, who ran 48.12 for the hurdles to smash the world record and win gold at the 1968 Olympics.

BACK IN LA.....

So two nights ago, I flew back to LA to take care of my last minute preparations before heading off to Beijing. I've been gone for quite a while and I didn't really miss it while I was gone, but as soon as I got back, it felt good to be here. I've missed my roommates and friends here so it's definitely good to catch up with them.

Yesterday I went to do a workout with my strength coach up at UCLA and it was good because he made sure that I put some good work in that I might not have accomplished on my own. I guess that's why he's the coach and I'm the athlete!

Then last night, my roommate Erica and I went to the Comedy Union for a night of good laughs and fun. My boy Chris Spencer was one of the comics so it was really nice to see him. I laughed so much that by the end of the night on the drive back home, my stomach was literally hurting!!!

Today I am headed up to Northern California to visit my parents for a few days before they head off back home to The Bahamas for some work and R&R. I haven't seen them in a while and I am really close with them so it'll be nice to see them even if only for a few days.

It's funny how life is....last week at this time, I wasn't doing so well. I was stressed out and out of sorts. Fast forward to this week and it feels like everything has just fallen into place, in more ways than one. Spurred by this young lady that I met on my flight from Phoenix to LA who appeared to have suffered severe burns over her entire body, her face, her arms, her hands, but who had the most pleasant countenance, the best attitude, the greatest smile in spite of her circumstance, I had to take a moment and ask myself some questions. She and I joked around and had a good conversation and by the end of the flight I was left realizing just how fortunate I am and that I should not take that for granted. This woman was the epitome of joy and I will never forget that.

Well, I gotta get going, but since I promised to post a couple pics then I figured I'd show a curly 'do up top and a profile self portrait below. The things we do when we have too much time on our hands, lol.....

STILL ALIVE.....

I know that it's been several days since I last posted but I have been having to deal with something that came up out of the blue. It has been a very trying time for me and very bad timing but I hope that it will soon be coming to a favourable end. Only time will tell. One thing I will say is that I am amazed, blessed and honoured to have the friends that I do who have come to my aid when I most needed you. You never fully realise how much people care about you until you are down and out.

It has been such a roller coaster ride for me this year full of ups and downs and ups and downs. But as the saying goes, "What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger!!" I have been holding on to that recently and I know that everything happens for a reason regardless of how tough the situation might be. A long time mentor and friend of mine sent me these words the other day and they have never been more appropriate.

'To get something you never had, you have to do something
you never did.' When God takes something from your grasp,
He's not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to
receive something better. Concentrate on this sentence...
'The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God
will not protect you.'

So true, right!!!!

Anyway, I'm doing OK now and am finally able to get back to my training and focusing on whats lies ahead for me in just a few short weeks. Can you believe it? The Olympics are only a little more than 2 weeks away!!! Time has just flown by but everything is coming together in my jumping just in the right time and I am looking forward to the big day.

I'll take a picture later and post it, just to let you all know, friends and family that I'm still smiling, still standing, still ready to do my best. Brooks, Dave and Tiff are all over in Europe doing a couple last meets in preparation. I am so looking forward to seeing them in a couple weeks.

WHY??

WHY LIE?
WHY CRY?
WHY FEEL?

WHY ME?
WHY YOU?
WHY LOVE?
WHY HATE?

WHY HOPE?
WHY WISH?

WHY WIN?
WHY LOSE?
WHY CARE?
WHY NOW?

WHY GO?
WHY STOP?
WHY BOTHER?

WHY DO?
WHY DON'T?
WHY NOT?

WHY LIVE?
WHY DIE?

IF WE KNEW WHY ALREADY, THEN MAYBE WE WOULDN'T EVEN TRY....

I'm not sure where this came from, I was just thinking....

TEAM DISNEY

I just made it back to Orlando last night and suffice to say, I was EXTREMELY tired. It has been a whirlwind the past couple weeks full of emotion and disappointment and highs and lows and highs again! First, my own Olympic Trials which didn't go as well as I had hoped and then one last chance at redemption where everyone who potentially could be on the Bahamas Olympic team had to go to Cali, Colombia to compete in the Sr. Central American and Caribbean Championships.

Once again, I didn't do so well, finishing 5th, but because I am the only jumper from the Bahamas who has met the distance standard requirement of 6.60m within the qualifying period, as set by the International Olympic Committee for jumpers from all countries to meet, I ended up being chosen for my team. To say that I have not been stressed and anxious would be an understatement of great proportion. Even with the confirmation that I had made the team, very little relief came. I could barely sleep the night after the competition because I just kept replaying my jumps over and over in my mind.

Now that a few days have passed, I am feeling a lot better and much more hopeful about what lies ahead. I have 6 weeks or so to hone my technique as best as I can and because I have been able to do so in the past, I expect that I will be able to do so again. So I am going to forego going to Europe to compete prior to the Games. Instead, I will just get back to work and continue to do everything I possibly can to rectify my problems and be at my utmost best come August 17.

So, then came the US trials and all the drama and the intensity that that entails. I was almost as nervous for my own competition as I was for my friends and training partners who were vying for spots on the US team. In the end, Tiffany Ross-Williams won the women's 400m hurdles and David ended up winning the men's 110m hurdles. I swear the day of David's races I was just a bucket of nerves and I couldn't calm them until he was safely across the finish line, victorious. I have seen the hard work and dedication that both Tiffany and David put into their training and so if for no other reason than that, I couldn't be more happy for them. It's gonna be great to get to share this magnificent experience with them both.

The only person from the group left with an opportunity to qualify for the Games is Joice, who competes in the British Trials this upcoming weekend. I will say a prayer and keep my fingers crossed for her to do her best and join us in Beijing.

Until then, I thank God for seeing it fit to allow me to fulfill my dream this year of becoming a 5 time Olympian. I know that the members of that club are few and so for that I am truly thankful! Now I need to not just be a participant. I don't want that, don't need that. I need to get back to basics so that I can be competitive too and improve upon my 6th place finish in 2000. Work starts at 9am tomorrow morning at Walt Disney's Wide World of Sports...

BEIJING BOUND!!

So I know that it´s been a while since I last updated everyone on what´s going on but due in a large to my not having access to the internet, I have not had a chance to do much more than check the odd e-mail every once in a while.

Even now, I only have about 5 minutes so I´ll be brief. Long story short, I have officially made my Olympic team. The integral details of the how and why are too involved to try to explain right now. Additionally, I am not sure what sort of emotions I have right now because it has been such a difficult year for me of ups and downs, and struggles and problems with my jumping technique that I could never have imagined in a million years, let alone in this Olympic year.

I have never trained harder or been more diligent yet this year has proven to be the most trying for me. I can only hope and dream and believe that something even greater must lie in waiting for me because otherwise my struggle will be all the more confusing.

That being said, please don´t think that I am not grateful for the opportunity that awaits me. So many try and fall short for one reason or another and as an athlete, I can fully appreciate just how tough that is. To dedicate one´s life in every way to such a specific task; to eat, sleep, dream, live, sacrifice, toil, struggle, cry, thrive, in rain and cold, in health and in sickness, to put your all into something that can so easily not be yours is such a huge risk but the rewards are so amazing and unparalled. That being said, the opposite of that can only be described as devastating!

Anyway, I have to go. Someone is waiting to use this computer. I will give you the full breakdown in another couple of days when I have more time.

Before I do however, please just let me say THANK YOU to all of you have supported me with your encouraging words and kindnesses. It truly has meant so much to me!! I want to thank my family, my training partners, my coach and all of my friends who continue to hold me down. The journey would mean nothing without you all.

PS. DAVE, AUB, JOEL....carpe diem! Words do not express how much I am praying for your successes today.