I've been sitting here, staring at this blank text box for a while now. My head is swimming from the events of this past weekend. I have so much to think about and so much to say that I could certainly write a whole book about the past three days. You, though, probably wont read a novel-length post (and I want this post up as soon as possible) so I'm going to have to try my best to condense while still doing justice to all that I experienced and learned and without bloviating too much. ;)
My "business trip" started out as an extremely high-maintenance one. I had to bring three bags: one for work clothes, one for casual clothes and jiu jitsu clothes, and my frame backpack for camping clothes. I also had to bring my scale (since I'm cutting weight), my laptop and peripheral equipment, and my study materials. Finally (since I'm cutting weight), I decided to buy all of my food from Whole Foods, earning me some strange looks from the hotel staff as I struggled through the door with all my produce. I'm sure I also gained some curious investigation from the cleaning staff since I had to rig up my own refrigeration system with bags of ice, grocery sacks, my gi, and some towels.
I trained at Evolve Academy again, this time attending the women's class! I even got to roll with Amy Moses (Mike Moses's wife). She is super. Once again, the folks at Evolve were exceedingly welcoming and kind. Training on Wednesday and Thursday plus bicycle and running sprints made me one very tired Elyse.
With two bags (work and training) out of the way, and a "quarantine" bag filled with nasty sweaty gross clothes sealed in plastic and deposited in my trunk, I departed the hotel in Maryland for the home of Dan Wallen in Virginia. For those who are following my saga, Dan interviewed me with Caleb on thefightworkspodcast.com episode #133. When I first met Dan several weeks ago, I had mentioned my plan to have fun adventures every weekend. He responded in royal fashion by inviting me on a white water rafting trip. Camping in the mountains... white water... good people... really, how could I say no?!
I hung out with Dan all day on Friday, intermittently working on my homework while he did his work, playing with his new puppy, and watching videos of the Class 5 rapids we would be playing with the next day. I got a lesson in White Water 101, some relationship advice, and a few jiu jitsu tips (of course!) as well as tons of other great conversation while we waited for Kelly, my driving buddy, to get out of work. One of my favorite past times, next to jiu jitsu, hanging out with other jiu jitsu fighters (especially those more experienced and learned than I). This may sound really... Japanese... traditional... of me, but I strongly believe that a large part of developing as a jiu jitsu fighter and indeed as a person, is to spend time with your instructors and training partners just talking. Next time your at jitsu, don't just leave after you're done and changed. Hang out! Ask questions! Listen to the totally awesome stories I'm sure you'll hear!
(I've taken a pause in my writing to go to work and recover slightly from this cold I seem to have caught. I've just taken some Nyquil so we'll see if my story telling stays relatively normal or goes a little crazy...)
At around 4:45 PM, Dan headed out to West Virginia to get the camp site set up, and I hung around with Jen and Athena, finishing my homework and cleaning up my car. Kelly got there around 5:00 and after a few fumbles with a mailbox, incorrect bread types, and horrid yet predictable D.C. area traffic, we were finally out on the road. I have to admit I was a little worried, at first, about spending five+ hours in the car with a stranger. Almost immediately, however, I found a great friend in Kelly! We had tons to talk about since she is about the same age, studying international affairs, in love with jiu jitsu, well traveled... good choice, Dan!
Cop-ridden Virginia gave way to 75-mph-cruise controlled West Virginia as clouds cleared and the waxing moon lit up a rich navy sky. We stopped in a Walmart to pick up marshmallows, chocolate, and gram crackers. With an hour and a half left to go, we killed the music and opened the windows wide to catch all that glorious mountain air. Something in the humidity levels at that altitude and the sweet decay of a forest floor reminds me that I belong in the mountains. The feeling was rejuvenating as if I were returning to a true home-land. I always get that feeling when I go skiing.
I knew we were reaching the home stretch when we descended deep into the gully at a 7% down grade for several miles, ears popping the whole time, and then just when I could sense that the air had reached a normal thickness, though richer and darker, we began the prompt ascent, as steep and as long. My car refused to go into cruise control and also refused to chose a gear, popping back and forth, revving the whole way. I worried the jolts would wake Kelly up. When we made it to the top again I said, "phew, that was rough." Kelly rolled over and responded with something about baseball caps.
Three more land marks to go: 1. The town of Beckley, 2. the bridgiest of all bridges, and 3. home free at the Wild Water camp site. The bridgiest of all bridges is the second longest, single highest, single arch bridge in the US (in the word?). I must say it was slightly underwhelming on the way there, party because I wanted to get to wild water so bad, and partly because it was pitch black. The trip home at sunrise provided a completely different experience which I'll describe later.
Route 19 in West Virginia is a strange place. It's a four-lane high way (two each direction) with capacity for high speeds, but interrupted by small and unassuming cross roads, as well as the occasional traffic light. So, when Kelly spotted the Wild Water billboard off in the distance (I had waken her up to be underwhelmed by the bridgiest of bridges), I panicked. I didn't want to stop dead in the middle of such a massive highway; that would get you shot in Boston. We didn't know whether to turn left or right. What to do! I sped towards the sign at 40 mph, the slowest I was willing to go on rt. 19, and at the last possible second Kelly made the executive decision: turn RIGHT! The billboard was on the left, but I went right anyway since there was less highway to cross.
My wish for an end to the highway was immediately answered. Just as soon as I slowed to 10 mph and turned, we were on a rural, winding, private drive. Some tiny road with no where to go except right onto the property of whoever lived there. "Um..." I started in a small voice, "I think it was left. I'm going to turn around."
"Don't turn around!" Kelly was nervous. Tired. "I mean, turn around, but do it fast."
"What? Why?"
"They'll shoot us."
"With a shot gun?"
"Yes, West Virginia, remember? Don't stop here..."
"Seriously?! Oh no!" I was trying to joke about it, but she was dead serious. Kelly's nervousness got the better of my exhaustion until I became convinced that we would, indeed, be shot if we were caught turning around in someone's driveway.
Later, Kelly said that that was the fastest k-turn she's ever experienced.
A few moments later we were back across rt. 19 and enjoying some beers with Dan and his older brother Chris at our camp site. So much for getting to bed early. With alarms set for our big day tomorrow, we conked out at around 1:00 AM.
I knew we were reaching the home stretch when we descended deep into the gully at a 7% down grade for several miles, ears popping the whole time, and then just when I could sense that the air had reached a normal thickness, though richer and darker, we began the prompt ascent, as steep and as long. My car refused to go into cruise control and also refused to chose a gear, popping back and forth, revving the whole way. I worried the jolts would wake Kelly up. When we made it to the top again I said, "phew, that was rough." Kelly rolled over and responded with something about baseball caps.
Three more land marks to go: 1. The town of Beckley, 2. the bridgiest of all bridges, and 3. home free at the Wild Water camp site. The bridgiest of all bridges is the second longest, single highest, single arch bridge in the US (in the word?). I must say it was slightly underwhelming on the way there, party because I wanted to get to wild water so bad, and partly because it was pitch black. The trip home at sunrise provided a completely different experience which I'll describe later.
Route 19 in West Virginia is a strange place. It's a four-lane high way (two each direction) with capacity for high speeds, but interrupted by small and unassuming cross roads, as well as the occasional traffic light. So, when Kelly spotted the Wild Water billboard off in the distance (I had waken her up to be underwhelmed by the bridgiest of bridges), I panicked. I didn't want to stop dead in the middle of such a massive highway; that would get you shot in Boston. We didn't know whether to turn left or right. What to do! I sped towards the sign at 40 mph, the slowest I was willing to go on rt. 19, and at the last possible second Kelly made the executive decision: turn RIGHT! The billboard was on the left, but I went right anyway since there was less highway to cross.
My wish for an end to the highway was immediately answered. Just as soon as I slowed to 10 mph and turned, we were on a rural, winding, private drive. Some tiny road with no where to go except right onto the property of whoever lived there. "Um..." I started in a small voice, "I think it was left. I'm going to turn around."
"Don't turn around!" Kelly was nervous. Tired. "I mean, turn around, but do it fast."
"What? Why?"
"They'll shoot us."
"With a shot gun?"
"Yes, West Virginia, remember? Don't stop here..."
"Seriously?! Oh no!" I was trying to joke about it, but she was dead serious. Kelly's nervousness got the better of my exhaustion until I became convinced that we would, indeed, be shot if we were caught turning around in someone's driveway.
Later, Kelly said that that was the fastest k-turn she's ever experienced.
A few moments later we were back across rt. 19 and enjoying some beers with Dan and his older brother Chris at our camp site. So much for getting to bed early. With alarms set for our big day tomorrow, we conked out at around 1:00 AM.
( part deux coming laterz )
3 comments:
LOL.
And yes, that 3 point turn totally vindicated you with the mailbox incident.
you're mistaken. here in WV, we don't shoot first. we just shoot back.
My mistake :P
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