Training Trip Day One

Hello Parents’/ Guardians/ Friends/ Family/ Peers/ Ya’ll. This is Emalee Buchholz. I am the Diver on the Iowa Lakes Swimming and Diving Team and I just wanted to let you all know what the team has done today. To start out, today we woke up at around 9 am which to me, Mick, and Keegan, it was 6 am and to the rest of the team; Mike, Tyler, Sam, Sawyer, Matt, it was 7am. We ate down stairs at the breakfast buffet and come to think of it, it was pretty delicious. They had these Mexican eggs and bacon that were very good; perfect and crispy. J But, we didn’t have your usual 2 hour break between breakfast and workouts; it was more like 2 minutes. We all walked down to the beach (right across the street from our hotel) and found out that we were to run to this little green hut that looking from the beach, looked about 3 miles away. The team and I expected to run on the side of the beach next to the water to get to our little destination with no trouble, but we soon found out we had to maneuver our way through rocks, trees, coconuts, and bamboo. Most of the team thought of it as a hike more than a warm-up jog. When finishing our run, we all went back to our rooms and got our bathing suites on and hit the Puerto Rican roads. We walked to Burger king to get a quick bite to eat. (You would think we would go somewhere a little bit more traditional to Puerto Ricans but when the boys want a cheeseburger, there is no stopping them.) After we got our food fix, we wandered aimlessly looking for the beach. It didn’t take long till the boys started ‘Bay Watching’ down the sand. As a team, we played chicken in the water, made sandcastles on the beach, learned a little bit of Spanish, and got some sun. (Some of us got a little bit more sun than others; good thing they made Aloe.) After our little beach break, we learned the salsa, the tango, and the waltz. (Thanks to Matt) Our first day was better than what any of us could have imagined.

First day ImpressionsJ
Keegan- “Festive and laid back.”
Sam- “Paradise.”