A trip across the pond and Opening Ceremonies

It begins! Now that I'm finally functioning normally after what was the worst case of jet lag I've ever had, I'm able to get you all updated on the trip so far.

So after my final hard track session on the Nike track in Portland Monday morning, I hopped on a 9 hour plane ride to Europe. The workout went great and I was pumped to finally be on my way after spending the past day wrapping up errands before I left. Luckily I landed an aisle seat, but no matter how much Norah Jones I listened to, I couldn't sleep. I landed in Amsterdam in the morning and had a short drive to our training camp in a little medieval town in Holland. Holland actually reminds me a lot of Iowa- small communities, corn fields, pockets of woods.

One nasty case of cankles and death march of a run later, I managed to stay awake the rest of the day. Unfortunately, my sleep that night consisted of about 3 2-hour naps. The next day was pretty much a blur, but I managed two runs that my training partners Shalane and Kara helped me get through, and after 12 hours of sleep that night I was ready to head to London for opening ceremonies the next day.

London is amazing. There is no way I could even begin to describe how awesome the Olympic Village is. First of all, I had loads and loads of sweet USA gear awaiting me when I got to my room. Also, there is nothing more inspiring than walking around a population consisting of only world-class athletes, let alone seeing them all training throughout the Village. The dining hall is, well, ridiculous. All the food choices are divided by country (i.e. American, British, Indian, Asian, etc.) except for the giant McDonalds which always has the longest line in the whole place. I've been particularly into the Caribbean food- lots of good fish and rice.

Opening ceremonies- unbelievable experience! There were so many cool things about it but I will hit the highlights. First was meeting and mingling with all the other US athletes for a couple hours before we began the march to the stadium. I had the chance to chat and take pictures with not just other US track athletes that I have known and competed against for years, but all sorts of US Olympians. I ran into Jake Varner, former Iowa State wrestler, and it was pretty neat to realize that we both went from sharing a training room in college to walking in opening ceremonies. I also played the role of super fan and managed to snag some pictures with members of the US basketball team, thanks to my wing man and teammate Matt. Another amazing thing about opening ceremonies was the feeling I got walking into the stadium. The roar of the crowd, the music, the dancers, the lights, and all the excitement gave me goosebumps and I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. After walking a lap around the track and getting settled in the middle of the stadium, I managed to get a spot right on the rail by the Olympic torch, so when they lit it, I could literally feel the heat from the flame.

I came back to our training camp in Holland the day after opening ceremonies, and it has been nice to settle down a little bit and just get back to focusing on training. I have my last workout tonight and will head back to London tomorrow. I'm getting so excited to race- training has been going great and I feel like I'm in a perfect place both mentally and physically.

I want to once again say THANK YOU to everyone who has been supporting me. I feel the love. You can check out my Twitter account, @lisa_uhl, for pictures and short updates throughout the trip!

Here goes…

So I’ve thought about doing a blog for almost two years now. Unfortunately, every time I try to start my first entry, I either have nothing interesting to say or I read someone else’s blog and realize how uninspiring mine is in comparison.

Now, as I get ready to head to London for the Olympic Games, I want to have a way to share this experience with my family, friends, and fans. I can’t think of a better time or reason to follow through with the idea of a blog. I feel like I have been given the opportunity of a lifetime, and making my experience accessible to all those who have supported and cheered for me is a special way to share this dream with them.

Over the next couple of weeks, I hope to post pictures, stories, and updates from my trip and race. But wait, there’s more! After the Olympics, I plan to continue sharing my thoughts, both random and relevant, with those who want to follow me on my running journey. Exciting, eh?

…until next time!