London's Athlete Village

This morning Eric and I took our time to get going.  It was nice to relax and sleep in a bit.  Around 11:00am we got on the tube and headed towards the Athlete Village.  To be able to go into the Athlete Village, I have to get special clearance and Eric has to be with me the whole time.  I was anxious to see where he had spent his time while here in London.

We got off the tube at the big mall and since Eric hadn't been shopping there before, we decided to explore that together.  We had a good time shopping and browsing and eating a yummy pretzel together.  We also got tickets to see The Bourne Legacy for later that night at a movie theater there in the mall.

After the mall, we walked over to the Athlete Village.  He showed me all the shops, the communication center, the game room (full of Wiis, an air hockey table, big screen TVs, a giant Connect Four game, as well as a chess board where the board was on the ground and you had to pick up and walk your piece to move it on the board.)

Then Eric showed me his apartment and all the fun things in his building like the laundry service, the athlete floor (phones, computers, soda machines, snacks, TVs, games) and the all important ice machine, which for those who have been to London know they don't use ice here.

While we were there I went to the athlete floor and called Logan and Natalie.  It was sooo great to talk to them and hear all about the fun things they've been doing.  The day before they had gone to the Jelly Belly factory, which they loved.  They've been so good, for which I'm very thankful.  Thanks again to my wonderful sister for taking such great care of them!

Before we left the village and headed back to the mall for the movie, Eric took me to the dining hall.  Imagine the biggest food court in a mall and that might touch the surface.  There is any type of food, from many different countries and for Eric, there's a McDonalds, although he's told me he hasn't eaten there nearly as much as he did at the Paralympics in China.  

It was really nice to be able to spend the whole day with Eric.  We had a great time and really enjoyed the movie together.  I especially enjoyed having someone to ride the tube with me at night, since we didn't get to the hotel until almost 12:30am.  Eric gets to spend the next few days with me since we'll be leaving for tours early every morning.  Can't wait for the days ahead!

The Medal Matches

This morning I was up early.  Eric was shooting at 10:45am, so I wanted to make sure I got there in plenty of time.  I was pretty calm and excited for him.  Eric and I had commented several times how we had felt calm throughout our time here in London.  Of course, when he's shooting, I'm a mess, but we've felt like things are going to turn out as they should.  I was sitting up in the stands when Eric came in for his semi-final match.  It was him against a Russian and the other two people in the Semifinals were also Russians.  Eric knew going into the Paralympics that the Russians were going to be the ones to beat, and he was spot on.  It was his turn to beat a Russian.  Here is Eric entering the stadium for the Semifinal match.

It was apparent very early on Eric wasn't in his groove.  He was struggling hitting the yellow and he just seemed rattled.  He ended up loosing to Tuchinov 2-6.  Eric then moved into the Bronze medal bracket.  If he won that match, against another Russian he would win the Bronze.  If not he would finish 4th.

The bronze medal match started 30 minutes later and he faced Mikhail Oyun.  I was hoping that in that short amount of time, he would be able to compose himself and figure it out.  This is his entrance for the Bronze medal match.

Unfortunately Eric never did find his groove, until the very last arrow of the match when he shot a 10.  My heart just sank and I knew Eric was going to be very disappointed.

When Eric came out we just embraced.  He kept saying, "I was so close".  All I could think of to tell him was that the reason he was able to get so close is because he had come so far.  I tried to remind him that he finished better than in China, but the wound was too raw.  He needed to go put all his equipment away and I knew he would need some alone time.

The Russians took the podium: gold, silver and bronze.  The Russians were the ones to beat.

We had a lot of time to wait at that point because two of his teammates were competing later that afternoon in medal matches as well.  So we went out and got some lunch.  Despite his loss, so many people still came up to Eric and told them how much they were rooting for him; how they were proud of him; telling him it's not fair that he had to compete against people with two arms :)  It was a good reminder that no matter the outcome, people are proud of who you are and what you accomplish.  The cutest was when a little 4 year old boy ran over to our table to tell him good job.  Something someone else told him, that I thought was very true was "Good shooting, bad luck".  That pretty much summed it all up.

After lunch, I went into the stadium, while Eric went to the athlete zone and updated his facebook.  I wanted him to be the first to comment, so sorry for anyone who was waiting for me to find a friend to share their wifi with me.  This was Eric's response.

"Those dang Russians!  My semi final loss was to the #1 ranked archer in the world, the current world record holder, and now the Paralympic gold medalist.  My bronze medal match loss was to the #2 ranked archer and the former world record holder.  If you have to lose, that's the way to go out.  I couldn't find my groove today but tried my best.  My final shot with my recurve was a ten but it wasn't enough.  I can't thank all of enough for all your support and kind words.  It means the world to myself and Rachel.  I only wish I had some hardware to bring home.  I can't wait to see everyone when I get home.  Thanks again to all of you for giving me and my wife this opportunity."

That afternoon we got to see his teammate Jeff Fabry get the gold and Matt Stutzman get the silver in their divisions, so that was exciting.  On my way down the hill to the tube station, I stopped to take a picture of the Royal Artillery Barracks.  It was built between 1776 and 1802 and is just amazing.  I had pleasure of looking at it everyday I left the archery venue.

Matt Stutzman (Eric's roommate) is sponsored by one of the official sponsors of the Paralympic games, BP and we were very lucky to get invited to his celebratory dinner that night.  We didn't end up getting to the restaurant until almost 9:30pm and it was at the fanciest restaurant I have ever been to.  It was in downtown London, about 10 minutes away from my hotel.  It was called Clos Maggiore and was a French restaurant.  It was one of those fancy restaurants that only had one menu for the evening and you get served whatever they are serving.  What to know what was on the menu and what I ate???

Hand Picked Devon Crab & Marjoram Remoulade

Caramelized Honey Glazed Gressingham Duck Breast

English Raspberry Eton Mess

Coffee (water for me) & Petit Fours

I was brave and tried everything and actually enjoyed it!  I LOVED the Eton Mess and if I didn't think it would have been rude, I would have taken a picture of it! :)  I tried finding a picture online, but none would even do it justice.  It was just beautifully presented and tasted divine.  For those who know Eric, you're probably wondering how he survived the evening.  He pushed the food around on his plate to look like he ate the appetizer.  He ate the duck breast, but didn't eat the dessert because of the fruit. :(  Again, if it hadn't of been rude, I would have eaten his too!  We were in the company of several BP big wigs, family of a couple other athletes sponsored by BP, and Matt's family.  It was seriously such an honor to be there with them as Matt presented his silver medal to them and as both Eric and Matt received a toast for their accomplishment as Paralympic athletes.  We enjoyed each other's company until midnight, when they called us a car to accompany us back to the hotel.  What an amazing evening to what started out as a very difficult day.  Thank you BP and Matt Stutzman for letting us be there with you!

To finish out this post, I too must thank EVERYONE who has made it possible for Eric and I to be here.  There is no way we could have done it without you.  The only positive thing about Eric being done is that we are now able to spend time together and do our touring.  We are very much looking forward to the next few days together.

On to the Medal Matches!

I can only assume that since today was Sunday, my normal routes of taking the tube and then a train to the Artillery Barracks were not available.  So I got to take a new adventure today and it included this:

I got to ride a Red Double Decker bus in London! And of course I sat on top. :)  While waiting for my bus at the station, a gentleman approached me and asked if I was here for the Paralympics.  I explained that yes, I was and that my husband was here competing in archery.  He asked me what time he competed and when I said 11, he replied: "Oh bummer.  I was going to invite you to visit my church that's right here.  But the services are at 10 and 12 noon".  I thanked him for the invite and then he asked me what church I belonged to.  It wasn't too long before I felt like I was back on my mission sharing facts and truths about our church.  He was Pentecostal and we definitely did not believe in the same things, but it was interesting to share what I believed with him and in the end he said, "We'll just have to agree to disagree".  We shook hands and went our separate ways but it reminded me that you never know when you might have an opportunity to share what you believe.

I enjoyed my ride on the double decker bus as it took me to a whole new part of London I hadn't been to.  We traveled down around the wharfs off the River Thames and through neighborhoods I could tell were built centuries ago.  It was really neat.

I made it safe and sound to the archery field and as I was in the bathroom changing into my Team Eric shirt (don't want it to get too stinky...but I've got to wear it!) Eric texted and said they are ahead of schedule.  It made me so glad I always plan to arrive an hour ahead of time.  It wasn't too much later that Eric walked onto the archery field.

He started out exactly the same as yesterday, getting ahead 4-0 on Polat from Turkey.  Then they tied an end, making it 5-1.  Then Polat took an end from Eric, making it 5-3.  If Eric didn't win the next end, they would go back to a one arrow shoot off and I would have killed him!  Fortunately for Eric (and really just me!) he took the next end.  He had the last arrow to shoot and he needed a 6 or better to win.  What's best is that Eric just drilled it in and hit a 10!  I was so proud of him.  Here's a video of him shooting the last arrow for the victory.

There are a lot of really cool pictures of Eric that people have post on his FB Fan page, so I'll just add this one.

I've taken a picture every day as he's advanced.  I can't wait to see his name in the gold medal match bracket!

After his match, we got lunch together. (No fish and chips today!) Again, I am amazed at how many people just gravitate to Eric.  He spent most of his lunch trading pins, signing autographs, getting his picture taken with people and sharing his story.  And what I love most about it, is how gracious and generous Eric always is.  He'll always take a minute or two for someone and will almost always encourage the people, especially children/teens to pursue archery!  I sure got lucky when I married that man--I love you, Eric!

After lunch, Eric went back to the athlete area where I'm not allowed to go and so while I was hanging out I was treated to a Scottish band playing all sorts of fun tunes.  I personally just like the kilts! 

After a bit we watched his teammate Matt Stutzman (the inspirational archer) compete against another USA teammate Dugie Denton in a nail biter of a match.  I didn't even think to take a picture of that match.  I was to busy having sympathy for Matt's poor wife.  I swear it's harder on us in the stands than it is for them to shoot the arrows!  Matt was victorious so he also advanced to the medal match brackets tomorrow in the Open Compound division.

After a long day of emotions, archery and crowds Eric and I split off to our separate ways.  Because of the different routes I had to take today, one of my interchanges happened to be at Stratford which is where the really big mall was I ate/catnapped in while I waited for Opening Ceremonies.  So I decided to get off there and do a little shopping.  That mall is HUGE!  It has 3 levels and the corridors go on forever.  I just kept thinking how my sister in law Kellie would have a hay day there!  I enjoyed another of the yummy pretzels, but this time I got a toffee one.  Didn't really know what it was going to be like, but it ended up being pretty good.  They drizzled this toffee flavored frosting-type mixture on it and it was yummy.  I think the next time I go there (and there probably will be a next time) I'll go back to just salt, but I'm glad I tried something different.

My feet were finally telling me it was time to head back and after 12 hours of fun, I finally collapsed on the bed and am getting this blog post done!

So excited for tomorrow.  Here's the schedule but basically Eric will shoot at 10:15am to determine if he'll shoot for the gold/silver or go to the bronze bracket.  Then the medal matches will be held at 11:00am.  For those in Arizona that's 2:15am and then 3am, and I found out today people are really up at those insane hours to watch! :)  We really appreciate your support!  His teammates Jeff and Matt also shoot tomorrow, so it will be an exciting, full day at the archery range.  I will try and get on after Eric wins again to let you know, but I never know if I'm going to find someone who'll share their wifi with me.  Today I walked up to some athletes/coaches from Great Britain (knowing they'd have local coverage at least) and asked if someone would share their phone with me.  Lucky for me (and you!) they are always so generous!  

Everyone wear their Team Eric shirts to bed tonight!  Eric and I will be wearing ours!  We are going for the gold!!!

He Won x2

What an incredible day!  I'm so thankful that I'm able to be here with Eric.  Thank you for all the many people who supported (and are still supporting!) us in this great adventure.  I'll work in reverse today, since the most exciting thing has happened most recently.

Eric won his first match to meet Joel Perrot from France.  Perrot was ranked 6th.  Eric jumped ahead with a commanding lead, 4-0.  Perrot shot great and came back to win the next two ends and it was tied 4 all.  The next end they tied, so the points were split 5-5.  At that point they go to a one arrow shoot off, closest to the middle wins.  Perrot shot first and his arrow landed in the 6 range.  I knew Eric would do better and he shot a 9!  It was so exciting and intense and nerve racking...and that was just what I was feeling.  I don't know how Eric handles it!  Here is a video of him during the one arrow shoot off.

The first match was actually quite uneventful (which was good for me) and Eric won 6-2 against an archer from Italy.

After the first match, Eric and I met up and we got some lunch.  Eric wanted fish and chips and for those of you who know me well, you know I don't do fish.  But I figured, "When in London..." and so I got fish and chips as well.  Don't believe me?  Here's the proof!

And believe it or not, I actually enjoyed it--with lots of tartar sauce! :)

Enjoying a lunch of fish and chips together!  Hi Logan & Natalie!

After the 2nd victory, Eric and I met up again for a bit and many people from London and other countries came up to him, asking him for his autograph, taking pictures with him, and one cute boy name Peter traded a Mandeville mascot with Eric for a US archery pin.  It was fun to see the response Eric gets from the people he comes in contact with.  We took this picture together where they have huge brackets to show the winners of each match.

After a bit, Eric had to head back to the athletes village to remove his good luck shirt so it won't get too stinky over the next couple of days and I headed back to the hotel.  On my way into Victoria Station, I stopped and bought myself a ticket for Wicked, which I'm going to see tonight!  I'm so excited...and the added bonus for today?  I found out my room has a hair dryer, which is a good thing since the first and only time I tried using mine with an adapter it started smoking! :)  Now I can get all pretty for Wicked!

Eric will shoot one match tomorrow at 11am (that's 3am for you Arizonans!).  It's against Oguzhan Polat from Turkey.  He is ranked #19 from the ranking round, but also took out the #3 ranked archer today.  I will post as soon as I can...hopefully I can find a nice friend again who will share their hot spot with me.  If not, here's a link the see the results.

Two more pictures I snapped before I sign out for the day and go to the musial.  The first I saw from my train ride to the Artillery Barracks.  The next I saw as I was walking down the hill from the Barracks to get on the train ride back.  I'm loving London!

August 31--1st Time Seeing Eric in London

Today has been a GREAT day!  I'm loving London.  I know I mentioned in my previous post how I keep thinking this London trip is going to be like China, but there are so many things that are different which I'm loving!  Here's a list of just a few things:

1. The food!  In China I lived and hoped for finding a McDonalds.  Here, there are both a McDonald's and a Burger King in Victoria Station and it doesn't even appeal to me.  There are so many other places I want to try.  Tonight was a place in Victoria Station called West Cornwall Pasty Co. where I got a chicken and chorizo pasty.  It was basically an empanada which I loved and it took me back to my Argentine days.
2. The travel!  I was completely dependent in China on Taxis.  Here, as long as I know how to get from point A to point B I'm completely independent and love coming and going as I want.  I love seeing the countryside as today I rode the train for part of my trip instead of just being underground on the tube. I also appreciate the accessibility of everything.
3. The language!  It's sooo nice being in a country where they speak the same language.  I haven't had an issue with the accent at all.  That also means I can watch TV in my own language and I've heard all about the Republican Convention and loved hearing about Clint Eastwood!
4. The people (or lack thereof)!  London is a busy, happening place...but not nearly like China was.  I felt I was constantly bombarded by people in China.  The lines to go places were forever long and every where I went I was in a crowd.  I don't feel that way at all here and I'm very pleased with how quickly I get through security at the venues.  I loved being at the archery field today and how intimate it felt among the athletes.

So that's my analysis so far!  I was actually awake this morning to enjoy my "American" breakfast in the hotel.  It's buffet style and they have a cereal bar, fruit and pastry bar, and hot foods like bacon, sausage, hash browns  eggs, etc.  It was nice and I'm glad I get to have that to eat every morning.

After breakfast I went back up to my room and I had a few hours before I needed to leave to meet Eric.  Because my room is so small, the only place I have to sit is on the bed and before I knew it, I was back asleep.  Luckily I woke up in just enough time to shower and get ready to go.  As I said before, I was able to ride the train today and I enjoyed going over the River Thames, seeing the London Eye as well as some of the land side.  Thanks again to my brother in law, Robert, I had directions to the Artillery Barracks and arrived with no problem.  After I got off the train, my directions told me to catch a shuttle bus, but I could see Paralympic signs everywhere pointing the way, so I decided to walk.  One of the first signs I saw said it was a 20 minute walk.  No biggie and I figured I could even make it in faster time.  What they failed to mention was that it was uphill the entire way! :)  It made for an easy walk back to the train station and it will be good exercise for me! 

Saw these mascots on my walk uphill.  The Olympic mascot is on the right and his name is Wenlock.  Mandeville is on the left-the Paralympic mascot.

As a side note:  I have to admit that when I first saw the London Paralympic colors were going to be hot pink, teal and purple I was a little turned off.  But after being in London, I'm loving it!  The hot pink is so easy to spot and I always know which way to go from those bright pink signs.  All the volunteers wear purple shirts and most have bright pink foam fingers to point the way, which also make them easy to spot.  Just another positive for London in my book!

I got to the archery field and was able to meet up with Eric who had my ticket for today.  It was so great to see him!!  I was only with him for a bit when he had to leave and go to the practice field for a while.  I enjoyed sitting in the stands, watching the archery competitions and reading a book.  After a bit, he joined me and we were able to watch a few of his teammates shoot.  One of them was Matt Stutzman, the archer who shoots with his feet because he has no arms.  He is ranked #1 and is fun to watch shoot.  He moved on to the quarterfinals where he'll face another guy from the US on Sunday.  He is also Eric's roommate here in London and they have a great time together!

Eric will shoot tomorrow.  His first time is at 11am (3am in Arizona if you want to stay up and watch it!) and when he wins that, he'll shoot again at 1pm (5am in Arizona if you want to wake up early!).  I will try and post results as quick as I can, but here is a link that will post them as well.

Eric is confident and ready for tomorrow.  I called him tonight and he said he was just watching a movie before bed.  I asked him which and he said Miracle which I thought was quite appropriate. :)

On my home tonight from the field, I entered Victoria station from another way and I saw a theatre across the street playing Wicked!  I am definitely going to try and see that while I'm here.  I had to laugh at Eric tho, and I'm going to embarrass him too.  I called him just to make sure he didn't want to go with me.  He told me he would like to, but we'd have to do it after he was done competing.  I guess he could hear the surprise in my voice when I asked him if he was sure.  He told me "Yeah, I like plays, I just don't like musicals".  I laughed and told him Wicked was a musical!  He quickly decided I could go on my own. :)

It's been a great day and I look forward to watching Eric shoot tomorrow.  Thanks for all your positive thoughts and prayers sent our way...we can feel it!

I Can Read A Map!!

Wednesday was seriously such a blur!  I got off the airplane around 10am and found my person to take me to the hotel without any problems.  Got checked into the hotel and showered and ready for my experience on the tube.  I have to give ALL the credit to my brother in law Robert for helping me print out directions to and from all my destinations yesterday as well as a map of the tube.  I would NEVER had made it without his help and expertise.

My hotel has an entrance to Victoria station and when I walked into the station I was taken aback.  I felt like I had just walked into a Harry Potter movie.  It was sooo busy and was filled with lots of shops and restaurants, some of which I even recognized.  I knew I would at least have a place to eat every day.  I was able to locate my line right away and off I went.  I had to go get my ticket for opening ceremonies and it was about a 40 minute tube ride away.

Victoria Station just as I walk out from my hotel.  This picture doesn't do it justice!

After getting my ticket I headed to the Olympic Park because I wanted to make sure I got there in plenty of time and I wasn't sure how long it would take and what the lines would be like, etc.  Again, I had smooth tube ride (thanks again Robert!) and arrived without any problems.

By this time it was around 3:30pm and I hadn't eaten anything since the croissant on the plane and was on about 1 1/2 hours of sleep.  I found out the gates didn't open for the ceremonies until 5 pm, so I went into an adjacent mall and found something to eat.  Again I was pleasantly surprised of the familiarity of it all.  After being in China 4 years ago, I guess I assumed everything would be so foreign and I'd be eating McDonald's for all my meals again.  I found a place in the food court called "Tortillas" and it was exactly like Chipotle.  Heaven on Earth!  After that, I found a big over sized chair and crashed for about an hour and a half waiting for the gates to open.

After my cat nap I found another piece of heaven on Earth before leaving the mall.  A pretzel place that makes their pretzel dough right there.  It was delicious!  Got through security and started walking around the Olympic Park.  It is huge and contains buildings for swimming, water polo, basketball, as well as others, including the Olympic Stadium.  They have the Olympic Megastore, which I browsed for a bit.  It's got anything and everything a person could desire with a paralympic/olympic logo on it.

A picture of me for my kiddos-loves to you both!  I was waiting for opening ceremonies to start.

Found my seat for the Opening Ceremonies and from the moment it began,  I could tell it was going to be different from Olympic Opening Ceremonies and for the better.  I was touched right from the beginning as they focused on people overcoming their disabilities.  The message I took from it was to be who you are and be proud of who you are, because one person can make a difference.  What a message we could all learn from!

Right after the torch was lit!

I wasn't able to see Eric in the crowd of US athletes walking in due to my nosebleed location, so I loved seeing that the camera captured him and thanks to Lonnie posting it on Facebook.

A view of the Olympic Stadium as I was walking to West Ham...my tube interchange.

After ceremonies were over at 12:15am, I walked with the masses to my tube pick up location and surprisingly got right on and found a seat.  I knew exactly where I was going, with no transfers and so I became very relaxed.  Too much in fact because I fell asleep, only to wake up as the tube was pulling away from Victoria station--my station!  I got off at the next stop, but because it was 1am, the return track wasn't running and the guy at the station told me to get a bus.  By the time I figured out the bus system (because of course it is different at night than during the day) I realized I could sit and wait for the bus for 30 minutes, or I could walk it, as it was only about an 8 minute walk.  With the bus map in hand, I felt better about walking the streets of London than being a sitting duck. (Attention: Mom skip to the next paragraph so you don't have a panic attack!)

It took me a minute (or two) to figure out where I was on the map and the best route to take.  It was a cool night, after having rained in the early evening and the streets were well lit.  There was literally no one on them (note to self: if it's necessary to walk the streets at night, do it at 1:30 am! hehe)  It took me a little longer than 8 minutes due to a couple wrong turns, but I really enjoyed my walk and got to the hotel around 2am.  Remember, at this point I'd only had about 3 hours of sleep in the last 40 hours.  I was exhausted but still couldn't believe all the things I'd accomplished in the last 18 hours of being in London.  I was literally running on adrenaline and couldn't even fall asleep right away.  I think it was around 3am before I fell asleep.

Let's just say, I had an adrenaline crash and I spent most of day sleeping...about 20 hours total.  It's now 5:30 in the morning and should be good for the rest of the day today.

Today I get to see Eric and I'm soo excited!  A few of his teammates are competing today so I'm going to head over to the Artillery Barracks to see Eric and watch them compete.  One of them being the armless, "Inspirational Archer" so it will be exciting.

For those of you who don't have Facebook, here's Eric account of the ranking round yesterday. He's at peace with where he finished, 11th.  He will shoot tomorrow.  When he wins his first matchup, he'll face another competitor tomorrow as well, so I'll get to see him shoot twice.  I will try and post information as soon as I can, but this page will also give you results.

Thanks again to everyone who has helped make this trip possible.  It truly is a dream come true!

I Made It!

I'm here!!!  The packed flight was miserable and the only thing that made it better was they served ice cream sandwiches around 1:30am!  I'm checked into my hotel and my room is itty-bitty, but nice.  I'm already getting used to the London way of transferring to get to different levels;  I have to take two different elevators to even get to my room! :)  Time for a quick shower and then my Tube adventure begins as I go get my ticket for opening ceremonies.  Go USA!

I'm Getting Closer

My mom, Logan, Natalie and I all arrived in Northern California Saturday night after a delayed but otherwise uneventful flight.  This was Logan and Natalie's first time flying that they can remember and they loved it.  We are so thankful my sister Jennie has taken us in and will take care of everyone while I'm gone.  She even gets to homeschool Logan, which should be loads of fun, haha!

I leave tomorrow morning from the San Francisco airport and arrive Wednesday morning early.  I'll get to my hotel and I'm hoping they'll let me check in early.  Then I immediately get to figure out "the tube" because I need to go get my ticket for opening ceremonies from the US Paralympic office.  Then, I get to figure out how to get to Opening Ceremonies.  Let the adventures of my "Amazing Race" begin! :)

I'm so excited to get there.  I don't know how soon I'll be able to see Eric.  The day after opening ceremonies is his ranking round, which I'm not able to attend.  Then we have a day off, possibly two if he gets a bye in the first round, and I don't know if I'll be able to see him any of those days.  I might just have a lot of quality alone time in London the first few days!

Eric posted this picture today on his fan page.  He's doing great!  I've been able to talk to him a couple times as he can call from the media room in the athlete village.

This was his quote, "Royal Artillary Barracks Ranking field with the finals stadium in the background. Had a great day of practice and am headed back to the Village for lunch (aka: McDonalds, hehe)"

I will keep everyone posted as I get there.  Go Team Eric!

Got Coverage?

The biggest question we are asked is if the Paralympics will be on TV.  Unfortunately, the answer is no. :(  But here's the rundown of Eric's competition, times and best chances to see results and maybe a video or two.

How the competition works:  All 32 archers in my division shoot 72 arrows for a ranking score on Aug. 30th.  We will then be placed in a single elimination bracket where we shoot head-to-head until the Gold medal. 
The Ranking round is closed to the public so there won't be any video but the results should post live.  The eliminations start on the 1st of September and will hopefully be broadcast on one of the outlets below.  If I make it to the end I will be shooting for the Gold on the 3rd.

Social Media

Eric will be updating his fanpage as much as he can.  I will be updating the blog often.
Eric's Facebook fanpage can be found at:  www.facebook.com/bennettarchery

International Paralympic Committee

The IPC will be streaming 500 hours of live coverage at www.paralympic.org 
We don't know how much archery will be shown :\

United States ParalympicsStarting on the 29th, US Paralympics will be broadcasting a daily highlight show on their youtube channel.  www.youtube.com/USParalympics
Again, we don't know how much archery they will show.

World Archery

World archery will have scoring results as the matches happen.  There won't be any video but you can find results here.  www.archery.org

US Archery

US Archery will have updates and results but they provide much better coverage if you "like" them on Facebook.  www.usarchery.org

NBC Coverage

NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) will air one-hour highlight shows on Sept. 4, 5, 6 and 11 at 7 p.m. EDT.
Following the Paralympic Games, on Sept. 16, NBC will broadcast a 90 minute special from 2-3:30 p.m. EDT.
All NBC and NBC Sports Network Paralympic highlight shows and specials will re-air on Universal Sports Network and UniversalSports.com

Thanks again for all of your support.  The plan is to have a Gold Medal around Eric's neck when we return on September 10th.

We Are Ready!!!

This blog is about to see a lot of activity!  I can't wait to keep everyone updated on our adventures in London.  Eric leaves on Wednesday (Aug. 22nd) and I leave on Saturday the 25th.  We've been busy getting ready and here's Eric's new paint job on his release.  We love it.

Before we say anything else, we have to THANK so many people who have made it possible for us to be going on this adventure.  The contributions through the blog total close to $4000.  But with T-shirt, pen and jewelry sales at Corner Archery, the Scentsy fundraiser, our Chick-fil-A night and cash donations we have raised over $7500, which well exceeds our expectations.  We seriously could NOT have done this without you.

We are excited to keep everyone posted on our experience so stay tuned!!!

The Video!

Awesome Video

We are so thankful to the incredible and extremely talented Daniel Dawson for making this video for Eric.  Only 56 more days to London!!!

Elimination in 2nd Round

Eric got eliminated in the second round today. :(  I got an email from him that explained he just never really got into his groove.  He shot okay; but his competitor shot better.  He lost to a guy from GBR who is now competing for the bronze medal.  Eric's comment was that while in London he's going to finish top 4 in the ranking round so he won't have to face the main competition until the medal matches.  I agree 100%.

He only had 30 minutes of practice time to break in the new release head he put on yesterday.  He said he likes the release head, and will stick with it when he gets home, but definitely needs more time with it.  All in preparation for London!  He has a couple more training camps and his own personal daily training before he leaves to compete in London on August 23rd.

Thanks for all your love and support.  It's appreciated more than words can express.

Eliminations Bracket

Here's a link that shows the elimination bracket for Eric.  It doesn't say when exactly he'll shoot, but I'm going to assume that he'll shoot the first two rounds tomorrow and the 1/2 and finals on Friday.  I haven't heard from him yet to see if he was able to get his new release head working, but I'm sure he'll be ready to go!

European Grand Prix--Ranking Round

Today was Eric's craziest day of shooting yet.  His release head (the device he buckles his bow into, and what holds the string until he's ready to release it with his mouth cable) wouldn't hold any weight on it.  That means that every time Eric would go to shoot, he didn't know if the bow string would stay in place while he aimed at the target.  He told me the bow misfired at least once on every end (there are six arrows shot in every end).  Fortunately there weren't any misses, but he did have a much lower score than he's used to.  He's in 7th place going into the elimination rounds on Thursday.  He should still do well in the eliminations as long as his equipment is working.  Luckily, a local guy is helping him get a new release head and since Eric doesn't have to compete tomorrow, he'll have time to set it up and get it read for Thursday.

I told Eric these last two competitions have been all about getting all the kinks worked out of everything possible so that he'll be 100% ready for London.  When he was at the Endeavor Games in Oklahoma the first of the month, his mouth tab broke and he discovered he had a twisted bow limb.  He got both of those things fixed, and now he's going to be able to fix his release head.  There won't be anything else left to go wrong in London!

A Concerned Question from a 6 Year Old

Often when Eric is away, we take advantage to eat things he wouldn't eat with us (I'm sure you all know Eric is a VERY picky eater!). Well yesterday for lunch, my mom and I decided to order "real" Chinese food, not just from Panda Express! :) We had yummy Sweet & Sour Chicken, Lemon Chicken, Beef & Broccoli and Teriyaki Chicken with white rice, fried rice, and Lo Mein.

Our 6 year old Logan tends to follow in his dad's picky eating habits and so we told him yesterday was a taste adventure and I wanted him to try some of everything and if he didn't like it, he didn't have to finish it. He ended up really enjoying the Sweet & Sour Chicken, the Beef (but not the broccoli), fried rice and the Lo Mein. I was very proud of him for trying everything.

As we were all finishing eating, there was quite a bit leftover. Sweet Natalie suggested we save some for Daddy. I reminded her that Daddy was gone and my mom told her that Daddy doesn't like Chinese food. In fact, Eric's biggest concern in making the 2008 Paralympic team going to Beijing, China was that he would have to eat Chinese food. Does anyone remember this post or this one of him having to eat in an authentic Chinese restaurant?

Anyway, after my mom's comment about Eric not liking Chinese food, I could tell Logan was deep in thought. After a moment he said, "Mom, if dad doesn't like Chinese food, what did he eat when he was in China?" My mom and I chuckled and I replied, "Luckily dad stayed in a place that had a McDonald's and he ate lots and lots of McDonald's!"

I know Eric is looking forward to going to London where he can enjoy lots of fish and chips!

European Grand Prix 2012

Eric left early yesterday morning to travel to Stoke Mandeville, England.  He is competing in the European Grand Prix and he should see about half of his competition for the Paralympic games.  After a very long day of traveling, he was finally able to go to bed and get some rest.  Monday will be practice time on the field and Tuesday he will shoot in the ranking round.  Elimination rounds are Thursday and Friday.  Everyone is having a hard time connecting to the WiFi there, so I'm hoping to at least hear from him every day.  He will return Saturday night, so it's a quick, busy trip.  It will be good for him to be in the same conditions as London and see his competition.  Will keep you posted as soon as I know anything!

I have my flight and hotel to be with him when he competes in London...we're both soo excited!  Thanks for everyone's support.  Everyone has been so generous and thoughtful and we can't express our gratitude enough.

Chick-fil-A Night is TOMORROW!

We are excited to see everyone at Chick-fil-A in Surprise (corner of Bell and Grand) tomorrow night.  It's going to be a lot of fun and who can forget the great food?!  We will be there from 4-8pm.  Please remember to print out/bring a flier with you so we get credit for your presence!  We can't wait to see everyone.

Chick-fil-A Night

We are so excited to invite everyone to the Chick-fil-A on the corner of Bell & Grand (in front of the Target) in Surprise, AZ on Wednesday, May 30th from 4-8pm.  Eric will be there signing autographs and T-shirts which will be available for sale for $15.  Here is a picture of the shirt-

We will also be handing out red, white and blue star bracelets and temporary USA tattoos for the kids.

Even better than the fun is the food!  Chick-fil-A is donating 20% of all the sales of food, drink and desserts that come in from people who have this flier:

Print out, share with a friend, and bring in with you to Chick-fil-A

Please feel free to share this flier with anyone and everyone, we look forward to seeing you all there!

Scentsy Fundraiser

I'm so excited to start our first fundraiser and am very grateful for our consultant Cenia Nielsen and all her help.  The fundraiser starts today Monday, May 14th and goes for two weeks until May 28th.  Here are some details on how you can help us (we get 20% of the total sales!) and get some INCREDIBLE products in return.

Ordering online:  You can go directly to Cenia's Scentsy website and see the products available there.  Just click on her link "buy from party" for Eric Bennett-Paralympics to begin shopping.  Products will be sent directly to you and is perfect for those friends and family who don't live nearby but would still like to support us.

Ordering through Eric or me:  Eric and I both have fundraiser flyers we would be happy to share one with you.  We also have scent samples if you want to take a sniff or two.  Payment will be required upon ordering and your order will be processed after closing.  Your product will be delivered to us and we'll make sure to deliver it to you as soon as it arrives.  One benefit to this is you won't have to pay shipping.

I love the Scentsy product and have several in my house and one in my classroom.  I'm also excited to announce a new branch from the Scentsy company called Velata.  They took their idea of warmers and turned them into a fun fondue pot!  You can also visit Cenia's Velata website to purchase the brand new product (it launched May 1st!) and have it shipped to you directly.  Or as with Scentsy, Eric and I have order forms and brochures you can browse and order through us as well.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us or email Cenia at cenia.nielsen@yahoo.com.  Thanks so much for helping us and enjoying two wonderful products.

We're back...

...and London bound!  A couple of weeks ago Eric qualified to compete in the London 2012 Paralympics in archery.  He is the first US Paralympic archer to go in the Standing Recurve class.  He is also the first to have gone to the Paralympic games in two different disciplines after having switched from a compound bow to a recurve.   Eric is excited to go because this was his one and only chance to shoot a recurve in the Paralympics, as the rules change at the end of the year. 


It's been a whirlwind of a couple weeks as we've celebrated, read press releases and tried to figure out how to make this trip possible for him and me.  We have such a short amount of time before he'll actually leave.  The Paralympic opening ceremonies are on August 29, 2012--just over 3 months away!!!   And it doesn't help that it will be the third week of school for the both of us.  But who passes up an opportunity like this? NOT ME! 

Here's a link to one of the press releases since he made the team if you would like to read it.  Here's another article that featured him preparing for the trials.  It is personally one of my favorite articles written about him.

Fundraising efforts are beginning and we would appreciate any contributions.  I'm starting a Scentsy fundraiser on Monday and will post details then.  We are also hoping to have the help from local business and we have talked about a dinner/auction and a car wash.  It's going to be a great summer preparing to go to London.  It's my goal to keep this blog updated with all of Eric's accomplishments and our progress toward London 2012!