Good Morning, Oklahoma

We ran out of coffee this morning, so I figured I would swing by Starbucks on the way to practice. However, Starbucks was not open at 6:00 AM. I was sad. But McDonald's was able to alleviate my caffeine addiction.

As much as I love Seattle and training there, it is awesome to have sunshine everyday for every practice. I am on a vitamin D binge. And it gets so warm so early, I am able to just hop out of my boat after practice and stretch right there on the dock, staring at the patchy clouds and blue sky. Today, there was just enough moisture in the sky that you could see rays from the sun as it rose.

I am getting very excited about heading to Dartmouth. I think there will be a few guys from OKC headed out there, and I have heard of a few from the East Coast so far. I think it will be an excellent experience for me to engage in some highly competitive sweep rowing and be tested against other lightweights.

I have been rowing with an open weight here, Andy Guiardini, a Cuban National who is in the process of gaining his US citizenship. He is very strong, and we are close in speed. He is the more powerful rower, but I am the more efficient. Once he figure out a couple of things, he is going to take off in the single. He a nice guy and a good training partner.

This is the first time since I was in middle school that I have been able to easily hold my weight below 150 lbs. I am hoping this gives me an edge at selection camp. On a related note, my aunt made some delicious carrot cake. Bless her.