Jan. 26, 2012
SEATTLE - Due to a career-ending injury, senior Anna Epps from the UW Gymnastics team is not able to compete this year but still travels with the team and has embraced her student coaching position. Epps will blog during the road trips to give fans a behind the scenes view into the team. We started our trip to Stanford as the sun was rising in the Seattle sky. We had an early morning flight on Saturday which thankfully was very uneventful. We loaded up in our two giant white vans and made our way to the airport. We arrived looking snappy in our matching travel outfits, checked in, went through security, and proceeded to our gate. After a quick flight which most of us napped during, we headed to the hotel to get ready for our adventures of the day. We traveled in high style for this trip and had our own bus and bus driver when we arrived at the San Jose airport. After getting ready at the hotel we went to the Stanford mall to get some lunch and of course get in a little SHOPPING! We had been given per diem for lunch so we got to choose where we wanted to go which is always fun. About half of us went to PF changes and the other half went to California Pizza Kitchen. Mmmm!! After lunch we had another two hours to just shop around. After the shopping trip we headed back to the hotel and had a bit of time to hang out and just relax. It was just enough time for a power nap or to get a TV show in :) After our quick break it was back down to the hotel lobby to meet up for dinner. We went to Gordon Biersch and it was all pre-ordered and ready when we arrived. It was a delicious meal and it's always fun sitting around the table talking with one another. After dinner it was time for our usual team meeting the night before the meet. This time we switched up the meeting location and did it in a section of the lobby with couches and chairs and in front of a fireplace which was a nice change of scenery. Then we had a bit of free time and then it was time to get some sleep Zzzzz. We had to wake up a bit earlier then we usually do on a meet day due to the 2 p.m. start time of the meet. We woke up around 8:30 a.m. and had a nice breakfast buffet from the hotel so we would be fueled for the long day ahead. After breakfast it was time to get ready for the meet. Hair and make-up time! With glitter and sparkles galore we were off to the meet. We tried something different on the bus ride to this meet to help get our energy up we had a cheer competition between classes. Each class created a unique Washington cheer and then taught that cheer to the rest of the team. It was a great contest and everyone's cheers were filled with Husky spirit! Our SWAG was charged and we were ready for a great meet! We had a quick dance party in the locker room and then it was warm up and competition time. DAWGS IN THE HOUSE! We did a great job and competed with confidence and poise. We put our new cheers into action throughout the meet giving us boosts of spirit. We had many fans in the Stanford arena and it is so nice to have a bit of purple and gold wherever we go. After the meet we had time to change out of our meet attire and into our travel gear, and then it was off to the airport. We had dinner at the airport and were ready to go when we were told our flight was delayed. What's a trip without at least one minor mishap? The flight ended up being three hours delayed giving us a chance to explore the SFO airport. Finally around 10 p.m. it was time for take-off. Loopy from such an exciting day we filled the plane with laughter. We landed safe and sound around midnight and loaded back into our white vans and headed home to Husky Stadium. After a short and sweet trip it was nice to be back in our own homes! We are so excited for our next two home meets and look forward to seeing all our fans!! Until next time... Anna |
