Letters from Will Daly in the Lightweight Men’s Four without Coxswain (LM4-)

In terms of how this will affect us having to weigh in two days in a row we are not very worried about it, we are lucky in the fact that Tom weighs in at 68.5 kg and the rest of us get to weigh 70.5, so we don't struggle that much with weight. Some of the other crews that have a harder time making weight might be affected a little bit, but it should be to big of a burden on anyone. In other news the German lightweight four did not weigh in today because three of the members of the boat are sick and so they withdrew from racing which is pretty tragic. We have not heard any official word on whether or not they will be allowed to race tomorrow since no racing occurred today, either way it will not affect us because they are in the other heat.

Just to give you some insight into my life for the past 17 days that I have been in China, it is not as exciting as you might imagine, In those 17 days I have been 4 places, the course, the hotel (which is my room and the dining room), and then I spent 30 minutes at Wumart which is a low end grocery store, I also got to spend 30 minutes at a high end grocery/department store. So now as we are coming to the end of our tapper I have read all the books I have, I have watched all the movies the team has, I have taken more naps then I thought possible, and don't think there is any youtube video I haven't seen, you could say I have a little cabin fever and a lot of energy.

All the Best,
Will

Outside of the excitement tonight not to much else has been going on, just training and hanging out in our hotel. We did have a couple very "misty" days where we could only see about 100m down the course. I did get some pictures, but i am working on uploading them to a site so I don't have to send out large emails. We got our draw yesterday and in our heat we will be racing Italy, Denmark, and Canada. We are pretty happy about our draw, in our event it is hard to get a "good" draw because everyone is fast. To give those of you who are not as familiar with rowing an idea about how competitive the LM4- (lightweight men's four without) is, last year at the World Championships there were 24 entries in the event, of those 24 the top eleven qualified based on their placement at the World Championships. They only allow 13 entries for the Olympics, and the last two entries came from the qualification regatta this year. So now know how hard it is to qualify for the Olympics, I will give you a further idea of how close everyone is because of the level playing field created by having to weigh-in two hours before the race (our boat average is 70kg, or 154.3 lbs.). In the World Cup race we attended earlier this year before our boat selection was finalized we came in 8th, .1 second behind 7th, and .1 second ahead of 9th, and .2 seconds ahead of 10th, so the races are all pretty close.

Anyways please keep sending me questions, about rowing or about China in general, I may or may not send out and email before I begin racing. I hope this email finds you all in good spirits.

All the Best, Will Daly

Beijing Olympic Update with Anna Mickelson,
W8+ and W2-

I have been so busy with rowing two races and now it is time to race the final in the 8. Team USA is ready to show our best effort. Michelle inspired us all with her great race yesterday in the single. We all hope to join her on the medals dock.

I am thrilled to be representing the USA and am so thankful for all of the support our team has behind us. Thank you to the NRF and all who contribute. It is time to get on the bus to the course and show the world how hard we have been working! Go USA!

So much of any regatta is about hurrying so you can wait. Yesterday, we were all warmed up for our heat in the eight and pulled up to the start, only to be sent back to the docks. It was thundering and a big lightning and rain storm shortly followed. There is now a new schedule. Today, we prep to race the eight again. It will be a good race whenever it happens. Then, the pair rep was moved to tomorrow. It is all good! I thought I might have to do two races in a day, but that would have been fine too.

Many US boats have already had their first round of racing and we have had some good results. Most have moved on to the next level and only a few to the reps. The team is in good spirits and happy to be getting the legs going.

This is a quick update from me, as it is now 9:25 PM and Portia and I are racing the pair tomorrow. It is finally time to race and our athletes have the heats draw and are ready to shoot for gold!

With the usual morning row at 9:30 and evening row at 5:30, there isnąt too much to report from here in Beijing. We are one day closer to the Games and that is a feat in itself. Most racing trips are all about waiting and somehow keeping busy for days on end trying to do as little as possible.

Today, there were two small thrills to pull me away from my romance novel. First, after our first practice, Portia, Mary and I had a chance to talk with our Seattle NBC affiliate for ten minutes. I love that for our ten minutes of fame, we were dripping in sweat from head to toe and Iąm sure looking fabulous. I tried to redeem myself with the second big event of the day when a local tailor shop fitted me in my new suit at our hotel. They have come from near the Silk Market and for a great price I will have a jacket, pants, skirt and two dress shirts. Iąm trying to prepare for a life after rowing and what better to help with that than custom retail therapy?

Now, it is time to hop in the ice bath Portia has kindly made in our hotel bathtub. We try to do everything possible to recover from our workouts and taking a "cold plunge" to chill our muscles and give us some free speed will hopefully be worth the craziness it is to take a bath with ice cubes. Always reluctant, Portia's simple statement of "Come on, it's the Olympics." That it is. Iąm so in.

We are now one week into our stay here in Beijing. It was a relatively easy 12-hour plane flight and I was only detained for an hour and a half. Iąm such a rebel. Technically, my passport number on my Visa didnąt match up and I should have been there for ten days. Good thing that didnąt happen. I did have to swing by the Athlete Village to become "eligible." That only meant I needed to sign some paperwork again and was a quick fix.

Finally, the dysfunctional athletes and coaches joined up with the team and checked into a fancy hotel. A woman in a long red traditional Chinese gown led us from the main lobby under a large chandelier, up the sweeping marble staircase to our banquet room for dinner where there was an arrangement of Gerber daisies on each table.

Not knowing what cuisine to expect, I brought a lot of food with me from home. I am happy to report that much of this wasnąt necessary, but I am glad that Portia and I both brought a French press for our coffee! The daily spread always leaves me full and happy. At breakfast, there is a chef to personally fry up your eggs any way you like (I get a little omelet and an egg over easy to put on toast). For lunch and dinner, there is always an arrangement of salad and a full Chinese buffet. For those who canąt eat anymore Chinese food, the usual pasta with marinara, bread and butter, and apples and watermelon are always on hand.

The rowing venue is only about a five-minute bus ride away and this is the closest I have ever been to a course. I love how quick and easy it is to get to practice and really appreciate the National Rowing Foundation for providing our team with this great location. Many other teams and athletes have to take an almost hour long bus ride from the Athlete Village. In our hotel is also Canada and Italy. We are focused here and ready to race.

One of the most looked forward to events for many Olympians is processing. The team meetings and travel are tough, but filling a shopping cart full of Olympic garb is thrilling. From shoes to hats, outfits for opening to closing ceremonies, loungewear for the village to the racecourse, and the simple fun of a cart full of “free” gear reminds one of the Supermarket Sweep.

After leaving the Princeton boathouse at 4am, we flew from Newark to San Jose. San Jose State University was home to our processing and even though we were exhausted from travel and packing, we all found a bit more energy when a VIP was scheduled to attend. What a rush when California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, entered the building.

I was the first in line in the hallway and reached out eagerly to shake his hand. With a firm grip and a smile, the Governor met each athlete. He gave a short inspiring speech and humored us with many more photos. My favorite part was when Paul Teti captivated him with details of their training regimen.