March 27

HELLO...from the other side of the world! So, after a 14-hour plane ride and running through Osaka to make our next flight we finally made it to Fukuoka Monday night around 10 p.m.

Today has been raining, but we took a bus out to a gorgeous park where we were able to get a good run in. We are staying at one of the nicest hotels right next to a huge mall and famous baseball park! Imagine that?

Today is really a day for getting accustomed to everything while tomorrow we have more meetings and things like that! Keep you updated when more happens!

Erin

March 28
HEY! So it's Wednesday morning and the weather is looking better than yesterdays showers. Yesterday we went to a local mall, which was very interesting and full of American shops. We soon found ourselves in Starbucks (of course) and even passed by a McDonalds.

Today we are set up to go to a Japanese shrine, which I am looking forward to. The food here is not that bad, they offer a lot of Western food but at the same time some of the food is very...umm...interesting. Have a good day, I'll keep you posted!

Erin

March 29
Wednesday was a great day! The sun came out so the weather was nice. We took the subway to a Japanese shrine in a little village, with prayer trees and temples. It was gorgeous and again the people were so friendly. Outside the shrine was a small village filled with restaraunts and little shops where most people picked up a few authentic items.

The time change has not really seemed to effect anyone since it is so drastic (15 hours), so most people are already accustomed to the change. Tomorrow we are going to go into the city and look around and maybe go to the local (famous) Sea Bank Hawks baseball game. Hope Wedenesday is just a good for y'all as it was for all of us here in Japan!

Erin

March 30
After a short run on the beach, the junior team met with some of the senior women to talk about their first experiences on the world teams. They spoke about how it was such a privilege to be able to come and compete for the USA. This meeting really started to put things into perspective.

Most of the other countries have arrived by now and we all congregate on the lobby level. It is so fun to be able to meet all of the other countries, but also some what overwhelming. It is Friday morning and we are all very excited to go out to the course for the first time. At a team meeting we all talked about packing up in order to come up with the best finish.

The junior girls team has never been on a medal stand, which would be a huge privilege. The race is getting closer and all the girls are getting really excited. Now off to breakfast, have a good day!

Erin

March 31
Saturday! Race day is finally here. All the girls are extremely excited to finally be able to go out and represent the USA. After reviewing the course yesterday we new that the nice terrain would make for an extremely fast race. We practiced our starts knowing that the start would be aggressive and fast. I was beginning to feel the nerves as we made our way through the call room (main check-in room where athletes are given the numbers and uniforms are checked). As we did our final strides they called us to the start line. This was it - my last junior world championships. I wanted to make it count.

The gun went off and we went out fast. Through the first 1K the pace was fast and athletes were aggressive. I did not feel all that great throughout the course of the race and my legs and arms were very heavy. A 35th place finish is what I received, but an incredible experience is what i gained. Although I am not pleased with how I did individually, it was all I had that day and we all left it out there on the course. After talking to some of the senior mens and women's team members, I come out of this experience with more motivation and knowledge for the sport. It was great to watch all the Senior races today with a lot of American success.

Now tonight it is off to eat some sushi and start outdoor season on Thursday! It's been great here in Japan. I am truly blessed to be given this amazing opportunity. Hopefully I will be able to see many more in the future!

Erin