Quite A Week!

I've been off work for the past week. I'm so thankful that Bryan McCormick came to fill-in while I was gone. That allowed Rachel Coulter the opportunity to get a great start with the Region 8 StormTEAM! I was at the AAU Junior Olympics in Virginia Beach. I would estimate that about 20 kids from Region 8 were there representing Team Arkansas and Southwind Conference. This was my youngest son's first time to be at Junior Olympics and I was a proud dad.

He cut time in every event. His greatest highlights were winning the silver medal in the 50m breaststroke, bronze in 100m breaststroke, and being on the relay team that won gold in the 200m freestyle.

This was our first time to Virginia Beach. I knew it would be nice, but it was even better than I thought! The beaches were great and the history in the area was even better! The waves were larger than the waves we typically see on the Gulf Coast. In addition, the East Coast sunrise can't be duplicated anywhere else in the USA!

During our free time, we learned some history of our country! One of the highlights of the trip was visiting Fort Story and seeing the Cape Henry lighthouses! The oldest lighthouse was built in 1792 and was the first lighthouse built by the United States Government. We got to climb in it and it gave us a GREAT view of the newer lighthouse built in 1881!

We also visited Fort Monroe. We did not have a lot of time there, but I did snap some pictures. Here's one of them. This fort is where Jefferson Davis was in prison following the Civil War:

After we left Virginia, we went to the Great Smokey Mountains! As a kid and teenager, I visited here often, but it has grown a lot! Dollywood is much larger and has a lot more rides. That's where we went on Day 1. I highly recommend riding the Wild Eagle. I did not get any pics of it, but Google it! It was awesome.

Even Dollywood had some history! This coal-powered train that you can ride was built in 1938 and operated in the White Pass in Alaska prior to coming to Tennessee. Now, it takes about 5,000 people per day through the Smokey Mountains.

The second day was all about nature! We went into the mountains and climbed through West Prong Little Pigeon River. We could have done this all day, but we had to get home to Region 8!

Now, it's time to get back to work! As I write this, I hear thunder. It looks like an active day ahead!

Have a great day!
Ryan