After the past few days, I've really learned to respect all the field players. Not that I didn't before, but I've come to the conclusion that even field players are a little bit crazy.
This whole "little bit crazy" thing has referred to goalkeepers; however, after our Thursday game was postponed for rain, I got a huge taste of a hard workout for a field player. To say that I struggled a bit might understate how much I had to work to not only finish the run, but also to keep my legs attached to my body. I figured that Dave Tenney, our fitness coach, would love knowing that I was getting an unbelievable workout and that my legs would be going home with me.
The workout, which we did at a local gym, was an interval workout, which included sprinting on an elevated treadmill for four minutes and then running at an almost sprint, to recover, for three minutes. After 35 minutes and realizing that I could no longer produce sweat, it was finally over.
I know that there is a yoga class where you can workout in stifling heat, and I can only imagine that the conditions in this gym were about the same. By the end of the run, players' training gear was in all kinds of disarray.
Some people finished fully clothed, looking like they had literally just stepped out of the shower. Others finished shirtless, and even one unnamed fellow finished in spandex - which is very questionable, even in West Hollywood or Europe.
But my favorite part of the day was actually when we had to walk to and from the gym. It was pretty funny to walk through the shopping district in full Wizards gear. I'm sure everybody thought that we were some sort of a gang.
So after our run, we headed out for our first meal away from the hotel. I've always heard so many great things about the steak in Argentina, so I figured meal selection was a no-brainer. This proved correct. With a little local insight, we found our way to what proved to be a phenomenal spot to eat.
For less than thirty bucks, we ate like kings. Guys tried foods that they never had before and revisited old favorites. My meal ended when some of the guys whined about wanting the meats cooked more. Once a piece of beef hits medium, I think you can probably serve me a shoe and it will have the same amount of flavor. So I picked through everyone's leftovers, eating red bit after red bit, and left full and very happy.
On Friday, we traveled to a field outside the city. As I continue to recover, I got the opportunity to train on the field, which is always a dream come true for a goalkeeper. I actually got a great assist to Eddie Johnson, but that only tied the game for us and as a group we weren't able to capture the championship we were hoping for.
On Saturday we play our first game since arriving and are looking forward to a great result. At this point, everybody is chomping at the bit for a game and an evening out. Those two dreams are definitely coming to fruition soon, so I'm off to bed in hopes of victories and a great time with my teammates in the evening.
It's been great so far. We've got a great place to stay, we have awesome training sessions and we have a huge game ahead. I'll keep you filled in as often as possible and will hopefully have some good stories from Saturday.
Cheers,
Kevin
