The first day of Trials, the College World Series was also going on in Omaha - just across the street. Traffic was horrendous! I was so relieved that we had decided to have Janae drop us off, instead of having to find a place to park! She dropped us off in the middle of all of the thousands of sports fans congregated in Omaha for these two major sporting events. We felt the excitement as soon as we got out of the car!
As we walked up to the doors of the Century Link (or CLink as the locals call it), we were met by life-size pictures on the doors of the most well known swimmers who would be participating.
For those of you in the SLC area, the Century Link complex is like the Energy Solutions Arena attached to the Salt Palace Convention Center. We entered the convention center lobby portion and waited in line to go through security. Above the doors into the arena, we spotted the area where Olympians’ names would be added as they made the team.
We entered the arena lobby portion of the building and saw the list of the 2008 Olympians.
We came around a corner to the escalators, and the huge “Olympic Trials” sign hung above the ticket windows. Our excitement continued to build with each new thing we saw!
Those of you who know us well know that Ryan & I are quickly moved to tears. I am not exaggerating at all when I say that as we entered the arena and saw the pool, both of us got so excited that we almost cried! After planning and saving for this trip for A YEAR, it was overwhelming to actually be there!
Our tickets said Row 21. However, we found out that the first nine rows of seats had been removed to accommodate the pool. So we were actually on the 12th row!!! Suddenly I realized that the money I paid for the tickets was totally worth it!
We chatted for a while with the people next to us – lifelong friends Linda and Jane from Minnesota, who had spent many years with their own kids as competitive swimmers. Through the next couple of days, we got to know everyone around us better. We all had the same seats for the entire trials, and there were many family members of swimmers around us. It was fun to have specific people to cheer for during the first heats of an event!
The very first event was the men’s 400 IM – with Michael Phelps in Heat 10, Tyler Clary in Heat 11, and Ryan Lochte in Heat 12! It was absolutely awesome watching all of them swim in person, especially my Ryan’s signature event!
Phelps…
Clary…
Lochte (can you see his Olympic Rings tattoo?)…
Other morning prelims:
Women’s 100 fly – 17 heats; Rachel Bootsma (Minnesota) in Heat 14; Claire Donahue in Heat 15 (57.82); Christine Magnuson & Kathleen Hersey in Heat 16; Dana Volmer (56.59) & Natalie Coughlin (58.41) in Heat 17.
Men’s 400 free – 12 heats; Connor Jaeger, Charlie Houchin, Conor Dwyer in Heat 10; Matt McLean, Ryan Feeley (3:49.21) in Heat 11. Ryan Lochte scratched. Ryan Feeley’s parents were sitting 2 rows ahead of us through all of Trials, so we cheered for him in all of his events. Peter Vanderkaay in Heat 12 (3:49.16).
Women’s 400IM – 13 heats; Caitlin Leverenz in Heat 12; Elizabeth Beisel & Cammile Adams in Heat 13.
Men’s 100 breaststroke – 15 heats; Mark Gangloff in Heat 14; Brendan Hansen & Eric Shanteau in Heat 15.
After the prelims ended at about noon, Ryan and I went to the AquaZone, the HUGE fan area that was set up in all of the ballrooms in the convention center portion of the C-Link Center.
Our first stop was the ENORMOUS Speedo store, where Ryan bought what he had been saving for – the black and green Ryan Lochte signature swim bag. The zipper on Ryan’s backpack broke during the morning events (coincidence?), providing even more urgency to the purchase of the swim bag.
We had lunch at the concessions area in the AquaZone. I was surprised that, considering the crowd (mostly swimmers and their families), there weren’t many choices for healthy food. We ate the concession food, but I decided we couldn’t do that all week, and that we’d need to find a healthier alternative. Keep this in mind as you read future posts.
The AquaZone had three different areas set up to meet current and former Olympians. There were two stages for autographs, and then a podium for pictures. We were able to meet Pablo Morales, gold medalist in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. Ryan BEAMED when Pablo put his gold medal around Ryan’s neck!
Several months ago, USA swimming families were invited to submit pictures of their swimmers to be included in a huge mosaic in the AquaZone. I submitted a couple of Ryan. We found the mosaic, and used the computer mapping program to find his picture! How fun that Ryan’s picture was in the AquaZone!
Other fun things in the AquaZone…
There were several booths of USA Swimming and Olympic sponsors. Most of them had contests of some sort. We were standing in the line to spin the Orowheat prize wheel, when all of a sudden Ryan said, “Mom, there’s Debbie Phelps!” Debbie (Michael’s mom) is a spokesperson for a program that encourages healthy habits in young people. We left the Orowheat line and went over to talk with her. We chatted with her for a couple of minutes – Ryan told her that he had been watching Michael swim since he was 4 years old (technically since he was 5 months old). She asked him a few questions about his swimming, and asked where we were from. About that point, other people started to gather, so I said, “May we get a picture with you?” She said, “Sure!” and started to move toward Ryan. I handed Ryan my camera and said, “This picture is for me! Michael is Ryan’s hero, but you’re mine!” I told her that I am also a single mom, and how much I admired her dedication to her family. She told me to stay strong, and gave me a HUGE hug. What a sweet lady! Ryan later commented that she has far more practice talking and smiling than I do. :)
The line started forming to get into the arena for the finals at about 5:30, and the doors opened at about 5:45. We were there early enough that not many people were on deck. So we walked down to the deck and had our picture taken. Amazing!
Once the events started, it was interesting to see the difference in the arena between the preliminaries and the finals. In the preliminaries, all of the lights were always on, and it was very informal. During the finals, the lights were off - mainly for all of the special effects…like the waterfall with different words and symbols projected on it.
Pictures of the 400 IM…
During the breaststroke, all of a sudden fire shot up along the sides of the pool! We were close enough that we felt the heat! It was such a surprise that I didn’t snap a picture. But I was prepared later in the evening!
Our new friend, Summer Sanders, was interviewing the athletes (and the mayor of Omaha, etc.) on deck.
Women’s 100 fly (semis) – Claire Donahue, Natalie Coughlin, and Christine Magnuson in Heat 1.
Kathleen Hersey and Dana Vollmer in Heat 2.
Men’s 400 free – Peter Vanderkaay, Charlie Houchin, Connor Jaeger, Conor Dwyer, Ryan Feeley. And I caught the fire at the sides of the pool!
When it was time for the Men’s 400 IM medal ceremony, the arena went dark, with only a spotlight on the podium. Ryan Lochte began rising from below! Behind him was a waterfall with his name, event, and the Olympic rings projected on it. Amazing! (And my Ryan LOVED his shoes!)
After Ryan walked RIGHT in front of us, Summer interviewed him. At the side of the pool (on the way back into the locker rooms), there was a life-size London phone booth that each swimmer that made the team signed.
Women’s 400 IM – Cammile Adams, Elizabeth Beisel, Caitlin Leverenz. And I caught the fire!
Men’s 400 free medal – Peter Vanderkaay
Men’s 100 breast (semis) – Eric Shanteau, Brendan Hansen, Scott Weltz, Clark Burckle Heat 1; Mark Gangloff, Mike Alexandrov Heat 2.
Women’s 400 IM medal – Summer Sanders, as a prior medalist in this event, was the person who presented Elizabeth Beisel with her medal. It was a fun ceremony!
As the events of the evening ended, we texted Janae. By the time we got outside, she was pulling up to get us. What a great system! We dropped her off at her house and then headed for Bennington.
As Ryan and I drove the 30 minutes back to Rachael’s house, we talked about what an amazing day it was, and how it far surpassed our expectations. I said, “I can’t imagine that tomorrow could be any better!”
i love the wingspan picture--ryan doesn't really have all that far to go!
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