Throughout the whole of this week I had been anticipating the meeting of some of my fellow “racers”. Five of us reside in Southern California and decided to do a pre-camping expedition in Carlsbad, CA. Lindsey Hogg got us a site over looking the Pacific Ocean and it was a done deal. We were all finally going to meet, and try out what gear we had already gotten for the race.
Like the first day of school as a small child, my emotions were colored with every spectrum of the rainbow. Through chat rooms, conference calls, and e-mails we, as team, have been getting to know each other. However, the physical presence of a person satifies that craving in all that a picture and a voice on a phone call cannot capture. It was adding reality to the adventure of the World Race.
The day was overcast, and the clouds taunted us with the idea they might release rain on us at any point. Lindsey and I were the first to arrive. We began setting up what we had and eagerly awaited to be joined by the others.
We took a stroll down by the beach as a small reward for our hard work, and to try and warm us up on a very cold California day.
When Cindy arrived the excitement only grew. This is real. I am spending time with some of my teammates! We embraced and awaited Brandon and Dan‘s arrival. Unfortuantely, Dan, had to work and wasn’t going to be able to make the camping expedition. We were graced with the presence of Brandon’s friend Will, who we all called Tiger-Donkey thanks to Brandon.
The boys went to buy some firewood and the girls went to buy food. (That is right, we went and bought food. We are pretty hardcore campers.)
The night was spent around a campfire with a late night journey for more firewood. We sat around and learned more about each other. How we heard about the race, what was going to be our biggest struggle on the race, and many other topics were talked about. We laughed a lot. We made s’mores. We slept. (The girl tent lacked a rain cover so we encountered some sprinkles throughout the night. It just added to the night and I really enjoyed it.)
California Racers minus Dan
The next morning we packed up and head to Tip Top for some breakfast. After breakfast we said our goodbyes and our “We should do this again!” (Oh wait, we will do it for a year.) It was a great time of fellowship with each other.
I look forward to meeting the rest of the October team. August seems so far away, but it will be here before I know it.
Contine to pray for a team as a whole. God has called us and we are saying, “Here I am. Send me.” – Isaiah 6:8
