Location: Rus Park, Ukraine

I woke up inadvertently at 5 am today as I tried to roll over in my sleep… and couldn’t. I was so sore that my body just wouldn’t roll over. I haven’t been this sore in a very very long time. But alas no rest for the wicked- I had another day of fighting ahead of me!

In the middle of the night Ian and Land decided to take Richard to the hospital and were still away when mine and Lake’s fights started in the morning. Land was meant to fight sword and shield, but being team captain he had to be with our injured fighter and thus Lake took his place. Usually when someone is fighting they have two people in their corner, but since 50% of our fighters were at the hospital, Mack was left running between mine and Lake’s fights with water, extra gear, advice and encouragement.

I was so sore from my fights the day before that I didn’t end up winning any today, but was totally okay with it since I haven’t actually trained in sword and shield in quite awhile and was focused on longsword. Not to blame it all on soreness because the women I fought from Estonia, Moldova and England were amazing fighters and even at my freshest I would have had a hard time. I’m looking forward to training up in sword and shield and hopefully becoming better at it- especially since my team seems to think that’s the category I would be best at.

I had so much fun fighting today because all of my nerves were completely gone and I was just able to enjoy the sport and the competition. Between rounds Mack was giving me advice and it was fun to try and apply it almost immediately. Normally it’s a long while between when I get advice and when I’m able to try it out, so I enjoyed seeing how I was able to adapt between rounds.

After the fights Lake, Mack and I watched some rounds from the stands and drank a few kvas’s in the sweltering heat. As we were walking by the list someone ran up and told Lake he was a ‘lucky-loser’- someone forfeited their spot in the next round for sword and shield and he was picked to replace them. Cue running! We ran to the tent to get him geared up for his fight. He did well, but ultimately lost against Denmark in an exciting match.

Mack left to prepare for his pro-fight that was scheduled for later that evening and Lake and I grabbed dinner and chatted about the trip so far. I realized that while I was initially sad about a lot of the team not being able to come, it was a blessing in disguise. I ended up getting to know everyone on this trip a lot better than I would have if there were a lot of us. With such a small crew we were able to really spend a lot of time getting to know each other and becoming closer as teammates and friends.

With that thought on the brain, and Land and Ian having returned from the hospital, we all went for a drink to keep hanging out. Which turned into two, and then three and then we ended up at the Estonian camp drinking around the fire with a bunch of new friends. We ran off into the night and ended up exploring this old Soviet trailer and the grounds around the fort.

We had an incredible night together and I feel so much closer to my team. This trip so far has felt really reassuring and good for my soul. EMOTIONS AND FEELINGS GUYS.

S

#yxygirlsgohereandthere