Where exactly is Clemson?

I'm sipping on a cup of coffee, and stretching my legs after a very long flight out of Atlanta last night.  I don't mind travel, and I don't mind flying east.  It's the flights back to the west coast that get me.  Everything feels longer.

I've also become a fan of Delta airlines, especially the planes with the mini screens in the head rests.  The extra leg room in coach was amazing, and while food was expensive - it is for every airline - I did enjoy the bags of pretzels they handed out, along with the generously sized cups for beverages.

A recap of the weekend.

Last Wednesday, the 1V, 2V, 1V4, and two spares flew to Atlanta, then traveled to Clemson for the Invitational.  I stayed behind two extra days, coaching those who didn't travel Wednesday afternoon, and for both practices on Thursday before flying out Friday.

This was my first trip to Clemson, and their excellent race course, so I was extremely pleased that I made the trip.  It was also an excellent networking opportunity with 20 other programs in attendance.  And while the weather could have been slightly nicer, I was happy that it stayed relatively cool, thus keeping the humidity down.

Saturday kicked off with races in the morning, followed by a long break before racing resumed in the evening.  While the area outside of the Clemson boathouse was extremely crowded, and parking in the lower areas was at a premium, the venue was fantastic, and the races were exciting.  It's the first time we've seen some of the crews like Ohio State, Indiana, and Harvard-Radcliffe, and we reintroduced ourselves to Virginia, Oklahoma, and Gonzaga.  

Sunday started 30 minutes ahead of schedule due to the weather.  I was ill prepared for the amount of rain that we encountered around the time the V8 landed.  My raincoat quit roughly 20 minutes into the hour long downpour making for a soggy experience.  However, the rain was warm, and it felt as though you were walking around in a swimming pool - not as bad as it sounds.  

The difficult thing Sunday was coming back to the hotel, and getting everything somewhat dry before heading off to the airport.  I think it was a brilliant decision to get to the airport four plus hours ahead of schedule.  This made for a very low key experience in checking in, and getting through the security gates.  The Atlanta airport has to be the biggest one I've been in thus far, and I made the rookie mistake of choosing to walk from security to our gate area rather than taking the train.  By the time I reached our area, I was sweating again - the main areas are nicely air conditioned, but the halls between terminals where the trains run is considerably less so.  

Overall I think it was a solid trip.  We got some good results, and didn't lose to anyone we shouldn't have.  It would have been nice to be tucked in a bit more with some of the crews, but overall I think it was a solid weekend of racing, and sets the program up for the next two weeks before we host our next regatta against WSU, and UCLA.