Our Eco Challenge Experience By Leslie Jefferson

Our Eco Challenge experience was successful due to a lot of enthusiasm and determination (with a little bit of ignorance thrown in). A friend and I thought it would be great fun-- a little friendly competition, doing things we already liked to do. So we recruited our husbands to form a team. I was coming off a knee injury and was a bit nervous about competing over such a long day, but I set a goal of making it through the day and having fun, not to worry about where we ranked. PPS made sure that we had a great time. The "Lord of the Rings" theme set the tone for a great time as we dodged orc's swords (or not!) in the muddiest mountain biking stretches, groped for a ring in the "cave" and solved the wizard's riddles. Combining mountain biking, hiking (bush-whacking!) canoeing, and waterfall walking made for a day full of challenge and variety. Each one of us had a sport that we preferred and shined the brightest at. We spent part of the time traveling with another team, and forged some new friendships. PPS kept us re-fueled and ready to go for the next stage of the event. You learn a lot about yourself and your teammates during an event like this...who wants to lead, who doesn't. Who has a good sense of direction. How to compromise and make decisions. How to motivate yourself and each other. How to dig down a little deeper than you normally do. And, while this is a competition, how to relax a little bit and not take yourself so seriously--because after all, the goal was just to make it through the day and have fun.