Hey friends, so, I awake this morning to a beautiful day in Beijing.
It's been very sunny as of late and the air is looking much better the
past few days. What tiny invisible particulates are still assaulting
us is a mystery but I'll enjoy some blissful ignorance on that one.

I had day 4 "off" of competition after finishing the 400 m final at
the end of day 3. I still had to plan to run the repeat of the 5000 m,
though, so I was still in my rest and relax mode. I slept in and had
my own little version of brunch in the village cafeteria, then went
for a few hours and met my parents at the Temple of Heaven. So
beautiful! My favorite elements were having my dad present to give me
a hand up some of the more bumpy ramps (it's been so long since we've
traveled together and he's been able to help out his dear daughter)
and also, watching all of the middle-aged and retired Chinese people
exercising! The grounds of the Temple form a large park around the
building itself, and it is full of winding paths, trees, and lots of
open space. There are people playing the Chinese version of hacky sack
all over the place, and as we were leaving, we came upon an exercise
class that was so interesting – mostly people standing, twisting, and
slapping themselves repetitively. A bit unusual for me to see but I
can understand its use – a combination stretch/cardio training – why
not? The best was that there was a woman in a wheelchair right there
in the mix, participating in the class. Perfect.

On day 5 I got up much earlier than normal as we had to be at the
track at 7:30 to warm-up for the 5000. All went as planned, Team USA
was psyched to go, and the gun went off at 9:05. We raced a safe race
this time. It started out very slow – I took the first pull and then
pulled out, then there was kind of a mix of trade-offs and surges in
the first 6 laps. Now – at this point, I'm reminded that the blogging
guidelines for the Paralympics make it such that I can't refer to
other athletes as I write, so, I'll refer to my competitors as Racers
X,Y, and Z. Racer X led most of the surges and was putting in a very,
very strong performance and putting a hurt on quite a few in the
field. With 4 laps to go (of the 12) I was in the back of the middle
lane and she was in the back of the outside lane. I saw she had moved
to the back and my bets were firmly on her for having the strongest
final sprint. So – I tucked back in behind her and held my position
fiercely until we were ready for the sprint. With about 500 to go
people started to pick it up, then with 400 to go we took off. We
started to drop people - I was 100% focused on holding on to the back
of Racer X's draft, and we came around in lane two. For the last 120
meters, it was Racer Y in front in Lane 1, Racer Z behind her in Lane
1, Racer X in Lane 2, and me behind Racer X in Lane 2. The pack of
four of us cruised toward the finish line…going….going….going….with
about 10-20 meters left Racer X very slowly edged up in front of Racer
Y, and, unfortunately – lost me. It was *such* an exciting finish.
Racer X won by 1 one-hundredth of a second. Racer Y took Silver. Racer
Z tucked into her draft took bronze, and I took fourth (hmmm….no color
attached, major bummer). Interestingly, these were the same three that
medaled in the first run of the race. Ultimately I raced a very smart
race and I'm very proud of the finish…so…I will still hold that being
fourth in the world at something isn't so bad…. 

Day 6 was my first real day off of competition so it was nice to enjoy
a bit of breathing room. I got up in the morning and went for a "jog"
on the practice track, then bounced over to the Forbidden City for a
few hours in the afternoon to shoot a short piece with the
International Paralympic Committee regarding accessibility in Beijing
and how many of the most popular neighborhoods and attractions have
been made accessible in preparation for the Games. This will probably
be part of a ParalympicSport.tv broadcast near the end of the Games…
so – tune in if interested. Sure enough, it was really, really great
to see the non-obtrusive ramps, accessible bathrooms, and smoother
tiles that had been placed in some sections of the palace, which had
been the home of emperors from the Ming and then Qing dynasties until
the early part of the 20th century. Also fun was that my friend
Khaliah has now arrived in Beijing, so, she was able to join us for
this (we're currently busy making our POST-Games travel
itinerary…staying for a week after closing ceremonies!). That night,
I joined two teammates and all of our families for dinner, on the way
to which I was taken on one of my more interesting taxi rides thus far
in Beijing….I'm pretty sure we stopped by to see this cabby's family
on the way to the restaurant – check on his grandparents, or make sure
his babysitter was doing okay, or something.

One thing that has been totally stellar about this Games is the level
to which the organizing committee has taken painstaking care in
getting the word out about the Paralympics around town. Really – in
2008, here in Beijing, the Paralympics aren't playing second fiddle to
*anything*. On every signpost on every major road there is a
Paralympics banner. As one approaches the Park, there are gigantic
screens on the sides of buildings playing live coverage of the sports
that you can watch while you're stuck in traffic on the freeway. As
you pass city busses, you can see the Games playing on TVs inside and
eager people watching with eager interest on their way home from work.
The manhole covers have the Paralympic logo! The Birds Nest is full to
capacity almost every night. Truly – it's been spectacular.

Off to bed now….the 800 is tomorrow!! See below for tips on watching results...

Xoxo, cheri