Hello everyone!! We are excited to blog about our last day of festivities before heading home! Of course, TWB has ended with a bang
Today, we woke up at 6am; however, a few people- the people zip tied together- had to wake up a bit earlier to be able to get ready by 6:30. The counselors had an amazing time laughing and joking around with all of the triplets who were still attached. They tried to lure us in with the sound of scissors snipping and the sweet temptation of what freedom would taste like. Most of the groups wanted to continue with the competition after being able to make it through the night.
Most of us survived the night even though we were attached to two other people. We had to cuddle, fight off bugs with six hands, and even figure out late night bathroom situations...but we did it!
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| Katey Taylor, Anna Ramsey and Scotlyn McDowell made it through the night attached |
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| Madee Draper, Carly Brown, and Madie Lawson all smiles after their group sleep |
After loading onto the vehicles for our last day of adventures, all of the singles and triplets dined on some fluffy chocolate chip, blueberry, and banana nut muffins to start out with a filling breakfast. The counselors- especially Grant and Josh- made sure to give all of the attached people a very hard time on the bus by requesting that they come up to the front to do favors for them… you can only imagine how hard it is to walk up and down a bus isle with two other people attached to your wrist
Everyone on the vehicles also had the lovely challenge of stopping at a rest stop in Indiana before getting to Churchill Downs. We got some very funny stares from the other people using the rest stop, and we just had to laugh it off and keep on with the competition.
Many of the participants in the zip tie challenge wanted to sleep, so they had to get creative on the bus. In honor of their dedication, they have all been awarded sleepers of the day.
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| Lauren Whitaker, Claire Quiggle, and Katie Shepherd |
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| Katey Taylor, Anna Ramsey, and Scotlyn McDowell |
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| Bradley Olson, Trey Dry, and Alex Cormier |
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| Morgan Bostic and Avery Clark |
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| Georgia Privott, Allison Roney and Landyn Gray |
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| Caroline Swaim, Josie Crooks, and Avery Lowrance |
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| Sydney Craig and Hundley Rhyne had to help Olivia Comer work on the blog....Olivia found typing difficult as the middle person. |
We were thrilled to arrive at the famous home of the Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs! Everyone unloaded their vehicles promptly to watch the brave remaining triplets participate in the greatest race of all time! All of the single participants formed a circle to serve at the racetrack, and the triplets sprinted as fast as they could around it to be crowned the ultimate group!! The winners of this competition were Ethan Manning, Matt McConnell, and Ryan Phillips!!
After the race, the zip ties were quickly snipped, and we excitedly headed into Churchill Downs! We split into two groups to get tours around the facility, and we were able to see the names of famous horses such as Secretariat!! We got to see the famous racetrack and even take a picture at the Winner’s Circle where they drape the blanket of roses over the winning racehorse after the Kentucky Derby. We were surprised to hear that the Kentucky Derby was started in 1918!
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| VICTORY!! |
After checking out the grounds of the arena, TWB was brought to tears by a powerful 360-degree video about racehorses and the spirit of the Kentucky Derby! Post-video, we all did what we do best… shop! 82 teenagers all eager to purchase shirts, stickers, cups, and more overcame the Kentucky Derby Museum Gift Shop!
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| Hunter Wood in the lead by a nostril as Brooks Godbold is close behind and Tristan Benson tries to catch up |
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| Hunter Wood takes jockeying very serious |
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| Brooks Godbold isn't sure how to put the saddle on |
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| Jordan Thompson is just happy to be on a horse at all |
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| Mckenna Caudill hanging out with a bunch of jocks |
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| Allison Roney REALLY loves horses |
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| Georgia Privott in the chutes riding her horse Claire Quiggle |
We were all very sad to leave our final stop on the trip, but we were greeted by a yummy lunch of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on our way to the car wash! For this bus ride, we sat in our groups because we had to work on our final group presentations that night. Each group worked very hard and diligently to create a funny and meaningful skit to sum up our TWB experience. We had the chance to practice in the grass beside a bus washing station! We wanted the bus and the vans to be sparkly clean for our friends and family the next day.
Dinner was a bang because we were able to dine on some savory fried chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, green beans, mac and cheese, and biscuits at the original Kentucky Fried Chicken!! Some of us even got signed t-shirts from Colonel Sander’s great grandson, Greg! The KFC was also fun to explore because it was Colonel Sander’s old house, and it had a museum section to it. We knew we were close to home when we tasted the refreshing sweet tea!!
| Cannot hide the happiness |
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| Faces of complete satisfaction |
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| Mr G getting in on the Sanders action |
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| We are in tears of joy and stomach aches of happiness |
Our tummies were stuffed as we headed to our campsite for the night, Levi Jackson State Park! We were lucky enough to have cabins to sleep in; however, most of us slept outside under the stars to fully live up our last night of TWB!!!
Before tucking into our sleeping bags, we participated in our final competition and showcased our hilarious skits. We made everyone laugh by bringing up the good, the bad, and the ugly to sum up all of the memories of these past three weeks! The Sneezys were the winners of the competition, but the Bashfuls were the overall winners of Trip 1 due to their fantastic cooking!!! Before showering, we wrapped our arms around each other for one of the last times, and sang our song, “Today.”
Showers felt great and refreshing, but we were more excited to spend our last night under the stars with our new family. We all will cherish this night for the rest of our lives, and we will forever be thankful for the opportunities, memories, and best friends we made along this wonderful journey across America<3 !!
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| The Grumpy Group |
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| The Sleepy Group |
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| The Happy Group |
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| The Dopey Group |
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| The Sneezy Group |
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| The Victorious Bashful Group |
