I'm considering trying to drive like a Jordanian for a few days when I get home. I'm kind of wondering how many fingers I would get. They aren't bad drivers but they drive very different than in the US. The best way to merge into traffic is just to give your horn a quick blast and nose your way on out. Drivers will just continue to go around you until you get too far out for them to get around and then you're in. And nobody has road rage, incredible.
Anyway, whirlwind day. Of course it was pretty uneventful for the morning. Sitting around the hotel, breakfast, light 10min run, movie, lunch, load up to the course. That's when the fun started. The next 48hrs will be non-stop. By now you've most likely seen results of the races. We've been without internet or any way to communicate since before we left for the race course (so it's not my fault this is late). I have to say, the course was pretty unbelievable, and if anyone will believe me, it was a lot of fun. Up, down, up down,... And it lived up to it's pre-race synopsis as brutal.
The race went out moderately fast for the first uphill 200m, then settled in for the 600m downhill. I continued to weave my way from mid pack at the top of the hill to the top 10 by the bottom and settled in for the short flat section before the climb. Ran my own race up the climb letting the main pack gain some ground on me before catching back up on the downhill again. The pack slowed on the flat section and I was able to relax and just settle in to my own rhythm. Everyone was being pretty conservative knowing that that 5th and 6th laps were going to be pretty grueling if the race was pushed from the start. I knew I had to run my own race if I were going to run my best so I let the pack run away from me as they ratcheted up the pace going up the hill for the second time. This was about the time Bobby passed me and held on to the USA lead for a couple laps. By the end of lap 5 I was able to reel Bobby in and Ryan had caught up to us. With a hilly race like this strengths and weaknesses become very obvious. My weakness is definitely the uphills but I can make up for that on the downhill. Too bad we finished on the uphill. Ryan crushed the last two laps and especially the last climb up to the finish, as did Bobby while I held my own, even passing a few people on climb, and was third for the US and 40th overall. Ryan was 33rd and Bobby 37th. Ed Torres (my roomie) was right behind me in 58th an Ed Moran was just behind him in 68th with some nasty blisters. And Bret was 75th. The US ran smart, pacing was even and we put everything we had out there. It was an eighth place showing behind teams that couldn't be caught YET even on our best days (top 6) and Spain who had a very strong team. I'm happy with my race. It is definitely the best of my three World XC events yet. Hopefully that trend will continue. The course played to my strengths sure, but my mind was in the right place, fitness was good and I learn a little more every year about how to run in the middle pack.
We were eighth but one thing I see every year is how lucky we are as Americans and the opportunities that are just given to us, not without putting in the work, but I know other people around the world also put in the effort to be the best runners and they don't have the opportunities we have. Our federation, the sponsors on our backs, and the staff that supports us does a phenomenal job every year to get us here, give us the best support so that we are physically and mentally ready to race, and the best equipment on earth. It just reminds me that with the support system surrounding us, the runners, we certainly can't take anything for granted. It doesn't have to be like that and I hope we remember that during our last interval in the freezing rain, or the last climb in our third workout of the week, or the reason we've been in the pool for an hour and a half on saturday morning with a stress fracture, We have support because we work for it and I'm thankful for it..
How many people do you think have had the chance to cut a rug with Doug Logan, the CEO of USATF. 
That's right, Logan actually got out on the dance floor with the USA team and the rest of the mob. This was by far the best after party I've been to. Amazing full buffet, with
beer and wine, decor and lighting that would be more than you could ask for at a formal wedding, and club dj's mixing tracks like it was the hottest nightclub in town. The Jordanians pulled out all the stops to put on an excellent event. And Doug Logan was on the dance floor, I've got pictures, as was the rest of the USA. Whether it was the foreign country, the seclusion of the USA team at the hotel, or whatever reason, this team has meshed better than any other team I've had the chance to run on. On previous trips I've barely gotten to know the juniors or the women's team but this trip has been quite the opposite. It was a pleasure to get to know the other athletes I run with and against better and I know that our relationships will last long after the trip is over.
Last Leg:
Up at 5:45 after going to bed at 2:15am doesn't feel good. We headed to Petra, one of the new 7 wonders of the world. It was awesome. 
Petra is in Indiana Jones and I can't remember which one. It's the big temple carved into the rock as they ride horses down a slot canyon. Kind of reminded me of Red Rocks in Las Vegas but 10,000 times bigger and with stuff carved in the rock. Is it bad I think I liked the rocks better than the spectacular carved buildings. The rocks are so cool and great for climbing. I just wanted to scramble up everything. And we all rode camels down the canyon. Pretty sweet day. Check out the pictures.
As I type, the bus is quiet. Heads are back and eyes are shut from exhaustion. The late afternoon sun shines horizontally though the bus windows as we rattle down the road. I think the feeling is one of satisfaction from a long week on the other side of the world, edging out of our comfort zones and a race well run.
That feeling of exhaustion is only half over as we're in the middle of the marathon travel adventure that will take us from Amman to Petra for a little end of the the trip sightseeing, back to Amman's Queen Alia Airport and on to home, a >24hr trip to the other side of the world. Yeah, bet my ankles won't be swollen after this trip. Right. Cankles!
The trip was a lot of fun
