Last Chance Workout

I think I've mentioned it before, but I love the show "Biggest Loser". While I hope to God I never have to be a contestant on that show, it is really fun to watch! I'm not sure which part I like the most but perhaps it's the weekly scene of the "Last Chance Workout". They have grueling all-day long workouts right before they have to weigh in. They work hard and push themselves harder than they ever have before. And somehow they survive things that they didn't think was possible.

Well, last weekend was the weekend before the election and for the candidates, it was their "Last Chance Workout" for the 2010 Election Cycle. The candidates work their tails off before voters "weigh in" at the polls on Tuesday. (Ok, I realize that comparison might be a wee bit on the cheesy side but please, stick with me!) Since I cover POTUS, I got to go on the road for a couple of days for this last push. I know he wasn't running for any race but as the head of the Democratic party, he had a stake in the way things turned out. (Again, I'm not talking politics here... just stating the facts.)

I was in travel pool on Saturday and my day was waaaay too long to share all the events in detail but I'll make it as concise as possible. In all, we hit 5 states, 3 rallies, 3 flights on Air Force One, 3 helicopter rides, 3 hours of waiting on POTUS, and about 3 miles of running! Here's my day in a nutshell:

1. Meet up with POTUS at Andrews Air Force Base at 8:30a for the flight on Air Force One to Philadelphia. (Meal #1: Turkey and cheese croissant and fruit in a bag for breakfast)

2. Wheels down in Philadelphia and then motorcade to the event site. Run around the building to get in place in time.

3. DNC Rally in a Temple University gym. POTUS speaks for about 7 minutes. Then we run around a lot to get in the motorcade before POTUS leaves.

4. On the way to the airport, POTUS stops at the Famous Fourth Street Deli. I'm not exactly sure what they are famous for but I think it involves cookies and fattening food. We don't eat.

5. Run back to get in the motorcade and drive back to the airport. Take off for the quick flight to New York's JFK Airport. (Meal #2: Meatball sub and a brownie)

6. Wheels down at JFK. Board the helicopters for the trip to Bridgeport, CT.

7. Wheels down in Bridgeport. Saw some beautiful fall foliage along the way. Run to the motorcade to go to DNC Rally #2. Run around the building to get inside and in place in time.

8. DNC Rally #2 ends and we run back around the building to get into the motorcade and drive back to the landing zone for the helicopters.

9. Board the helicopters and ride back from Bridgeport to New York City.

10. Wheels down in NYC and board Air Force One for trip to Chicago. (Meal #3: Pork tenderloin, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, salad, and some AWESOME strawberry dessert.)

11. Wheels down in Chicago. Run to board the helicopters. Chopper into the city. (This was AWESOME and I'm bummed I couldn't take pictures of this part!)

12. Run to the motorcade to drive to DNC Rally #3 in a Chicago park. Lots of people, like 20,000. POTUS speaks for a while and then shakes hands for 20 minutes. (Meal #4: Chicago style pizza- for the record I passed on this meal)

13. Run to the motorcade to presumably escort POTUS home.

14. POTUS makes an unannounced stop at his advisor Valerie's house. It's Valerie's mother's birthday. POTUS stays about 20 minutes.

15. POTUS then decides to go out to dinner in downtown Chicago with some of his buddies. The travel pool goes to Maggiano's. (Meal #5: 4 course meal including some ravioli, chicken and mushroom pasta, salad, etc. I did partake in this meal.)

16. Get back in the vans and wait for POTUS to finish eating. We wait approximately 3 hours total. In a van.

17. Finally POTUS is finished with his dessert. Motorcade leaves to take him home. Thankfully, no other stops happen and we get to his house about 1a.

I seriously didn't think I was going to make it because it was such a long day (and I had an ever-so-slight hip injury when I tripped on my stairs the day before which made it difficult to run and leap into vans multiple times throughout the day.) But 16+ hours later, I got to my hotel room and totally crashed. I soaked my poor aching feet (the heels finally got to me at about hour #13.)

We woke up on Sunday and boarded the press charter (ooooh how I've missed the press charter!) to Cleveland. We cover DNC Rally #4- his last. After hearing his speech how many times in the past few months, it was over. We drove back to the airport and got home by 6:30. The whole trip lasted only 34 hours but it felt like a week!! I'm tired all over again from just writing this blogpost! I think I'm going to crash once again!