Fudpuckers...again!

I'm so excited that I had the opportunity to play in the Fudpucker's volleyball tournament again! This time I played on a co-ed team. Here's a recap from my second trip down to Destin.

Thursday
I rushed home from work, finished packing, and loaded up the car. We got on the road around 6:10. The drive seemed long since we weren’t familiar with the route and it was dark, but we finally arrived just after midnight. Since it was late, I assumed we’d be disturbing my teammates, but before we even opened the door to the condo I could hear the party. We made our way to the kitchen and living room where we found Ron, KayLynn, Nimara, Kristin, Dave, Chloe, Jay, Leslie and JT playing cards and drinking games. We immediately joined in on the fun and stayed up until about 2:30 catching up with everyone.

Friday
After staying up so late the night before I couldn’t believe that I heard people up and moving around at 7:00—but it was still to early for me. I dozed back off until about 8:45 and joined everyone in the kitchen. Nimara made breakfast sandwiches and we hung out until the last few sleepers joined us. I wandered out to the 800+ square foot balcony to enjoy the views of the bay, and was amazed that the water was so clear (from 6 stories up) that you could see stingrays swimming by! Chloe was intrigued and went down to see if she could touch one—of course, unlike the aquarium they were terrified and swam away.

Once we were all up and fed we headed down to the beach for some volleyball. After about an hour in the heat and direct sunlight, we decided to head back to the condo for a dip in the pool and some time at the lazy river. We spent a couple of hours down there before heading upstairs for a pasta dinner. After dinner we rushed back over to the beach for some more volleyball before dark. We played through a magnificent sunset until we couldn’t see the ball anymore and returned to the condo to get ready for check-in/registration at Fudpuckers. We got our t-shirts and drink tickets before wandering around the restaurant (including live alligator area) and a mini-museum. We got our first round of drinks and settled by the stage to watch a great band play.


Saturday
We got up early Saturday morning to have breakfast and prepare snacks for the day before heading over to the Boardwalk for the 8:30 captains meeting and pool assignments. Play started at 9:00 and we didn’t do very well. We spent our first three games getting used to playing together and making silly mistakes. We came back in the afternoon to win our last two, giving us a 2-3 record for the day. We were disappointed, but since all teams reach the playoffs, we decided not to take the losses too hard and prepare for the next day.


We finished around the same time as the girls (who went 4-1 and ended up first in their pool) and walked back to the condo. We all went down to the pool/lazy river again for a couple hours before dinner. Eventually we all showered and walked over to the Swamp for the player’s party and buffet. We had some dinner and took a group picture, followed by lots of drinks and dancing. There was a band at this party, too—and they were also really good. I left the party around 10:30 and crashed, I’m still not sure how or when everyone else got back.

Sunday
Another early morning (that seemed earlier because of the party the night before) and we were at the beach. Unfortunately, we lost our first match, eliminating us from the tournament. We had to ref, but then planned to watch the girls, not realizing that they had been eliminated, too. We packed up all the tents and chairs and went back to the condo to regroup. We relaxed for about an hour with beers on the patio, watching the jellyfish that had overtaken the bay before heading back over to the Swamp for lunch. We filled up with Ron, KayLynn, Leslie, JT, Chloe, Jay, Nimara, and Kristin before heading out of town. On the way back to the highway we stopped at an outlet mall for about an hour, and finally hit the road around 4:10. We got home just before 10:00, in time to unpack and do a little laundry before crashing. Monday morning was going to come fast!

All in all, I had an amazing weekend. Though we didn’t win as much as I would have liked, it was a great trip with great people who I’m proud to call my friends. So thankful to have met all these great people through volleyball!

Fudpucker's Recap

Okay, let me start by saying that beach volleyball is so much harder than it looks!


Friday: We got on the road around 1:30 and made it down to Destin just in time for the rain. We planned to check in to the hotel before heading over to Fudpucker's (restaurant) for the tournament check-in and a late dinner. Let me just say, the hotel was a disaster—we quickly realized why it was so inexpensive! We requested a new room once we determined that a previous guest had relieved him/herself on the carpet. After a bunch of moving around and settling into a new room, we headed out. We got to Fuds and checked-in, but as we were entering the restaurant, another Atlanta team that we knew called for us to meet them at another restaurant for dinner. After a quick drive and an adventure parking the minivan in a narrow alley we made it in to the restaurant only to find that the waiting list was an hour long. At that point everyone was too hungry to wait, so we headed back out onto the road and spotted an $9.95 all-you-can-eat Sushi/Hibachi place. We dashed inside and after the first round agreed that, unfortunately, we were getting what we paid for. When the bill came we were shocked to see that we were charged $19.95 per person! Sure that there was a typo, Merriah double checked the sign outside—this time seeing the "fine print" that we'd missed while entering in the rain. We decided to cut our losses, pay the bill, and get back to the hotel.

Saturday: We got an early start and headed over to The Boardwalk for the captains meeting at 8:30. We spent the next thirty minutes or so dragging coolers, bags, tents, and chairs across the sand and to our court—which was a bit further than we expected. After a quick rest, we started the tournament. Our first game didn't last long, and we were defeated 11-0. We regrouped and decided that in our second match we'd do two things: have fun, and score at least one point—and we did! We lost again, but it was closer. The third and fourth games got a little easier, and we got a quick taste of victory before losing our final match of the day.

We went down the beach a bit to watch our friends play before heading back to the hotel. They finished just as gloomy, windy, overcast day turned to rain and thunderstorms, eventually resulting in tornado warnings.

We rested for a few hours, caught up on homework and took naps. Around 7 we got ready for dinner. As players, we received tickets for the tournament party being held at The Boardwalk—the tickets were good for the buffet-style dinner and free beer from 7 til 9. We had a quick bite to eat and got ready to party!

After a live band and lots of dancing, we retreated back to the hotel for some rest—the playoffs started early Sunday! On the way back to the hotel we made a quick stop at Wal-Mart (Lesley had been the day before and saw two $1 racks with Twilight merchandise—so the team humored me and let me run in—all in all, it was disappointing, and I didn't buy anything).

Sunday: We got up bright and early Sunday morning for the playoffs. Unfortunately we didn't make it past the first round, but neither did our friends (who happened to be on the next court) so we spent a few hours out on the beach with them laying out and playing ball. That afternoon we packed up the car and headed back to Atlanta.

All in all, I had a great time! The weather wasn't totally cooperative, but we had a blast anyway. I couldn't have asked for a better team or group of girls to make my first sand volleyball/Fudpucker's experience all that I hoped it would be! Love y'all! ♥

Countdown to Destin!

I am getting really excited about the Fudpucker's volleyball tournament. It's just under three weeks away, and it looks like my foot is going to heal in time for me to play. My team is going to be amazing—I'm playing with three other women that I coached with, Suzanne, Lesley, and Yvett—we are the Hard Hittin' Beach Babes!

I'm also super excited to see Destin. I've never been, but people tell me it's absolutely beautiful. I keep hearing that the sand is pure white, and that the water is green—I'm accustomed to the other coast of Florida, with dirty beaches and murky water—I'm really looking forward to something new.

Fudpucker's Volleyball Tournament

The Fudpucker 4-Player Beach Volleyball Tournament is held every Spring as the anchor for the Emerald Coast Volleyball Week (a week-long series of beach volleyball events that culminates with the Fud 4-Player) in Destin, Florida.

I've always wanted to play in the tournament—but have never been able to due to scheduling, lack of a team, or my general fear of outdoor volleyball. When you have allergies and asthma, outdoor sports can be a challenge, particularly with the humidity here in the south. A couple of years ago, I played in a doubles outdoor grass tournament with my friend Suzanne, and nearly died. All I can remember is being really hot, exhausted, crying nearly the entire way home, and then sleeping the entire next day.

I put this tournament on my list, expecting to register for the 2011 event with Suzanne, but she's leaving me! She's been accepted to an amazing Ph.D. program in Los Angeles and will be moving this summer—so it's now or never.

Here's where it gets interesting—about an hour after committing to the team yesterday, I tripped down the stairs and tore a muscle in my foot. Today I'm unable to put any weight on it, and the doctor put me in an Aircast a.k.a "the boot." The tournament is 26 days away, so I'm hoping to make a full recovery by then. Next check-up is on the 12th, and I hope I'll have good news to share.