Houston, Texas
June 28, 2008

After three weeks hard training and testing on the Costa Brava in Spain as part of our final push for the Olympics, I returned to a really nice hometown welcome. I was invited to throw out the opening pitch in the Houston Astros game on Friday night, along with two other Americans headed to the Olympics this summer. I was joined for the occasion by Tina Thompson, Women’s Basketball and Marty Holden, Men’s Soccer. The Astros hosted the Boston Red Sox and it was a great experience. The Red Sox won 6-1 but the Astros rebounded to win today 11-10.

On the mound

The conditions were perfect for our purposes. We sailed out of the little port of Feliu de Guíxols, north of Barcelona and got in 15 days of racing and testing in yucky Qingdao-style conditions of light air, big swell and current which really gave us the opportunity to perfect the sail cuts and the sailing techniques we’ll need in China.

Olympic contenders Charlie, Marty and Tina at Houston Astros

This was a full-on training camp but it could not have been more ideal. My wife Liz joined us, as did Johnny’s wife Katy and his little boy Nick. We stayed at a house owned by Mitch’s in-laws in nearby Santa Christina. Training headquarters was Mitch’s house, also nearby and on the side of a mountain in Platja D'Oro.

We ate very well, with typical Spanish meals but despite that, Johnny and I managed to stay on our diets. I’ve lost eight pounds since spring while Johnny is down ten pounds. We’re working hard on losing another five pounds each. A typical day for the two of us started with a one-hour run, followed by callisthenics, including push-ups, sit-ups, etc. After that it was sailing or refining our gear. We have new Gill and Zhik gear for China as well as Kaenon glasses.

We’re enjoying a short break at home right now before we head for China on July 4 for 15 days of racing, training and testing. For the first ten days we’ll be working out with the German team of Johannes Polgar and Florian Spalteholz. After that, we’ll be joined by Mitch and Pim. We return to the USA on July 20 and then return to China in August for the Olympic regatta and our fourth attempt to win Gold.

We want to acknowledge all the encouragement and backing from our loyal supporters and from our sponsor, Advanced Equities.

Sail fast,
Charlie Ogletree - Team Advanced Equities I