Due to the busiest weeks of my college years leading into the countdown to my graduation and the beginning of summer I have not been able to keep up with my tournament blogs as initially planned. I will be sure to catch up in the weeks to follow now that I do not have homework to turn in and exams to study for.

So I finally graduated from the University of Oregon after moving to Eugene Oregon four years ago for that very reason, to go back to school after a three year hiatus touring around the country throwing discs and playing tournaments. I did it, I finally did it. It is so true how difficult it really is going back after being out for a few years, getting back into the routine of a daily schedule was probably the hardest and doing the school work that was asked was a close second.

It is such a relief to finish, the feeling of a new beginning and ticket to a promising future. It is a great accomplishment that I have worked so very hard for and hopefully it pays off in the long run. I majored with a degree in Human Physiology and a minor in Business Administration, giving me plenty of options in various fields later on after disc golf of course.

I finished up with all of my finals just before my parents, Sharon and Leroy, rolled into town the following day with a quick flight from Cleveland, Ohio and my sister Valarie had been at the house for at least a week or so after a touring down to Nor Cal for the KOA tournament. My grandparents, Alice and Lewis, arrived on the day of my graduation after taking a scenic 60-hour train ride from Ohio, which I would not recommend to anyone unless you have a sleeper car with beds. The commencement offered an amazing feeling of energy throughout the crowd of undergraduates as they expressed intense emotion and showed anticipation as the time neared closer to the memorable walk across the stage. It was showtime as the professors finished up with their inspirational speeches, the Team Jenkins section of crowd erupted as my name was called and I received my college diploma.

We all went out to dinner at an amazing Thai restaurant to celebrate, let the drinking begin, as I was offered multiple drinks even before our meals arrived. We then went back to the Aspen House (my crib) for the after party, I cracked the wine and keg at 10 pm and party was in full gear well into the night.

The following morning we attended Feldberg’s commencement, he received a degree in Asian Studies, the presentation was short and sweet. We gathered the families for lunch at a really nice Italian restaurant that they arranged for four families, as we joined together to celebrate. It was then back to the Aspen House to finish off the rest of that keg in preparation for a huge barbeque and pool party later that evening. We had over 50 people from families to friends join us in an amazing celebration throughout the night which ended with bobbing for beers in the cooler and multiple people being tossed into the pool as rowdiness continued into the early morning. I believe Val won the party that night.

The beginning of summer is finally upon us as we gathered our stuff to load into the Tioga for a late afternoon departure. Looking forward to a 23 hour trip to Denver to pick up Nate Doss at the airport and then onward toward Kansas City for the upcoming National Tour event this weekend. It should be a blast staying with our good friend Pete Cashen, looking for a member of the Tioga to take a National Tour victory on the first weekend of summer. It will be the best summer yet as it only continues to get better and better.

I will be sure to update the past few National Tours, check back very soon.

6/19/07