one-thousand six-hundred four

It's actually more than that.  More miles than a round trip flight to Denver, a drive to and then from Colorado Springs, and a long one way trek back to Vegas.  But you get the point 1,604.0 mi. in a week.

1,604.0 miles, a day of nervously waiting, followed by tight judging on an unforgiving floor, 2 vaults almost not landed, a fall on a double back dismount on bars, teary eyes, tired muscles, a wave of disappointment, and at the end of all of that is beam.

It is easy to keep going when everything is going well.  It's easy to be a good sport and teammate when you are on top. But only part of character is built in those miles leading up to success.  The bulk of it is forged on mile one-thousand six-hundred and FIVE.  Where you fight for what matters to you even as the arena empties and the parents drift away.

Whether or not Beach stuck her series, hit her leaps (the best her healing hip allows), did all the other skills required with grace and power, and landed her dismount- it doesn't matter.  What matters was the way she took it on.  The determination to do what she could with all that was left. 

Maybe in that moment when she paused to smile the judges understood the look, you can put your pens down because from here this routine is just for me. 

Of course they scored her anyway- it's their job. They scored her beam routine 2nd, judged the last couple of beam routines and called it a day.

As the mileage rolled on 1,605.1 the Little Giants of GTC stopped together on the edge of the floor to cheer on the last 2 competitors of the session.  Cheering for girls they didn't know without being prompted without a second thought of where else they could be, or what else they could be doing.

The arena empty their job done they stood with the other team to bring everyone home they way they deserved.

As a team they placed third.  As tiny humans they took first.

Beach had the exact opposite meet that she had in Colorado.  Season highs replaced by season lows.  In Colorado I was proud of her scores. In Las Vegas I was proud of her, of who she has become.