BEIJING, China - Former Georgia College & State University softball player Andrea Smith (1998-2001) is working with USA Cycling at the Olympic Games in Beijing. The following is a passage is her third one, updating you on more of her experiences at the Olympics thus far.

Hello again!

We're finally almost done with track cycling and on to the fun stuff (shh, don't tell anyone I said that!). The Brits have been mopping everyone up on the track, so I am seriously excited to start BMX tomorrow and then on to mountain biking.

We've done tons of interesting stuff with NBC and many other major media outlets trying to show a little of what cycling is all about, which has been great. This is our 30 golden days for education and promotion of our little sport, so we're trying to take advantage as much as possible without wearing the athletes out. Hopefully we're getting some folks psyched about the

sport.

Logistically things are challenging here as the city is so large and sometimes very crowded. In order to get to a destination you have to work within a fairly complicated system of shuttle buses that connect at a main hub near the Olympic Green. The other alternative, which is very cheap, is to take a cab.

Even though the Chinese have brought in more than 100,000 volunteers who speak good English (mostly young people), the cab drivers DO NOT share their English skills. Even when you get someone to write it down in Chinese, the city is so large they often don't know where you need to go. Several of my co-workers have been put out of cabs when the drivers don't know where to take them. For the most part however I have found English is the language of the Games. We've had a couple of IOC meetings and, to my surprise, they are held completely in English, as is almost all signage.

Anyhow, I've been staying busy with interview requests, competition and trying to keep up with my normal everyday work while playing planes, trains and automobiles - or in this case cabs, busses and shuttles.

I'll attach a few pics for you of my adventures. I have managed to catch a basketball game, the record-breaking men's 100-meter dash final and even a little beach volleyball. Also, all of the major sponsors have "houses" here. They are kind of like hospitality centers. They usually offer wireless, free food and drinks, television, games, lounging areas, etc. I am currently catching up on some work at the Trek house which is conveniently adjacent to our BMX and mountain bike courses. The Trek-China rep is a brilliant American who is helping break the company into the huge Chinese cycling market. I also had the privilege of checking out the Nike house and the Bud House, both equally impressive.

Hope everyone is well back in the States...or where ever you may be.

All the Best,

Andrea

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