getting there
Athletes arrive at camp by car or meet us at Portland Int'l Airport in the baggage claim area (there is only one). For flights there is a 3 hour arrival and departure window where staff are available and individuals & groups arrive/depart. Outside of this window there is a $50 taxi fee per pick up/drop-off of athletes who are old enough to travel alone to cover the cost of gas and staffing. Departure is usually very early on the last day of camp (July 3rd for session one & July 17 for session two) so those being collected by car usually leave the night before.
Flights are booked by our travel agent through us, although if you would like to use your own airmiles you can book seats yourself once the itinerary is confirmed. Booking the flights is a bit of a process; travel agent finds ten seats on the same flight to qualify for group rate (which means we can hold the seats with just a deposit until 30 days prior to departure). If we don't have ten people (including staff) we can't hold the seats but will make non-group reservations with payment due in full prior to booking. If anyone wants to add a child on after the reservation has been made they can contact the travel agent directly and she usually manages to squeeze extras on but, obviously, this is not recommended and the price may go up!
In 2008 we will had Newark and Boston options. If your child is registered for camp we'll let you know in April/May to send a deposit in and return a slip verifying that you do want us to book your flight. Our travel agent books the flight and then you will receive an e-confirmation and are assigned a staff person to be your main contact. There is usually one staff person per four children and they are with the kids the whole time so this is better (and more fun) than paying for Unaccompanied Minor superivsion. There is a $40 admin fee included in the cost of the ticket.
If, for whatever reason, an athlete cannot join a chaperoned flight there is a 3 hour window for arrival and departure at Portland airport but this incurs a $50 UM chaperone fee (each way) which goes directly to the staff person as a 'thank you' for waiting at the airport instead of joining in camp activities.
The 'window' coincides with chaperoned group flight arrival & departure so may change from year to year. More information can be found on your travel form which is sent out in April/May. Please do contact the office before booking any UM flight to check availability of staff. (Note: There is no UM chaperone option for Copper as we all arrive & leave together)
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This will be my thirteenth year at camp so i'm familiar with all flavors of homesickness and pre-camp anxiety (can't say I don't suffer from the latter, myself)
Cellphones are a necessary part of life today for young people and invaluable for travel. They are, however, a tool which encourages homesickness and blows even mild symptoms out of proportion. We take phones away from athletes for the first three days of camp which gives everyone time to adjust and then recommend limiting conversations with parents to once every other day during rest hour (5 to 6pm).
The parent's role is critical here, imagine homesickness as a relationship break-up; if you think there is any chance of 'getting back together' you cling to hope and your emotional immune system does not 'kick-in'. If parents are very clear about the opportunities at camp and do not promise that the child can come home 'if they don't like it' then kids adapt very quickly to camp living and homesickness is drastically reduced. Also, not all children experience anxiety or homesickness, perhaps only 10%. It is much more likely that the parent will experience separation anxiety from their child.
Be aware in advance that I see kids having a great time at camp and then they pick up the phone to their parents and suddenly homesickness kicks in; they cry and focus on negative things. The phone call ends and they immediately bounce back to having fun - their emotional needs for parental attention fulfilled and it's business as usual. The parent, however, is at home and distraught thinking that their child is miserable. I wish I had a live webcam!
We do have a camp diary which is updated every evening with all the details of the day's activities plus photos. You'll be given a CD of these full res. pictures at the end of camp. This won't be up until camp begins, however, so if you think that your child might benefit from it please ask to borrow our DVD set on "The Secret of Summer Camp Success" which will give them a good idea of what to expect.
Mail is possible at camp, addressed to U.S. Elite Camps, General Delivery, Government Camp, OR 97028. Drop me an email to let me know when to pick up, though, as it will be returned by the PO after 3 days and I don't routinely go there.
All camps are experiencing a general lack of paper mail and more email these days. You can email your child at any time and I print these off to be given out at dinner. Tip: Keep all news lighthearted and upbeat & focus on the opportunities at camp rather than what they are missing out on at home!
We don't have written expectations or give out fitness plans to athletes prior to camp but we do
have general dryland fitness workouts if parents would like to see one. Training at
altitude is certainly much easier if you already have good cardiovascular
fitness so even some jogging or hiking leading up to camp would help.
Eating
green leafy vegetables (spinach, kale, beet greens, etc) prior to camp helps
with both adjustment to living at altitude (eaten with complex carbs helps)
and as a natural bug repellent.
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