At last, the day of the award ceremonies has come. And at last we see the face of Skandalnavia’s team leader, Jan. He certainly is one mean guy.

Today we played a game we like to call “The Gauntlet”. It was a relay race of epic proportions and extreme wetness. Campers, councilors, and athletes alike were soaked mercilessly. Victory of this game went to…(drumroll)…The TOGO TEAM!!

On a worse note, the victory of the Athletic Games was awarded to the Skandalnavians. But don’t give up yet, kids, because there were some inconsistencies reported in the competitions which will be further looked into. The updated report will be brought to you tomorrow.

Highlight Reel!

The Skandalnavians swept the competitions on Tuesday, winning both the chicken toss AND the jelly bean race. Sportscasters Crank Clifford and Rob Lostas questioned the integrity of the Skandalnavians, but foul play has not been confirmed.

Other notable happenings for Day Three include lots of energetic singing (including “I Just Want To Be A Sheep (Baa Baa Baa Baa)”), team bonding, great games, and Bible lessons about Paul’s time in Athens.

Today’s lesson focused on Paul’s sermon on Mar’s Hill in Athens, when he basically took the people of Athens through the larger Biblical story…We were created by a holy God (and His creation was pronounced “good”), we fell (sin entered the picture), and God sent a redeemer (Jesus Christ!) to restore our relationship with God. This could only happen through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross. Romans 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

Enjoy the pictures from Day Three of Base Camp 2008!

(Is this foul play? Boris from Skandalnavia is pushing Andrew over while he’s trying to wave at the camera! Poor sportsmanship!)

Today we watched the Hamster Games and learned more about why “Jan”, star player of the Skandalnavian team, hasn’t shown up yet. Apparently he doesn’t think that coming here is worth his time. He is currently spending time on his yacht on the Thornapple River. Nice.

On another note, it seems that Togo is making an impressive comeback. The older team fought hard at the balloon toss, and the younger team verged on the unfair at the marshmallow race. The Skandalvanians seemed pleased. However, even though Togo enjoyed the help of the Skandalvanians, they still boo at the sight of them.

Here are some highlights from the day:

These are like the stones that were thrown at Stephen the martyr.

The Romanian team is very patriotic.

The Togo team!

I regret to inform you that I will not be staying at the Base Camp Village with the rest of the teams. I will be staying at my private yacht on the Thornapple River. I will still be competing each day and will hope to drop in on the Base Camp kiddies some day this week.

In the meantime, the games continue. Go Skandalnavia!

-Jan (pronounced “Yon”) Marko

The first events of today were the opening ceremonies, in which we watched the trying journey of the torch-bearer. Through suffering and great trials he bore the torch, never straying from the path or giving up. Finally his path lead him here, where he at last lit the flame.

We were introduced to the two teams that will be competing: The Cascadian Team and the Skandalnavian team (with a country name like that, it’s no surprise that they look like a tough crowd).

But that’s not all that happened during the day…

Everybody loves the Happy song

Octo-ball

The athletes face each other head on (and…one councilor…)

The balloon toss. Always a favorite pastime.

Our sports casters give us an update on the games.

Base Camp starts tomorrow! We’ve seen the promos, and been anticipating the event for a long time. All of the staff have been hard at work to bring the games and Paul’s Race to you. Get ready for a great week, everyone!