John and John became best friends through their training and travels with gymnastics. They have combined their passion for the sport and their desire to give back to younger gymnasts by joining forces for Flip Fest.
So my trip from World Championships to Iceland was a good one. Guillermo and I met up with our friend Dyri Kristianson and began our short visit to one of the most unique countries I have ever visited. As a huge Minnesota Vikings fan it was nice to be in the home of the Vikings. I didn't see any though. When we drove from the airport, it looked as though we had landed on the surface of the moon, as Iceland was formed by many years of volcanic activity. In some places you can actually see where lava flows had rolled across the landscape. There are many Geysers and hot springs in Iceland. In fact, they get most of their hot water and heat their houses primarily by using the natural hot water from the ground. They even pump hot water through a huge pipeline to an ocean beach during the summer to keep the beach water warm.
We also had the chance to go to a natural hot spring, called the Blue Lagoon, which is a huge pool of water that has come up from the ground and settled into an old volcanic lava flow. It kinda smelled funny but it was pretty awesome. On the bottom of the pool they had this white mud that they say is supposed to be really good for your face. I had to try it.
We also hung out with some of the Icelandic gymnasts from the gym that Dyri used to train with (Gerpla). They were awesome people. We had a great time working out with them and visiting their gym which is very nice. I talked to Dyri and some of the other gymnasts about making a visit to Flip Fest sometime. We'll see.