Over Thanksgiving my family and I went to Colorado Springs to celebrate at my sister’s house. While there I couldn’t help but drag my family members on a tour of the US Olympic Training Center and the National Strength and Conditioning Association World Headquarters.

Before I share a few photos of those places though, we visited another very special place for my family.  My dad, Colonel Charles Luse (Ret) was a B-52 pilot for much of his career in the US Air Force.  As it turns out, he flew the very first combat mission of the B-52 named the Diamond Lil currently on display at the US Air Force Academy. He wasn’t flying the plane when it famously shot down a MiG but he flew plenty of missions on that exact plane. While we were walking around taking pictures there were a few other families there as well so we couldn’t resist the urge to ask them if they would like to meet one of the ‘real life’ pilots of this very aircraft. It was a memorable experience to have them all gather around and ask my dad questions about the aircraft and his missions.

OK, next stop the US Olympic Training Center. I lived in Colorado Springs for many years but never went on the official tour so it was a lot of fun.If you are ever in the area and interested in any sort of athletics, this is a great place to visit. The tour was only $12 and took about an hour.  Here are a few photos:

Next up was the National Strength and Conditioning Association World Headquarters. It was a holiday week so the place was empty but I was able to get a cool T-Shirt that you can’t order online “Lifting in Thin Air” and had a chance to check out the NSCA Performance Center and chat with the lead strength coach.