10/3/2016 Monday
I met up with my softball team, the Woodbridge Wolverines to play a preliminary seeding game against the Wenachatee Merchants (Canada?). I really did not want to play in this game because I wanted a day of rest before running track on Tuesday. But the rules state that I had to play at least one defensive and offensive inning if I wanted to participate in the elimination rounds of the tournament. It was quite offensive. We stunk. Me in particular. We loss 24-11. Oh well. We ended up having a nice team dinner at the Gun Barrel Steak house.
10/4/2016
Today was my first day of track events and I was not feeling up to it. I don’t know why. Everything hurt. Some days are like that. My performance was a reflection of how I felt. I ran the 200 meter in 34.07 which is not a bad time and ended up fourth overall. A distant fourth, but nonetheless fourth.
I then ran the 50 meters and was really awful. Eight point 57 seconds which is a full half second off of last year. I finished 8th. Channel 2 chose this heat to use on the 11 o’clock news. Not only do I suck but now everyone knows it.
I am always impressed with the level of competition at the track events. Not that it is any excuse for my poor performance but there are people at these events that take them very seriously. Some seniors play golf. Some dedicate themselves to track. Barbados sends the best in their nation and pays their way. They come with trainers, masseuses, and all dressed alike in one piece running outfits. At the opening ceremonies they are all dressed immaculately in identical suits and ties. Needless to say, they dominate the track events. Good for them.
On Tuesday night I met up with my softball team for the opening ceremonies at Dixie College. It never fails to impress me with the lengths they go through to put on a good show. There are hundreds of dancers and singers, fireworks, short speeches, sky divers, choirs and the march of the athletes. Quite a show.
10/5/2016 Wednesday
I woke up sick. It was a good explanation for why I felt off the day before. I was feeling really low and thought about opting out my track events and softball games. But my softball team is shorthanded and I pretty much had to show and at least occupy a position. And I had time to kill so I went back out to the track at Snow Canyon high school.
I found out that I had somehow had not gotten registered for the 100 meter. I fixed that and ran the event. And I ran well. I did not know what my time was but I knew that I had run a decent time for my first attempt at this event. I did not know where I finished because the field of competitors was big enough that we had to run in heats. After everything was over I found out a I ran an 15.57 which was good enough for a bronze medal. That made me feel a lot better.
I had to skip my 400 meter event because I had to get over to the softball field and help my shorthanded team. They had lost two close seeding games without me the day before and lost one player. So we were down to a minimum number of players and it was now the elimination round. Along with that, through some administrative cock up we had gotten seeded in a group that was above our heads.
Our first game was against the Copper Gang who had just gotten done putting on a hitting display in the game right ahead of us. We managed to hold them to one run in the first inning and then it turned into a slug fest. Each team scored five runs, the max allowed, in each of the next innings. Then we held them to two runs in the top of the last inning and won the game. Now I felt really good. My injured shoulder stopped hurting for the first time in two months.
Overall it was a good day. The team had a nice dinner at the Players Sports bar while we watched the Giants play on the big screen.
Bob Naquin's Ramblings 