Track Meet

Nathan and Luke had a track meet yesterday. We had to be there at 7:30 in the morning, although events didn't officially start until 8:30, and it didn't end until after 1:00. Whew! Since we had to get up so early (the school was 30 minutes away), we wisely decided that just I would go, and Bob would stay home with Caleb and Jonathan. That was so the right decision for many reasons. For one, the stadium is an old stadium, and the bleachers were definitely not "safety" bleachers. There was no railing or anything under the seats to prevent one from falling through, and at the last meet there (while we were camping), a little 5 year-old boy fell through and had to be medevac-ed out. Scary. Also, there was tons of just waiting around. I know that's how track meets normally are, but still, I was so glad I wasn't having to entertain 2 crabby little boys and keep them from falling under the bleachers while waiting! Thirdly, it was very sunny all day long, although it was pretty chilly in the morning, and we all got sunburned. That brings me to my fourth reason--I was totally unprepared for this meet! Now I used to run track--I've been to lots of track meets. And in general I am a VERY prepared person, one who makes lots of lists and is ready for any potential situation. I don't know if it was just the early time, but I waltzed out of the house with some granola bars, a jug of water, a crossword puzzle, and my cell phone (yes, I remembered that!). We drove Bob's car, and I forgot to switch my sunglasses so I didn't have those. I had no sunscreen, no cushion to make the bleachers softer and help my poor back, no sandwiches or anything for lunch. It was a LONG day, let me tell you! The boys had a fun time running and throwing the turbo-jav (the little javelins with rubber tips), but they were so tired (and hungry) by the time it was all over. We'll be in Colorado for the remaining meets, but I must say I'm not all that sorry! Once was enough for this year. The meet itself was interesting. It's run by the Potomac Valley Track Club , and it was completely open meet--anyone from I think 2 - 89 could compete in as many events as they wanted to for one entry fee. What a deal! So there were seniors as well as people who were in training and quite good, as well as the kids in our track club, kids in other track clubs, and other random kids who just decided to do this that day on their own. I've never heard of anything like it, but I really like the concept. I will say this for the D.C. Metro area--there are a lot of opportunites here that you don't find other places! [Paragraph break--I'm having trouble with "enter" again] Today we went swimming right after lunch, so we got even more sun. At least I brought sunscreen this time! We got summer passes to a pool that's not too far from here. It's the one our next-door neighbors are also members of. Nathan really wanted to swim on the swim team this year, but we're going to be gone for a lot of the practices with our trip. Since he's not really that great of a swimmer, he certainly needs a lot of practice, so I told him maybe next year. Hopefully we can do some more lessons this year, and then he'll be more prepared next year. The pool seemed like it would work fine for us, but the water was freezing today! Almost as soon as we got there, the clouds started forming, which really made it cool. Now it's pouring down rain--hopefully it will soon stop so we can still grill out our steaks and hot dogs!