Chance to breathe

We just finished a 5 day meet in Birmingham and it started really slowly and finished at warp speed.   Whew, the last day was nuts.   After missing out on the 100 finals and skipping the 400, I needed to deliver on the 200 meters with a finals on Sunday to get a personal medal.   I ran a PR 27.26 in the prelims on Saturday  to win the heat and make the finals.  We were scheduled for 6 heats and there was enough scratches that they redrew the heats and then we then had 4 heats with the winners making the finals and the 4 quick times going through as well.  My original heat was going to be winnable, but the new heat was an absolute slug fest.   I was in third place with 20 meters to go and won the heat!  I have made some miraculous finishes of late and this one is at the top of that list. I did not want to miss the finals--again.  All three of us transferred to the final and I was at the top of the heat sheet for the finals!!  I had to run my ass off, so there was no holding anything back for the finals--  In the finals, I ran as hard as I could but was a third and that was a  medal--that was exciting--finally after three Nationals an individual medal!!!      My prelim and finals times were essentially the same time, and it appears that is my terminal velocity.   Now I need to find some more speed to keep moving up the speed chart. But, this was a big deal for me. Linda was jazzed too.
This was a great feeling--finally!!!
 
The 200 was in the morning and it was getting really hot and the smart athletes that did not need to be on the track all left.  Linda and I included--right after the awards.  They announced check in times for the afternoon 4 x 100 relay race that was scheduled for 3:00 PM and they would end the running portion of the meet.  Check in was announced as 2:00 and we all left the track.  Well, why not change the report times while everyone is gone and move up the times!! They changed the report times and half our relay team  is not there yet and I am running around crazy trying to get our team lined up--we were the Tristars in the 55 year old group. I stayed to race this event, otherwise I would be home by then. I hate getting jacked around.    That kind of stuff went on all weekend and the NSGA is starting to grow old on me, I was pissed and the check in was absolute chaos--you asked for it--you got it.    Our team made it in the nick of time and barely got warmed up and we were as ready as anyone.  The track was 9 lanes and we were lane one and there was two or three ages groups racing at one time-- I am still not sure who in the hell we were racing in our heat.  The official scoring sheets are still not loaded on the web yet--maybe then I can figure out who was who. We nailed a 50.53 second race and looked at the electric scoreboard and we were listed as fourth quick--Ok?   That was really fast to be fourth in the 55 year old group.  We had Mark Lowry (TN) and David Jones (FL) from the 55 year old group and Michael Murray (LA) and me from the 60 year old group as our 4 runners. I was pretty bummed about fourth.   So,  we packed up our stuff and were making for the exit and I thought I would wait for the awards and be a good sport about 4 th???? Michael figured it out and I was still dazed and he knew we medaled.    They announced the groups and once they got to the 55 year olds, they announced fifth--not us, fourth --not us, third--no us....what is going on here?  Second--Tristars!     David's wife took this shot of some stunned and happy racers--The medals were a real surprise and we will gladly wear them.
Jack, Michael, David and Mark
These events are about people--good people.  This is a  picture of me with Charlie Baker from Tennessee who has been racing since high school and holds a lot of Tennessee state records and has won a bunch of National events as well.  This was Charlie's last National event and he medaled in a couple of sprint events --again.  He is one of the nicest people you ever will meet.  He will get inducted into the Tennessee Senior Olympic Hall of Fame  this year and nobody deserves it more.  This is the first year for the Hall and Charlie belongs with the first group of inductees. Congrats to a great human being!  He is true royalty in our sport......

I will write some more this week about the meet when I get the final official results posted and can figure out what happened in the relays.  I was a great adventure, again.

 

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