Cross Country Meets Make Me Cry

Seriously, they do. It’s always at the end of the meets, and it’s always the kids in last place that make me cry. And the coaches…the coaches contribute to my tears too.

Erin is in her second year of running cross country for our high school, but in her first season that girl came in last place for her team. every. single. race. Not last in the race, but last for her team. (But here’s the thing, she also “won” every single time. That girl set a personal record each and every race – the whole season – I’ll write more about her later.) Here’s the other thing, her coach was always on the course – urging her on. I would have expected her to be off with the varsity runners, congratulating them on their races, but no – she was always waiting for Erin – her last place runner.

That got me every time. But what makes me choke up at each and every race is the runners that literally come in last in the race. And…well, their coaches.

Let me set the scene…

The first runners sprint to the finish, you wonder how they have anything left in them, but suddenly they do and it’s amazing. Then the middle runners come in and that’s exciting as you see them jostle for position right to the finish line. Then you wait….and wait…and wait…several (or most) people wander away, anxious to find and congratulate their runners, but of course a few parents still have kids on the course…somewhere.

The first race of this year really got me. Our school had a runner still on the course, so Kevin, Courtney and I waited for him, along with one other family waiting for their runner from a different school. Finally, here comes a runner, and I realize one of the people waiting off by himself wasn’t family, it was his coach. And then he is running alongside his runner – off the course – but running, yelling encouragement to him, telling him to lift those legs and use those arms, and we see the runner respond. I’m chocked up. Then our runner comes around the corner, and there are our two coaches whom I hadn’t seen before – yelling encouragement to him. (Tears spring to my eyes.)

I am convinced this is the stuff that matters in life, and I get to watch it each week of the cross country season.

A few weeks later at another race, we again waited for that last runner  – along with lots of other people – finally he came to that last stretch before the finish line and the crowd that is left erupts…clapping and yelling to him. Tears spring to my eyes again.

I don’t usually know the last runner, it doesn’t matter who they are, or what school they are from, what matters is they stuck with it, they persevered, they didn’t give up, they finished the race.

I think it probably takes more mental energy and even emotional strength to stay in the race when you know you are the last runner. I know I am as proud of the kid who comes in last as impressed as I am by the kid who comes in first.

Last year Erin told me the cool thing about running in the back part of the pack is that everyone helps everyone. You run together and if someone breaks away you tell them “Good job”, encouraging them as they go on ahead of you – even if you don’t know their name, even if they don’t go to your school. Oh, that we could all be like the runners at the back of the pack.
There are just so many lessons to be captured in cross country.

Super Bowl Weekend – Part One What We Did

This is the truth – I am just an ordinary mom in Indiana, but last week I felt like a ROCK STAR! Let me explain, ESPN gave my sister Jamie, the Chief Marketing Officer of Protection 1, two tickets to the Super Bowl, as well as VIP status for private events and parties, four nights at the downtown Hyatt, and more.

Due to a last minute change of plans for her, I arrived Thursday evening and Jamie arrived Friday morning. This gave me an evening to relax and rest – I had been sick earlier in the week – so I took advantage of a quiet evening.

Friday morning she arrived at the hotel after being on the set of the Mike & Mike in the Morning Show. She met and saw several athletes – including Christian Ponder, quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings. (Growing up in Minnesota, we have an affinity for the Vikings.)

That afternoon Jamie and I ventured out into the streets of Indianapolis to experience the Super Bowl Village, it was an absolutely exciting atmosphere! There were so many people, lots of energy, the spirit of the people was friendly and electric! Indy did a superb job hosting the Super Bowl ~ we experienced it and heard this over and over.

Friday evening was our first spectacular event – ESPN The Magazine’s NEXT Event. This was amazing. It was held at a huge warehouse – after being dropped off, we flashed our VIP badges and walked right in. (Super cool – just sayin’) To the right of us athletes were arriving, ESPN would flash their name (thank you for that!) and then they would be photographed, interviewed and then come into the party. I felt like I could have stood there all night – I was texting pictures to Zach, my seventeen year old, who really would have appreciated being there!! Jamie reminded me they were coming into the party – that we were at – so she coaxed me away from my spot.

Once inside, there were athletes everywhere! There were a few bars set up, a stage, a few lounge areas, and so many football players (Cam Newton, Tim Tebow, Drew Brees as well as Shaquille O’Neal and more!). It looked like there was going to a performance, so we made our way to the stage, then Cam Newton came out and introduced Drake. Truth be told, I initially had no idea who Drake was or what he sang…I texted my college daughter, figuring she would – she texted back, “WHAT. I AM SO JEALOUS.” At the end of the evening, I texted her that she definitely should not be singing the lyrics of many of his songs!  This was absolutely the most over the top party I have ever experienced. Again: Surreal.

Saturday morning we were delivered to ZEST restaurant, for brunch. We walked in and were handed a berry champagne, there was a jazz band playing, tables were set and waiting for us. Jamie and I were at a table with several other women, and we made an instant and great connection  with Becky & Linda – who were also enjoying the festivities courtesy of ESPN. We had an amazing appetizer with a specifically selected Pinot Gris, then an unbelievable main dish paired with a Burgundy wine that was amazing, after that we were served dessert with a raspberry liqueur. If you are ever in the Indianapolis area, this restaurant is definitely worth the stop. (Guy Fieri from the Food Newtwork agrees!)

Courtney drove down with some friends from college Saturday. They spent time in the Super Bowl Village, we took them out to lunch, they went to a concert and then headed back to school. It was so fun to be able to treat them to a little part of our experience. They were so appreciative of our time together and the little perks we showered on them.

Saturday night brought a private party at the Hard Rock Cafe. This was a definite rock star moment. There was the red carpet, security guards with the entrance blocked off. We walked up, flashed our badges, security moved the barricades back, and we walked in…and were handed a cocktail as soon as we entered. I turned around, looked at Jamie and said, “OK, That was a very cool moment.” Our new friends, Linda and Becky had arrived earlier and had a great table where we joined them. Landau Eugene Murphy, last year’s winner of America’s Got Talent, (he sings like Frank Sinatra) was the entertainment that evening – he was incredible! This party was filled with NFL players – again, I was getting pictures and sending text messages to my family – asking Kevin and Zach, “Who’s this?!”  Poor them – they would have appreciated it on a whole other level, although I have to say, I knew I was experiencing a once in a lifetime evening and was appreciating it and taking it all in.

Sunday morning brought ESPN Audio Presents: Brunch with a Legend. This was a wonderful meal and an interview as well as Q & A session with Michael Vick, Cam Newton and Matt Stafford. (Quarterbacks for the Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina Panthers, & the Detroit Lions) I texted with Zach during parts of this – I was hoping to ask a question of Cam on behalf of Zach, but didn’t get the opportunity. I really enjoyed this time as Zach talks about these players and now I feel more informed (Cam Newton is authentic, funny and so good natured)  and will pay more attention when he is talking about them!

After the brunch, we relaxed for a bit in our room and then made our way to the ESPN Tailgate Party at Conseco Field House – where there were more football players hanging out, playing basketball and being gracious. There were more bars set up, more amazing food, and we were with our new friends Linda and Becky. At this event, I was strategic – I got a little kid, about 13 years old, to point out the players, tell me who they were and who they played for – then I got pictures and autographs! Zach said to be honest, he wasn’t so sure he would recognize and identify all the players without their jerseys. I’m not sure that’s true, he quickly identified the players for which I was sending pictures, but thanks for that Zach!

After the Tailgate party, we finally made our way over to the Super Bowl! We had wonderful seats, it was a great game, and again this surreal feeling came over me. The environment was electric the whole time, the crowd was so loud and we spent half the game on our feet! Did you see us? We were the ones with flashlights during the half-time show! :)  We finally made our way back to our hotel after the game, made a stop at the post-game party given by ESPN, said good-bye to our new friends from California, Becky and Linda and dropped into our beds. Amazing. Amazing. Amazing.

Now that I have shared What We Did, my next post will be about how it felt, some of my favorite moments, and my perspective on living like this for a weekend. My word count is up for today – so I’ll see you back here soon!

Wrestling Woes and Whimpers

I received this text message from my sixteen year old son today, “This is the craziest thing i have ever seen”.

He is a wrestler for the high school and was volunteering his time to help run an all day meet; most of the kids participating were 5th grade or below. When he got home at the end of this long day, he was shaking his head and saying again that it was the craziest thing he had ever seen.

“What was so crazy?” we wondered. “Parents.” was his response. Parents provided the crazy in the day.

Parents who:

  • yelled their kids
  • yelled at the refs
  • argued at the refs
  • swore at the refs
  • swore at their kids

He also witnessed one father get in the face of a ref, referenced his judgement with swear word terminology (in front of his small child), then told his son the reason he lost is because of the ref. So that was a lesson that was probably caught. (fyi…had he gotten the one point which was in dispute, the son still would have lost)
There was also this:
A second grade boy who after losing his championship match said “I suck.” His dad said, “Don’t say that” (Nice. Good job, dad) Then the kids said it again, “I told you I do, I told you I suck!” To which the dad replied, “I’m gonna beat your a** if you say that again.” (Ummm…ok, not nice.)

Then there was the preschool boy who was wrestling, was losing and was saying to his mom through his tears, “I don’t want to play anymore”. This made Zach and the other guy at the points table feel bad for this little boy. Zach said, “His parents were riding him way too hard. I mean he was 4 or 5.”

Zach also overheard one adult ref say that he used to think bears were the scariest animals, but then he met pee wee moms. (Ick)

There were upsides though. He enjoyed the hospitality room. Just kidding, well, not really, he actually did say that. But also, there was the parent who came up to the high schoolers at the points table after the dad yelled at the high school ref about the one point, and said “You guys did a good job at that last match.” Nice.

I don’t even know how to sum this up. I guess I just wanted to share the observations of a sixteen year old boy who spent the day with a bunch of cute little kids and several ugly parents.