Thursday, May 22, 2014

Scuba Steve & Special K

Posted by CheapRunnerMike

This week has been flying by here for me…I guess a holiday Monday certainly helps speed the week up!

Speaking of the holiday on Monday, I was able to actually get in the water up at the lake that day.  It was a beautiful day with the sun shining and temperatures up into the 70's…just perfect.  We all headed down to enjoy the beach for a little while, but I was the only one crazy enough to venture into the water.  It helped that I was testing this out.

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Ya that's me, Scuba Steve.  I had bought this wetsuit a little while back and it showed up in the mail a couple weeks ago.  I had 30 days to test it out to make sure it was a proper fit, and you can't use it in a chlorinated pool as it will break the suit down.  So into the freezing waters of Lake Huron I went.  My feet, hands and face were like popsicles, but everything protected by the wetsuit was great.  The buoyancy the suit provides is incredible…I think I'm going to really enjoy swimming in it.  I did do a couple of short sprints and the mobility the suit provides is very good as well.  The toughest thing is just getting it on!  The suit itself is the Xterra Vortex Fullsuit and I got a great deal on it with a coupon from Athlinks for over 60% off.  Xterra only sell their suits through their own website (or their store in San Diego) and have fast become a favourite in the triathlon community.

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On Tuesday I was back at work and the kids were back to school.  Kennedy had Track and Field Regionals that afternoon so I went to check it out.  I thought for sure that it was going to be postponed for rain as I got absolutely drenched when I went for a run at lunchtime, but the afternoon rain held off long enough for them to get the meet in.  The field was a muddy mess though!  At least K was only running track, so it wasn't quite as dirty.

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Her first race was the 80m sprint, where she came in third in her heat, just missing out on advancing.  Her other event was the 4x100m relay, where she was the second runner.  I was right down there watching her as she took the baton with her squad in first place and she handed it off to the third runner with the lead still intact.  Unfortunately the third runner couldn't hold onto the lead and Kennedy's school came in last.  She was so bummed out, but I explained that relay is a team sport and you win and lose as a team.  Individually though she did a great job!  I was really surprised at how fast my little girl is!  I'm used to running 5K's with her and this speed blew me away!

I really hope that she can build on this experience and strive to do her best again next year…she really seemed to enjoy it.  I'm guessing an afternoon off school didn't hurt either Winking smile

Did you do Track & Field as a kid?  What was your event?
High jump for me

Ever swim with a wetsuit before?

6 comments:

  1. 400m track and field in high school. I don't remember being all that good though. LOL then I picked running back up after college now I love it!


    Jealous of your Monday holiday but not for long cuz my long wknd (AND vacation) is coming right up!!

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  2. I was going to say - I'm surprised she was doing sprints since she also runs 5Ks - awesome that she is trying different things!!

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  3. Amy @ fitnessmeetsfrosting.comMay 27, 2014 at 3:27 PM

    OMG K looked like a professional athlete there!! Way to go!! Haha never swam in a wet suit before but I've worn one. We went out on a lake and went tubing once but the water was very very cold so we all wore wet suits.

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  4. Long weekends all done now for both of us, but you've got San Diego coming right up...so lucky! And you get to check off yet another half marathon in an awesome spot!
    It's funny how many of us picked up running after high school...that's when running was our punishment!

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  5. She surprised me too! I had no idea she was so speedy...and it is great that she doesn't limit herself to just one type of running, they are all great experiences in their own right

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  6. I've got a meeting with pro scouts lined up, but might just let her get through high school first ;)

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