So since I blogged about Libby’s new spring interest, I should really talk about what’s new for Sophie. Especially since so many people have asked me and seem in genuine shock over the news. So sit down. Wait for it. Are you ready?
Sophie is out for track. *Gasp* I know! It’s shocking. My little softball nut is trying something new and has gone out for track. Everyone that knows her in our Falcon family is so surprised. She’s been playing softball since the first grade she could in community ed I think. And she’s good at it, no shocker there. Last summer she was one of only two girls on a co-ed league and they dominated. Sophie mainly caught and pitched and had so much fun playing with an aggressive group of boys. That league also helped her get some pitching lessons and she seemed to be on the fast track to softball fever.
But I’ve always preached to my kids (and my students) that seventh grade is a time to try new things and experience all that you can at the high school level. So she decided to try something new and signed up for track. It probably helps that two of her step brothers are out for track and that Tim is the coach. Oh and her very good friend at DE kind of helped convinced her too. Yeah, she was destined to give it a shot. And we are so glad she did. It’s definitely interesting watching her try something new.
It’s really something new for all of us Kiehne/Onsager girls. We have zero experience with track other than attending a couple of meets last year to see Tim and Carter. It really is a whole different world than any other sport that you go to watch. First of all, it’s almost a party atmosphere. Yes, it is a competition and you can tell the kids take it seriously. But they also laugh and smile and encourage each other. Even across teams. It seems like it is more of a competition against themselves. Each kid wants to PR (personal record) so really they are competing against themselves. It makes for a whole different level of camaraderie between teammates and between competitors from other schools. This makes the parents so much more relaxed too. There is no yelling at officials, no yelling at people on the team, just parents telling their kids to push harder, keep going and you can do it. So refreshing and so fun!
It’s also freaking cold. A lot cold. Lots and lots of cold. Like seriously, who thought outside spring sports were a good idea in Minnesota? We had one meet where it was windy and drizzled and that drizzle eventually turned to sleet and then snow. Are you kidding me? We have had one meet where the sun actually came out. This was after raining almost all day. But then the wind decided to pick up and guess what, it still wasn’t anywhere near warm. I feel a little bad for Tim. The other night he wanted to know if I wanted to borrow his hat, his extra coat, his gloves. I kind of lost my cool (pun intended) and yelled that “no, I didn’t want to borrow another layer when I already had a tshirt and three sweatshirts and a coat on. I wanted it to be warmer, for once!” He laughed at me (he’s a brave man) and told me that he didn’t have much control over that. I get it I guess, and I console myself with the fact that at least at track meets you can walk around and try to stay warmer.
Which brings me to the other thing that makes track unique, I love watching her run her races. But the great part about track meets is that there is so much going on all the time. You can go watch the long jump, the high jump, the triple jump or the pole vault. If jumping isn’t your thing, check out the shot put or the discus. And all the while, different races and relays are being held. There is so much to see and watch and cheer for at a track meet.
It has been a lot of fun getting to know more about track and some of the events that Sophie and Carter are involved in. I will never understand all of the little things that make up each event, but I will always love watching them compete. And hey - now I have a running buddy. If I could just get her to run the mile. She tried it at one meet and said it was awful and she was never doing that again. When I asked why, considering she had gotten second at a varsity meet, her response was that she felt like she was going to puke. I explained that sometimes running is like that and her response was that, yeah, but her coach (Tim) didn’t even care! When she saw him on the back side of the last lap and told him she felt like she was going to puke, his coaching advice was “go ahead but keep running”. Now personally, I feel like that’s great advice. And it seemed to have been effective in the long run.
So here’s to many more freezing nights and hopefully a few warm ones before the season is over. Until then, remember...
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