Last Full Day & Workout in Maine

You've been seeing shots of the beach from the house, so here is the back of the house. Click to enlarge.

We head back to Portland tomorrow for an early AM flight on Saturday so today is our last full day at the beach house. I'll get in 4 X 80m hills and then head to the YMCA for a long strecth. Our meet time for Sunday has been bumped up to 10 AM from 11 AM so I will be picking up Don at 5 AM for the drive. That's about 14 hours after I get home. Should be fun! Bubba

Return of the Rain

Don took this photo to prove that Fall is here in Maine. Click to enlarge.

Don and I went to the YMCA to run and stretch as scheduled so the rain didn't really change our plans. That said, it's raining. We both feel like we are about one day away from feeling pretty good in the legs. That is good timing since our meet is Sunday.

Found out today that the Texas Senior Games will be at a different stadium than we thought. Should be a little better winds but I doubt that will be a factor at 8 AM.

Sunday I plan to start at 10 steps so I will wait and see how that goes before I determine my start pole. Pretty much it is a choice of two but I prefer the larger one. I'll be disappointed if it's not.

Don and Gayle go home tomorrow and we head home Saturday. Slow day today as you can tell. Have a great day! Bubba

LATE ADD - Please follow former elite female pole vaulter Katie Stoever as she attempts to make the US Bobsled team - http://katiestoever.blogspot.com/

Fight or Flight

Lobster traps on the rocks below the house in Maine. Click to enlarge.

Fight or Flight?
I remember I was a cross country runner and did pretty good. Track season started and we were running loops around this big field and part of it was around the track. I was in the 7th grade. Day after day, in severe pain, I would run past the pole vault pit and see the guys having fun. One day I stepped off and never came back. I found out that our team stud was Patrick Swayze. Yep, that one. Of course to us he was "Buddy". I think he was at the 10' level then and went on to jump 14' but he was far better than we were.

ANYWAY, we had a meet the next week and I was entered in the mile. I went and watched the pole vaulters and dreaded when they would call me for the mile. As it got closer I went and hid in the bathroom. I was in a stall hiding out and I remember them calling me THREE TIMES by name to come to the start line and I just stayed put. So I guess in the world of "Fight or Flight" I chose the latter. I wanted "flight" but not that type.

On the way home on the bus I was severely chastised by the coaches, and when I told them I wanted to vault they told me that not only can I not vault, but that I was off the team. Greatest day of my life. I went home and started finding bamboo poles that were inside carpet rolls for the new houses that were being built. I had my brother and Don Curry, who is here with me, and his brother and I started teaching them about this pole vaulting thing I saw at school and they too got hooked. We put out a step ladder and had a little piece of PVC for a crossbar and the peach tree branches on the other side. For awhile we landed on the ground and then we started putting carpet scraps down to land on.

I was at the same school in 8th grade so I didn't get to vault either but in 9th grade they built a new school and one of the track coaches, who used to be a vaulter, was looking for prospects and heard that I did it. He had jumped 12' 6" on a fibreglas pole and he put the bar up to show us how high that was and I became his willing student.

No real point to the story except that you never know where paths will lead. Sometimes a bad thing turns out to be good and visa versa. But pole vaulting has never been anything but good for me. Have a great day and thanks for being here. Bubba

YMCA

Don and I got a nice lift and stretch in at the Boothbay Harbor, Maine YMCA. Nice 200m indoor Mondo track. Start to feel a little better.

Things happen for a reason, hence no leg lifting today. The leg press was broken and they only had a seated curl machine. I dropped seated curls a couple of years ago because they were causing groin irritations. I guess I wasn't supposed to lift legs today anyway.

Hope you have a great Monday! Bubba

Off Day

Sunset from our deck tonight. Click to enlarge.

It's going to be a lazy day today. We take Joe and Kathleen to the airport (1.5 hours each way) and hang out and watch football. It will be an easy gym day tomorrow with bars and stretch. I'll lift light lower and heavier upper. It's been a couple of weeks since I've lifted legs so I don't want to still be sore for next Sunday. After that meet I'll get back to my regular training as I move up to the Texas Senior Games two weeks later. I'll report more as I progress through the week. Have a great Sunday! Bubba

Glorious Morning in Maine

I think you can click to enlarge this. Last night it was raining and 70 and by the time we got back from dinner it was clearing and 57. This morning was about 45 and this afternoon will be 65. Humidity is nonexistent.

After breakfast Nancy, Joe and Kathleen went into the town of Boothbay Harbor for food and other shopping while I stayed out at the house on the Southport Island point of Newagen. Nancy and I got married at Joe and Kathleen's house on a New Years Eve because they are great friends and because another friend was going to be at the party and wanted to perform our ceremony. The other friend is a minister, Mike Robinson (with wife Karen) who also did my mom's funeral service. Small world.

This morning I got some work done and then did my 10 X 80m hills with a very long and relaxed stretch while I listened to music. I'm sure to many that Van Halen, ACDC, Judas Priest (Yeah Ryan) and Metallica don't match up to this serene beauty but even when there is peace on the outside, the fire to succeed rages from within. Absolutely perfect day and it's not even noon.

Don and Gayle get here about 2 and will stay until Thursday. Don and I started vaulting together in each other's backyards when I was 12. He's my vault training partner and is on the verge of finally coming back from some nagging injuries. My proudest moment as a team was at the National Senior Games (Olympics) in Louisville in 2007. I was over 12' (3.66m) on my first jump to take the lead and Don was in 4th. He makes 12' 6" (3.81m) on his first for the win and I got 2nd. The result was two training partners from Houston who grew up together got the gold and silver at a major championship. Awesome!

The plan now is to take tomorrow off, hit the YMCA for lifting and stretching on Monday/Wednesday and get more hills on Tuesday (8X80m) and Thursday (6X80m). Friday we head back to Portland for an early flight out Saturday AM. Sunday we will all drive to the Austin area for my first competition since I got the silver at indoor nationals in Boston in late March. Again, not a big meet but two weeks from Sunday is our Texas Senior Games in Houston.

This year's Texas Senior Games is the qualifying meet for the National Senior Games to be held next summer in Houston. Get in the top five or you're not going to the big show in your own hometown. That said, I am again wearing my Kamloops World Indoors T-Shirt to remind me to NOT GET HURT next week in Austin!!

Very pleased with my jumping and training right now. Haven't been feeling good but been jumping technically better with higher jumps on smaller poles from closer runs. I've had decent jumps at 13' (3.96m) from 6 steps and very close ones from 8 steps. To put it in perspective, I usually start at 10 steps in a meet (though this year will be 12) and have yet to jump on a big enough pole that I would even warm up on in a meet. That was part of the objective; try high bars on smaller poles to learn how to get more out of them and decrease the risk of injury in practice.

BIG indoor season coming up with seven meets. Indoor marks for next year don't count until 12/1 so I'll jump at Kris' opener on 12/4 and try to get a good start.

OK, I'm rambling and jumping all over so I'd better get cleaned up and ready for some football, relaxing and hanging out. YES I'm very appreciative but we do miss Nancy's mom, June. Have a great day! Bubba

Safe in Maine

Long day but arrived to rain. We're just behind what was left of that hurricane. Tomorrow on is supposed to be beautiful. Exhausted and need some sleep. Hills tomorrow. Have a great night! Bubba