Last Friday evening, I drove to Decatur, AL, stayed in an Airbnb, then drove 30 minutes early Saturday morning to Oakville, AL, for JP's first cross country race of the season, the Chickasaw Trails Invitational.
The weather didn't cooperate, however, and after a couple of lighting delays, the race was postponed. The race organizers claimed the Lawrence Co. EMS made the decision but I have my doubts. There's no reason that I can see that the organizers couldn't have waited an hour or two, if necessary, to see if the weather would clear off enough for the races to start. But, that didn't happen, so I drove back home without getting to see JP race.
Tonight, I find myself in Huntsville, AL, in another Airbnb, after driving down from Franklin after a long, crazy day at work. Have race, will travel. That's the life of a cross country parent. And I love it.
Tomorrow, JP and his MBA teammates will race in the Southern Showcase. It appears to be the biggest, most anticipated cross country race of the southern season. There are teams from as far north as West Virginia and Pennsylvania and as far south as Miami, FL (Belen Jesuit HS, the strongest cross country program in the South year in and year out).
MBA hasn't run in the Southern Showcase since JP has been running with the varsity. I'm curious when they last ran here. Before the season, JP and Gabe asked Coach Russ if the team could run in bigger races this year. More competition. More exposure. They'll have both in spaces tomorrow because it's a really, really strong field. I'm very curious to see how JP and Gabe stack up against the best of the best.
I was nervous last Friday night. Tonight, I'm a little more relaxed. Really, I just want JP to run his best tomorrow. I'm very excited for him to find out what it's like to race against some real horses.
For now, though, time to watch a little Dodgers-Giants on my iPad and get in the rack. Early start tomorrow.
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