It wasn't easy but I made it to Decatur, AL, about midnight last night where I was staying in an Airbnb before JP and his MBA teammates raced in the Chickasaw Trails Invitational at Oakville Indian Mounds Park in Moulton, AL.
My mediation went late, then the starter died in my Yukon. I drove back to Nashville and met Jude at Polly's on Belmont Blvd., where I left my Yukon so it can be looked at Monday. After I swapped out my luggage and gear, Jude, Joe, and I drove to MBA. Jude used a spare to drive JP's Honda Pilot home, and I was off to Alabama.
The Airbnb is the same one I've stayed at the past couple of years. Nothing to write home about but it's about 30 minutes from the park, so it's convenient.
When I awoke this morning after a poor night's sleep, the weather didn't look promising. I was fearful of a second consecutive rainout as I drove the park. Fortunately, though, the weather held and the boys were able to race, as scheduled, in the second race of the morning at 8:55 a.m. There was a lot of rain yesterday, so I don't think the course was particularly fast.
I lucked into by most parking spot at Chickasaw Trails as I arrived just before the team. I had purchased two new multi-seat camping chairs and packed a cooler with Gatorade and bottled water. I loaded it all into the travel soccer "dad wagon," and made the short walk to where Coach Russ was setting up the MBA tent. Coach Bassett and I set up the chairs and the boys quickly settled into them. I added the tarp last year, multi-seat camping chairs this year, and now I have to work on some MBA XC t-shirts.
Nosing around on the internet last night, I saw that JP was seeded first and Gabe was seeded second. That surprised me a bit but that's where we are at most of these races, I guess.
As I waited for the race to start, I walked around part of the course. I found the USN tent and talked to their coaches and a few team members. I was excited to find my guy, Ram, whom I began coaching in baseball when he was four or five years old. He's one of my all-time guys, for sure, and his parents are dear friends. They couldn't make it down to watch him run in the junior varsity race for USN, so I sent them some photos.
Before the start, I walked across the lake on the narrow bridge to the 1 mile mark to wait for the boys. After I heard the starting gun, the next five minutes seemed to take forever. Finally, I saw the four wheeler, with the lead pack of boys close behind. JP and Gabe were running comfortably near the front. I jogged through the woods to what I believe was just past the two mile mark. More waiting. At that point, the lead pack had thinned considerably, and JP and Gabe were running up from with another boy. Both looked strong.
I raced over to the finish line and waited a couple of minutes. As the stragglers from the girls' race neared the finish line, I heard the four wheeler coming. Next, I saw JP, running out front, with another boy four or five yards behind him, and Gabe in third place. JP crossed the finish line in front of me, as I cheered for him. His time, 15:41, might have been a little slow for his liking, but the name of the game is to win, right?
The boys walked back to the MBA tent after the race and debriefed before they went for their cool down run together. I got a nice picture of the seniors, JP, Gabe, and Winn sitting together after the race.
I hung around for a bit and watched JP pick up his first place trophy. MBA finished fourth overall, four points out of third place.
A win is a win is a win.
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