Oh, to Post

Whenever someone approaches me and makes a comment about one of these blogs they've read, I'm reminded of how much I enjoy writing them, yet cannot for the life of me find/make the time to do it more frequently.

I suppose it's like stretching or cross-training, eating well or meditating. We know it's good for us and that we always enjoy doing it once we're engaged in it. But dedicating the time when the spirit moves us....aaargh! It is difficult these days.

Tonight Rick A. attended the clinic on injury prevention presented by physical therapists from Edgewater Orthopedic Physical Therapy in Falmouth, Maine. It was a very useful talk about, one, body design and function, and two, how to use it well without injury. Should injury occur, they talked about ways to heal and recover, and to resume your sport.

But back to Rick. He is an Ironman triathlete, in his sixties, and thinks that the over-the-hill phenomenon I mentioned in my last post is more universal than reserved only for women. Perhaps. I just know that on a local level, I see a numbers discrepancy whereby there are more competitive men over 50 than women. But I've not run the numbers so I could be all wrong.

But here's something ironic: I mentioned that a friend thinks competitors over-50 become somewhat discounted, or "invisible." While that notion didn't resonate entirely for me, I thought okay. Maybe. Well, didn't the Portland Press Herald completely leave out the Open Masters and Open Seniors divisions in their reporting of the Beach to Beacon 10K results last Sunday?! What a hoot. Nothing. They reported in the copy about the overall finishers, and the top Mainers, including masters, but when they broke out all the age divisions they failed to include the Masters (40+) and Seniors (50+). Humph. I felt invisible all of a sudden.

I let the Press know about the mistake and unfortunately didn't get a reply, but I'm not hung up about it. I know where I finished, and fortunately the Beach to Beacon race organization recognizes where I and the others finished, as these are prize money categories! They actually award us. I was quite happy to be a senior citizen on August 1st.

Which brings us to the middle of August already. School starts in a few weeks. Summer rapidly winds down. Major events like the Dan Cardillo Memorial 5K, the Reach the Beach Relay, and the Peak Performance Maine Marathon are upon us before you can count to twenty. Wow. I've got to get some sleep. I just remembered there's another clinic to attend tomorrow at the Center for Grieving Children in Portland, Maine - a fabulous organization and the race beneficiary of the Peak Performance Maine Marathon this year. It's a talk by a sports psychologist on how to use your head to its fullest when it comes to athletic performance. I love it! I'd much rather think my way through some of these races than actually feel how physically hard it it is! Go here for more on the clinic. Peace.