in preparation for USAT's 2010 junior triathlon festival, USAT is hosting three youth clinics at the marine corps recruit depot down in san diego. the three clinics cover basic skills and guide athletes ages 7-15 through swim, bike, run drills and activities.
luckily heading south meant a visit with marit and the really cool opportunity to see her perform with the la jolla symphony.
traffic was so hellacious on the way down there that i nearly missed it, but it seems once it let up a bit a paperweight fell on my foot and i made it along the toll road just in time. the symphony was performing britten's war requiem with 2 choirs, poetry projected on screen, soloists, a children's choir ... it was pretty dang cool!!
that's marit smack-dab in the middle ... the only person looking at me. marit graciously put me up for the night and even more generously got up with me at o'dark thirty the next morning to share a little oatmeal and caffeine before heading off.
the clinic was fantastic! there were about 8 coaches in total and each area (swim, bike and run) had two coaches. the kids rotated through.
i wasn't sure how many kids we were going to have and let me tell you, i was damn impressed when each group that came through had 25-30 kids! total of about 80 for the day. yahooooo, the future of triathlon is alive and well!
some of the sqidlettes, waiting patiently to get in the pool! 
i was assigned to the bike area and led the kids through T1 practice and some figure 8's to practice their bike handling/turning skills. some of the kids had raced before, others were still dazzled by the tassles on their handlebars. we had the full spectrum and i loved it.
some of the younger kids in the clinicit was really a great time passing on information and seeing triathlon through these kids' eyes. they all had great attitudes and it served as yet another reminder of how FUN this sport can, and should, always be.
after the clinic i stopped and visited with a friend of mine who was in san diego from new york. ya gotta love facebook, i didn't know she was there and when i posted pictures of marit from the symphony, my friend alison saw them and commented that she was in san diego as well!
alison is a friend that i have known since i was 3 years old ... we went to montessori together. it was great to see her and to hear about the work she's doing as a team in training mentor. she's a total inspiration and so dedicated to sharing her enthusiasm with others.
i left san diego full of good spirit for how much sport can unite us all ... with strangers, with the next generation, with old friends and with ourselves.
i'm heading back down to san diego for round two this weekend. i can't wait for another dose of young minds and bodies eager to learn and have fun!
^..^
after the clinic i stopped and visited with a friend of mine who was in san diego from new york. ya gotta love facebook, i didn't know she was there and when i posted pictures of marit from the symphony, my friend alison saw them and commented that she was in san diego as well!
alison is a friend that i have known since i was 3 years old ... we went to montessori together. it was great to see her and to hear about the work she's doing as a team in training mentor. she's a total inspiration and so dedicated to sharing her enthusiasm with others.
i left san diego full of good spirit for how much sport can unite us all ... with strangers, with the next generation, with old friends and with ourselves.
i'm heading back down to san diego for round two this weekend. i can't wait for another dose of young minds and bodies eager to learn and have fun!
^..^
2 comments:
It is so fun to see the kids at the tris! Such a healthy way to stay active and have fun. My daugther is just starting with them this season and I love cheering them on. How cool that you coach them!!
sounds like a great weekend. It must be great to get involved with the kids and helping them get (and hopefully stay) interested in fitness!
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