Making The Team

I have a bit of a confession to make.  Sometimes I'm not quite what I seem.  Don't jump to too many conclusions there.  

Some people consider me a pretty good biker.  I do spend a lot of time on a bicycle.  It's really nothing to take off and do 40 miles or 60 miles or whatever distance my buddies want to do that day.  I'm well acquainted with The Wall and Butterfly Gap.  Foothills Parkway is just a training site.

But next to my friend Steve Bright, I might as well have left my training wheels on.  Steve and another buddy, Emil Herran, are in a totally different league.  They ride with me because, well, they like riding with people.  Group rides are a lot more fun than riding by yourself.  But they can leave me in the dust any time, any day.

Most people consider me pretty fit.  I've been doing CrossFit workouts for about eight years now.  David Spence and I started down this path and have found it to be a great way to get and stay fit.  Three days a week, our small band of buddies get together at Cherokee.

But next to Shila Newman, I am a slug.  This girl is incredible.  I have no doubt that she is one of the most fit people in Blount County.  She does it all and does it well.  She had a baby and was back at it like the next day (well...maybe not the next day...but soon after).  I am in awe.

I'm probably pretty strong (for a man of my advanced age).  I can knock out pullups and pushups until you're tired of watching.  Around the farm, I can do pretty much anything that needs to be done.

But next to Amanda Cagle, I'm a kick-sand-in-my-face weakling.  The girl is STRONG!   I've known her since she was a 9 year old gymnast.  She was one of my student trainers when she was in high school which led to her current career as an Athletic Trainer (she's the Head Athletic Trainer at Heritage High School and one of our Total Rehabilitation clinicians).

When she returned here to work, I told football coach Tim Hammontree that she was probably stronger than most of his football players.  She was.  And is.  She recently worked to get slim and trim (which she is) but she's still just as strong.

And then there's Ken Bell.  Some people might consider me a pretty good athlete.  Road biking, mountain biking, basketball, skiing, scuba diving--I do a lot of things pretty well.

But next to Dr. Bell, I'm a bumbling wanna-be.  I introduced him to rock climbing several years ago.  Before the first day was over, he was climbing places I had tried and failed.

We did a tennis camp together one time.  By the end of the first day, he was the best tennis player at the camp.  And don't even get me started on what he can do on the back of a mountain bike.  I could die today trying to keep up with him.

Last year he qualified for the World Championship in the Half-Ironman competition. 

So here's the take-away:  You don't have to be the most fit, the strongest, the most athletic.

If you can't be the fittest person in the arena, be the most persistent.

If you can't match strength with others, be the most dedicated.  Outwork your opponents.

If you can't be the most athletic player on the team, be the hardest working.

If you want to be in the game, be coachable, be a great teammate, eat right, get enough sleep, and pay attention to the not-so-little things like preparation and practice.