Monday, May 14, 2012

Very successful pledge drive :D

Connor collected $870 in donations this year for Special Olympics.  That's a couple hundred dollars more than last year.  I was very happy with the support he got, as it will help a lot with the coming year's sports & what we can do.  The ski coach gets funding for a bus to take us every other week to practice.  I don't think it makes a difference where, just the total hours.  So it doesn't make that much difference if we go to Diamond Lake (no chair lifts/alpine skiing), or Willamette Pass (which has cross-country & snowshoe trails, as well as alpine skiing).

The regional competition is the same - it all takes place with the bus in the same parking lot - it's just the cross country & snow shoe competitions are at the other end of the parking lot from the mountain where the alpine skiing happens.

Lee intends to ski downhill with Connor and help with the coaching.  I will continue with cross country and/or snowshoe, because I'll just be coaching anyone who needs help.  I have my own equipment, and can borrow the only thing I don't have - snow shoes.  I have great Kamik boots to wear for that.

It will be great to have Lee along to do the winter sports with us.  Connor thoroughly enjoys the whole experience of the outdoors & snow, and with the added thrill of alpine skiing, I think he'll be even more excited about Special Olympics skiing :)  I think it will be wonderful to have Lee along for the long weekend at the competition & we'll have to make sure we get the time off for him as well as me.

My only concern right now is being able to video Connor during his finals...  I have to make sure I'm not on a Unified Team that is racing at the same time!!  Hopefully things will work out in my favor - or I'll have to rely on Lee to video Connor's runs. 

Oh - someone at the Walk-A-Thon added to Connor's envelope.  He wound up with $1000, and so was eligible to get the nice wheeled duffel bag.  Wow.  $130 from an anonymous person.  Amazing.

The total collected for our local athletes was over $40,800!  I love this town!

Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Connor's 2012 Pledge Video

I took a little run

So Lee has been running a while.  Connor is signed up for Special Olympics Track & Field, and both Lee & I went with him last night to practice.  I have heard Lee go on about the barefoot running style, and I also read "Born to Run" but I'm really not that into running.

However, I felt I need to change things up a little, and it would be kind of nice to do something with Lee, so I did a little jogging - doing my best to follow the barefoot style as far as I read.  Lee said it looked like I was doing it okay.  I can only go 1/2 a lap of the track at a time to start, but that's better than I did before.  I have been walking regularly with a member of my club.  She's still on the losing part of the journey, so we go slower than I need to, but she's been increasing the pace a little over time. 

I will have to see if I can try for little runs in the mornings once summer starts.  It would be nice to take the dog out with me, because I don't think she gets enough exercise anyway.  :)