LAmom

BIB #15209, I LOVE YOU!!

Right now, LAdad is participating in the Los Angeles Marathon!  He's walking it, like he did in 2004 (his goal is to be ready to run it by 2008).

The first time he did this, I was REALLY NERVOUS, but now I'm feeling more comfortable.  Bust it, baby!

   

UPDATE - 2:00 PM: LAdad's buddy, SuperDave, just completed the course!  His time was 5:26:40.  I've known SuperDave for about 20 years.  He has always been a running devotee, but this was his first time attempting a marathon.  Congratulations, dude!

UPDATE - 6:45 PM: He did it!  Hubby's finishing time was 7:39:12.  He was on the phone with me as he walked across the finish line, just like last time.

STRONG AND CAPABLE PREGNANT WOMAN -- WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?

When I saw the headline and the opening paragraph, I thought, "Way awesomely cool!"

Gold medal win with baby on board

A disabled Thai athlete gave birth to a baby girl two days after winning a gold medal in the discus event at the ASEAN ParaGames in Manila, officials said Wednesday.

But the rest of the story had me scratching my head.

Wanna Ladee, 22, said she did not tell anyone about her pregnancy because she was in desperate need of money for her newborn.

(. . .)

Wanna will receive a 50,000 baht ($1,250) reward for winning a gold medal in the discus as well as a bronze in the shot put event, Jaturaporn said.

Wanna was among 164 Thai athletes taking part in the December 14 to 20 games for the disabled that followed the Southeast Asian Games in the Philippine capital. More than 1,000 disabled athletes from 11 countries participated in the ParaGames.

"I did not tell anyone about my pregnancy because I needed the reward money for my coming child," Wanna told a Thai radio station interviewing her at the hospital.

Why should revealing her pregnancy cause a problem?

The Sports Authority of Thailand is to investigate how officials allowed the eight-month pregnant woman to take part in the games and also blamed the host country for not conducting dope tests from her urine which would have detected her condition.

Why shouldn't she be allowed to compete?  We're not talking about running the marathon here.  The discus and shot put both weigh far less than the "heavy lifting" limit that pregnant women are encouraged to avoid.  I don't see the problem.

Congratulations to Ms. Ladee on both her athletic victories and the birth of her child.

NOT BAD, FOR A GIRL, PART II

We talked before about basketball, today's subject is racing, specifically the Indianapolis 500.

I couldn't believe it when this Robby Gordon embarrassed himself by crying foul over the fact that Danica Patrick doesn't weigh enough.

Gordon, a former open-wheel driver now in NASCAR, contends that Patrick is at an advantage over the rest of the competitors because she only weighs 100 pounds.

"I won't race against her until the IRL does something to take that advantage away."

The Indy Racing League does not consider the weight of the driver in its race specifications.

(. . . )

"Right off the bat, a guy my size is spotting her 105 pounds," Gordon said. "That's the reason she's so much faster."

(emphasis mine)

   

Quick, send this woman some pork rinds!!!

So the reason why she's successful is because of her size!  While everybody else has to be skilled and hard-working!

Has Mr. Gordon weighed all of the other (male) drivers?  Have all the other Indy 500s consistently been won by the driver who weighs the least?  Does the NBA need to address the fact that some of their players have the unfair advantage of being taller than others?

By refusing to race against her, Mr. Gordon takes a principled stand against . . . OK, I can't figure out what he's taking a stand against.  But at least he'll save himself from the potential humiliation of being bested by a girl.

I would have thought that even if a male competitor was thinking that way he would realize how "politically incorrect" it would sound and how much it would hurt his image if he talked about it in public.  This guy has no media savvy.

UPDATE -- As you know, Ms. Patrick did herself proud and came in fourth place.  I'm sure Dan Wheldon, Vitor Meira, and Bryan Herta are all glad they weren't intimidated by Ms. Patrick's size and went ahead and participated in the race.

AGAINST THE LAWS OF NATURE

It just feels weird for the Lakers not to be in the playoffs.

NOT BAD, FOR A GIRL

Last Saturday, at a bridal shower, my cousin (not the bride) was telling us how she's been coaching a boys' basketball team at the YMCA.  Her own 10-year-old son is one of her players.  She said that she tried to create a friendly and nurturing vibe in her practices, in contrast to a lot of other coaches who berated and insulted the kids.  Some of her players' fathers were dubious at first, but after watching a couple of practices, they concluded that she really did know enough about sports to coach their sons.

Her team had a great season.  In fact, they went undefeated.  But she was subjected to hostility and rejection from other (male) coaches.  They claimed that she had been unfairly given all the best players.  They said that the referees were biased and ruling in her favor.  Some of them refused to give her the customary post-game handshake.  Fortunately, my cousin is too self-assured to be bothered by that kind of stupidity.

So now on ESPN (hubby watches it, not me) they're talking about Pat Summitt, who has become the winningest coach in NCAA history.  The commentators are praising her for her great accomplishments and skill.  They're talking about how she would certainly have the ability to coach men, but that she shouldn't.  Because guys are just . . . different.  You know, having to deal with young men during their college years, there's more to it than just basketball.  Having a coach who was a woman, and not just a woman, but the first woman coach, it would be . . . a distraction, you know?  Really, the best thing she can do is to stay in her place.

I'm completely out of my depth when it comes to sports.  Not because I lack a Y chromosome, but because God chose to make me a nerd.  But even an ignoramus like me can tell when people are being ridiculous.  How much does a woman have to do to be able to prove herself?  Of course, she has to do everything a man does, only backward in high heels.