Play Ball!

Though my TXBRA administration duties have been cut to nil, I have been wrapped into a email dialogue that is reminiscent of those days when people would carry on as if they were somehow violated in a manner most abrupt by something bicycle racing related.

This deja vu is that it seems the Superdrome (where Noah races on the track) administration is starting to feel the strains of low turnout at the Friday Night races. I feel for them. I really do.

Rob, Bonnie, Steve and I (and others, of course) work/worked hard to get the turnout up for all bike racing, track included. But I got called out the other day because I said that I was bummed they cancelled a race due to what they predicted would be a low turnout.

I was told that I had no reason to complain, since I didn't make all of the track races.

Oh.

So I told them that they were getting me to show up simply because Noah wanted to show up. I further told them that he has to race against juniors who are about to graduate high school, and in some cases, he races against grown ups when the novices are included. But he does this most Friday nights and he never complains. He does say that he'd like to race against the 14 year olds (not bad for a 9 yr old, I think), but none show up. I also told them that their track racing program for him competes with baseball, karate, swimming...

When I made that point, I was told directly, "Then you need to tell Noah to bring his friends to the track to race."

Oh.

We pay his entry fee, we get him out there to race against nobody (and pay for it), and now we have to bring out the racers for the track to have races. Hell, Noah skipped a baseball game to VOLUNTEER at a junior development class for the Superdrome. Well, good golly!

Noah is wrapping up a baseball season in the next couple of weeks. Frankly, he stunk at baseball in the front half of the season, but he's really coming on lately to the extent that he's a key player for them. This is a fun thing for Noah.

They have baseball games on Friday nights. NEVER once did anyone in his baseball league tell us that we needed to bring out Noah's friends if he wanted to play baseball. We pay our money, they put him on a team, assign him some coaches, and they play a couple games per week and have a practice or two.

When Noah goes to a baseball game, he plays against kids about his own age. He's in the game. They keep score. The whole bit.

At times, the Superdrome has left Noah off of the results. He's had someone in his age group ONE time this year.

As Noah gets better at baseball, the Superdrome folks may have just stepped on their own foot, because I can rest comfortably knowing that I've done my part to grow the sport of cycling and, specifically, the Superdrome racing scene.

And if Noah doesn't want to go to the track because he'd rather play baseball, then I'm going to his baseball game instead. That's a net loss of two riders.

Maybe the Superdrome folks should bring their friends to the races.