The weather reports said the rain was going to stop around 11am and this picture was taken about 9am and it was still raining.

In high school, virtually every Los Angeles Invitational ( it was held at 'SC) was surrounded by rain clouds -- so , I felt that someone up there had remembered that I was going to throw that day!

 Women Shot Put
==================================================== 
    Name                    Year School                  Finals            Points
====================================================
  1 Onwuchekwa, Kacey            Texas A&M               16.50m   54-01.75
      15.83m  15.95m  16.29m  16.49m  16.50m  16.29m
  2 Freberg, Karen              Usc                     16.33m   53-07.00
      15.33m  16.03m  16.23m  16.33m  16.22m  FOUL
  3 Scherwin, Christina          Sparta                  14.88m   48-10.00
      14.13m  14.45m  14.65m  14.58m  14.88m  FOUL
  4 Frazier, Lindsey             Texas A&M               13.67m   44-10.25
      13.28m  12.61m  13.67m  FOUL  FOUL  FOUL
  5 Lindsey, Anteneshia          Texas A&M               13.55m   44-05.50
      13.55m  FOUL  13.05m  FOUL  13.05m  FOUL
 

Here I am doing my first warm up throw and it's wet--
but I am used to weather having thrown in Florida!

Watch my video of my 53-7 throw!
 

The glory of track and field!

Everyone knows that in track and field
we all pitch in to get the job done.
Coach Lange was squeegying the water
out of the shot put pit and onto the
artificial surface.

My job was simply to drain the ring
using a load of towels. We got it done!

By 2pm in the afternoon, the ring was
 dry as the sun finally made its appearance --
 but then the throwing had already
occurred.
 

  I don't measure a man's success by how high he climbs
but how high he bounces when he hits bottom

 -- General George S. Patton

These are tomorrow's superstars!

If you find a path with no obstacles,
it probably doesn't lead anywhere.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow