Monday, April 30, 2007

Sharing Penn Relays stories at work

When my boss passed by my office, she had a story to tell... me. Me? We talk? Of course, her son ran in the Penn Relays on Saturday. Must tell Helen. it's another example of how running connects people. He lowered his best time in the 400 meters by 2 seconds. I passed on my congratulations. 2 seconds is a long, long time in the 400.

Suckily, story didn't end there. Her son left his wallet and $400 cell phone in his gym bag in the paddock where runners gather before they go out onto the track. When he returned after his race, he discovered his bag open and stuff gone. Someone went into the bag and stole his valuables. That stinks. Why am I not surprised? The paddock is an area right off of 33rd Street. There were some temporary barriers and fences set up to mark the area, but anyone with an athletes pass can walk in and out of it. Also, it seems to me that this year, the paddock is particularly unsecured. On Thursday, before I went into Franklin Field, I lurked around the paddock forever and no one once asked me who I was. I could've gone in. Also, you don't need anything more than what you wear to the race in the paddock. This is not to say that I don't feel sorry for him losing his stuff, but him leaving his stuff in the paddock and walking away is like leaving your car unlocked in the city. Don't do it. Don't make me blame the victim, and don't blame the city, the track meet, or your coach.

1 comment:

bradlinder said...

This is why it's silly to pay $400 for a cellphone in the first place.

That is all.