This weekend was our Pacific Masters Championships. It was a close battle between WCM and USF and I don't know who won at this very moment. I don't care.
You see, I left right before the 1000 today (the last event) right after the last relays. I watched some great swims today. Amazing swims. My friend Brendon swam a 2:03 200 fly and really hit his taper (as he's not going to Nationals)- we were teasing about how he does really well the week after a tapered meet. He seemed to finally figure it out this time.
My friend Stephen called me tonight and told me that Brendon also had a great 1000, was warming down, had a heart attack and died. He was 35. I was stunned. I've been crying since then trying to make sense of it all. It doesn't make sense.
I called some other friends and no one else can believe it either. Suddenly, the meet doesn't matter, swimming doesn't matter, what matters is that we lost a really great guy today. He was always so happy, funny, and loved to tell jokes. He was really good natured and fun to be around. I will miss him terribly.
Tom,
I took kind of a weird solace in that too.
He had a great meet. I can't say that there's any particular place I'd like to be when my time comes, but if I had the kind of awesome meet that Brendon had it wouldn't be such a bad place.
Another odd thing: at our meet people or businesses can sponsor lanes. On each block there are ads. Bill Johnston, 86, sponsored a lane and wrote this message: "This lane is dedicated to all the 'Creekers that shared our lanes, and who are saving us a lane now." That made me sorta sad when I read it yesterday morning (I thought of Jean Durston who passed away a few years ago), but then to get that phone call last night, ugh.
Tom,
I took kind of a weird solace in that too.
He had a great meet. I can't say that there's any particular place I'd like to be when my time comes, but if I had the kind of awesome meet that Brendon had it wouldn't be such a bad place.
Another odd thing: at our meet people or businesses can sponsor lanes. On each block there are ads. Bill Johnston, 86, sponsored a lane and wrote this message: "This lane is dedicated to all the 'Creekers that shared our lanes, and who are saving us a lane now." That made me sorta sad when I read it yesterday morning (I thought of Jean Durston who passed away a few years ago), but then to get that phone call last night, ugh.
