Golf

Golf is back on the Olympic program for 2016, after being absent for over a century.  M's husband B is an avid golfer, so he met us at a driving range to let us use his clubs and teach us some basics.  Its actually pretty hard to hit the little ball, much less hit it acurately.

After hitting some balls on the driving range, we moved to the putting green.  This was a bit easier, especially for those of us with putt-putt experience.

Thanks, B!

Indoor Volleyball

Like basketball, indoor volleyball was invented to be an indoor sport during long New England winters.  Women's volleyball was added to the Olympic venue in 1964.  There are six people per team, and six of us, so we were excited to be able to play as a team for once.  We reserved a gym, and asked some friends who play in a beach volleyball league to compete against us.

Some of us hadn't played volleyball since high school gym class (except for the Beach Volleyball we played earlier).  However we got into the feel of it, and were able to get a few good volleys going.  Unfortunately, this sport yielded our first injury.  L strained her calf muscle.  But she will be back soon!

Athletics - 100m Hurdle, 400m Hurdle, Long Jump, Triple Jump

We returned to the track to complete more Athletics events.  First up this week was the 100m Hurdle and the 400m Hurdle.  We placed the hurdles around the track, 10 for each race.  Some of us had never done hurdles before, so we set them at their lowest height.  We practiced a few times, and then just went for it.

Some of us were not so comfortable with the hurdles, and used a one-legged technique.

L made it over, with style

After putting away the hurdles we headed to the sand pit.  First, we tried the long jump.  Athletes sprint towards the pit, then leap forward.  This event was first done by the ancient Greeks, in their pentathlon and as military training.  Professionals can jump nearly 30 feet, which would come in handy for a soldier needing to cross a river.  We did not jump that far, but we would have cleared some small streams.

K had the longest long jump.

M gets some air.

Finally, we tried the triple jump.  I have no idea as to the origins of this event.  You sprint down the track, then take a huge hop, skip, and a jump into the sand pit.  We found it a bit awkward, but professionals can cover almost 50 feet with this technique.

R seemed fairly comfortable

L takes her jump