LJ x-c: Casting pearls

Sophomore returner Blaise Colburn (far left in red
shirt, with blue cast visible on left arm), heads off
with his running group at start of practice run
from Fanuel Street in Pacific Beach Thurs., Aug. 16.
(Photo by Ed Piper)
 

By Ed Piper

Blaise Colburn had a bright blue cast on his left forearm.

"I broke it riding my bike to running practice here a month ago," the Viking sophomore said, indicating Fanuel Park right by the bay. "The chain broke on my (fairly new) bike, and I (went tumbling)."

The cross country team member, wide awake and warming up with other runners at 7:40 a.m. Thursday morning, August 16, said he suffered a concussion in the ensuing crash, broke some ribs, and had some other injuries.

But he looked none the worse for wear on this occasion, except for the hard cast, and said he didn't have any pain in the arm.

"You're right-handed?" "Yep." "So you can't make up some excuse once school starts that you can't write or some such," a visitor asked the young man as he leaned against a tree in the grass area near the parking lot, swinging his legs alternately back and forth to loosen up for the morning's run.

"I got the waterproof cast, and paid extra," undoubtedly meaning mom and dad, Colburn said cheerily. That has enabled him to trying surfing again since his crash--but not biking "until I get the cast off".

"I push off (the board) with both hands. It was kind of weird," he said, demonstrating the stance, recalling the not-totally-satisfying results.

Blaise also high-jumps (4'10" for La Jolla's track team last spring) and runs the 1600 meters (the metric mile, with a best of 5:12.37 against Patrick Henry for the JV's April 26) and 3200 meters (11:29.17 in the City Conference junior varsity Invite at the end of the spring). In both running events, he improved through his ninth-grade season.

New Viking assistant coach Adam Kittlaus, coming over after the last six years at Kearny High, was surprised to learn of his runner who took a fall yet was participating in Thursday's run.

Kittlaus, providing the back of his car for the various runners to store their coffee mugs and phones during the run, called everyone together just after 7:35: "Okay, let's go ahead and start some exercises."

The turnout, on the fourth day of official fall practice yet being treated as informal workouts till next week, was made up of about 25 athletes. The main talk among the students was about the late-start Tuesday schedule during the school year, a change for them.

Other districts previously adopted the late-start days. For La Jolla cross country, it will mean a little change in Tuesday practice. Kittlaus (pronounced KIT-loy) said after-school practices will be daily, morning ones only a day or two.

Colburn, looking fit, trudged off with his running group, heading west on the walkway along the bay from Fanuel Street, blue cast visible from a distance.