After the thunder and lightning delayed the meet, right before the beginning of the 1,500-meter races in the evening, we hustled to our team bus and back to our hotel. We sat in the lobby, waiting for meet updates on Twitter as the rain poured down and the lightning brightened the sky. Our racers for that evening -- in the 1,500 and 5,000 -- were a bit apprehensive of how to plan their pre-race preparation, not knowing when and if their race would transpire. Finally, suddenly, we got word via Twitter that the stadium was reopening and the meet was resuming -- two hours later than originally scheduled.
Back on the bus, where the nerves of uncertainty were palpable ... until sophomore distance runner Palmer Weimann spoke up. In one of the more bizarre -- yet inspiring -- speeches I've ever heard (think of John Belushi's rant in "Animal House," updated in 2017 with a running theme and unusual non-sequiturs), the mood was lightened (better than the sky being lightened with foul weather) and our athletes proceeded to step off the bus, onto the track for one of the more remarkable nights of distance racing in recent memory.
Women's 1,500: Four racers, four PR times
Men's 5,000: Two racers, two PR times (including Palmer, with a scintillating last 1km)
Women's 5,000: Three racers, three PR times
On the bus ride back to the hotel, a "Pal-mer, Pal-mer" chant ensued, and an unlikely folk hero was born. Palmer Weimann, PR pitch man. Neat.
Wish we could have been there! Martha
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