Sprints

It's not everyday in the gym that I find a new person to admire. Today I did...

While running on the little (1/10.5 mi lap) indoor track in Duke's fitness center I was enjoying the peace and quiet of Spring break (meaning no loud guys playing basketball or fitness classes doing fitness-y things on the track) when I noticed a kid, maybe 11 or 12 playing basketball down below. Now this kid was pretty good. The few times I ran around I saw him make every shot and every layup he tried. Pretty impressive, given this kid was maybe 5 ft tall?

So he disappears and the next thing I know I see a blur on the other side of the track, that didn't actually look human to me. As I make my way around I realize it's this basketball kid, who has strapped to him, a running parachute. For those who don't know what this is I've included a Google Image below:

Um, do these look wicked awesome or what?

It's kind of the same concept as putting chains or bands on a bar. The faster you're running, the more resistance you get. It's speed dependent, just like chains are position dependent.

I probably would have thought this kid was a little crazy had I not seen this product used by IFBB Pro Figure champion and runner, Erin Stern. This is a pretty badass photo from her Facebook page:

Erin Stern

I watched this kid sprint his heart out with a smaller version of this parachute behind him and was amazed at two things:

1. He never ever attempted to pass me. It's a small track. He sprinted on one side, rested while I ran by until I was out of the way, and then did it again. Awesome consideration, and in a kid without an adult/parent present no less. There were easily enough lanes for him to pass me had he wanted, but he was content with staying out of my way.
2. After he was finished sprinting he went back down to the b-ball court to play ball with said parachute. He would sprint down the court and do a layup with this thing on. Pretty impressive.

This kid definitely had a lot of drive to succeed and seemed to be having fun doing it. An awesome lesson to keep in mind! Also, I kinda want one of those running parachute, don't you?