It all started with a red-eye flight from Los Angeles to Panama City Beach. Now, I don't mind the red-eye, but when you have to connect in Atlanta and there is a MAJOR weather system moving through the area, things get very interesting. After a two hour layover and another hour-and-a-half on the runway, I was glad to make it to Panama. Ahhh, the life of a pro volleyball player...I wish it was all private planes and caviar wishes. While some may think it's all girls in bikini's, sunshine, and easy travel plans all summer long, it can be more complicated! The reality is I work Monday - Thursday to support my wife Kelly and I, while trying to fit in pracctice and gym workouts. In this case, I hopped on the red-eye Thursday night chasing fame and fortune; well, mostly fame; okay, maybe not fame but definitely fun, competition, and the thrill of doing something most people don't get to do in life: play a professional sport and earn some money doing it!
So there I am in Panama and I get to the hotel. The AVP really took care of the players at this event. They put us up in a nice condo hotel right across the street from the site. Wow, I'm I glad they did...the weather was horrible! Rain, thunder, lightening, 25 mph winds! If I had to go farther than across the street to get to the event on Friday I would have said "forget it". Now why would I go check out the event on Friday if the main draw doesn't start until Saturday? Because the day before the event the AVP has a qualification tournament that allows players to qualify for the main draw, aka the "money rounds". Having played so many qualifiers myself, I appreciate the process and wanted to support my friends in the horrible conditions. Plus, I wanted to see if they were EVEN PLAYING!
Sure enough, the show must go on! I couldn't believe my eyes: players were shielding themselves from the golf ball size rain drops and quivering every time lightening lit up the sky. Throw in the wind and is was virtually unplayable. Yet somehow, someway, they played on.
After 30 minutes of "hello's" and the customary first tournament "what have you been up to this off season?" dialogue, I had to go back to the hotel. Since I knew my partner and I wouldn't be able to practice, I decided to fire up the laptop and get some work done. So went Friday on the AVP tour.
Wake up call: 0600. My partner and I, Dane Jenson, looked outside and confirmed with our eyes what our ears had been telling us all night: the storm was still raging. We turned on the TV only to see the local news station report a tornado warning for the area. Yeah, we're not playing today!
We walked across the street and headed to the player meeting. Matt Gage, he runs the tournaments come game day, told us to sit tight. There were reports that the weather might break later in the day. Four hours later guess what: no break! After a quick lunch in the players area provided by the Tour and a stretch/massage in the players tent, Saturday and the double-elimination format were a thing of the past! A group of players, and Leonard Armato himself, decided to head to the movies. Saw Duplicity. It was so-so.
We headed back to the hotel, grabbed some dinner, and hunkered in the for the NCAA basketball games. By the way, I got clobbered in my NCAA pool! We went lights-out at around 10:30 and set the alarm for 0600 and another go-around at the event.
So it was Sunday. The weather had cleared nicely, with the high winds remaining as the only uninvited guest. the first round of matches started promptly at 0800, so Dane and I made sure to get to the court an hour in advance to begin our warm up.
I felt good. The energy was high, Dane and I had a nice long warm up, and we felt comfortable going into our first tournament match together. That's right, we had never played together before in a tournament! That happens more often than you think on the AVP. While the top teams lock-it-up for the entire season, the lower ranked players (and therefore teams) are jocking for position. Entry in the main draw is calculated on a point system. How many points you have individually often determines the caliber of partner you attract. In Dane's and my case, our individual points together as a team granted us the final spot in the main draw without having to qualify. So when it came right down to it, we were each other's best option for competing in Panama, which I was excited about.
While this was a partnership of convenience from an entry points standpoint, Dane is an excellent young player with a tremendous attitude and physical ability. Heading into our first round match, I felt confident in our chances to win. The only question on my mind was how would we compensate for the lack of experience together. As it turned out, that question would prove important in our tightly contested match.
Our first round match-up was against Billy Allen and Brady Halverson, the 13th seed. From the first serve, it was a battle. Back and forth we went. Dane and I found ourselves up 20-19, game point, in the first set. After a timeout from Allen-Halverson, they sided-out (for those of you unfamiliar with volleyball lingo, that means we served to them and they put the ball away on offense for a point). So now the score is 20-20 and Dane and I have the advantage, particularly since we are on the good side of the court with the wind in our face; however, the lack of experience together showed up late and Allen-Halverson made two good plays to cap a comeback, with Halverson making a great move at the net and blocking Dane for a game 1 victory.
As we moved into game 2, Dane and I decided to start the game from the good side. That was probably the only poor decision we made in the match because up 18-17 in the second, we switched to the bad side. Since we were playing solid, I told myself: "one side out on the bad side, that's all we need. Get to game 3 and it's anybody's match." Well, that side out never came, as Allen ripped off three great serves into the wind, including an ace to my side of the court that I couldn't even touch to end the match. Just like that, my Panama City Beach Open was over in 51 minutes.
After analyzing the match and replaying certain situations in my head for an hour, I finally let go. You see, I beleive that is critically important in sport and in life. You can't dwell on things in the past. Analyze, synthesize, learn the good and bad, and then move on...do better next time. The present is a gift hence the name. Had I continued to over-think what just happened I wouldn't have been able to appreciate the fact that is was a sunny Sunday in Florida; that I play professional volleyball and get to play a game I love, get paid (a little!), and spend time with good friends. What a truly amazing experience...one I am grateful to be a part of.
Tournament recap:
Finish: 17th
Prize $$$: 1200
Hitting %: 0.571 (3rd overall)
Blocks: 3 (tied 13th overall)
Aces: 1 (tied 25th overall)
Panama Champs: Dalhausser-Rogers
Thank you to SMACK Sportswear and Unlimited Fitness for their continued support!
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