I am not an athlete | Kait Barnes

My favorite of all sports

Growing up, I played a lot of sports. More sports than one would imagine looking at me now, and more sports than you?d imagine looking at me then, when I tottered about with two left feet and the stature of a toddler. This does not mean I was any good at sports. I am not an athlete, never have been, never will be. Despite this, I have to say that participating in?sports from the age of 4 when I had my first ice skating lesson to the age of 17, when I had my last horseback riding show, were some of the best times of my life. Granted at the time it was embarrassing (I sucked at everything besides figure skating) but I had a BLAST! I never took myself too seriously and I remember those days as some of my greatest.

Figure skating?I figured skated for roughly 10 years. It was the only sport where I had talent and to this day, I can skate circles around 90% of the population. I could jump, spin, doing fancy footwork, and I skated competitively in singles and synchronized teams. I made it to roughly the intermediate level. My best friend at the time also skated and we constantly had contests to see who was better at the sport. I can no longer do many tricks, but I still skate today. I gave up skating because I grew 5 inches in 1 year and no longer had the body or natural ability of a figure skater. I still love it more than almost anything on this planet though. To me, being on skates is like flying. When I?m on skates, I?m free.
Baseball?I played coach pitch baseball for two years. I was one of two girls on the team both years. The other girl was much better than me. I was a puny, I couldn?t hit a ball 99% of the time (seriously, I almost ALWAYS struck out) and I was relegated to playing left field, which is where they put the people who sucked (8-9 year olds can?t hit a ball that far).
Softball?I played softball in 6th grad and then I did intramural softball in college. For some reason I was better at softball than baseball. Maybe it?s because it was all girls. I pitched and played second base. I still struck out a lot, probably 70% of the time. I gave up softball because I hated practicing.
Basketball?I was THE WORST at basketball. I only played for 1 year because I was SO BAD. Once I got shoved and bitten by a girl who later ended up playing at some big school in the NCAA. Basketball was my childhood humiliation. I couldn?t run, jump, shoot baskets, or do anything. When I played basketball, I never scored one point.
Volleyball?Volleyball was similarly humiliating as basketball, although I was somewhat better at it. I went to volleyball camp to lose weight and I did. This didn?t make me any better at volleyball and I was NOT surprised when I did not make the team. I can?t serve, hit, or do much of anything with volleyball.
Horseback riding?I horseback rode for roughly 5 years. Similar to ice skating, I was decent at it, although I was terrified of horses for the duration of my ?equestrian career.? Despite this, I love horses and rode in a few shows and took lessons weekly in elementary and high school. To me, cantering is the greatest thing on earth besides being on skates. You feel powerful on a horse, even though it?s false power, because it?s the animal that?s strong and not you. I still remember all of the horses I ever rode and which ones I loved and which ones I hated. There was an obese horse named Cass who was surprisingly fast for a chunker and I LOVED HIM. There was a horse named Chief who was a total ass and hated me. He once threw me three times in one lesson. He also peed on my $150 riding boots a couple of times. Chief was an asshole.

So there you go?my sports history. I am not an athlete, nor do I watch sports, nor do I actively involve myself in any sports besides recreational ice skating (and pilates? Is that considered athletics?) but I still love them. I will never be Venus or Serena or Michelle, but my childhood revolved around team and single sports and I wouldn?t have had it any other way.

Source: http://kaitbarnes.com/2012/12/28/i-am-not-an-athlete/

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