The big draw for me today was that Simon Whitfield, a triathlete who won Olympic gold in Sydney 2000 and Olympic silver in Beijing 2008, was skating and then signing autographs. Mike and I have watched this guy race for the last decade, and he seems like such a nice guy, and an amazing athlete to boot.
Jack nearly ended the poor guy's triathlon career by skating into him to say Hi. Luckily Simon is quick on his feet and Jack only took out the two helpers. It was obviously time to take our skates off and so we joined the autograph line.
We only had to wait a few minutes before our turn came up. Jack and Ethan had a nice little chat with him as he signed their flags, while I nodded and smiled. Simon asked how old they were, and said he has a 2-1/2 yr old - he likes to see what is in store for him!
What I wanted to say: "We've really enjoyed following your races over the years! I was jumping up and down when you won in Sydney, and I nearly had a heart attack in Beijing at the finish. Congratulations on your career!"
What I actually managed to say: "I've watched you for 10 years..."
which, when croaked out in a hoarse whisper, sounded unbelievably creepy.
Then Jack said, "Mummy can't talk today. Can she have an autograph?" Saved by my 5 year old...
Hopefully I'll get my voice back before I meet anyone else.