First Day of Competition - Sunday

The day started bright and early at the Civic Auditorium in Omaha, NE. First up was a practice session for elite skaters.

When I arrived, I was disappointed with the condition of the floor. Rather than glossy, it was somewhat splotchy. I learned that it had been stripped to bare wood and only one layer of coating applied before we arrived. For a fast ("tight") floor, you generally need to apply at least three layers of coating. I'm not sure why that wasn't done. Probably because of the time and money involved. (Typically, it takes three to four hours to roll each coat of sealer and 12 hours, minimum, to dry.)

The good news is that everyone will be skating on the same floor. So, although speeds may not be as high as possible, the playing field will be level.

Sunday's competition started with the Tiny Tot boys and girls, ages 5 and under. The kids are amazing! Just think about it: they are still in pre-school and most can’t even tie their own shoes. Yet they can count their own laps, skate correctly on the outside of the pylons; and they know the difference between winning and finishing second.

After the Tots, the World Class women took the floor for the 100-meter individual time trials and the excitement started to build. Sixteen women competed in the event, rolling to the starting line one at a time to race around the pylons.

Mariah Richardson of High Point, NC, held the lead in the early heats with a time of 11.013 seconds. But six skaters later, Jessica Smith of Kearns, UT, took over the lead when she notched a time of 10.815.

Then came Brittany Bowe (photo, above), the 19-year-old speedster from Ocala, FL. When race announcer Bob Justice introduced her and recounted her record time from last year (10.75 seconds), the crowd went wild.

Brittany responded by putting on a show. With her eyes focused on the floor, she stepped up to the line and set her feet in the start position. Suddenly, the auditorium became absolutely, unbelievably quiet.

Then Brittany stepped back with her right foot, rocked backwards, and exploded forward in a burst of speed. The crowd screamed as she flew around the pylons and set a new national record of 10.551 seconds, a full two-tenths of a second off her old record.

In the end, it was Brittany Bowe, first; Jessica Smith, second; and Sara Sayasane of Milpitis, CA, third (10.862).

The World Class Men were just as exciting. Skating first was perennial former indoor champion Jeremy Anderson. The crowd grew silent when the popular racer (and 31-year-old father of two) rolled to the line. He posted a time of 10.266 seconds.

Next up was 16-year-old Chad Horne from High Point Speed. Chad is one of the young lions of inline speed skating. I've watched him over the years mature not only as a skater but as a person. He notched a time 10.204, which give him the lead, but was ultimately only enough for sixth place.

It was Joey Mantia who would once again bring the audience to its feet. After Brittany's performance, the audience hoped to see another national record. And who better for the job than Joey, the reigning track, road and marathon world champion, who, it seems, has a friendly rivalry with Brittany (his former Team Florida teammate) over who can win the most speed skating honors.

But the 21-year-old fell short of his own record. He hesitated slightly in the final turn and posted a time of 9.818 seconds, about 3 hundredths of a seconds slower than the record he set last year (9.789).

Nonetheless, he finished first in the competition and was the only skater under 10 seconds.

Second place went to Ben Carey of Frenchtown Speed in Pennsylvania (10.035); third place to Jonathan Garcia of Texas.

Stay tuned. There's lots more coming up all week. ... And thanks for reading!

Linda Wood