7/13/06--The results are in!

So we go back to the Georgia Dome on Friday...get there around 9am and find out that the competition has already been going on for about 1/2 hour.  I'm pretty happy with that.  I figure, their off to a good start, things are looking up after yesterday.

Wrong.

Naturally, with two kids in the tournament, somehow....someway....through luck of the draw they were both scheduled to compete at the same time.  So Kim walks to the other side of the stadium and starts giving me the blow-by-blow account of Kellie's match.....while I'm waiting for Andy to get into the ring.

Kellie Poe-Bowdren....occasional whiner....drama queen extraordinare.......and.....
Gold medal winner in her class in tae kwon do.  And ya know what?  She flat out whooped some ass.  She won 7-0 and they stopped the match on what basically amounts to the slaughter rule.  She was so far in front of her opponent that they ended it.  Kim was giving me the account and it was great.

Meanwhile, Andy starts out....and in the first round he wins by 1 point.  He goes into the 2nd round against an opponent that is a total headhunter....trying the entire match to score extra points by getting in shots at Andy's head....and at the end of the match they are tied.  Over-time.
First point wins the match and before the headhunter can make his move Andy scores with a kick to the chest and wins the match.  He continues to advance in his belt class...into the gold medal round!  Amazing.

Andy lost the gold medal round....but it didn't matter.  The entire school was sitting around us watching and cheering Andy on.  It was so fulfilling watching the other parents and kids in the school root for Andy during his amazing run.  He finished with a silver medal...and amazing accomplishment, but was treated almost as if he had won a gold medal right along with his sister....who, by the way....was the only person in the school to win a gold medal.  It was totally awesome....other than, of course, the 12 hour stay at the Georgia Dome that day.  Yep...got there at 9am....left around 9:30.
PM.
I never want to see that building again.

The Bowdren's went to Atlanta.  We came, we saw.....we left with the medals.
Adios Atlanta.


Later,
Jeff