The Villages - May 2008 - (Page 33)

Chuck Lorenz, a resident of the Village of Hacienda, enjoys seeing where he ﬁts with others his age. He knows his prowess in track and ﬁeld is better in some events than in others, but he competes in events other than his best events for the competition and the reality of where he is in comparison to others his age. A family emergency kept Lorenz from practicing in the four weeks leading up to the competition. “My father-in-law had an operation, and we went up north,” Chuck said. “I did no training. It was too cold in Pennsylvania to train.” Chuck was competing in the long jump, high jump, the 100 meters and the 200 meters. “I have competed in softball about every year, but they aren’t having softball this time,” Chuck said. “This is my third year in the track events and the second year in the ﬁeld events.” Chuck said he ﬁrst became interested the track-andﬁeld events of the Senior Games to see if he was still competitive in something he hadn’t done since juniorhigh school. “I come out to be with the people and the camaraderie. I won’t do well in the long jump,” he predicted. “I expect to do well in the high jump. My long jump hasn’t developed as much.” Chuck enjoys competing in the long jump, although he doesn’t expect miracles to happen. “I guess I am trying to get better,” he said. There was one new obstacle in his path this year in his age group. “My coach, John Topliss, has moved up into my division this year,” Chuck said. Chuck decided to try the track events when he was playing softball. “Playing softball, I was always one of the fastest runners,” Chuck said. “I ﬁnished ﬁrst in the 100 two years ago and was second in the 200.” Not only does Chuck compete in the Senior Games, he also volunteers to help out during the events. He could be seen raking the pits before the longjump competition began. When Chuck’s day was over, he had done well. He won the gold in the 200 meters and took silvers in the 100 meters, high jump and long jump. “I did better than I expected in the long jump, and my high jump was my highest I have ever jumped,” Chuck said. “My 100 and 200 meters were a little slower. I’m afraid age is catching up with me. I go into the next age group next year.” Moving up in age group is just another step in something Chuck hopes he can continue to do for many more years. MAGAZINE 33

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of The Villages - May 2008

The Villages - May 2008 Contents Latin Dancing Makes for Fun Fitness Making Graceful Moves in the Water Students Create Culinary Ecstasy in Pizzas Summer Plants and Flowers Brain Exercises Shopping & Dining Guide Retail Briefs Entertainment Briefs Major Events Snapshots

The Villages - May 2008

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