Sorry this is coming in a little late, but here's the recap of the 1-meter board regional meet.

Today was the second day of regionals.  For men, it was the 1-meter competition.  I arrived at the meet rested and relaxed and ready to compete.  I wasn't nervous.  I was super relaxed and honestly, just ready to enjoy the day.  I'd accomplished my goal, and that was to make it to state.  Granted, it would be great to make it to state on both boards.  And I wouldn't realize until later, that there were a number of things still on the line...

First of all, I was undefeated in conference.  While I was competing against all the other divers in southern California, I was still competing against the other divers in conference.  A loss to any of them and I'd lose my "undefeated" title.

Also, there were Conference Championship medals on the line too.  I'd taken first place all year, and it'd be a shame to not medal on both boards just by losing this one meet on the 1-meter.  These results also affect "Athlete of the Year" and even "Coach of the Year".

In retrospect, it was good I didn't realize there were still so many things at stake.  And with that, the meet began.

At yesterday's meet, I was the second diver.  It was nice going second.  Today I was the 13th diver to go.  I waited my turn.  I watched out of the corner of my eye Aaron Garcia take his turn on the board.  He was 11th.  I talked with Jose as Aaron took his turn.  He did great.  I'd beat him yesterday, but I do think he's a better diver than I am.  I listened to Jose give me the last reminders before approaching the board for my first dive.

"Keep your head up.  Ride the board and take it up," Jose said.

Esteban Martinez was next.  As he entered the water, I walked up to the board.  

"Alex Mackey, 203C.  Back one and one-half tuck," Corey called out into the microphone.

I walked to the end of the board.  I wasn't nervous until I got to the edge of the board.  This dive was still a little sketchy.  I took a deep breath in and exhaled as my arms went up, circled around and I jumped the dive up into the air.  I hurled my legs towards my face into a tuck and spun as quickly as I could,  Still unable to spot where to come out, I 'felt' about where it should be, kicked out as strong as I could and entered the water.  The dive was okay, not great, not terrible.  I got a 4 on the low end and a  5.5 on the high side.  I was good with that.  It would've been nice to get 6's, but that would've been lucky.

My next dive is my sketchiest.  I failed this one on 3-meter the week prior.  And I'd had problems getting it consistent over the past week.  But by the end of the week, I was able to hit it about 70% of the time.  It wasn't always pretty, but I could at least put it in.

"Alex Mackey, 303C," Corey called out.  "Reverse one and one-half tuck.  Degree of difficulty, 2.1," he continued.

I set the fulcrum between the seven and the eight.  I positioned my feet about 12 inches from the back of the board.  I took my four steps to arrive at just the right spot on the board.  I threw the dive up and before I even left the board, I hucked myself back as hard as I could.  I grabbed my legs, spun around and entered the water like a scorpion.  It was a crappy dive.  I threw it back, I didn't take it up and my entry was horrible.  My scores ranged between 3 and 4.  Lame.

But the good news...I had made it though my most difficult dives and didn't fail them.  I'd at least gotten SOME points for each of them.  Now it was time to have some fun.

I watched some of the other divers nail dive after dive after dive.  I knew I would not have the same results as yesterday.  Top three was very unlikely.  

My next dive was the inward 1-1/2.  Jose reminded me to stay over the board.  Keep my head neutral.  I'm not sure I really did either of those things.  The dive was short, my hands didn't go in above my head and in reality, it wasn't a great dive.  It wasn't terrible, but I got scores that ranged from 4.0 to 5.0.

The meet was half over.  I wasn't doing so great, but I had also put my hardest dives first.  So things were bound to look up for the back half of the meet.

"Alex Mackey, 103B, forward one and one-half pike," Corey announced.

Earlier in the week, Jose and I decided that we should make a change to my front dive.  I was doing a double somersault and my entry was hit or miss.  Plus entering on your feet sucks.  Aside from all the water going up my nose, it's just not "diving".  It feels more like water gymnastics.  I'd tried to get a 2-1/2 and I was able to land it on my head, but not open up.  I just can't get it around fast enough.  So we dialed it back to a 1-1/2.  The degree of difficulty drops substantially, but I figured my scores should go up substantially to justify the lower DD.

I threw the 1-1/2, rode the board nicely, took it way up, spun in a nice, tight pike, opened up just at the right moment and dove straight in.  I'm still the fattest diver of all the guys in the competition, so I don't really "rip" my dives.  Even the good ones have a splash.  But this one was pretty good.  It was one of the cleanest dives I've done, but still with the fat guy splash.

The crowd cheered as I broke through the surface.  It was a great feeling.  My scores were 6.5, 7.0 and even a 7.5.

I saved my best two dives for the end.  The reverse dive half twist off the 1-meter doesn't have a huge degree of difficulty, but I can nail it pretty consistently.  I scored almost all 7's on that with a couple 6.5s.

One last dive to go.  While I wasn't nervous throughout the meet, I was still relieved to almost be done.  I watched as the other divers finished their dives and then even start to change into regular clothes.  I watched and waited until it was at last my turn to dive one more time.

Four years of diving had led up to this moment.  Don't blow it, and I should make it to state on both boards.

One last time, I set the fulcrum between the seven and the eight.  I exhaled just as Greg Louganis had taught me.  As I took my first step I began to breath in.  One, two, three, four steps and into the hurdle.  I'd filled my lungs with air and as I made my first jump, I exhaled to have max power.  I took a quick breath in as I floated above the board.  I pressed the board down with both feet and once again exhaled sharply and I made my final jump,  I went up in the air and threw myself backwards.  Once horizontal to the board, I flipped over using my hips and shoulders.  As I faced the board and the water, I threw my arms towards my legs to begin rotating 1-1/2 times towards the board.  I spun around in a tight tuck, kicked out just at the right moment, put my arms above my head and entered the water head first.  

I'd done it!  I swam back to the surface and could hear clapping and cheering.  The dive was good.  I got one 5.5 and all the rest 6.0.  It wasn't the best 5331D I'd ever done, but it was good.  And I was done!

The results came quickly and the names were once again read starting with 15th place.  If I placed top 10 I could compete both boards at state because I had already qualified in top 8 yesterday.

I anxiously waited for 11th place to be called in hopes that it wouldn't be me.

"In 11th placee, Timothy Fisher, Grossmont College," Corey called out.  

I did it!  I'd made it to state on both boards.  Now the question was, what place did I get on 1-meter.  I knew it wasn't as good as yesterday.  

9th place, Erich Schmitt, Grossmont College.  Awesome!  That was two of the Grossmont kids that I'd beaten.

8th place, Esteban Martinez, Mt. San Antonio College.

7th place...I waited, hoping to not hear my name just yet... Arthur Lawrence, Cypress College.

6th place, Daniel Miller, Chaffey College.

I'd made it to the top 5!  Yea!!!

I had a feeling that I was next, but was secretly hoping my name wouldn't be the next one called.  

Corey called out through the microphone, "In fifth place from El Camino College, Alex, Big Fat Diver, Mackey."

And there it was.  Fifth place.  I was happy.  I was a little disappointed.  I missed fourth place by 2 points.  But I wasn't even close to 3rd.

And thus concluded the regional meet.  I ended up with some awesome "titles" and accolades under my belt.  I was undefeated in conference and at the same time, I was fifth place on a regional level.  And if I compared myself to all the divers in America, I'd probably be somewhere in the middle.  I'm sure there are hundreds or even thousands of better divers.  But at the same time, I'd accomplished a goal I'd set out to achieve over four years ago.  And that was to make it to state at the college level.  Not bad for a 44 year old.  

I'm proud of my awesome, imperfect results.

Nest stop, STATE.  May 5th and 6th, 2016 at 1pm.  East LA College.  Come on by if you're in the area.

#bigfatdiver

First dive.  I was pretty nervous but had gotten myself to a good, cool, calm and collected place.  My first two dives are the scariest.  I faced backwards with my heels dangling off the edge of the board 10 feet above the water.  I exhaled all my air, took a deep breath in as I raised my arms.  I dropped my arms down as I pressed the board with my feet.  I jumped up as best as I could, and piked my legs towards my head as hard as I could using my stomach muscles.  I grabbed my legs in the pike position and spun around 1-1/2 times.  I opened up, looked back and entered the water.  I was a little short.  My scores where just okay.  3-1/2 on the low side, 4-1/2 on the high side.

My second dive was a reverse 1-1/2.  I was nervous for this one too.  I jumped up and didn't ride the board as well as I should have.  I threw my head back, but then pulled my pike in tightly.  As I jumped forward, I flipped backwards 1-1/2 times.  I opened up and entered the water.  Short, once again.  It wasn't a terrible dive, but not a great one either.  4's across the board (one 3, but low score gets dropped.)

My inward 1-1/2 was better.  I scored almost all 5's or 5.5's on that.

By this time I was feeling better and less nervous.  The meet was half over and I hadn't had any horrible dives that got just 2's or 3's.  So that was good.

I threw my front 2-1/2 and it was probably the best one I've ever done.  I was able to land it straight in, and have my body and legs straight.  Something I struggle with on this dive.  It was awesome!!  I got 6.5's and 7's!!

My last two dives I really like.  A reverse dive with a half twist, straight.  Again, 6's and 7's.  Awesome!!

I was feeling pretty confident as I climbed the ladder for my last dive.  I made my approach.  I jumped it up pretty well and threw myself backwards.  I twisted around and then threw a 1-1/2 inward.  I guess I didn't do a very good job of keeping my abs tight because it was a little floppy going it.  But it was still decent.  I got a myriad of scores ranging from 4 to 5.5.

And that ended the meet for me.  I was second in the line up, so everyone else had to complete their dives.  I didn't know the results.  I had no idea if I was going to go to state based on that performance.  I hadn't really focused on or tracked what the other divers were doing.  I watched some of their dives and some were good and some were not.  The Grossmont divers were awesome.  The Riverside divers were awesome.  The guy from Saddleback College was amazing.  So I wasn't really sure where things would end up.

The  results were announced...Corey Stanbury announced it starting with last place.  Then he worked his way backwards through the list.  I kept hoping my name wouldn't be called yet.  At least not until the 8th spot.  Top 8 go to state.

Tenth place: Esteban Martinez - Second alternate for State
Ninth place: Timothy Fisher - First alternate for State

I'd made it!!

Eighth: Jesse Vandrkolk - San Diego Mesa College
Seventh: Daniel Miller - Chaffey College
Sixth: Erich Schmitt - Grossmont College

In fifth place...I thought for sure I'd hear my name... Aaron Garcia, Riverside College.

I couldn't believe it!  I'd beat Aaron!  He's really good!  I'd only competed against him once at an invitational.  I beat him on the 3m, but he beat me on the 1m.

In fourth place...I waited to hear my name.  I knew this would be me.  The other guys left were all really good and I knew I wasn't going to be top three...

Raymond Altmeyer, Grossmont College.

WHAT?!?!  I had beat ALL the Grossmont divers!  This was amazing!

In third place, Alex Mackey, El Camino College.  I'd done it!  I'd made it to state, and taken 3rd place on 3-meter in all of Southern California.  Not to mention, I was undefeated in the South Coast Conference!

Jakob Wood from Riverside College took second and Jacob Swansen from Saddleback College won the meet.

It was a day I'll never forget.  This goal I've had for the past four years all culminated in today's event.  It was do or die.  And I did.

I have to give thanks to a few people.  First and foremost, God.  I can't tell you how much I prayed that I'd do well.  I feel like my prayers were answered.  Jose Bahena, my dive coach at El Camino.  He's seen me through my good days and bad days of diving and put up with all sides of me--angry me, happy me, late me, nervous me, struggling me, doubting me, and ultimately, successful me.  Jose is always kind, always encouraging and a brilliant coach--even when I couldn't see why he was making me do things that at first didn't feel like it made any sense, he knows what he's doing and was able to fix so many wrong fundamentals to make me a much better diver.

The other two individuals that had a huge impact on my skill level have been Greg Louganis and Drew Johansen.  Greg has brought a level of skill that I never would've had without him--from breathing, to focus, to mindset and visualization.  Drew Johansen was able to correct a dive I'd been trying to fix for 20 years--in about 15 minutes.  He's amazing and helped on that dive along with so many other skills!!

And lastly, thanks to my super supportive wife, Janice.  She has picked up a remarkable amount of slack while I've been off playing in the water for three hours a day, five days a week.  Thank you and I love you!!

One last thing... one thing I love about the sport of diving, is you can cry, have a snotty nose and even pee your pants a little and no one will ever know.  I think all three of those might've happened today.

So today is the day!  It's Friday morning at 8:50 am.  In less than three hours the regional meet will be underway.  I rested for almost 8 hours last night, but didn't sleep very well.  I'm trying to be calm, yet feel so nervous!

I practiced yesterday and a few other teams were there practicing with me as well.  It gave me a chance to see the competition.  There are some really good divers.  I'm not sure that's what makes me nervous though.  I think I just want to do my best.  I want to not fail any dives.  I want to put the dives in like I've practiced and not have any bad anomolies.

I will post an update and videos tonight of how the meet went.  Today I find out if I make it to state.  If I don't, I'll have one more chance tomorrow to make it on the other board.  But if I can just dive well and not do anything stupid, I should be just fine.

​Fingers crossed and prayers said...here goes.

I wanted to write a quick update since it's been so long since the last.  I'll try to get another video out soon.

It's been an interesting few weeks.  I've won every meet, which has been great.  I've had no competition at some of them, which is slightly deflating.  I've done terrible and a  meet or two and I've hit my personal best of 217 at one of them.

Tomorrow I have my last meet of the season before we go to Regionals next Friday and Saturday.  I'm looking forward to this meet...a lot!  Coach Jose will be there.  That's always super helpful.  I go blank at meets and do terrible about warm ups, etc.  So having him there will be awesome.

Secondly, I feel more prepared for this meet than for any other.  There's only one dive that's kind of sketchy.  Hopefully I'll get lucky and nail it.

Lastly, we're competing both boards.  It's just been one board in the past few weeks.

So it should be fun.  I've heard there's a guy that's REALLY good that is going to be there.  So I don't expect to win, but I do expect to get a personal record--hopefully on both boards.  If I do that, I'll be happy about the meet regardless of place.

I have to be up in five hours.  The meet is super early.  So I'll keep this short, but that's the update.

Oh...one more thing...the diet.  I've been terrible.  Not sure how to fix that one.  I try and then just cave so often.  There's just too much good candy out there.  sigh.

But tomorrow is another day, and another try.  I will fail my way to success if that's what it takes.  So here we go.
;-)