The STHLM 10

Thursday, 15 June, 2017:

Practice was cancelled today so that we could marshal the Wäsby Warriors U15 and U13 players, coaches and parents into Stockholm's Kungsholmen district for a fund raiser for the team by helping with the evening's STHLM 10, a ten kilometer run.

But first we opted top get off of the commuter train in Solna for Laurie's first visit to . . .

The HUGE Mall of Scandinavia

At first I took the potential

financial disaster sitting down

Although Laurie entered 100% of the women clothing stores, she miraculously made ZERO purchases!

We did pay for a really good meal that included a giant shrimp salad for her and a shrimp stuffed baked potato for me.

Interesting buildings behind the

Mall of Scandinavia

 Thinking of our ailing friend

David Lassen when we took this one

He writes for Trains Magazine.

Graduates

In Stockholm, when kids graduate they rent these huge trucks to ride in as they cruise the city making the mandatory celebratory noise.

This was the first of three trucks in succession celebrating the start of a new phase in the student's lives.

What could possibly go wrong from a safety point of view? 

 We were getting close to

our designated meeting point

But first . . .

Site #108

Under the Väster Bridge

Scale the heights of cool

Since Laurie's arrival two weeks ago, we slowed down in our visiting of the 111 Places in Stockholm That You Must Visit guidebook's interesting and offbeat suggestions.

We actually tried to visit a site in Solna after our Mall of Scandinavia adventure today but could not find it.

This one we stumbled upon on our way to our STHLM 10 meeting point.

 A skate park indeed

Under the Väster Bridge

The bridge connects Stockholm's districts of Kungsholmen to Södermalm. It runs through Rälambshovs Park where tonight's 10K run starts and finishes.

The skate park tries to give Stockholm's youth an inner city hipster feeling.

 I think it misses that mark when

most are riding Razor scooters

not skate boards

Meanwhile, we needed to

find our meeting point

Stockholm's Kayak Club

We were getting close.

EUREKA!

We found the meeting point

under another section

of the Väster Bridge

We were teaming with the Arlanda Jets U17 team tonight to provide security for the 5,000+ 10K runners in the event.

 We would be stationed just

past this 8km marker

The race was still over an hour away but it shows our main security issue in a nutshell.

Bikers seen here are going left to right. Our 5,000+ runners will be on this same narrow path over the bridge soon going right to left.

Our job was to divert the flow of bicycle and non-participant pedestrian traffic to the other side of the bridge during the race.

Holding the fort down

Yellow is my color as it turns out.

It was easier with Laurie by my side

Note how clean the traffic on the running path is behind us.

We were there to Protect and Serve.

 Finally, our first male runner

Robel Fshia appeared soon

followed by . . .

Our first female runner

Lisa Ring

The winning times were 30:01 for Robel Fshia and 34:49 for Lisa Ring.

 Then there was the seemingly

never ending pack

The racing started at about 7:30 p.m.

The last runner, a blind woman being helped by a woman tethered to her, crossed our spot about two hours later.

It was interesting to see the various running styles and the faces ranging from expressions of runner's high to sheer agony to "What the hell was I thinking."

Rälambshovs Park was nice

on our walk to the car

 The Väster Bridge

Södermalm across the water

An enjoyable day to be sure.

On Friday we conduct our last U15 practice of the Spring.

We fly to Mallorca next Tuesday for a week's vacation in the Mediterranean sun and then fly home to Los Angeles from Stockholm two weeks from today.

EuroBall Adventure IX is rapidly coming to an end.