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I went to my first ever Pro Beach Volleyball tournament this weekend. Many tons of sand were trucked to Pier 32 on San Francisco’s Embarcadero. (Surprisingly close, as it turns out, to my new office over near the ballpark. This way I got to see the clean-up operation. Interesting.)

One of the matches I was most impressed with was the duo of Kerri Walsh and Rachel Wacholder. They won the round I watched (against some very strong Brazilian players), but didn’t win the tournament unfortunately. What was most amazing to me, sitting on the sidelines, was knowing that both Walsh and Wacholder are breastfeeding babies they had less than 3 months ago. Of course none of the coverage mentions this. And why should they? It is not a handicap. Though… it kind of is. (One thing I miss about France? Pregnant lady and cars with small children parking right up front with the handicap spots).

Imagine being in that broiling sun, warming up for an hour or so, then playing a 3 set game where you basically jump as high as you can over and over and over. In sand. And if you are a mom, now imagine it with your 3 month-old baby on the sidelines. Oy vey.

Note: For those of you who don’t understand the breastfeeding angle (Shanan), babies of this age normally eat every hour or so. If they don’t, you are wishing they did. But you are in pain either way. Jumping up and down in a skimpy bikini between feedings is a feat in it’s own right. And playing at the professional level these women were is simply amazing.

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