As a supervisor at London Drugs, Joan Harris gets a daily workout moving heavy boxes of items out to the shelves where they will be seen by customers.
At the risk of breakage, she doesn’t throw that merchandise around. She’s strong enough to subdue a shoplifter, but that’s not in her job description.
But when it comes to throwing things with intent, as Harris proved a couple weekends ago in Vernon, she’s one of the best in the province. The 59-year-old Prince George Track and Field Club member proved her versatility at pitching five different kinds of weighted objects and set a provincial record in the Masters throws pentathlon for women in her 55-59-year-old age class at the Cory Holly Classic Throws Challenge in Vernon.
“It’s such an empowering feeling, throwing things,” said Harris. “It kind of doesn’t matter how old you are, you can still throw things.
“I didn’t have any idea about the record, I just never thought that way, but my other competitors were tracking me behind the scenes and not letting me know. It wasn’t until the last event, when I threw the weight throw and I said ‘oh, that’s a personal best for me,’ they said I broke the pentathlon record too. I’m pretty sure my mouth dropped open. In my mind, I never thought I’d be close to a record, I was just focused on every meet being better than the last meet.”
The throws pentathlon involves discus, shot put, javelin, hammer throw and weight throw and Harris totaled 2,764 points to smash the former record of 2,632, set last year by Citizen reporter Christine Dalgleish (nee Hinzmann).
Harris set PBs in weight throw (8.35 m), shot put (8.25 metres), hammer toss (26.32 m), and discus (21.49 m). The javelin went 21.10 m, not quite up to the distances she hit her first year on the throwing circuit.
“The first year I had (former PGTFC president) Tom Masich training me and I don’t know what he was telling me but it was working,” said Harris. “Next year’s goal is to maybe hit that PB from four years ago when it was close to 24 metres. It was so natural the first year but now I don’t come close.
“The other throws I’m getting better and it’s just muscle memory. You just spin and your body knows what you’re doing. The javelin is kind of awkward and I haven’t figured out the muscle memory and the footwork. You have to run sideways over your feet and plant and throw.”
Discus used to be the event that made her cringe, but she’s worked on it constantly this summer in practice at Masich Place Stadium and at Lac des Bois school field and the results are paying off.
“I can’t tell you how many discuses I’ve thrown to try and figure it out, and it’s now getting closer to one of my favourite things to throw, not my embarrassment,” said Harris. “You just have to keep doing the same thing over and over again and just hope that comes into play when it’s a meet. We’re all famous for the best throws in practice.
“You should never think you can’t do something because you’re older or you haven’t done it before. You just have to get out there and do it.”
Harris grew up in Nelson as a swimmer and cross-country runner and played competitive softball, badminton and volleyball. In her high school days, she competed in track and field running and jumping events but was never a thrower until she signed up for the 55+ BC Games four years ago in Cranbrook. She’s been hooked on throwing ever since.
“I did some running and throwing at the 55+ BC Games, but the throwing was so much more fun,” said Harris.
Harris also trains in boxing - not to get in the ring and punch an opponent, but for the fitness benefits.
“It gets more complicated as you get older and you can’t just find somebody that weighs the same as you and fight, you would have to find another old lady like me,” laughed Harris.
Harris works with a coach (Sasha) at Black Belt Biomechanics, who teaches functional patterns and how to incorporate spinning movements while holding weighted cables and other weight apparatus and that’s helped her develop throwing strength and flexibility.
This year she competed in four meets, starting with a virtual interclub competition at Masich Stadium in May, and was also part of the Sub-Zero Meet in Prince George and the BC Masters Track and Field Championships in Surrey. After competing at the 2019 55+ BC Games in Kelowna, Harris was set for the 2020 Canadian 55+ Games in Kamloops but it was cancelled because of COVID and cancelled again this past summer. She‘s planning to be there next year when she turns 60.
Current PGTFC president Elena Thomas and Dalgleish also represented the club at the Cory Holly meet. In the weight throw event, Dalgleish grabbed on to the triangular handle and tossed the 16-pound iron ball 9.64 m, eclipsing her own B.C. record of 9.55 m.
“I was totally impressed she pulled that out,” said Harris. “She wasn’t getting the distances she wanted. I didn’t think she was going to do this and then, bam, she just pulled that one out of nowhere. She really wanted that.”
Dalgleish also totaled 2,589 points in the throws pentathlon, second to Harris in the 55-59-year class.
