Roberta Crushes Her Fear & Throws First Pitch At Oakland A's Game
KPIX 5 Morning Weather Anchor Roberta Gonzales answers the questions you never get to ask on-air.
Q: Hey Roberta, what a strike! Saw you toss out First Pitch the other day! How did it feel? Raymond Williams; Oakland
A: IT WAS AMAZING!
For those who have never had the opportunity to throw out a First Pitch at a Major League Baseball game here's how it goes down. You arrive a the Coliseum one full hour before the game begins. You sit in the A's Corporate offices and you think about what you are about to do…and you break out in a sweat. Butterflies fly freely!
Having the honor of throwing out First Pitch is the most scary thing you will ever see me do. Facing my fear in the eyes of thousands. I feel so nervous, I am nauseated! I feel as if I can't keep anything in my stomach. I find it hard breathing and my skin tingles. Numerous people ask me, if you feel that bad, why do you do it? I do it because it makes me feel alive! I know it sounds silly, but it's true! I feel there are so many things in life we simply walk through the motions. Sometimes a day can feel like a routine. But throwing out First Pitch makes me FEEL emotions I have never dreamed of! Trust me, I have rappelled and scaled 40 story buildings, I have bungee jumped, I have flown with the Blue Angels and I have competed in marathons as well as Ironman competitions. There is absolutely nothing that shoots the fear up my spine and causes me to break out in sweat, like running on the green grassy baseball field, with my mitt in hand and my heart in my throat at O.Co. Coliseum.
And when it's all over, I feel a tremendous sense of relief and happiness all at once, all smooshed inside my head. It's exciting, and thrilling and mind blowing! Yep, all that by simply tossing a ball from a Pitcher's mound into the waiting glove of a Professional League Baseball Player.
I am including the First Pitch video (thanks to staffer Ryan Leong). I hope you enjoy it!
By the way, I must admit…I DO have one more fear! Mountain Lions. But I have no plans meeting that fear head on! What is your biggest fear and have you tried to conquer it?
I would love to hear from you! Please send weather questions, observations and photos to me, Gonzales@kpix.cbs.com and I look forward to hearing from you!
