Catchin' Up

This title is appropriate in may aspects of my life right now! First, I haven't posted on Traxee or my blog (which is actually the same post, just copied and pasted) for a couple of weeks. I love to write, but have been incredibly busy. My daughter once wrote a story for class entitled 'Unfortunately, Fortunately', in which something negative led to something postive, which led to something negative, and so on. So, unfortunately, my friend Jennifer (whom I had planned to run with this evening) is suffering from plantar fasciatis (no idea how to spell that), and not being able to run makes Jennifer a very unhappy chick. Fortunately, that means I don't have to - I mean 'get to' - run this evening, so I have time at the computer. Unfortunately, that means very low calorie burn (though my fingers are flying); fortunately, I don't really care. I am tired. Getting back into the groove of spending my days with 26 smiling eight-year-olds is definitely tiring. It will take about a month before I am not completely exhausted at the end of every day.



The Schweizer Fest race...the race that I stressed over for weeks...the one I almost wimped out on...the one with the mile-long HILL. It was run on August 14. I was there. I ran it. Six miles in heat and humidity that caused even the real runners to question their sanity. I woke up that morning...actually, I didn't really sleep much the night before...and prepared myself. I ate bread with honey on it (carbs, sugar, and it didn't upset my stomach), and I sat on the deck and had a heart-to-heart with God. I didn't ask for much. I just told Him I was freaking out about this race, and that I wanted to finish without vomiting my bread and honey in front of the fine citizens of Tell City. I just wanted to give it my all. When I get nervous, I don't talk much. My husband tolerates those little quirks, so he didn't push it that morning. Although he admitted that he was a little nervous too, he seemed all calm. Why can't I be like that???


We arrived early, as I always do, and located my friends. I was really excited because several of my friends, many of whom are my co-workers, are new runners, and had planned to run the 2-mile race. Because my 25-year class reunion was that evening, there were several of my classmates participating as well. I tried to work through my jitters, even posing for pictures with friends, but my stomach was churning! My running partner Jackie and I decided to jog a block or two toward the starting line. Once there, we got our spot and waited for the gun. Gosh, it was hot already! Our plan was to run together, but if one of us needed to go faster or slower, that was fine. Finally, it was time. The moment we had trained for and talked about all summer had arrived. Our mayor welcomed the 450 runners, and the gun blasted through the humid air. We were off. Any runner who races knows that it is difficult not to get caught up in the crowd at the start of a race. Of course, we couldn't keep up with the 6-minute runners, but for a short bit of time, we did keep up with those 7 1/2 minute runners. I had on my trusty Garmin, and Jackie kept asking how fast we were running. When I told her, her response was, "We can't run that fast!!" Maybe not for 6 miles, but we could for almost a mile. I told her we were just warming up, and that we would slow down and get into our groove. Afterall, we knew about the ominous hill that lay ahead. We knew we had to conserve some strength and energy.


Jackie and I were very fortunate that morning. We have some amazing friends who crawled out of bed, came down to the race, and cheered us on. How great is that? Joani and Lori are two of Jackie's besties, and friends of mine as well. They actually drove to several points on the course and cheered as we ran by. Two of my besties, Debbie and Melony, stood on a corner that I ran by 3 times. Having these ladies there was such a boost! The first part of the race loops around our Main Street. After that loop, we headed out a long street toward the hill. As we started that way, Debbie and Melony were there encouraging me along. Jackie and I got into our pace and stayed together the first 3 miles. As we began to ascend the hill, I pulled ahead slightly. I push hard on hills, mostly because I want to get it over with! I ran the rest of the race alone, knowing Jackie was close behind. The hill was hard, but I didn't hold back. I walked through the water stop, but started running as soon as I had a drink. I knew if I could just get to the top of the hill, the rest of the race would be rather easy. I climbed that hill, my breathing sounding like a woman in labor, and my arms pumping hard to move me forward. I saw a few people walking, and was so proud that I didn't have to. At the top, I rounded the curve, worked to catch my breath and get back into a rhythm, and paced myself for the rest of the course. Another person that I cannot fail to mention is our unpaid coach, Tom. I also saw him a couple of times, and just knowing he was there was encouraging. Tom has answered all of our questions, and is always open with advice and strategies. Sometimes we are stubborn and don't listen, like when he says we should run the hill several times in one session, but he is very much appreciated. When I had a little more than a half mile to go, I saw Tom coming toward me. He told me to keep pushing, and that I looked strong. Now, I know I didn't really look strong at that point, but hearing those words made me tell myself that I am strong, and that I could finish strong. I don't really know about other runners, but sometimes when I am running a race, I have some really weird self-talk. I could see about 15 blocks ahead of me as I was running the final long stretch of the race. At the end of that stretch where we would turn back onto Main Street toward the finish, there was a police car parked with its lights on. My self-talk: Run to the light...just run to the light. I know, it's strange, but it got me through. I bet if other runners were to admit it, they would be thinking some pretty strange thoughts too. Wouldn't they?


As I turned back on to Main Street, with only two blocks to go, Debbie and Melony were still there, and they were still cheering for me. At that point, they knew that I had already met one of my goals, and when they pointed it out, it made me smile, and it made me sprint (my old-lady sprint). I really do not like being the center of attention, and there were a lot of people lining the finish line and standing around in that area. There were no runners within a block of me, behind or in front. I was crossing that line alone. Please don't take that to mean I was fast, it's just that the ones who were fast had long-before crossed, and I was ahead of a few people. I could hear my name being shouted, but I looked straight ahead. I spotted my daughter immediately, and headed toward her. My time: 57:11! Not the fastest I had run the course, but given the severe heat, I will take it! Bethany grabbed some water for me, and I headed back to the finish line to cheer on Jackie, a couple of other friends, and, of course, my husband. Jackie finished about a minute behind me, which meant that she had met her goal of running it in under one hour. We rocked! We were hot, sweaty, and smelly, but we were also relieved, thrilled, and exhilerated. It was amazing to spend the next hour with my running friends and husband. We had all worked so hard to get to that point, and I wanted to share that moment with them.


So, the results of the chicks I run with or discuss running with (my dear friends and companions):


Me - 3rd in age group; Jackie - 1st in age group; Jennifer (ran the 2 mile) - 2nd in age group; Beth - placed in age group (sorry, Beth, can't remember place :-(); Laura - (ran 2 mile) 2nd in age group; Kim - the running queen - won the women's 6-mile with an amazing time that I can't remember because it isn't even in my realm of running speed! Gary - not a chick - ran 6-mile in 1:20:00, and did awesome! Another group that I am so happy for is that group of new runners who laced up their sneakers and ran their very first race that morning: Kassi, Lori, Emily, Annette, Kelli, and Amy (I don't think it was Amy's first, but it was her first in a long time). Witnessing their excitement was great. (And, by the way, there were a few pukers at the end of the race, and I wasn't one of them!)


Thanks, friends, for encouraging me to step up and run this race! I am so glad that I did, and I know I would have regretted not running it. What's next on the agenda? I haven't actually signed up yet, but Jackie, Jennifer, Gary, and I plan to run a half marathon on October 10. I am not completely convinced of my ability to run that far, but I am surely going to try. That race will not be about speed at all; it will simply be about the thrill of finishing 13.1 stinkin' miles. That just sounds so far. My husband and I would really like to run the Indy Mini in May. I sounds a little fun, although I am not much into crowds, and 30,000 runners make quite a crowd! Perhaps some good anti-anxiety meds will be in order!