The Race

I hesitated to write about the New Year's Day "First Race" that Joleane and I participated in because I don't have any pictures. You see, the night before was a very late night for both of our kids. But, beyond that, it was a very late night for our husbands because they decided to go for a midnight ride after the new year arrived and so none of us adults got to bed before 2 o'clock in the morning. Because of this, Joleane and I decided it would be best if we let the others sleep and so we didn't take any before or after pictures. However, I would like to blog about my experience, for those of you interested in more than just pictures.

I had an interesting dream the night before that I'd missed the race and Joleane kept waking up almost hourly afraid that she would miss the race. So in the morning we were glad, but wary, to be on our way. Let's face it. To the average person of not that great physical health, running hurts. But I was psyched to get started. We drove over to the Valley River Inn (by the mall in Eugene) and walked in to get our packet. I had worried that I'd be required to show ID (we both registered online), but all I had to do was announce my name and I was handed a packet with my number to pin on and then given a chip timer to zip-tie to my shoe. We took some time looking around and nibbling on the Fig Newtons and drinking water. I started to see people show up from all ages and we even met a man who was over 80 years old who'd run many marathons in his life and won many awards.

Finally, it was time to line up and as the wind started to really pick up, Joleane and I were feeling the chill and ready to start running. I don't even remember whether it was a bell or a gunshot or what, but we were off. Many, many people passed us. But there were plenty that we passed, as well. One of the most shocking facts of the race was how many really young runners there were. Out of about a hundred runners, at least two of them were little girls about Arwen's age and there were a few boys that didn't look older than grade school age. We plugged along and as I passed the older gentleman I commented with a cheerful, "good race." His reply was, "I'm a lot slower since I turned 80." To which I responded, "I'm slower and I'm not even 30 yet!"

I passed a couple of people just cheering the runners and I commented to Joleane that I should probably be them instead of actually in the race. The weather turned out to be not so bad and as I rounded the last bend I could see the finish line, equipped with a timer. I was mildly dissappointed in my time and I picked up my speed to a near sprint as I approached my personal victory. Coming in at 31 minutes and 20-something seconds I slowed down and smiled as I crossed the finish line pads that picked up the chip attached to my shoe and recorded my time. I came in 64th out of 108 people.

So, that was it. I completed a 5K in an actual race with real runners for the very first time in my life. And, do you know what? I enjoyed it!