As I sit here, still hacking and blowing my nose I realize I shouldnt have done the run yesterday. I thought the remnants of the chest cold I had would be cleared up by the exertion. I knew in the past that sometimes a good long run was all I needed to get rid of the last vestiges in my chest and sinuses but that wasnt the case yesterday. It was scary when I started out and realized that I couldnt get the wind I needed to run. I started stopping and walking before I was 1.5 km in. My plan had been to run between water stations (about every 3 km) and walk a bit at each of them. I think I only ran the last kilo without a stop. My teammates Angela and Marina each turned in a time of just under an hour...I did my portion in 1:20 and it was only because I was on a team that I kept going. They trained outside through all of this tough winter and ran and encouraged me when I started joining them in January. I bought a Batman shirt at a sports store and wore it for the race. I got lots of smiles and encouragement from bystanders yelling Yay Batman and You can do it Batman! and sometimes thats what made me keep going...I tried not to walk past any kids with their shining excited faces because of the uniform.. I was wearing headphones listening to music so maybe they were actually saying Look at that fat man having a heart attack. The last klick it was neck and neck between myself and Spiderman, I think I got him. I got an email this week saying the shirts wouldnt be in Hamilton for race day due to the port strike in Vancouver. They did arrive and theyre really nice. All of the previous five shirts had Older than Boston on the back but not this year, theres a logo that says ATB 30K 120th anniversary and the medals and lanyard are pretty flashy this timer too . An added bonus this year was a running ball cap. Because I did the last 10 km I got to run into Copps for the finish and hear the cheers of the stadium. I crossed the finish line with both arms up in the air and hopefully more of a grin than a grimace on my face. Collected my water and banana and team medals and met Angela and Marina upstairs after a couple escalator rides...I couldnt have done stairs. Glad I finished, relief that its over. Next big thing on the horizon...Easter in Texas at Hayes Carlls Drunken Poet Society gathering on the Bolivar Peninsula. Next time I run itll be along Crystal Beach!
Posted on: Mon, 31 Mar 2014 11:36:43 +0000
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