First 5K of the Year

Matt and I ran (or "ran") a 5K this weekend.  This was Betty's idea, she was going to walk a 5K in Concrete to support the local Lion's Club Booster, and since I'm trying to find ways to support family and friend's communities efforts, we decided to go.  I thought I might walk, but the weather was wet, which made me think I should "run," you know, to finish "faster."

Let's discuss my running quickly. (Or maybe just briefly, since my running quickly doesn't come up much.)  At various times in the past, I've thought, "I should run," and this idea is almost immediately rejected by by lungs and legs. A coworker has been running, and since we have this fitness challenge, at work, I thought I should go with her.  She runs really slow.  And you know what, if I go really slow, I can run.  Or jog.  Or possibly wog.  You know those skinny late-middle aged women who get all decked out in high visibility fluorescent spandex and then go for runs so slow, you wonder why they are even wearing work out clothes?  I'm a little slower than that.  And I'm totally ok with it.

Let's just compare that to Matt's running.  Matt, my dearly beloved, wear a heart rate monitor when he runs.  He will occasionally let his bestie talk him into going into a 5, no oops, 8 mile trail run up a mountain. When Matt saw last year's times for this 5K, he simply said, "I'm pretty sure I could beat that." 

Needless to say, Matt and I never run together.  Matt thinks running together would be nice, but I am much happier running and suffering on my own then listening to his chipper banter about how he is almost warmed-up while I'm already too out of breathe to tell him I don't want to talk about how wind sprints might help me.  It's one of those secrets to our happy marriage: we don't run together.

But, we can run at the same event.  This was an out and back kind of race- run away from the school 2.5K, then come back 2.5K. IT was paired with a 10K, where lean people would run out 5K, and back 5K. Now, I'm a "running my own race" type, but I was hoping to see racers returning, since this would indicate that at least someone made it near the halfway point.  I finally saw some kids running back (yes, actual children), eventually followed by Matt. As he passed, he rolled his eyes and said, "I forgot to turn around." When I got back, 45 min from the start time (a personal best, thank you), Matt was there to greet me.  I got a participation ribbon (Woo!), and we went to get some water before watching to see Betty come in.

We compared notes: I was not passed by the 83 year old trail walker, but I'd been dropped by most everyone else who ran.  After he forgot to turn around (because he was keeping up with people running the 10K), he had to run pretty hard to make up the time.  He had to pass several children, and a guy with one leg.  He has been hoping to post a personal best (since he is in great shape from Mt Bike Racing this winter), but that was not to be.  I finally asked him what he did with his ribbon, and he sheepishly pulled out his SECOND PLACE MEDAL from his pocket.  Yup, second place, behind a 15 year old, and in front of 12 year old and a man running with a blade in place of his foot.