The Payback
In case everyone missed it in all of the press about Ryan Hall dropping out of the Chicago Marathon, I officially did not run my goal race for the year, the Monumental Marathon. But I really feel pretty good about how I responded. Instead of sitting around complaining and making life miserable for everyone around me, I gave back to the local running community. I volunteered as a course marshal for the race. My son Will also decided to pitch in for the day. Luckily we got a 2nd shift time so we didn't have to be up really early, but weather wise it really didn't matter; there was just no escaping the unseasonable cold. I think it was 28 F at the race start, and was only in the mid to upper 30's when we arrived at our post. We knew it was going to be cold standing around, so we were smart enough to layer up, and really, only our hands got a bit cold. Many thanks to the spectator who provided Will with an extra set of hand warmers she had.
We were posted about 1/2 mile from the finish and picked up around 3:30 from the start. I really enjoyed the time and the courteous and enthusiastic participants. There were 1 or 2 runners that were not very friendly and had not so kind words, but I knew they were deep in hurt and I'm sure they didn't mean what they said. I was a little said to see it come to an end. It was so uplifting to receive hundreds of thank yous and have the runners offer us high 5's! They were the ones putting in the effort and completing a marathon, but they were the ones giving us the kudos! Based on this experience, I will definitely help out with race again.
I also learned that I could never have been a traffic cop. The police officer that was stationed at our point on the course needed to let a lane of traffic across the course, but priority went to the runners. He kept a smile on his face and never got angry. I think I really would have lost it with the people who were honking for about 20 minutes!
As for my running, things are going pretty well. I was energized by watching the marathon and we've had some good weather. That has caused me to run a little bit more than I should be, but nothing an extra day off here and there couldn't fix. I did roll my ankle last week, but I was lucky to it be a minor issue and to be back out running 2 days later. I've switched to evenings from lunch time and have been exploring the some roads and paths around home that I have never been on, are new, or I just haven't been on in a while.
Other than the local Turkey Trot, there are no more organized runs on the docket for the rest of year. I am excited because everyone in the family will voluntarily be doing the run. I have started to think and dream about next year, but for now I'm just very happy to run aimlessly, meandering the streets and paths where ever I happen to be running that day.
Artist for Song in Title: James Brown
We were posted about 1/2 mile from the finish and picked up around 3:30 from the start. I really enjoyed the time and the courteous and enthusiastic participants. There were 1 or 2 runners that were not very friendly and had not so kind words, but I knew they were deep in hurt and I'm sure they didn't mean what they said. I was a little said to see it come to an end. It was so uplifting to receive hundreds of thank yous and have the runners offer us high 5's! They were the ones putting in the effort and completing a marathon, but they were the ones giving us the kudos! Based on this experience, I will definitely help out with race again.
I also learned that I could never have been a traffic cop. The police officer that was stationed at our point on the course needed to let a lane of traffic across the course, but priority went to the runners. He kept a smile on his face and never got angry. I think I really would have lost it with the people who were honking for about 20 minutes!
As for my running, things are going pretty well. I was energized by watching the marathon and we've had some good weather. That has caused me to run a little bit more than I should be, but nothing an extra day off here and there couldn't fix. I did roll my ankle last week, but I was lucky to it be a minor issue and to be back out running 2 days later. I've switched to evenings from lunch time and have been exploring the some roads and paths around home that I have never been on, are new, or I just haven't been on in a while.
Other than the local Turkey Trot, there are no more organized runs on the docket for the rest of year. I am excited because everyone in the family will voluntarily be doing the run. I have started to think and dream about next year, but for now I'm just very happy to run aimlessly, meandering the streets and paths where ever I happen to be running that day.
Artist for Song in Title: James Brown
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