Pip Pip! Tomorrow marks the first race of the season (for moi)- The Get in Gear 10K!
This is very exciting stuff as it marks the anniversary of the 1st race Moda and I entered last year before getting crazy nutso about distance running!
I'm finding myself fraught with introspection and reflection as the day approaches- it's been this pervasive and wiggling feeling of pride that I've been pushing back since getting back outside and running on the earth. The idea of "How far we've come". You know? Check it out:
Last year we were able to remark on our personal progress from race to race, viewing PR's and how strong we felt at the end. And the first race was going to be the first organized outdoor "run" either of us had participated in. We were going to get a "number" for crying out loud. And a t-shirt. They would know how fast or slow we were going with their computer machines! Madness!
And it was pissing rain. Cold. Wet. Rain.
I remember all sorts of crazy details- Would I get stretched out enough beforehand? Were my laces tied well? Were they too tight? Is that an 8 year old kid with a race number? And the people...I mean, I like to get my "crowd" fix at the State Fair once a year, but there I was in the middle of the street elbow to elbow with all types of runners. Such a strange feeling of being out of my league mixed with "Michael? You're just running." And then the horn blasts, the numb and damp crowd starts ambling forward and the pace starts to piiiick up.
It felt like the run was going to take forever. The longest run we'd done up until that point was the 8-mile trail trot at Hyland. And we walked parts of it. 6 + miles, even when doing it during training, seemed prohibitive.
And then it was fine. Well, not "fine" fine. We finished at around 1:03, looking like drowned rats. I was winded and nearly puked at the end. We were getting our gear bags when the half-marathon finishers blew us away with their announced times. Heck, I even had my first bloody nipple sighting. (Gross) The funny thing, was after the run we were exHAUSTED. Legs were on fire. Sore. Aching. Walking back to the car seemed like a cruel joke. (We gave the stink eye to people who were still springy and running back to their cars)
A year later, I'm actually finding myself getting pumped for this thing. Moda, D-Gang, FeeJ and I have all been keeping ourselves apprised of our progress. We've put up our miles. We've ran with our barefoot toots. And it's like our jokey nickname of "Team Awesome" should be more like "Fuck yes, we are Team Awesome" . (Although, I'm jealous that they'll be able to retire to the Triple Rock for a celebratory beer while I sit in rehearsal...rank, and smelling like a donkey for two hours)
Check it out- I was on a run a few days ago and I had just read an article Moda sent me about the group of marathoners who did an experiment in race-hunting. (Running down a prong-horn antelope. Apparently one of the fastest land animals) This kind of thing sort of puts things in perspective for me for when I'm dreading going out for a run, or on the treadmill feeling like a hamster.
As corny as it sounds, when I need to "dig deep" I think about the big names in distance racing and how many miles they put on in just a week. Goucher, Dean-o, Hill, Jurek, Davila, Meb, Geb, Mutai? They log 100's of miles weekly for training. And me? I'm lucky to make 25 if I'm feeling good. So I figure if the icons of distance running, the one's who are (IMO) examples of superhuman endurance and always all-smiles when they cross the tape? I figure I can go the distance and not stop to walk along the way. That's the part of my gut I pull from. That's my little motivator. And I don't think I did that before. I like that I can ease into this one.
And when all else fails, I have a kick-ass running mix.
And a kick-ass team.
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