DEAD LAST...TOTALLY, COMPLETELY, DEAD LAST....................




AND I WON SECOND PLACE IN MY AGE BRACKET! Which I was also dead last in, but don't tell anyone.

This was (my) Mister's first race ever, and he also placed second in his age bracket. I am very proud of him, and he said he felt great afterwards, and has already ask me when the next race is( no matter that he might have been asking to know how long he has to rest...I am going to believe what I want to believe, that he loved it, and is looking forward to next time).

This is us, after the race. Don't you just LOVE the new running top I found on clearance a couple of weeks ago day?

So...Back to my race...

The graduation party was a great success, but I had been on my feet pretty much for the three days prior. The day of the party, I did not eat that much, but the things I ate were both sugary and fatty. NOT a healthy combination anytime, but especially vile for me the week before a race.

Race day, for whatever reason (I refuse to think just to torture me), the two resident's that normally sleep till nine or ten were up at seven so I had to take time out of my getting ready to get them up and dressed. No biggy except I forgot to take a change of clothes and the camera, and I was ticked at myself about this.

We got to the race (with only one wrong turn...Totally Mister's fault) in plenty of time to find out that there were only about thirty people entered in the race (and this included both the 5K and the 10K).

I did all my warm-up stuff, and was all set to start the race when it was announced it would start in ten minutes. We wandered over to the starting line and I started to get my headphones on. In what seemed like an instant, I heard five minutes, and then with barely a pause, READY, SET, GO! And people took off. I had my portable XM in my hand, one ear bud in place,, the other in my hand, and hadn't even had time to wish Mister a fun run. I just started out slowly, got myself together as I jogged, and then settled in for the race.

I kept with a really consistent ten (10) minute pace for the first four miles. Right around mile four I started crapping my pants from my crappy diet the days before the race. After another half mile I started slowing down just a bit and ended up finishing with a time of 104:22. I can't say I am at all upset about this time. Number one, it was on a trail, not the road and trails are always a bit slower because you have to watch your footing a bit more on the uneven surface. Number two I found I can run while crapping, and keep running. Lots of (sane?) people would have dropped out. To know I can keep moving is valuable experience for the marathon, which is going to be much longer than this race so upping the chances that my body will rebel in this fashion. It also seals the deal that what I eat (and do) leading up to a race is really important and not just important in my head. Again, a great learning experience.

How was it being last? Such a stigma in our society, I can't say that I didn't have a twinge or two at the thought, but in retrospect there is really nothing I might have changed about my race strategy that would have made much difference. There was also a part of me that loved the notion of being last. The part that said, "WAY TO STICK IN THERE!" Thinking that I was so important that they waited for the best to finish. Proud that I was out there in the first place when so many people aren't. Proud that I hung in and finished with a good kick!

And now I have that fear behind me. Everyone fears being last, and now I know that I not only can live through the experience, but I can shine during, and after the experience. It's all about attitude and gratitude. As I was running the second loop, feeling (my) muscles doing what brain was directing them to do, I could not help but feel full of gratitude for the ability to not only simply get up and run, but to run well, and for an extended period of time. I felt grateful for the ability as well as for the opportunity, and I look forward to seeing what adventures and experiences my running will lead me to next.