Race....euphoria???
I was super-duper nervous about my very first running relay/race - I barely slept. I'm pretty sure the last time I participated in any sort of organized sporting event was at my Grade 5 track and field meet, where I came second in shot-put, and third in the 100m dash. It has to be said that both of these accomplishments far outshone my relay performance.
Moving on...
I awoke at 5 am sharp, had a lovely breakfast, and left the house shortly after 6 to make my way over to my teammates house (shout out to Karen and her man) which is approximately a 35 - 45 minute drive out to Kelowna. I was looking forward to this part of the day as an opportunity to release my pre-race anxiety through belting out old Pink tunes and Gwen Stefani's latest hit Crash (actually a bit vulgar). I arrived somewhat hoarse, but less anxiety-ridden.
Eventually we made our way to pick up our other teammates and then up to the University to get ready for the race. I thought the best course of action would be to run the first leg as Karen had informed me it was "mostly downhill" and I was willing to take any help I could get. Being that it was also a 1/2 marathon, the relay teams started 5 minutes later. There were six teams.
And the horn blows. And the runners take off. A slow start for Michelle...oh, there go the headphones (darn those headphones)...oh, my mp3 player goes flying off my fanny pack hitting the asphalt with a resounding crack, I stumble to pick it up, gather it up in my hand and continue on. As you all can probably imagine, I'm in dead last. This continues. And continues. I can give an accurate description of the facial features of the man on the motorcycle bringing up the end of the race. I am also quite familiar with his liscence plate number as he repeatedly drove up ahead of me to the next corner and patiently awaited my arrival. I puttered along, without the benefit of my muscial friend rather my only company being my own befuddled thoughts urging me to continue on despite the nagging "ohmigod I can't believe I'm last" whispering in my ear. Oh, I would like to take this moment to thank the lovely course marshals on my leg of the race for their sympathetic looks and words of encouragement. Finally, I arrive at my destination, pass off the little book, and end my portion of this little journey.
Being a positive-natured person, I choose to see this experience as my official initiation into the world of running. Now, I'm sure that it is every new runner's biggest fear to be last - I figure, okay, it's happened. I was last. Big deal. It's fine. I mean, you can't really do anything but move up from there. Am I right? Also, I really look forward to participating in an event where there are more competitors, and where I get to start and finish the race. I'm scheduled to do a 10k on May 14 - let that be my time to shine! Bring it on. :D
Moving on...
I awoke at 5 am sharp, had a lovely breakfast, and left the house shortly after 6 to make my way over to my teammates house (shout out to Karen and her man) which is approximately a 35 - 45 minute drive out to Kelowna. I was looking forward to this part of the day as an opportunity to release my pre-race anxiety through belting out old Pink tunes and Gwen Stefani's latest hit Crash (actually a bit vulgar). I arrived somewhat hoarse, but less anxiety-ridden.
Eventually we made our way to pick up our other teammates and then up to the University to get ready for the race. I thought the best course of action would be to run the first leg as Karen had informed me it was "mostly downhill" and I was willing to take any help I could get. Being that it was also a 1/2 marathon, the relay teams started 5 minutes later. There were six teams.
And the horn blows. And the runners take off. A slow start for Michelle...oh, there go the headphones (darn those headphones)...oh, my mp3 player goes flying off my fanny pack hitting the asphalt with a resounding crack, I stumble to pick it up, gather it up in my hand and continue on. As you all can probably imagine, I'm in dead last. This continues. And continues. I can give an accurate description of the facial features of the man on the motorcycle bringing up the end of the race. I am also quite familiar with his liscence plate number as he repeatedly drove up ahead of me to the next corner and patiently awaited my arrival. I puttered along, without the benefit of my muscial friend rather my only company being my own befuddled thoughts urging me to continue on despite the nagging "ohmigod I can't believe I'm last" whispering in my ear. Oh, I would like to take this moment to thank the lovely course marshals on my leg of the race for their sympathetic looks and words of encouragement. Finally, I arrive at my destination, pass off the little book, and end my portion of this little journey.
Being a positive-natured person, I choose to see this experience as my official initiation into the world of running. Now, I'm sure that it is every new runner's biggest fear to be last - I figure, okay, it's happened. I was last. Big deal. It's fine. I mean, you can't really do anything but move up from there. Am I right? Also, I really look forward to participating in an event where there are more competitors, and where I get to start and finish the race. I'm scheduled to do a 10k on May 14 - let that be my time to shine! Bring it on. :D
posted by Michelle at 5:11 PM
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