I had a lot of emotions going in. I was excited to do something I'd never done before. I was a little nervous about doing it because it was new but I was confident I'd be able to finish the course. I certainly struggled with whether or not I "belonged" there mixed in with all the runners and athletes.
Friday night I had arrived in Winchester, had dinner with some friends and bought a quality pair of running shoes. New shoes on I went to the registration table on Saturday and got my number. Some stretching and warming up and I joined the group at the starting line. After some instructions the race was started we were on our way.
Never having done one of these before I really had no idea what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised to find volunteers every little way making sure we were headed the right way but all of them were supportive and encouraging as I passed them. There were also enough of them that it wasn't long after passing one that the next one was in sight. This made it very easy to keep going and set a short term goal - get to that next station.
I had set three goals before I started: two primary ones and a secondary one. My first goal was to finish and my second to not stop for any breaks. I did slow down when I wanted to drink so I didn't get water all over me but as wet as I was from the rain that probably wouldn't have mattered. I did drop my water bottle at one point but was able to pick it up without stopping my movement and therefore still meet that goal. My third goal was to finish in under an hour if I could. I accomplished all three. My time was 54:48. That means I did a little better than 3 miles/hour which I was actually pretty excited about since I walked all but about 3 minutes of the time. I jogged a few steps a couple of times but mostly stuck to walking.
There was a 1 mile kids fun run that started 45 minutes after the 5k and used the last part of the 5k course. This meant I crossed the finish line with a bunch of children completing their run. It did make me feel a little out of place but my goal was not to finish before them. Next time it will be. I finished 160th overall and 13th in my age division. :) Of course there were only 160 participants and 13 in my age division. My competetive side never likes coming in last but since the goal at this event was to finish, where I placed didn't matter.
I did discover a couple of things.
- 5k (3.1 miles) is not that far and I was easily able to finish
- I had more left when I was done so I could have gone farther or faster.
- The encouragement I received from the volunteers and participants made the race easier.
- At the end of the day I only had 11,000 some steps in (I had more the day before). :)
I am planning to participate in the Jingle Bell Run with my brother in Birmingham, AL on December 10. I'm hoping for a little warmer weather and a little better time.
Less me me. More of Him.
-Eric
