Whoa, What’s Next???

You may be wondering the story of the 10k, and all I can say is it was AMAZING!!! My great friends came to town to run with me, we got lined up with all the OSU students who looked like they grew up on the cross country team. We were so far back in the crowd of over 3,500 that we didn't hear the announcers or the start of the race. In all of the excitement we began our slow trot and all of a sudden we hear a large WHOA and the crowd halted. The best way to explain this experience is by equating it to when you are driving too close to the car in front of you and they slam on their breaks. Everyone in the crowd had a nervous laugh and began jogging again.

My good friends stuck with me for the first mile of the race. I did exactly what my sister told me to do during the race; start off slow and steady. I passed mile marker 1 and my friends took off to run to their fullest potential. I don't remember much after that except that all of a sudden I was at mile marker 5 and I said to the police officer at that intersection, "Dude, I am actually going to finish this thing." I picked up my pace and took it home to find my friends cheering for me at the finish line and the announcer yelling my name over the loud speaker for the last two blocks. I was shocked, I did not stop running the entire time AND I cam in a lot sooner than I thought I would!!! It was great to do this race with good friends who have been around to support me for many years! To share the experience with them was amazing!!!

One of my ultimate goals was to do a 10k before I turned 30. I have now accomplished that goal. I plan on getting a few more under my belt in the next 6 months to build up my confidence. But what is next on my horizon besides 10king??? My sister has heard me say the following statement for six years now; "Next year I'm doing the Olympic distance triathlon." She always encourages me at registration time to sign up for the race. I'm going to take the leap!