Surprise race

Yesterday, I was blogging about working out in the weather. Once I posted, I began watching the news. I watched in time to see the Public Service Bulletin Board (basically the civic events: pancake breakfasts, church picnics, and that sort of thing).

I saw that there was a 5K race in Scranton. The race was a charity event (as many are) to raise money for a K-9 dog for the police department. I admit that I sometines butt heads with the police over their enforcement (or lack there of) of parking laws. However, I do support the police when possible and since I was going to run anyway, I ran their race.

I've run road races before, though not in a couple of decades, so I had a good idea what to expect. Perhaps you would not. The race was less than a mile from my house, so I walked over. I got there about 40 minutes before the start. I asked if I could still register and with a yes, I paid my $25, got a T-shirt and talked with a few other runners.

Sometimes it is not possible to register on race day, so I really do not recommend waiting. I did not know about this event beforehand, and I was in the area, so I had less to lose by just showing up. Races are social events, not hug and exchange numbers things (usually), but a "Hey didn't I see you at: a park; a race or almost anywhere else".

I run pretty slowly, so I did not win, not even for my age group. Yet I felt like a winner. You always do when you share a race or other physical event with a few hundred or few thousand people. It was a personal record for me. I said that I ran road races before, but this was my first 5K, so as slow as I may have been, it was still my fastest.

Some runners pass you, and you pass others. If you're not out to win, its no big deal. You greet some, and some greet you. Words of encouragement are exchanged. As you near the finish line, you hear cheers and applause. Twenty minutes after the winners crossed the finish line, and still they applaud you. Its a good feeling.

There are bottles of water at the finish line. There are also bananas and bagels and a variety of things. This particular 5K was a walk/run, which means that you did not have to run to participate and there were a number of people walking. After everyone finishes and relaxes a few minutes, awards are given out. Different races have different catagories, but generally they are divided by age groups of roughly 10 years.

When you're ready I recommend trying one. You'll have fun and meet like-minded people.

Be active, be happy