Friday Five: Favorite Race Memories

Favorite Race Memories

I love this topic this week. I have so many good memories from each race.... so let me narrow it down

1. Conversations

People want to do this to me - I'm sure

I am a talker.  & I usually never meet a stranger.  If you have a face, I'll talk to you.  I have had so many races where I have met people & have started talking & ended up crossing the finish line with.  That's a big cheer for the "back of the pack" gang.  We aren't on any mission to win any awards, so we are able to talk to those around us.  One time, I finished the last 4 miles of a 10 mile race with a young girl whose family was all running, but they split up.  She was actually going on a mission trip soon & being a youth leader, I was so happy to talk to her about what God's call was on her life.  Tell me that wasn't a God-planned moment!  Another lady I met in a race, we ended up having mutual friends that use to go to my church that was now at her church.  She was having problems with her teenager daughter.  Again, I loved I was able to talk to her about teenagers & to listen & give as much Godly advice as I could.  I ended up missing my PR by 2 minutes in that race, but was so thankful for the conversation I had instead.


2. I'm Dirty - He's Clean

When we did the Color Run last time, I think the hubs misses the memo to get color on him... That picture above?  He RAN the color run... but it was so funny to watch him because he avoided the color at all costs.  I don't blame him.  It's tough to inhale that stuff & if you've done a Color Run, you know you have colorful snot for a long time.  Nice, huh?  With Ricky's accident years ago of being in a fire, his lungs need extra protection so I don't blame him for not wanting to inhale the stuff.   But it was hilarious watching him run a quarter mile OUT of the way to avoid color.  The people would yell at him to stay on course & he'd just give a thumbs up.  I laughed every time.  Me?  I got murdered in color.  I then threatened to hug him & mess up his clean shirt....

3. When I knew I was going to PR

Right here is when I knew... my husband was standing at the end.  The finish line was about .30 away & I knew I was going to make it.  I saw him & kept saying, "I'm going to do it"... & then got so emotional. It was insane how emotional.  The hubs still talks about that.  I got so emotional, I ended up slowing down because I started crying, taking my breath away. Dumb.  So he kept yelling at me to go go go..... I ended up crossing the finish line with 10 seconds left. Whoooo - close!  But I did it.  That feeling still gives me goose bumps & is an achievement in life I'm proud of.


4. After the Race

The first few years, I ran races by myself, which I don't mind one bit. I'm a solo runner.  But then the hubs started sticking with me.  Which has been wonderful.  Sometimes I want to scream at him when I get in those "DONT TALK TO ME" moods, but mostly, he's encouraging, distracting me from pain, pushing me when it hits & its always fun to have company.  But the best part of him being with me?  After the races.  We were making it a habit to go out for breakfast afterwards & on this one particular day, the goal was to finish the Papa John 10 miles race & head to Crackle Barrel just so I could get the new Steven Curtis Chapman CD that was only sold there.  Talk about a reward for a hard race.  The funny thing about that?  We ended up not eating at Crackle Barrel, but went down to Panara Bread instead... these are like 20 minutes apart from each other too.  The fun doesn't end when the race ends :)


5. Best Race I never ran

My back issues started back in 2012.  I trained anyways for a half marathon for the spring of 2013.  My back just kept getting worse, but I was determined to run.  3 days before the race, my back had major issues.  Like issues where I couldn't even sit, lay, stand, squat - I was miserable.  Tears.  My husband wanting to take me to the ER.  In my head, I was still going to run 13.1 miles in 3 days.  When I woke up on race morning, I knew I couldn't do it.  & I cried - more like bawled - like a baby.  I had got all the training in - I was ready... I watched the start of the race on TV & felt like someone was ripping my heart out.  I yelled at Ricky to get dressed - we were leaving.  I made a quick sign & went down to the race & cheered on the runners.  It was awesome!  I saw so many people I knew.  The best part - I know how it feels to be at the back of the pack & I stayed till the end.... & those people who were scattered out & so few & far between were so extremely grateful.  They were thanking me for staying & cheering them on.  It honestly is one of the best memories I'll ever take away from a race.

 

What is a great race memory you have?