I was out watching the annual ING Marathon at 7:30 this morning. The route from downtown Miami takes the runners right past the entrance to our street in Coconut Grove, so we routed our morning walk to be able to watch them run by. I marvel at the speed of the front runners, but I really relate to the slower ones who are out there just to prove to themselves that they can actually run 26.2 miles without dying in the process.
Watching them this morning I had a vivid memory of the first race I ever ran. I gave up smoking and took up running on my 50th birthday. By the end of the first year I could run a mile fairly easily but had never considered running in a race. That September, Spector/Anker Associates, our public relations firm, was handling the International Auto Show and someone came up with the brilliant idea of kicking off the show with a 10k foot race that started and ended at the Miami Beach Convention Center.
We got a local running club to organize the run and even got Don Shula, the coach of the Miami Dolphins at the time, to be our honorary race marshall. When the guys from the running club heard that I was a new runner, they insisted that I run in the race. I was frightened at the thought of runing 6.2 miles but I told myself I had a month to get ready and all I had to do was train.
With a few other things on my plate like handling all the pre-publicity for the show and taking care of other clients,, I never got further than 3 miles on any morning run. I tried not to think about the fact that the race was more than twice as long. The wife of a friend of ours was also running in the race. The fact that Jen was in her early 30's, and 20 years younger than me, bothered me a bit, but it was her first race also and at least it was someone who wasn't going to run away from me at the starting gun. It was a gorgeous day, the sun was blazing, and the route took us down through South Beach and back again. As we started out, my clearest memory of the moment is of my two year old grandson (yeah, that was you, Adam) sitting on his grandfather's shoulders, waving to me as I ran by. That was the last good moment I had.
By 4 miles into the race, the sweat was poring down and I was sure I was going to die. What kept me going was that every time I looked at Jen, I would say to myself, "you will not let her run away from you just because she's 30 and you're 50. You will keep running even if it kills you." Jen actually finished the race a minute or two ahead of me. I made a triumphant, if exhausted , finish accompanied by all the members of the Runner's Club who came out to escort me in.
You are not going to believe this, but I actually won lst place in the Women's 50 and over category..Admittedly, I was the only one running in that category that day, but I still have the trophy sitting proudly on my shelf. The best part was Jen's comment as we relaxed in the hot tub on our patio after the race. She told me the only thing that kept her running was watching me and thinking to herself "if that old lady can keep running, damnit, I'm not going to quit."
We ran in lots of races after that, and I still have the tee-shirts to prove it. My running days have slowed down to a brisk walk, but watching the guys and especially the girls at the back of the pack this morning, really took me back. Believe me, I know just how they felt. Totally exhausted but totally determined. Try it some time. Makes for great memories.
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Photo caption: Thumbs up, after a successful race, circa 1981.
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