Sunday, March 14, 2010

Compete to Complete

Compete to complete....that was my mantra on Saturday. I heard that phrase used by my sweet friend Sharon once and it really fit my day yesterday. I admit upfront that I was not prepared properly for this race and I have no one to blame for that except myself. I've known for months that I was doing it and I didn't train for it. I've been shredding and doing other exercises, but I haven't clocked nearly enough time on the treadmill lately. Pure and simple, my fault. Here's the whole story......

This is my friends and I prior to the start of the race. We look pretty dry, don't we?


This is the starting line. There were 801 people. A new record for this race. I'm proud to say that my niece (and godchild) was the chairperson for this fundraiser for our school and they raised $14,500.00. I think that's awesome! Okay, the race starts and so does the mist, but it's not bad. We are jogging along the first mile pretty well. Mile two and we start to get different little aches, pains and cramps and begin to move at our own pace. I begin to do intervals of a minute of running and a minute of walking. A lady comes up next to me and asks if I am run/walking the race and I say yes. She becomes my new best friend. She is doing the same thing as me. She was very nice and we had a nice conversation. By now, the rain is a little harder and the pavement is slick and has wet sand and mud to watch for. By the last mile, I was walking more than I was running and I wasn't very happy about it. There wasn't much I could do about it either. My calves were screaming and I was wet and cold. This is where compete to complete became my mantra. I just kept plugging along thinking about Sharon and how she would have been prepared for this race and flying along the course. A few weeks ago she ran a mini marathon and is now in training for a half ironman. She is amazing and two years older than me.
So, we finally crossed the finish line. We were wet, cold, achy(sp?) and tired, but we were done.


I found my friends and we all looked like drowned rats. Comparing notes, we all had pretty much the same experience. We headed off to the warming tent and got a bowl of corned beef and cabbage, a water and an asiago cheese bagel and tried to warm up. I didn't warm up until I got home and soaked in a hot tub for an hour. This morning, it was all I could do to get out of bed. The front of my thighs and the backs of my calves were screaming and still are. Of course, this was the day we had picked to go to Costco. Now they really, really hurt.

So that is the saga of Nancy and the Irish. Maybe next time I should find a Running with the Polish race. Or maybe next time, I just need to train better.

p.s. I don't know how it works in your world, but in mine, if a godchild calls you godmommy, run for the hills as fast as you can. I was up most of Friday night making an 18 quart roaster of corned beef and cabbage. The good news is that it seemed to be a hit.

18 comments:

  1. A 5K finish is QUITE an accomplishment. Good for you! I'm sure your Godchild is mighty proud of you!

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  2. You finished!! That's awesome :) You did fantastic, in my book!

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  3. I'm impressed that you did it!! Awesome. I would be watching it on the 6:00 news ;-) xoxo

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  4. You did it, you did it, you did it! That's what matters. I'm proud of you.

    Hugs!
    Kat

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  5. That's great you did it and finished! Especially with the weather being how it was. Congratulations, Mom. Love you!

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  6. I looked for you, but didn't see you. Probably doesn't help that I don't wear my glasses at these things...

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  7. You really rock! I love your commitment and determination. And I love your blog. Congrats on finishing despite all the adverse conditions!

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  8. You did awesome, Nancy. Awesome. I have never run a race in bad rain, but I've run in the rain. It is HARD. As a matter of fact, yesterday I was supposed to run and I didn't because of the rain. I need my glasses or prescription sunglasses to SEE, and I knew I could slip or trip or fall so I didn't run. You are my hero. You DID it! My mantra of compete to complete is what I live by. When I hit mile 10.5 in my half marathon, I hit the wall. I considered calling Barry (I run with my cell phone just in case... !!!) to come get me at mile 11, but then I thought of Barry's big smile and Keith & Nicole who drove to New Hampshire to see me and my grandchildren waiting for me at the finish line and I kept running. I was on a great pace and slowed down just to keep on going. People were passing me and I just kept saying to myself, "compete to complete." Just get there. We both GOT THERE, and to do this at our age with no experience and our legs begging us to quit... well, like I say, YOU are my hero. And all the ladies who ran with you and who care about those kids who will benefit from the money raised. YOU are AWESOME. And you looked just as beautiful at the end of the race! xo!

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  9. I congrat you on even trying to do this race, whether it be walking, running or crawling. Don't be hard on yourself cause you are still doing great. I agree with Sharon..YOU are my hero too!

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  10. Compete to complete...LOVE THAT!! You are incredible!! Great Job! I, too, agree with Sharon... you looked just as beautiful at the end!!

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  11. I'm so proud of you, Nancy! YOU DID IT! Even if you had to do it the way it worked best for you. You completed the race in totally gross conditions and I am proud of you :)

    You and your friend are BEAUTIFUL, even if you were drowned rats :)

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  12. good job nancy!! :) woot! i sure bet that hot tub felt nice at the end of the race.

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  13. YAY!!! You did it! I am so proud of you! xoxo

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  14. Seriously, I don't know how people run *at all*. I am the worst runner... so I'm very proud of you for run/walking the race. And what a good cause, too!
    You should be proud... you are a warrior! :)

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  15. You are AWESOME Nancy! Way to go! You are my hero <3

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  16. That is great Nancy! Way to push thru the pain and I bet your new friend was glad to have come upon you on the track!

    You are such a motivation...I hope to one day do a 5K too! Congratulations on having such a great turnout too!

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  17. What a wonderful accomplishment. And that is quite a sum of money you raised. Good for you.

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