1st loser on the 4th

Yesterday proved why one should never tie one's ego to winning. Sometimes it's all about who shows up.

Yes, I know, that does sound like something only a loser would say.

Yesterday I ran the African-American 5k in Baltimore. The prize for first place was two round trip tickets on Southwest to any place in the country. After looking at the results from last year I thought that I had a decent chance. I thought I could run about a minute faster than the winning time from last year. So, I registered after making sure that most of the guys I knew could beat me were out of town for the holiday or not interested.

Yes, I was running this race pretty much entirely to get some free plane tickets. Usually, I'm not the kind of runner who see how much money I can win at local road races - primarily because it isn't terribly motivating for me. I like big, historic races - where being in the top 100 is an achievement. Not to say that I don't enjoy winning - I do - I just don't want to be "one of those guys" who searches for the "easy money" or "easy victories."

So, in my own world view, I got what I deserved when I showed up to find out that two of the local Ethiopians were running the race. The race was pretty much over after 50 meters - he ended up beating me by a minute. So, very quickly I had to reconsider my goals. I decided that since I hadn't run a 5k for awhile I needed to test my fitness. So, I just ran as hard as I could and ended up with a 15:54 (although the course may have been about 10-15 seconds short). This was about what shape I thought that I was in - so, that was good. And the awards ceremony was awesome. They had a radio personality from Baltimore as the emcee. Judging from his girth he hadn't attended too many races in the past - although he ran the race - coming in last place. He did a great job on the awards - he had a little funny comment for everybody who came up.

One thing I've learned in my old age is that the world is a much better place if you let go of your pre-conceptions of what life should be about. Sometimes people, experiences, jobs etc end up being valuable in very different ways than you first expected. The key is remaining open - and not let disappointment get in the way of having a good time.

Last Week
Monday: 7 miles
Tuesday morning: 4 miles
Tuesday afternoon: 10.5 miles Tempo workout 2X15 min at the magic garden
Wednesday: 8 miles
Thursday: 16 miles
Friday: 4 miles
Saturday: 11 miles 5k race
Sunday: 10.5 miles
Total: 71 miles

This Week
Monday: 7 miles
Tuesday morning: 4 miles
Tuesday afternoon: 10 miles Track workout
Wednesday: 10 miles
Thursday morning: 4 miles
Thursday evening: 10 miles possible track workout
Friday: 9 miles
Saturday: 6 miles
Sunday: 16 miles 8 mi of tempo
Total: 76 miles