Today was the Florida Hospital Lady Track Shack 5k race. The race itself began at 7:30am, so I had to get up at 5am to get ready and drive to the site of the event. Once I got there, I had to park about a quarter of a mile from the location. Once I walked up to race site, I quickly found my name on the board and checked in to get my number, d-chip and shirt.
Before I knew it, the race began. I decided to start the race with a jog. I jogged for about a minute and then went down to a fast walk. I spent most of the race speed walking, but did get up bursts of running here and there. I wanted to run more, but didn’t want to push myself too much since I’m still new to running.
Once I hit the two mile mark, the road split off. There were runners who were ahead of me were now passing by to my left. This was quite an inspirational sight to see, other women pushing themselves to get to that finish line. This really got me moving even more. I took off running and ran for as long as I could before slowing back down. After walking for another two or three minutes, I burst into another running interval. I was going to run as much as I could to the end.
I was back to my speed walking when I realized the finish line was in sight. My yearning to reach it took over and I ran. The end itself was probably about two minutes away, but I knew I could pull the strength from inside of me and do it. And, I did. I ran all the way to that finish line. I am proud to say that when I crossed that line, I was running. That felt better than anything I can accurately describe.
My final finishing time was 48 minutes and 18 seconds according to my D-chip. The race was never about beating anyone for me, just finishing it and knowing that I did the best that I could possibly do. I did this, so to me, this 5k was a great success and I am very happy I did it.
One of the bad things about living in a very small Southern town is that you don’t have these kinds of opportunities! Maggie and I still get our six mile walk in every day, though. It’s just less formal and less exciting. It sounded like such an exciting and rewarding experience. I am happy for you Shannon!