Robin's Race
I'm excited to see how it
goes today! I want to defend my title and win the coveted chocolate turkey for
a third time. I haven't done much speed work but I
did do several tempo runs and a track workout with my buddy, Courtney. I don't know if it will be enough.
No
matter what, I want to do this for God's glory.
Courtney and I warm-up
together. I see Justin Morejohn, an athlete I coached at Davis High, pushing his little guy,
Jeshua. I feel a little
dated now (= It's really great to see him and his wife, Sara, doing
well and giving the credit to the Lord!
On the starting line I rush to
get everything set. I take a few pictures with the Morejohn's. Justin introduces me to his friend, Megan, and her husband,
Don. They are a very nice family and talented indeed! Megan
qualified for the Olympic Marathon trials and Don won the NCAA 1500meter.
Megan is in the race pushing her 1 year old. I have my work cut out for me!
Megan is chatting with a girl at the front of the starting line that runs for GVH (Golden Valley
Harriers). I notice she's wearing a lot
of layers which is not usual for someone trying to win. I'll find
out soon how fast the competition is.
Ready, set, go! The GVH
girl takes off. Megan and I run together. This is going to be
interesting! Justin is in 3rd overall and looks strong. At
the first turn, the lead cyclists go straight, taking the top 2 guys off course,
while Justin yells at them to turn. What a mess! The 2 guys
are back on track but clearly upset, as would be expected. The GVH girl continues to press on and Megan and I stick together
in pursuit. I
tell Anna and Ariel good job! They seem to be having fun.
Mile 1:
6:48. That was
tough! I don't know if I can keep this pace up.
We head under Covell Blvd
and things get tight. I let Megan go ahead a bit.
Once on F St. I jump on the road while the others stay on the bike path.
But then I realize we're probably supposed to stay on the path so I jump the curb
to get
back on. This cost me time and I trail farther behind Megan.
The GVH girl has pulled away
more and I'm wondering if I can catch her. I remind myself that
anything is possible with God. God, please help me! I look at
my pace and I'm now in the low 7min range...oh dear, this could get ugly!
We get on the Covell Park
Greenbelt and head to the only hill - a bike overpass.
Mile 2:
7:02...oh my!! Over the "hill" and I see the camera
guys..."smile Anna and Ariel". As we continue on, we see Troy.
Wow, nice of him to meet us here. Anna says "how
did you get way out here Daddy?" and Troy says "I don't know"...cute!
It's nice to see him and once again he's in the perfect place and time to
encourage me! "Anything can happen" he tells me and I know I just
need to push harder.
There's a short out and back.
I'm trailing the GVH girl by 35 secs and Megan by 15 secs. I tell them good job.
I keep up the hope.
Troy is there again as I hit the last long straight away. "You've got
to push hard on this straight away" he tells me and I pick it up.
I dig down and try to catch Megan and the GVH girl. It doesn't look
like I can close the gap but I keep trying and I keep smiling ... 'remember,
Robin, this is for God's glory and not yours!'
Mile 3:
6:50...better! I
see Justin, Sara and Justin's parents cheering
me in.
Lance is there, too, with Logan, Jacob and Evan. I smile and push hard
and cross the line in 3rd.. 7th overall. I cannot complain.
Great effort and great competition out there. They did annouce that I was the first double-stroller
to finish. That's cool!
Go Courtney!
