But I left my excuses in my head where they belonged, layered myself up, and forced myself out the door before any of those excuses reached my legs.
I went back to the good ole Running Room. It was weird being there and knowing hardly anyone once again. But fortunately for me one of my friends showed up and - with the same goal in mind - off we set on our little 5.5k loop.
Our goal was to run a slow, easy, 6.30min/km steady pace. We did get down to 6.30 every once in a while, but for the most part we were quite comfortable going around a 6-6.15 pace. And boy, was it nice to have such a short run!!!
On the end of our loop we came across the crazies running the Hypo Half Marathon. And I went a little crazy myself.
As my friend would later tell me, my pace picked up and I was quite the sight flapping my arms around and cheering in a loud voice for the racers going in the other direction. From my perspective, I noticed my friend lean away from me and pull her hat down a little further over her eyes.
I couldn't see myself, but I imagine I may have looked something like this...
...which would explain why a few racers gave me a startled, "deer-in-headlights" look as they ran by
What can I say? I love cheering for my fellow racers! The morning was quiet and very few people were on the course. I know that for me, having someone cheer me along can make a huge difference in my race. I will go from feeling tired and uncomfortable to proud and happy with just one person who encourages me along.
So yes, I will be that person who flaps her arms and cheers loudly at all the passing racers, thanks. I will always be that person.
After we finished our lovely 5.5k loop, we stayed out a bit to cheer on many other racers as well, numb faced and all.
And the best part was when my friend decided to join in my kookiness and cheer as well. Two cheering kooks are better than one!
Thanks so much for being there today! It really lifts the spirit (and the feet) to have someone cheering. I really appreciated it!
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