Bright lights, flat pavement, and no planes! That was the scene of the first Veterans Museum Tribute 5K race conducted at the Wood County Airport on July 31, hubby George's birthday.
George, friend Diane Hartley, and I arrived early to help set up for the 9 p.m. race.
There was a lot to do - get registration tables, T-shirts, and bib numbers ready, make Gatorade in large coolers, put bottled water in coolers, get ice and then even more ice, set up the finish line area, and so on.
Several members of the River City Runners and Walkers Club as well as representatives of the Veterans Museum were there to help race coordinator Andy Nestor.
There still was a pinkish red glow in the sky when Joe Corra finally blew the horn to start the race. Though I had heard the course described several times, it was still Greek to me - go down this taxi way, turn here, go straight on the runway. . . I decided to just follow the crowd. Since I had not done a race in more than a month, I was excited.
I had no expectations - just hope that my time would be between 43 and 45 minutes.
I started out strong and fast (for me).
Soon, I passed a few people. I thought about telling them that they would probably pass me back in a few minutes, but I decided to keep my thoughts to myself.
Maybe, if I kept quiet, my negative prediction would not come true.
When we came to the end of the first taxi way, I was sure that we had gone at least ten miles ha!
We hadn't even done a mile.
My breathing was awful and I'm sure that people could hear me coming. Friend Amy Koher actually said when I almost caught up with her, "I knew that was you!"
I struggled to keep up with Amy and new friend Margie Oldfield as we hoofed it over the dark runway.
Natural light quickly had faded and though the runway lights were bright, they gave little light to the pavement.
Fortunately, there were no cracks or pot holes to ground me.
That was good because I could concentrate only on breathing as Amy and Margie's invisible bungee cord pulled me along.
Daughter Mary Beth came back to walk me to the finish line and my pace slowed a little.
When her young eyes saw the clock at the finish line she repeated several times, "You're doing great, Mom! You've outdone yourself! Keep going!"
Huffing and puffing, I crossed the finish line with the best time that these old eyes have ever seen - 41:22!
That's a PR (personal record) which may be hard for me to match.
It was almost like a dream - a race on a flat course in the cooler evening hours.
Now it's time to get back to reality - training in the heat, humidity, and hills that make up our Parkersburg Half Marathon!
George, friend Diane Hartley, and I arrived early to help set up for the 9 p.m. race.
There was a lot to do - get registration tables, T-shirts, and bib numbers ready, make Gatorade in large coolers, put bottled water in coolers, get ice and then even more ice, set up the finish line area, and so on.
Several members of the River City Runners and Walkers Club as well as representatives of the Veterans Museum were there to help race coordinator Andy Nestor.
There still was a pinkish red glow in the sky when Joe Corra finally blew the horn to start the race. Though I had heard the course described several times, it was still Greek to me - go down this taxi way, turn here, go straight on the runway. . . I decided to just follow the crowd. Since I had not done a race in more than a month, I was excited.
I had no expectations - just hope that my time would be between 43 and 45 minutes.
I started out strong and fast (for me).
Soon, I passed a few people. I thought about telling them that they would probably pass me back in a few minutes, but I decided to keep my thoughts to myself.
Maybe, if I kept quiet, my negative prediction would not come true.
When we came to the end of the first taxi way, I was sure that we had gone at least ten miles ha!
We hadn't even done a mile.
My breathing was awful and I'm sure that people could hear me coming. Friend Amy Koher actually said when I almost caught up with her, "I knew that was you!"
I struggled to keep up with Amy and new friend Margie Oldfield as we hoofed it over the dark runway.
Natural light quickly had faded and though the runway lights were bright, they gave little light to the pavement.
Fortunately, there were no cracks or pot holes to ground me.
That was good because I could concentrate only on breathing as Amy and Margie's invisible bungee cord pulled me along.
Daughter Mary Beth came back to walk me to the finish line and my pace slowed a little.
When her young eyes saw the clock at the finish line she repeated several times, "You're doing great, Mom! You've outdone yourself! Keep going!"
Huffing and puffing, I crossed the finish line with the best time that these old eyes have ever seen - 41:22!
That's a PR (personal record) which may be hard for me to match.
It was almost like a dream - a race on a flat course in the cooler evening hours.
Now it's time to get back to reality - training in the heat, humidity, and hills that make up our Parkersburg Half Marathon!
Fact Box
EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a continuing weekly series written by Wood County schoolteacher Marlene Welch as she prepares to participate in the Aug. 21 News and Sentinel Half Marathon.