New Runner, Chapter 20

We did it! We raced in the snow to raise money for arthritis!

By now, those of you who know me, know that our mystery runner is CC reader MarthaMac. Martha and I have been friends forever. 

We missed the bus together in 1st grade and had to get a ride home with Mr. Merriman. We were in the Bicentennial play together in 2nd grade. (I think she was Betsy Ross and I was the Statue of Liberty.) We both decided to become teachers after being in Mrs. Dyson's 5th grade class. She had a singing part in our 6th grade musical production of Huck Finn. I had a speaking part, for obvious reasons. Her mom and my dad worked together at a radio station. Fast forward a few years, and I want to say we both took our GMAT the same day, though I'm not sure about that. 

She actually became a teacher, while my career took another path (sorry, Mrs. Dyson), but we've stayed in touch over all these the years. 

Which makes Saturday's race and Martha's journey so much more fun for me. 

So let's cut to the chase ... 

Race day conditions were truly quite horrible. Snowy, blowing, cold, dark, dreary. Even the dozens of cheerful elf socks, cute Santa hats and a dude in a polar bear suit couldn't change the fact that it was really sort of awful. 

We huddled in the shelter at Vilas Park until forced to head out to the starting line. By the time we started, my fingers were frozen. It was nice to hear the jingling of bells as we ran (each entrant was provided with a couple on colorful pipe cleaners), though. 

This is what the registration table looked like. Snow-covered
gum swag and jingle bells for your shoe laces.

The course included some walking paths, some sidewalks, and some actual roads. Most were greasy with slush, and very few were completely plowed, making fast running out of the question. You really had to pay attention to where your foot was going to land and my knees hurt by the end from the constant adjustments my body had to make for the slick footing. We climbed a few little hills, too, much to the chagrin of many. 

Both Martha and my niece did great! It was a really tough race for the "first" one, but they both stuck with it and crossed the finish line with BIG smiles. 

My niece ... in her fancy new running gear.
Including a Symplified camo hat!

There she is! At the finish line! With a lovely elf who not only
picked up our packets on Friday night, but ran with us the
whole way! Thanks and hope your back feels better!

I'm proud of what they accomplished. It was no small feat.

I'm hoping Martha will share her perspective with us one day this week. 

And I hope we can do another 5K when the sun is shining.