Re: Black Monday 10.08.07
All i can say this morning is wow....it takes a lot to surprise me but cancelling a marathon qualifies....I was in JAX, Florida over the weekend with my wife's family and could not post, but i could access the board and see what was going on, to some extent....i went to the update feature on Chicago, saw Nirv's times but then noticed the updates had stopped and concluded that he was forced to drop out....sorry to see i was right....didn't realize the extent of the catastrophe until this morning....but who would ever expect heat like that closing on mid-october in the Windy City?
Proud of your determined effort, Nirv, but also glad to hear you were pulled from the course and are okay....certainly that's what matters....a job well done regardless....
Dave - Sorry your race didn't turn out well either, but with your injury and this heat, the writing was on the wall....way to hang in there and persevere....proud of you too....
I ran in the Marine Corps 5k in Jacksonville Sat. morning instead of the race on the calendar. I was there for a memorial service later in the day for the pastor who married me 11 years ago....what a fine man he was, and talk about being proud of someone....if you want to read over nearly a year's worth of inspiration from a dying man, and a true man of God if there ever was one, go to jacksnell411.blogspot.com for a moving, inspiring experience....
As for my race, wonders of wonders, i was first in the 40-44 age group even with a painfully slow 26:34 chip time....thankfully the half-marathon pulled in most of the good runners, allowing me my "victory"....it started in the dark, in steady rain, 75 degree heat and nearly 100% humidity...i know, of course, that the conditions slowed me down a lot (huge crowd to fight through for over half a mile, the humidity, soaked clothes, ankle deep puddles everywhere!) but even had i been able to run in ideal conditions, 24 would've been a great day...
And get this....the race ended with about 100 meters or so across a muddy, water-logged field beside Alltel Stadium where the Jags play. Not exactly how you want to wrap up 3.1 steamy, foggy miles...
Adding to the excitement, i had locked my keys in the car before the race. So there i was, in the dark, 6:20 in the morning, surrounded by the miling masses, none of us exactly sure where to go, pouring rain at this point, a race to run and a memorial service to be ready to depart for by 9:30....nothing to do but find my number, find my chip, warm up a bit, run the race, borrow a cell phone, call my wife and have her bring me her key (surprise - she wasn't thrilled)...then she couldn't find me for 30 minutes, in spite of my "clever" plan to ensure success....all she said as the window rolled down was "don't ever do this again when we have something important to do!" and then she roared away, spray from the tires nailing me in the forehead....i could only grin (inwardly) and walk away, beginning the half mile hike back to the car.....
I'm only a hack at this stuff, obviously, but i sure as heck am enjoying myself, rain or shine...i only wish those of you with miserable days could've had better outcomes....i know it means a lot to you...
Alex - I hate these things you're experiencing....it will ease off and improve but keep your head up and soldier on as it really is a part of life that recurrs from time to time....
Sorry for the length, folks, but i wanted to give you all a nice feel for my racing foray this week, which i normally spare you all from....
Have a good day....
) 
