Boilermaker and Beyond

I just finished participating in the Ted Moore 5k Run/ Walk at MVCC.  Because of an on-going knee problem I was simply a walker. In fact, this was the longest I have either walked or run in some time. In January of this year I had stem cell (my own) treatments on my knees that may get me back running again- we’ll see.

The weather was nearly ideal, slightly cool and overcast with a bit of humidity.

Registration took place in the new field house and I looked around imagining this year’s Boilermaker Expo housed here. If you are a runner there is something about being in the atmosphere of pre-race activities. There is subtle electricity that drifts among the participants. People handle it in different ways, some nervously chat while others stretch or run short intervals. It appeared that this year’s participation was very strong; some I knew, many I didn’t.

At 9:00a.m. the horn sounded and the runners ran and the walkers, well we walked. . As I meandered down the sidewalk I watched the runners slowly fading away. The two tribes, the runners and the walkers, had developed their little universes.

 In spite of absence of pounding the pavement I felt good. In fact at one point my brain said; “Hey, Tim; why don’t you try and just start slowly jogging a bit?” My knees immediately responded: “Don’t even think about it buddy!” The knees won the argument.

I walked by myself which was OK. I’ve found that with solitary walking I tend to tap into my creative side; that’s where I came up with the majority of this blog posting! I strolled across the finish line somewhere in the middle of the walking group.

All in all, while I didn’t walk a good time, I certainly had a good time.