Our friend Cody found the 58 degree waters on the Ironman Course to be perfect yesterday for his pre-race swim. We hope he’s now sitting somewhere with his feet up and a glass of water in hand. Looks like the perfect weather tomorrow – a cool morning but 70 degrees in the afternoon. Could it be more perfect!!!!
Great crowd of RTBers at the Mt. Rainier long and short course du today. GREAT results and RTB spirit out there! Congrats to Nick Johnson, Brian Guillen, and Ed Clarke who place 2nd, 5th, and 8th overall in the long course race. That 3 RTB in the top 10 baby! No less BRILLIANT and STUNNINGLY good looking were Trev Dakan, Kelly Richards, Greg Kline, Randy Hefley, John Bahlenhorst, and Jerry Sommerman on the Long Course and Nicole Kline and I on the short course. In the spectating peanut gallery were Brad Williams, Erin Eronemo, and Josh Adams (5th overall at a tri in Elma last weekend) who made a stop on their Sunday ride to watch the finishes. Bill Swede taking photos and many family member in tow too. Feeling like RTB is off to a gangbuster 7th season. Check out photos of everyone on the RTB Gallery! www.weraisethebar.com/Gallery
I ran a little race in Boston today, and I won.
Ok, maybe we need a definition. The winner is the guy who crosses the finish line first. No, that guy was 2 hours in front of me. To win is to triumph over adversity. That’s the one.
I assume most people reading this will know, but I have Young Onset Parkinson’s Disease. It causes me to have muscle soreness, pain, muscle spasms, and sometimes my muscles just plain don’t work. Just getting to Boston is a big deal. Because I never know how I will do at a race I did not set a goal. I just figured I would show up, start running, and do what my body told me.
Getting started was a little confused. I was in the second wave. They didn’t let us walk the mile from the holding pen to the start line until the first wave was gone. You had to drop off your gear bag on the way. By the time you found the appropriate truck, dropped off your bag and got to the start line the second wave start already happened. No big deal though, it takes a while for 15,000 people to get moving.
I started slow. I was running exceptionally well and allowed myself to speed up. I soon passed my wife who started several corrals in front of me. We ran together for a short period and talked then I took off and continued to run my own race. At the half I started to do the math and thought I might run somewhere between a 3:30 and a 3:40, a really good race for me.
I ran past a woman with a singlet on from a cancer research center that said that cancer research center saves lives. She had put tape under that and written on the tape “it saved mine”. I ran up beside her and put my fist out. She gave me some DAP and I moved on without saying a word. I ran up to a young lady missing a leg and running with a prosthesis. We did the same. I ran though Wellesley and stopped in the scream tunnel to kiss a Wellesley girl. I picked one with bright gaudy lipstick on so I could brag to my wife at the end of the race.
Somewhere soon after someone flipped the switch. No matter how hard I tried I kept slowing down. I ran on. I got to the hills. They were longer and steeper than everyone told me. I started having muscle spasms in my calves. This slowed me down more. I ran on.
I had a gel whose brand name will remain anonymous. I hated it. It tasted like Nyquil and my throat burned for a good half hour. It made my gut boil for the next 2 hours. This Chinese chemical leftover package of death slowed me down more. I ran on.
I eventually made it to the finish. 4 hours. Not a great time, not a PR, but I got Parkinson’s. What’s your excuse? I grabbed 2 waters and a tiny woman in a medics coat grabs me by the shoulders and says “you’re not doing well”. I have a tendency to lose control of my blood pressure and pass out after a hard run. I stood there and wobbled and said “I’m fine.” She grabbed me by the chin and made me look her in the eye and said “are you sure”. I looked her in the eye, wobbled, and said “no”. The medics pulled me aside until I could stand upright without being dizzy and let me go.
So how did my race go? Remember my definition for winning?
I ran a little race in Boston today and I won.
Congratulation, everybody. We couldn’t be more proud!!! RAH! Bryan Gormley 3:45, Dave Graves 4:07, Wendy Graves 4:07, Heidi Hubler 3:24, Phil Kriss 3:33, Karen Leahy 3:49, Dave Spooner 3:33. I think I got those right this time!! We’d love to have some race reports when you’re all recovered and well rested. AND PICTURES!!!! SEND PICTURES!!!!!
Dave Graves is juggling a job, wife and fellow RTBer Wendy (and boy is SHE demanding!) , a running addiction, and Parkinson’s Disease. His story will likely touch you and inspire you to put on your running shoes and head outside. Read Dave’s story!!
www.rtbrunners.com/greatrunstories.html
Hello,
This is just a reminder that there are still Volunteer spots available for the Kirkland ½ Marathon and 5K Run/Walk on Sunday, May 9th! Spots are going fast, so please let Kristen at Hope Heart know by Friday, April 16th if you’d like in. Mom and daughter/son teams are encouraged! It’s a great way to spend time volunteering together—and you’ll be done in time for brunch! Start time is 5:30am, and end time is 11:00am.
If you have any questions about the specifics of the event, Kristen is happy to answer them. Events details and training will be provided to all participants. Free shirts, too!
To learn more about the event, please visit: http://www.promotionevents.com/Kirkland/index.htm
Contact Kristen at Hope Heart:
(425) 456-8751
kmchenry@hopeheart.org
Some great deals at NW Swim Shop now through the 17th. If you can't go to
the store, you can use coupon code "spring10" for the same discounts online.
