Brush and Rush

Too many 5K races these days. Not sure if I could run another 5K just one week after running two races in one weekend. Thought I could just run easy. The race did not start until 9 AM. Gathered all my running stuff and showed up with enough time to register.  Glad the person registering me was able to pronounce my name properly. The Brush and Rush 5K was being organized by the Hispanic Dental Association.

Warmed up running the trail by the Terry Trueblood park. It looked like there were about 100 runners/walkers.  Just a handful of elite runners lined up at the start line. First mile in 6:37. Definitely too fast for a first mile. I guess I underestimated how fast this young girl I was chasing was! I let her go after the first mile. Turned around and the race seemed not as long. I chased a guy in the last 0.25 miles. We had a close finish. Can't wait to see the results list. The guy shook hands with me after we crossed the finish line. Finished in  21:47 min (6:58 pace).
Went to Davenport after lunch with the family and walked along the mighty Mississippi. The river was very high and part of the trail was covered with water. My Achilles was in pain, but warming it up eased the pain. Not sure if I can do a half marathon next Sunday (Ronald McDonald House). 

Marion Half Marathon

Two races back to back this weekend. RunningWild organized the first MUSCO Community 5K around Finkbine golf course on Saturday. Kim S and I ran together. I was supposed to be her pacer, but actually, I felt like she was my pacer. It was a good race and my foot did not bother me much. Finished the race in first place in my age group (we were only two runners in my age group). There were about fifty runners. Dam to downtown race was taking place concurrently. Dan was running the 10 K race  from the dam. The race started after we heard the star-spangled banner and there was a moment of silence to remember those in Boston. Knowing the route made me very comfortable during the run. Kim got first place in her age group too. She is a very good runner and she is almost my age. 

There were many cars driving to the Marion High School where the marathon was starting on Sunday morning. Fortunately, there was plenty of parking for everybody. This High-School must have a lot of students. Found Jen F and decided to run together. Again, I was supposed to pace her. We ran most of the race together.  There were times where I did not know where she was, and there were times where she wanted to pass me. The temperature was cold. But, I decided to run in shorts. There were times where we felt ice coming down. The wind blowed against us for several miles. But hope made us continue thinking at some point we would have the wind pushing us on our backs. The race was very well organized and there were enough water and GU stations. We met Ben around mile 11 and we all ran together. I saw a very young girl running together with her dad and I really wanted to pass her.  They accelerated the last mile, and I had to go even faster. There were two young girls finishing behind me, one was nine and the other one eleven years old!  Amazing young women!
I was number six in my age group. Don't think I could have done better running solo.  I enjoyed running with Jen and helping her with the tough miles. People along the marathon were cheering runners up. It's nice to see so many people running and also spectators watching the runners. The finish line was in a beautiful track inside a stadium.
My foot did not really bothered me. I just felt my legs pretty stiff by mile 9 or 10. I hope that track work helps me moving those legs and keeping them strong and flexible. 

Boston Marathon Tragedy. April 15, 2013

A bomb detonated near the finish line when the race clock hit about 4:09. Two people killed and about 100 others injured. Nobody knows, nobody understands how a person can dare to do such as dreadful thing like this. Boston is the most important and famous marathon in the US. A day when elite runners from all over the world get together in celebration. My heart breaks to know something unimaginable like this happened today.

100 Years

How does 100 years old sound?  It sounds like a lot of years to me. Tia Lola is 100 years old, but she doesn't look that old, and she looks in very good shape! I asked her what her secret was and she confessed it to me. She said --no worries!  just two words...  no worries. I enjoyed seeing her and talking to her.

It was a pleasure talking to Uncle Oscar too. He has a special way of telling stories. He talked about my father, his closest friend. Next time I go to Mexico, I will definitely continue this video project. I treasure these videos so much. Tio Oscar told us some stories I had never heard before.