Cocoa 5-K

Races.  They are the goal of many runners, and I have certainly run my share of them over the past two decades or more - 159 of them, including those 20 marathons enshrined upon the wall behind our fireplace.  "If you don't have a challenge, find one,." said running's great philosopher, Dr. George Sheehan.  What would life without challenges be like?  And sometimes we don't find challenges; sometimes they find us, track us down, confront us when least expected.  Those are the challenges that I have found it is most important to undertake.

I well remember two years ago in April when, on our way to the Outer Banks, Martha and I stopped overnight in Edenton.  While we were walking around Town on a Friday afternoon, we saw a poster in a shop window advertizing a 5-K to be held the very next day - the "EK5K" - its starting line a mere two blocks from the B&B where we were staying.  We looked at each other and instantly knew what the other was thinking.

And what a great morning that turned out to be!  How can any self-respecting runner ignore such a challenge, a glove slapped in one's face?  Our friend Fred once visited Indianapolis for a conference, discovered that there was a half marathon the next day, and ran it out of the blue.

So that's what we are planning to do tomorrow, run a race out of the blue.  Well, not exactly out of the blue, since we saw advertising for this event a week ago.  Apparently the Cocoa 5-K is a big event here, and 4.8 miles from our front door, across the bridge in Morehead City.  Even though I expect to run no faster than an eleven- or twelve-minute mile, this is a challenge which cannot be ignored.

So today is a day of preparation, and I find myself becoming excited by the prospect of the familiar challenge of another race, intent on all of those little details that are as equally important (on a smaller scale) as for a marathon:  using the emery board on the sharp edges of my toenails, checking the predicted weather forecast, laying out appropriate running clothes, and planning out a day of rest and simple pasta for dinner.  These are comforting rituals to go through, and those runners who have never run a race of any distance are missing one of the great rewards of the running life - not a trophy, an ill-fitting T-shirt (very likely depicting a running chocolate bar), or even a good finish time or age-group award, but the simple thrill of lining up with a small group of like-minded runners at a starting line and simply accomplishing a goal.