When is a race not really a race? In the time of quarantine.
It might be a long time before we get back to live-action road races but last Sunday, I had the unique opportunity to race a 5k. Through a weird hiccup of circumstance, I actually won the HMEA 5k last year and when COVID forced this year’s fundraising event to go virtual, they invited the men’s (me) and women’s winner to run and be live streamed on Facebook as part of their fundraising day.
“Keep showing up.” I’m not sure Des Linden meant her now famous quote quite so literally but that’s what I did and just like it eventually worked out for Linden, it also worked out nicely for me, too.
HMEA is where Michelle works and we run the 5k fundraiser each year. The last few years I’ve been chasing a young (fast) kid around the course in Franklin, MA. Just like a few recent races this year where I’ve been chasing a young (fast) woman, I just haven’t been able to catch him. Would this year be any different? Yup. He wasn’t there.
As I milled about the starting line to this year’s HMEA 5k, I tried to pick him out of the crowd. The problem with having a teenage running nemesis is that they sometimes change so much and so fast that is is hard to recognize them from year-to-year.
Other than the James Joyce 10k in Dedham, this 5k in mid-May may be the race that I’ve ran the most times over the years. It’s my wife’s company fundraiser and along with raising money for a great cause, it also offers a great after party with a free BBQ and lots of family-friendly events. The kids are more than happy to go, collect tchotchkes and eat cotton candy.
I now have a sworn enemy for this race. His name is Sam Burgess and he’s 12 years old and for the last two years he has humbled me and taken me down at this race. I can’t out run Sam. I can’t out run youth. But I can hate them both a little bit. Even though Sam beat everyone else at the race, too, and running a sub-19 minute 5k as a 12 year old is sort of impressive. It definitely is to my 12 year old self.
