5k from hell, 3 days to Vegas, lazy
Saturday we had another 5k. This one was different, it’s called the Beach Bum. It’s named this because you actually run on the beach. Ali volunteered to help with race registration so we had to get there extra early. Nothing like waking up at 5am on your day off. We never ran on sand before. We assumed it would be more difficult since sand is uneven, soft and filled with land mines. It was much harder than imagined. The race started at 7:30. Unfortunately low tide was at 4:30 am and by race time, the strip of packed sand was ridiculously thin, less than 5 feet at many spots. A few hundred yards in we came to the first of several huge man made rock formations that extend out into the water. We had to carefully make our way over it, trying to avoid falling. When we came to the second rock obstacle our luck ran out. Ali tripped and fell. She scraped up her knee, banged her hand and stubbed three of her toes. I asked her if she was ok and she said she was, so we continued. However glancing over at her shortly afterward I saw she was crying a bit. She said her toes really hurt. I told her if it really hurts she should stop but she said she would keep going.
The run was pretty miserable. The small strip of packed sand was getting smaller by the minute and you found yourself weaving back and forth up onto the loose, soft sand to avoid the waves that were rolling in. The sand that was packed was at a pretty steep angle, a disaster for runners like me with suspect knees. The tight quarters got worse once the lead runners hit the turnaround and headed back. Many people wound up with wet, sandy sneakers. including us.
Running across constantly changing terrain really sucked your energy quickly. Ali started slowing down. Several times I stopped and let her catch up. Then with about .7 miles to go, I told Ali I was going to take off which she said was fine. She later said my stopping and looking back at her was annoying anyway. So I turned on the gas, what I had left anyway. I probably passed 15 people or so in that period, even so my finishing time was close to 32 minutes. I waited at the finish for Ali who came in a couple minutes later. I cheered her on as she pushed for the finish. I wish I had a camera, just as she was coming in, a dolphin behind her jumped totally out of the water, a good six feet in the air. It would have made an awesome picture.
Ali crossed in 33 something, a very slow time for her, but it is reasonable considering the conditions the run was held in. I felt like I was just beat up. My legs and knees were hurting and areas that I’m not used to hurting, did, because of the unorthodox manner I had to run. Ali got a pleasant surprise when she found out she got second in her age group which had 9 people in it. It was her first top 3 finish and she was very excited. I was very proud of her as she accepted her 2nd place sand rake. 🙂 It was definitely the hardest 5k we ever ran. Hard enough that I don’t know that I would run it next year, my joints still feel like shit today.
The rest of the weekend was low key. We planted a bunch of trees that we started from seed and were sitting in pots on tables around the pool. I’m hoping they take root and do well. there is something rewarding about growing something from seed.
I am getting quite frustrated with the company that is supposed to rebuild our pool cage. I called twice last week and left messages, asking for an updated eta for the installation. I received no reply. We sent this guy 4600 up front and will be paying 17k plus for the job and he can’t find 30 seconds to return my call? That is bullshit.
On Sunday we had what I would call an extremely lazy day. Other than an hour or so of housework I did nothing but play WoW and watch some tv. It’s one of those things that sounds good before you do it but after you have a full day of being a bum, you feel like a bum, at least I do.
Saturday Night we watched the new King Kong movie. It had many peaks and valley’s. The special effects were great in some spots, cheesy in others. There was a bit too much of people getting killed in a gruesome manner, even for me. I don’t need to see people eaten by huge bugs and worms. The connection between Kong and the woman was touching. Jack Black’s character in the movie is a grade A-1 asshole. Overall I would give the movie a C+ to B-. It’s a full 3 hours long.
I leave for Vegas Thursday morning. I’m looking forward to it. I know the 4 days after my arrival will be filled with things that I will remember forever, good or bad.