2 Down, 3 to Go

Yesterday was the Komen Global Race for the Cure, a massive 5k that happens every year in DC. That was my second race of the year, so I only have 3 more road races to go. I hadn't run the Komen race in a while, and this time I took my family with me. Mel was whining the whole way about being tired and not having trained properly...I told her to suck it up and just do her best. The weather was great, just silghtly on the cool side, and the rain held off until well after we were done running. The event was hosted by the Komen Foundation executives, local and national newspeople, and the Bidens. We saw the VP's motorcade go by around 7:15, so we knew that we were going to be starting late (all of the pre-race festivities were supposed to have started at 7, and the Bidens were a part of that). Once the race started, I went at a nice, easy pace, but Mel said she felt awful and I told her to walk a bit and then catch up. I actually stopped twice and waited about 30 seconds, even walking back a bit to find her, but I didn't see her. Eventually, I just finished the race on my own and met up with her later. My time was awful (12 min. pace), but the multiple stops probably prevented me from finishing closer to the mid-11's. I still have a lot of work to do before I reach my goal of finishing the ATM and Baltimore half in a 10 min pace or better. However, yesterday was more about family and running for a cause. It's truly impressive to see the number of survivors who attended. Cancer runs in my family, but I don't feel afraid of my chances of getting that diagnosis. I don't feel that it is a death sentence, especially if it's caught early. There's no cure yet, but there are certainly effective treatments that can knock it out at least temporarily. Next year, my goal is to recruit more people to the race and raise more for the Foundation. Thanks to all who contributed! It is truly a worthy cause, and if there's ever a race for beginners, this is a great one to get involved in, so sign up next year!!