First 5K

May

At A's work, the Wellness Program held their first ever 5K run for employees. A signed up for the run, wanting to do something he's never done before. He's not a runner, but over the course of a couple months he set aside some time to train for it and felt confident that he wouldn't crumble before the finish line.

 I packed up the kids and headed over to the race. I wanted to get a few pictures before the race started. I also wanted good seats and not fight a crowd.

 

No problems with anything. It was super casual, laid back, and well, we were the only spectators to cheer them along the course. They weren't expecting anyone, I guess. They didn't even have a chair for me to sit down.

 Here's the group of runners, walkers, joggers with pets, and teens who amazingly completed the course while texting the entire way.

 A felt great and knew he would be near the front of the pack. Good Luck!

 What are we doing?

 And they're off! The guys near the front are totally serious about this run. They are in it to win it. The one in orange is the new guy and he's trying way to hard to be cool and make a statement. He came bragging about his running skills, donning expensive sportswear, had water bottles strapped to his waist and an ipod strapped to his arm. Good gracious. The guy next to A is the program director, and although he is timing himself, he still had fun with it. I mean, look at is shirt. It says Go Mark! Apparently, he's had it for decades and wears it in every race he runs. We were all surprised to see the guy in the black knit hat. No one seemed to know who he was. He looked serious though.

 The front of the pack was really in front...far ahead of everyone else...by far.

We stood there watching the race take off and then we were alone....waiting...Thank goodness someone presented us with two chairs. So, we waitied some more. The kids were bored.

Let's play ball...

 

or just eat it.

About 10 minutes in, Ruby and her owner showed up to participate in the race. Like I said...it was a pretty laid back event.

It's hot!

About 15 minutes in, the runners looped back by the building. The kids were thrilled to see Daddy. They cheered and ran after him thinking the race was over.

W continued to run after him even though I called to him. Come back W! The race isn't over!

Are we still here?

Here he comes!

A finished in 6th place with a time of 26 minutes. He was just one minute more than his practice run.

Hooray for Daddy! W runs to greet him again.

Great job A!

After he caught his breathe, he admitted he was pleased with his run and said...

I don't like running.

Who won the race? The big guy in the black knit hat. Who was he? Turns out he was a family member of an employee and he's in the military. He's strong, Army strong. This race was a cake walk for him.

Alright! Let's go home!