I have participated in many running events and always finish in the middle of the pack, but this event was different. First, it was the inaugural DSYS 5k to benefit both DSYS and ALS, hosted by my company, Curry’s Auto Service. My role was to be the “official” roving reporter. My job was to make the course fun and to mix things up a bit. Thus, this is the first event where I came in dead LAST.
I had 10 gift certificates to give to those runners who would pause enough to help me on my fun quest. With my position still under development as the race began, it was decided that I would use a walkie-talkie to update our associate who was at the Curry’s tent and logged into our social media accounts to give real-time updates.
I joined the kids on the fun run that began before the 5k event and was off to see if anyone could name all of Snow White’s seven dwarfs. The first person I asked was a Dad with two girls. No luck – they only knew three. Next up was an eight year old. She looked at me kinda funny when I asked. She said very politely, "I don’t believe I know who this snow white person is." Bummer! I had to ponder this for a bit before I decided to just turn around and go back since I had to conserve my energy for the 5k.
Next up was the 5K. I was able to get South Riding Running Club member, Jeremy to tell an engineering joke. Very well done, but the punch line was delivered just as my breathing became unbearably loud. Before I could even catch my breath and laugh at the same time, off he went to finish at a 6:39 pace. I was able to get the next person to do five jumping jacks. The next person, I believe his name was Drew, was running on behalf of a family member who just succumbed to ALS. I took a moment to be thankful that so many people could come together to support ALS and all the friends and family members that are adversely affected by this disease.
As I continued and ponder the fact that South Riding has no hills (really? I definitely encountered some inclines), I realized that not one person could name all the seven dwarfs. A highlight was the water stop manned by Girl Scout Troop #4884. Wow - I was so happy to see them! As a matter of fact, most of the runners were very vocal in their appreciation! I was hopeful that every flagger and route volunteer heard my shouts of “thanks for volunteering”, “you’re the best”, “thanks for your time… I LOVE YOU!”. I introduced one female runner to the octopus hand shake. Guess you had to be there. Several people said they’d do it again - for many it was their first running event. Some spectators along the course said they’d do it next year since I couldn’t get them to join me. It was an awesome effort for everyone- the fast runners, the joggers, the stroller pushers (that’s for my friend John), the volunteers, the spectators and the walkers. I walked crossed the finish line with a Dad and his awesome daughters. It was my best finish ever. The only thing that I would do differently would be to make sure I do NOT wear a chip. The roving reporter has more important stuff to do on the course than run (fast)!
Coming in last means that you miss a lot of the finish celebration, including the presentation of the big @#! trophy for the first place winners. DSYS and Curry’s has an incredible amount of gratitude for all the volunteers- the South Riding Running Club for packet pick-up and course help, all the race committee chairs, the 40-50 race day volunteers, the Freedom High School Football players, all the race participants (over 300) and their family and friends. Also, for those who came out not to run, but to honor friends and family who have suffered from ALS. This was an overwhelming successful inaugural event which raised about $10,000! We can’t wait until we get to do it again next year. (Mark your calendars for March 17th 2012, St. Patrick’s Day!)
In the meantime, if you have any thoughts on how we can make next year’s run even better, please shoot me an email: judy@currysauto.com! Watch for updates on the race site: http://www.currys-dsys5k.com/.
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