So here I am! Starting a blog and making my first entry.

Today was another great day in running. Several of us (Rob, Howie, David, Hannah and myself,) all met up at Hot Tuna for an easy mid-distance longish run. Kept an easy pace for the entire run, just talking and bullshitting about “this, that and the other” and how David Mick has recently been selected as an “elite” for any upcoming race. The original plan was to do 10+ miles, but we had to get to Cox High School by 8:30 to watch a few of our Hampton Roads Runners brethren (Thomas Hicks and Mike Wolfe) run the Cox HS 5k. So, we ended up doing an easy 8 and calling it quits.

Got down to the Cox H.S. with a few minutes to spare before the gun fired for the start of the 5k. Weather was a bit chilly and quite windy, but everyone seemed to be in good spirits nonetheless. At 8:30 on the dot, the gun fired and the runners were gone! After seeing everyone off, we all walked over to the track (the last 300 meters of the race finished on the track..pretty cool!!) to catch the finish.

Thomas and Mike had both set goals of a sub 18:00. So, for the next 18 minutes, Howie, David, Rob and me were discussing the insane running complex we would build if any of us ever won a big lottery jackpot. We were on the topic of creating our own shoe brand when we looked up to see Ryan Carroll cruising toward the track (he was out to pace a friend to 16:30 or better)…So, as Ryan comfortably cruised in at 16:31, we look back to see the bright green HRR colors of Thomas, with Mike nipping at his heels. We all started yelling and cheering for them to push it in, knowing that the clock was getting closer and closer to that 18:00 mark that had been set. As they rounded the final turn and was coming up the backstretch, they were giving it all they had, but the 18 would narrowly slip through their grasps, as Thomas finished in 18:08 and Mike in 18:17! So close and on a good day with no wind, the elusive 18 would have been caught. But, they both placed 1st in their age groups and Mike ended up with a substantial 5k PR! Sometimes that’s just how running goes.