Strange Las Cruces Storm!

Woke at 5:15 on Saturday morning from a very weird and disturbing dream. Wonder if I hadn't had the alarm set to get up for the race, if I would have gotten away with out remembering it. That would have been preferable. Anyway, as I got within about 20 miles from Las Cruces, I noticed a very large storm front with lots of thunder and lightening coming in from the south. Got to the race and registered, hit the porta-potti, and did a long 30 minute easy warm up. Since it was only a two mile race and my back was still sore, I had planned to run a 5k warmup, do the 3 plus kilometers for the race, and then maybe do a final one kilometer warm down after the race. There was a bunch of kids running a one mile fun run, and our race was to start at 8:15. It started to get windy, with some light rain and thunder and lightening. As we prepared to start, the race director said that he was going to keep the chute open for 20 minutes, and then get all his equipment into the Italian restaurant were the post race festivities were to be held. There were only 42 people in the race with one old guy like me, and primarily high school kids. So, I knew that I would be dragging up the rear. I ran o.k., at a pace I think I could hold again for a 5K later in the fall when I get back from my boy's honeymoon. I finished 34th in 17:48 for an 8:54 pace. The other old fellow who was in his 80's managed to finish almost exactly at 20 minutes and was the final finisher. I ended up barely beating a couple with a stroller who alternated taking turns pushing it. Things just keep getting more embarrassing as they go along. Maybe it is just this freakin' back thing for the millionth time, but I am thinking that maybe next year, my official 40th year of running, will be the end of racing, and I will just reduce my running to 4 one hour runs a week with some minimal intensity just for heart health. Walking can't be too much farther behind......
When we all got into the restaurant to eat breakfast, do awards, and get raffle stuff, the sky opened up for an hour and a half of insanity. Breakfast was good, the awards were just 1st thru 3rd for those under 18 and those over 18, so, needless to say, no award for the two geezers. They raffled off about 40 excellent gifts, including a lot of restaurant stuff and money awards for the new running store.....so, with about 70 runners total counting all the younguns running the mile, I managed not to win a thing. 35 years of racing, and so far I have won a harley davidson set of car coasters to protect your beverage holes (they were truck size and I gave them to a neighbor), and an oil change. Gave that away also. So, not very lucky in these things. When I left, the rain had returned to a drizzle, but the roads were all lakes. Moved thru town at about ten miles an hour. Got the Thorn tire liners put in my new bike tires and stopped at Barnes and Knobles for some coffee for both consumption there and a bag for home. Also walked into the mall to get a watch battery put in and an original watch band put on an old watch. On the way home, I noticed that once I hit the border patrol station, it looked like there had been no rain at all. When I got home and talked to Joe, it had been completely dry here. Went over to see AD, Chris, and June in the evening for way too much wine and dinner, and then came home to watch Johnny Football and the browns against the lions that I had recorded while I was gone. Johnny showed flashes of excellence, but far more bad decisions, bad reads, slow play, and even a stupid head first slide. Hoyer did not take advantage of the opportunity to play better, and Johnny is slated to start against a good washington defense later next week. Tonight we are due more rain, so I will try and get out for an easy hour. Not gonna try to run to much before vacation, as I have to get my back squared away and I don't know if I will race before one race I like in December. The wet july appears to be heading into a very wet august......