Total Pageviews

Sunday, June 7, 2015

A Great Race Story!

What a perfect day for a race. The race was at 7:00. Temp was low 70's, very light breeze, and somewhat overcast. About 200 people showed up. I know that because they only guaranteed shirts to the first 200, and I didn't get one from my early race day registration. While I was warming up, another geezer came up and started warming up with me. He asked me if I was from Las Cruces, and when I told him Deming, he said he was there in the Vinyards mobile park in his camper for the next three months while he was driving his truck for a local mining company. Over the next few minutes, he told me that he made $250,000 a year doing that, had a $400,000 home in Phoenix with an indoor pool and hot tub where his wife and dog were, and began bragging about his running prowess. He told me how in his last race in Phoenix he had run a 5K where he went a half mile off course and still won his age group. He told me that he was an age group ace in Phoenix. When the race began, he quickly moved to a quarter mile lead in the first mile. In the mean time, a guy who I have raced a dozen times and always seem to catch and pass at around the 2K mark, performed as he usually does, allowing me to put him out of my thoughts. Around two miles into the race, I realized King Phoenix was now only about 20 yards ahead of me and looking a bit ragged. I started to press, and caught him at the 4.5K mark, and leaned over to him and said, "hey, we have around 300 meters to go, so lets push it home". I then went into my puke sprint......this is where I just go as hard as I can and either beat the other guy, or, if I have to puke,  try and puke on him. He tried to go with me, but I ended up coming in at 27:47, with him coming in as the next finisher at 28:04, just 17 seconds behind me. I then went for a kilometer cooldown, and when I got back they were posting the early results on a board. Found out he was 58. He ended up 4th in the 50-59 age group while I won the 60 to not dead age group. I was again tied for the oldest guy or gal in the race. So I beat the King of Phoenix! After doing the race, I began to doubt his prowess in Phoenix.....between a probable much larger runner base with all those folks in those sun city communities, as well as a thriving triathlete community, it just doesn't add up. I doubt that I would be the King of anything in Phoenix.....

2 comments:

TerribleTerry said...

Your post made me think of those old Burger King commercials. Maybe he was the Burger King mascot?

Terrible Dad said...

He certainly is not the king of the 50-59 year old runners in Phoenix when he is 4th for all of our talented runners here in the new mexico bootheel.....