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Health & Fitness

I Won...Third Place...In My Age Group!!

What goals are you reaching for? I finally reached mine to place in my age group in a race this year but learned something about relaxing along the way.

I did it!!  I won a medal in my age group at a race.  When I set my goals for running this year, my biggest goal was to at least place once in my age group at a race.  I have written about it a couple of times ( and ) but as the running season went on it seemed more and more unlikely.

Stark County is the home to many fast and furious runners.  I have run four 5K races, two 5 mile races, and the this year already and was not coming anywhere close to placing in the top three for my age group.  I was starting to get discouraged and had resigned myself to the fact that it just might not happen for me this year.  I am healthy, getting faster, and enjoying myself, so I was okay with not placing.

Then came my first 10K this year, the Alliance Rotary Castle Run.  This race is challenging to say the least.  It is an extremely hilly course and by mile 4, I just want it to be over.  I first ran it last year with a friend of mine (the same one who insisted we do the Warrior Dash) and she was with me again this year.  I talked us up for a couple of weeks beforehand and said we were going to beat our time from last year and we would rock the course but on race day, my bravado had completely left me.  I would just be happy to finish!

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We attacked that course.  My running partner tackled those hills and I kept with her every step of the way (even when she stopped to tie her shoe!).  At mile 5 or so we picked up a drafter, which was really annoying.  He was right on our heels and kept giving us directions such as, "stay close together, girls" and "keep it tight."  Drafting might be a whole other post, but I can say that I didn't like and don't encourage anyone to try to do it in a race!!  We found it very annoying and not at all friendly.  Are we really going that fast that we need to worry about drafting?!?!  None of us were going to win the whole thing!

In the final 1/2 mile, we took off.  At this point, we knew we would beat our time from last year, the question was by how much.  I had been working on my sprinting because last year, my friend left me in the dust in the final sprint.  This year, I left her in the dust in the final sprint (I am convinced she let me do it so I felt better about myself!).  I sprinted the last tenth of a mile to the finish.  About 50 yards from the finish, it was just me and one other person.  Someone lining the finish turned to his friend and said, "she is going to take her" with the "she" being me.  I hadn't planned on it but thought, why not, it makes for a good finish and I like finishing strong this year.  I passed her and guess what, she was in my age group, so by passing her, I took third place for my age group!!!  I won third by .66 of a second.  That other person is probably not very happy with me right now but I reached my goal.

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When they called my name, they said "Tamie....." and paused, so I thought, "no way that is me."  When they said "Eynon," my friend and I squealed, jumped up and down, and hugged.  I am sure we looked like fools but I had just reached my goal and dang it, I was celebrating. 

Of course, there is a moral to the story, keep reaching for your goals but maybe relax about it.  I was getting so nervous and worked up about reaching that goal that I kept missing it.  When I relaxed and enjoyed the race, I did it.  I won a medal. 

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