Run-Down Forums

[RangerG]

Decided to start a new topic, tho I am sure someone has done this one before

Do you remember your very first race? Why does it stand out (or not) in your running experiences?

How has your life (running or other) been affected since that day?

As we are now in the holiday seasion, and are about to begin a new year....most of us reflect on our lives just a bit...and this one thought fought it's way to the front of my 3 watt mind (kicking and screaming).

For me, it is one of those profound questions, like "does the fridge light really go off when you close the door?"

Ranger G.
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If I could only run like John Capel...

[Micah Ward]

I ran three cross country races in high school but nothing really stands out other than the fact that I finished way toward the back. I ran a few road races in college but the one that really stands out was the Spanky's April Fools Road Race in Savannah in 1979. It was 6.5 miles and I talked my room mate into running it too. We trained for about two months and on race day I left him behind around the halfway point and finished a couple of minutes ahead of him.

The reason it was significant to me was that he was better than me in every sport we had participated in. So when I beat him in that race it made me think that I had found something I might be good at. So over the years I trained and raced and had some better than average results.

Now I fight injuries and weight gain but I still, at 46 years of age, can consider myself an athlete as long as I know I can toe the line at any weekend road race. It probably doesn't mean a thing to any one esle but me. But that is all it has to mean.
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[Dan]

[Conway]

Yep I do !!! a 600 yd race in elementary school ... Back in the days when they had physical fitness testing ... My elementary school had a track meet with other schools in the district based on the tests ... I was in the 600 yd race and the 4x1 ... I won the 600 by quite a lot ... And we won the 4x1 ... It was memorable because I remember how much easier the 4x1 leg was !!!!
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Conway
Speed Thrills

[Distance_Guru]

Not counting school fun runs the first race I ever did was an 800 in 7th grade. I got third I lost to the best runner from my team and a kid from another school. We were running with a stager and the kid from the other school was in lane 8 when the gun went off he cut strait into lane 1. No one caught it because just before the race started a kid got hit in the head with a shot put so everyone in the place was distracted. My first road race was a 5 mile leg in the Shiprock marathon when I was in 8th grade. My first cross country race was in 8th grade, I remember getting 11th, I got a brown ribbon.
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Time is the fire in which we burn

[RangerG]

I guess that since I started this post, I should share my experiences.

It made me feel good that all the people I normaly see on here took the time to make some comments

You all are so very lucky that you had the experiences you did in school. My only claim to fame from elementry school thru my Army time was the 50 yard dash

My first actual race was the Philadelphia Distance Run in 1990. A friend talked me into it, and I trained (rather badly) with him, but I finished the run, and then swore that I would never run a race again.

At the beginning of this year, I decided for a number of reasions to begin running again. In April, I ran the Tyler Arboretum 10k trail race here in Chester County Pa. The other runners, who were obviously experienced, could not understand why I did not run 5k's for a while first, but I had paid my fee and was commited. I finished the race in 1:15:20. I thought I was gona die But a half hour later I felt great! After that I could not get enough running, or races.

I guess that I would consider Tyler to have been my first REAL race. It lit a fire inside me that has not diminished a bit this year. The only advantage I see that I have at this point, it that my knees are still in new condition Speed will come with time and experience. The other point is that I have bought a ton of running stuff and shoes, and I cannot afford to quit now

Thanks all for putting your two cents in I honestly hope that I get to meet all of you at some point. I would love to put faces with the names

Ranger G.
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If I could only run like John Capel...

[Hammer]

I ran a 150 yard dash at our school's field day when I was in the 5th grade. I remember agrueing with my teacher about running the 150. He wanted me to run the 50 yard dash but I wanted to run the 150 because it was the longest run that day.