Monday, February 28, 2011

Hyannis, Half I got a race for you...

Sunday, February 27th, Hyannis MA.
It was a balmy 35F and lightly snowing at the start of the 31st Hyannis Marathon Series. After spending a few quiet nights in Brewster - about 25 minutes east - Annie S., Mark F. and company rolled slowly down towards the West End rotary in single lane traffic for the 10am starting gun. We were 10 minutes away and it was 9:35am already. 

Annie, Mark and Myself sprinted into the Conference Center that housed the expo and quickly located our race numbers; just as quickly, we pinned them to our shirts; left our bags while yelling across the emptying room where we would meet when we were finished; and each found our way into the throng of anxious runners without uttering as much as a good luck or high five in our haste. 

I entered the pack with earphones blasting Mineral's Palisade only to realize that the race organizers had initiated the singing of the national anthem. I was able to pause my music in time to hear "...and the home of the brave." I hadn't even realized how close I was to the front until I rounded the bend and saw the 'START' banner waving from the slight ocean breeze. 

Not 30 seconds into the run did I recognize a familiar team jersey from Team Race Menu. Barry S. was more than cheerful and welcomed my company for a bit. Barry and I bobbed and weaved mile to mile through the crowded streets until mile 6 when I realized that Barry's determined pace was going to be a challenge for me. Being the stronger runner, Barry held pace through miles 7, 8, 9 - looking back and urging me to dig deep and push through the tough miles. I was feeling good, but right at mile 10, I couldn't hold on any longer and needed to slow my pace. Looking at my watch I realized that even though I had to slow up some, Barry's awesome pace and motivation helped me across the finish line with a pounding heart, aching joints, and a big smile. Big ups to Barry for being the man and looking out for a fellow runner.

This stuff is good stuff
An informal hello and special thanks to Kathleen from Mix1 for having a metric ton of my favorite post race bev. - the straw-ban/post rec protein drink hit the spot and it was also nice catching up. 

So what's your Story?
If you were one of the 35 people who said they were going to take place in at least one of the running events in Hyannis yesterday or you just ran for fun and aren't on the list here, I'd love to hear your story if you've got one, just write it in the comment section at the bottom. Martin already told his and so can you. 

DaveE.Martin.AndyM.Susan.Valerie.Bryon.Kim.Ze.JamesF.Richard.Gene.HenckelMiranda.MarkF.Kimberly.Renee.MehanMarieFowlerFinn.JacquelynAvallonMiller.Steve.Tiffany.JustinWendling.Nancy.Ross.David.Christopher.Nilesh.DebbieMarino.Tim.Mariah.Kerry.Alison.MaxRothbaum.Jag

Check out what all the cool kids are doing: 

We have cool T-mirce-Shirts:

4 comments:

  1. Good race! Apparently I had a monkey in ballet shoes kicking at my heels.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nice blog, Andy, and thanks for the plug. You forgot or were too modest to mention that you got an awesome PR too!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. way to go on the PR, andy marx! indeed, barry's quite the motivator and that li'l frame comes in damn handy on the hills. he dropped me like a sack o crap at the base of heartbreak two years ago. and i PR'd too. it was patriots day.

    ReplyDelete
  4. LOL! Too funny. Great running with you Andy. Believe me, you helped me as much as I helped you. We'll do it again some time.

    ReplyDelete

Spread the word