Tuesday, August 19, 2008

I Hate a Cheering Crowd

It is now less than 2 weeks to my first half marathon. I am pumped for it. I feel like I have trained enough. I know I will make the distance, but my new concern is the time. I would like to finish the race in under 3 hours, but I don't think it will happen.

I received my race packet in the mail the other day. My projected finish time is 3 hours, 14 minutes. I think that will be pretty close. I would like to trim 14 minutes off that time, but I seem to be training right in that range. Maybe the crowds and the music will push me along.

I had a horrible thought when I finished my run this morning. All of my friends will be done by the time I finish. That means that potentially they could all be at the finish line cheering for me to come in. I would hate that so much! I hated being cheered by a crowd. I am always slow, and in the last crowd at a race. When people cheer for me, I feel like I am some sort of Special Olympian trying to finish the race. I don't need to be cheered, I suck and I know it. Please don't make me feel any worse than I already do. Please do not draw any attention to me. Please do not make me feel lacking when you have been done for an hour.

If you are going to the race with me (and you know who you are), please be quiet. I'll see you at the end.

1 comment:

Maggy said...

I think you got your message across to your friends who will be at the marathon.

Some subtle cheering from unknowns along the way would be inspiring.

Don't be too hard on yourself. Just being able to compete is an amazing accomplishment. Try to enjoy the experience without putting too much pressure on yourself.

I do the same thing (pressure) with my personal training. Yet, when I went white water rafting (level 1), I did very well and had so much fun. If I wasn't fairly well fit, it wouldn't have been so. And then once in awhile I want to quit training.

So again, we have similarities.....