Skip to main content

Nine Line Foundation's 3rd Annual 5K/10K



Saturday May 21st 2016 was supposed to be a day of rain. The rain held off, so we went to the beach to enjoy our day off and spend time with friends. We registered for this race weeks prior and our motivation to do it was waning.
I didn't really want to or plan to run as we got out of the car, on Hutchinson Island just across the river from downtown Savannah, Georgia. I thought I'd wait instead, for the finish of the race, and I'd bullshit with some other people waiting. The race began and I started to jog out of the gate.

I ended up jogging until I came back across the finish line, roughly 30 minutes later.
The last half mile of the race, the finish line and immediately after was a bit emotional for me.

I'm ready to be done well before the third mile of the race, so in order to motivate myself I find the nearest guy who is slowing down and I encourage him to keep moving, which keeps me moving (similar to how we would support each other on active duty).
The last straight away is where I decided to sprint, and at the same time another guy also kicked it up. We each pushed harder and harder, looking to out-due each other. He nudged ahead of me as we crossed the line. We immediately shook hands and thanked one another (again similar to the friendly support and competition we had on active duty). Then as I slow to a walk beyond the finish line and I look around, I see a man's face that looks like a guy I was on active duty with. This man in front of me had both of the legs he was born with still, so it wasn't the guy from active duty.

Oh then I realize I just ran a 5k which I don't usually enjoy, I wasn't going to do this race, even as it started, and I did it without any training. A wave of pride washed over me.

I really wanted to thank Nine Line Foundation for this event. I had never been to Hutchinson Island, Georgia. There's an old race track for cars there. The sun was setting and it was good weather. The rain held off until about 35 minutes after I finished the race. It was a beautiful setting for the race, and it was a positive experience. The event was very organized and well done.

 Shannon before race/ Service Brewing Co. tent in background

 Racers approaching the starting gate

The coins that Nine Line gave at the finish line


More on Nine Line Foundation - http://ninelinefoundation.org/
Nine Line Apparel - http://www.ninelineapparel.com/
Service Brewing Co., another veteran-owned & operated Savannah business - http://servicebrewing.com/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My safe space (perception of vulnerability)

I was a medic in the 5/20th Infantry battalion, I was with Bravo Company, and we were in a Stryker brigade. I was on the line the whole time I was in the battalion, and most of that time was spent in the stryker, either driving or sometimes as the vehicle commander. I recently recorded a podcast with a buddy, Craig Hysell who is the owner of Conviction Training Facility, and co-host of the Conviction Strong Radio podcast. This particular episode we were discussing vulnerability, how vulnerability can be a tool, and how it can allow us to grow beyond our current situation. For me, the situation of speaking about vulnerability is an onion of sorts; it's multi-layered. In order to have an honest conversation about vulnerability, it is necessary to speak from personal experience, to be vulnerable. As I was talking about vulnerability on the podcast, and relating it to my service as a medic in an infantry battalion, I was pretty uncomfortable giving details about my service; I was ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Strange thought

I'm taking college classes these days, full time. It's good for me, it gets my head focused on things I'd naturally avoid. The kids on this campus are something else, alien-like. I was walking from my car to the library this morning when I passed a kid who was leaving the library. He was a small kid, maybe 17-19. He didn't look to weigh much, maybe 120, he was wearing his baseball hat like an asshole with a flat brim. He seemed innocent enough. I was walking and enjoying the crisp air in my nose and lungs. Without prompting or warning, my brain went to a time when we were back in Baqubah, Iraq. The short story is that we were one vehicle in a cordon made up of our own trucks and some trucks from another unit. That unit had Bradley's for vehicles, one Bradley took a catastrophic hit and the guys inside were severely injured. They needed to be pulled out and evacuated back to the nearest Combat Support Hospital (CSH or cash). We moved our vehicle up, the casualties we...
Post a Comment
Read more

Naivety, confusion, anger

Anger makes you sharp/tight/focuses the senses. Use anger as fuel, to the next level, to kill or to do extraordinary. Anger beats the drum when tired, morale has vaporized & it's raining. Anger fills the moat between you, your brothers & everything else. Anger feeds the fire to keep getting better. Anger makes you strong, tempers you like forged steel. Anger suppresses fear to do unimaginable tasks. Anger allows you to turn around & roll right back out. TRANSITION TO: STATESIDE - CIVILIAN - THE MALL - RHETORIC How/where/when do you constructively/sustainably let go of anger? How do you allow vulnerability/honesty/compassion in? How do you let it in and maintain balance? How do you let go of tried & true tools to pick up new & adapt to them? How do you learn to trust again; where do you start? (Just some drivel from my brain one afternoon)
Post a Comment
Read more