Just glad to FINISH

It was a cold Sunday morning when my sister Emily and I made our way to the middle of the starting line. Detroit is cold this time of year, and the wind blowing pretty hard down the streets. One of the big challenges for a runner is knowing what to wear...our body is so cold at the beginning, but after a few miles a coat and hat turn into ovens. The solution is cheap, used, over-cloths that can be thrown on the sidewalk.
Emily was lacking a jacket, and refused to wear a very stylish clear-plastic trash bag that I had found for her, so I switched with her, and poked my head up through the hole in the top of the trash bag. It is amazing how nice and warm I was, and how cool I looked. :-)
The Detroit Half-Marathon course had some nice views: we ran over the Ambassador Bridge and along the Canadian side of the Detroit River. Running back through the tunnel was especially fun since the gently downward slope really propelled us along until we got to the painful upward slope. It was coming up out of the bridge that my body started suggesting that maybe a short nap would be a great idea. But not wanting to be like the Hare that slept too long, I kept going, going, going. I passed by soreness and into numbness. My goal: to beat last years finish time of 2:09. When I finally crossed the finish line I knew that I had made it. 2:08 was my finish this year.
Emily crossed the finish line very soon after, doing great for a 15 year old's first 13 mile race. Also finishing with us this year was Dr. Mike Singleton, our favorite family dentist in Saline.

After a nice massage the rest of the day seemed very bright knowing that I was done running...for that race at least.