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Tuesday 27 September 2011

Winning isn't everything, but...

...well maybe not everything, but it does feel pretty good. For those of you who don't know, I stepped into the next decade at the weekend. I hope with a certain amount of grace, helped by the tutu and feather head dress(another story...), but so far 40 has been pretty good to me.

Again, those of you who have been paying attention will already know that I decided to run for charity on the Sunday morning, the day after my party. Hmmm, possibly not one of my better decisions, but at least no-one can say I don't challenge myself. So, dressed appropriately, armed with a reasonable water supply, a baseball cap worn low and a pair of sunglasses (yes it was sunny) my slight hangover and I took on the epic distance of a 5K run. Scoff all you like, but it was 5K more than any wise person would do after a party.

Well, I only went and WON it! This was a first for me, and I only had to shatter the dreams of one small (ish) child to do it. Yes, I felt a smidge guilty when I crossed the finish line, knowing that the small boy I overtook would be gutted at his 2nd place, but I consoled myself with the idea that he would have to learn sometime right, right? I mean sometimes 2nd place is just a part of life's rich tapestry, I say that from experience.

The truth is, my original intention was only to finish the race, but when I found myself in the lead three, this competitive alter ego took over and I found myself wanting to cross that finish line first, or die trying (the latter was almost a reality). All that stood in my way was the lead runner (adult) who I firmly believe let me win (thank you by the way) and a small boy whose dreams I was prepared to stamp all over to achieve my goal. So in the last 100 metres (something I excelled at in school) I made a mad dash for it, risking all sorts of medical complications... and won.

Yes I felt slightly sick (ok, very sick) and yes, speech eluded me for a while after, BUT at the grand age of 40, I won something for the first time since school. I came first – how cool is that? So, I apologise to the small boy who came second, but being that good at running at his age surely isn't right, is it? Shouldn't he be inside playing computer games or at the very most climbing some interesting tress somewhere?

A big thank you to all who have sponsored me and indeed for those still intending to do so <you can sponsor me here>  and congratulations to all who took part and raised money for a great cause. The sun shone and Canizarro House were fabulous hosts for the event. Athena network and The Victoria Foundation can be proud that they made this happen. Well done all.

Anyway, a couple of things we should ask ourselves:

• Is alcohol (a) an effective sports aid? (b)delusion inducing to the point of achievement, in which case please revert back to option (a)??
• Is there really anything better than chocolate biscuits after a run?
• Are our children getting too much exercise?

1 comment:

  1. Blimey Angie! Well done, that's brilliant. You dance by night and win races by day, v impressive xxx

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