On Saturday, June 2, 2001, the Susan G. Koman Breast Cancer Foundation National Race for the Cure will take place in Washington, DC.
I have the distinct honor and pleasure of being runner/walker #66796, and I’ll be either running or walking (since we do have the option!)…
I’ve never done this before! Luckily for me, anyone from our company who wanted to participate was sponsored by the company itself. So all I have to do is show up and either run or walk. (Runners begin at 12th at Constitution at 8:30, and walkers begin at 15th and Constitution at 8:45.)
Hopefully the weather will be good. Anyone have any tips for this? I haven’t decided if I have the wherewithal to run. I’m gonna wear shorts and a hat and bring some darn sunscreen, of course, since I’m paler than the whitest ghost you’ve ever seen.
And, of course, it’s all for an incredibly good cause. I’m happy to do my part.
Anyone else participating?
Wish me luck! Hope I don’t pass out from exhaustion, heat-induced or otherwise!
I haven’t ever run in one of these events so I can’t advise you there, but I’ve done a couple of walking events. For the last couple of years we’ve participated in the ‘Relay for Life’ to raise money for the American Cancer Society.
That’s where people get together to form teams, and some member(s) of the team pledge to be on the track at all times for a 24 hour period. (It’s usually held at a high school or college track and field area.) Last year Mrs. B and I did 5 hours. Not exactly the same thing, but kinda similar. Anyway, we’ve had a lot of fun, and you probably will too.
Assuming you do the walking course - be sure to wear loose comfortable clothing and the best walking shoes you have. My feet were the part that suffered the most. There will probably be refreshments provided, but if not, get a water bottle you can carry comfortably and some granola bar type munchies.
If you decide to run, I’d suggest you ask for advice from whomever solicited you for the event.
In any case, good for you Dan, and you’re going to have a great time!
Thanks, Bumbazine! I think I’m going to do the walking part. For one thing, I’m in pretty much terrible shape, and I’d prefer to finish this! Also, most of the people I know from the company (and there will be 60 of us, I think) will be walking, not running. And finally… there will be a LOT of females there! I don’t want to be running my little heart out and then expire after about 100 yards. That would most decidedly NOT look too macho!
[Not that I am doing this to pick up babes! This is a worthy cause. :)]
In my own hometown, I’ve walked the Race for nine years now (since it began). We have ours every year on Mother’s Day, and this year I’m proud to announce that 35 thousand people showed up to walk or run.
So many people I know have dealt with this disease, my mother had to deal with it twice and has done wonderfully, and I just wanted to add my thanks in, too, that you’re doing this.
I did the Race for the Cure in Daytona Beach a couple of weeks ago, and I ran in the competitive race. What are the distances? I’m assuming the run is 5k (3.12 mi). In that case, it’s a good idea to walk if you’re not used to running that far.
Some tips:
Your number goes on the front of your shirt.
Get there early, especially if you have to pick up a race packet.
Be sure to greet Opal.
If you’re planning on meeting up with a group after the walk, pick a minor landmark to meet at. In Daytona, the people I was with decided to meet at the main stage after the race. Well, everybody meets at the main stage, and we still spent a half hour looking for each other. Would have been better to meet at, say, one of the smaller sponsor tents.
Hope this helps. If you have any other questions, just ask!
…of course, I’m posting this too late for dtm to notice, but…
“good luck, my friend, and a collective thanks from any and all who benefit from this endeavor…”
Whew. What fun! I may never walk again, but it was a magnificent experience.
I met up with someone from work on the Metro here, but we couldn’t find any of the other people on our group. We went to the corner we were all going to meet, and couldn’t find anyone. Bear in mind, of course, that there were 70,000 people at this thing! Anyway, after some searching, we located our crowd.
At first, we were all kind of bunched up together, but as the race went on, we spread out. We had the choice of being a walker or a runner, and I (wisely) chose to be a walker. It’s a lot more leisurely, and everyone I knew was walking.
The entire course was 5 kilometers (about 3.5 miles) long, and it wound its way through downtown DC. The weather wasn’t bad at all - it was overcast, but didn’t rain. The lack of a big bright sun was very beneficial - no sunburns!
There were a lot of great kids along the way who were handing out free water. Bless those kids!
One complaint - the bathrooms were NOT planned very well. There was a group of them right at the starting point, and some more about three blocks later, but none after that. As a result, I was in severe pain by the end of the race, desperately (and futilely) looking around for just one Port-O-Potty.
So, despite the overcast skies, the turnout was tremendous. Oh, and they do record your time - you give the judges the bottom part of your number tag, and they then mail you a postcard later with your time on it (with 70,000 people, it might be a tad tough to do that right there). They had digital clocks at the finish line, and when I looked up, the clock read 1 hour, 52 minutes. Not bad for a walker! 'Course, I may have moved a little more quickly than usual, since I was looking for a bathroom…
Anyway - whew. I can rest now.
PS. You’re welcome, poohpah. Well worth my effort, that’s for sure.
