Month: May 2018

 I imagine God is trying to tell me something.  “Don’t schedule road races on Sunday mornings before church.”  I tried that last December.  I ran a cold weather race, when I had a cold, then I was later than I anticipated getting out of the parking lot. Then my cold felt worse, and I missed church.  Today, the scheduled race was an hour earlier, and at a different location where I could easily exit, and make it to church.  But……a thunderstorm cancelled the race. Plus, my car was acting up.  I got back home in plenty of time, rested a little since I had gotten up so early.  I got ready for church, then got an upset tummy, and missed church again.  Something was telling me the last day or so, “don’t sign up for the race, you could be too tired for church. You ran a race on Saturday (which also rained but not cancelled), give the $40 to God instead. ”  I suspect that was also God.  But, I didn’t listen, next time hopefully I will.

There are typically no refunds on cancelled races.  At least in a rain out in MLB, you get a rain check.

 I love running races.  The registering, the photos, the music, the swag, ah yes, the swag.  About the only thing I don’t enjoy is the getting up early part to get to the venue.  I usually don’t get much sleep the night before a race, which doesn’t really help on the energy level at times.  

But about the swag.  Most races give you extra goodies when you get your bib number and timing chip.  Shirts, water bottles, pens and pins (for pinning your bib to your shirt, I collect the ones I get from the races, silly, I know)  Sometimes duffel bags, band aids, pamphlets with info on other races.  To me it’s all part of the fun of a race.  Some races, like the Kansas City Marathon, prefers “virtual” info and pamphlets and such. You know, they are being all politically correct green peace machine.  Fortunately at the vendor expo for the race, there are plenty of vendors to provide plenty of swag.

On the issue of political correctness, I believe part of the reason Ringling Brothers Circus closed down, was the cries of the political correct crowd who think circuses are cruel.  Some may be, but I don’t know if Ringling Brothers was.  So this is what we are left with.  A circus coming to the Kansas City area, that bills as an attraction a T-Rex, or raptor or something.  Really?  Either this circus has really done what a movie did, or it is a cheap ploy to lure people into a circus that needs a gimmick.  Sad…

I am not sure why I keep signing up for this race.  Although they have cool music, in my opinion, it could be managed better. They do not use a photographer, most races do. It has a couple of killer hills, which slows down my time.  But not wanting to be a running snowflake, I tarry on.  Today’s Merriam Turkey Creek Festival 5K had an added albatross, it rained.  Not a torrential downpour, but enough to make me good and soaked.  My wallet got a bath, thankfully my phone didn’t.  Rain has obstructed three races for me now.  One was last year on July 4th at the Lenexa Freedom Run, then, back in the summer of 2011 the Jazz In The Woods was cancelled, I had however left before I got the confirmation on it. Today was my third time to run Turkey Creek, I recorded my second best time, or my second worse, depending on whether I view the glass as half full or empty.  Since I am disappointed with my time, let’s go with half empty.  Or maybe it is the rain gauge that was half full.  Next race for me is actually tomorrow (5/20/18) before church. The Triple Crown Showdown 5K.  This race is benefiting the Myasthenia Gravis Association.  For KC area people, it is being run at Town Center Plaza in Leawood KS.  

There are some myths people have about Kansas.  The first one I suppose would be that we all know Dorothy and Toto.  The next one might be that Kansas is flat.  Perhaps some parts are.  But let me tell you, Renner Road, running between Lenexa KS and Olathe KS, is NOT flat.   This past Saturday, while running an out and back race called Tower 2 Tower, it seemed at times, I was running a hill coming and going.  My lackluster finish time showed it.  I finished 162^nd out of 383 runners.  Not great, but not last.  The race is a novel idea, running between the two cities water towers.  As a Christian, I can think of an excellent story when Jesus was at the well talking to the woman about saving water.

John 4:13-14

¹³ Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, ¹⁴ but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”    NKJV