On theTrail to Recovery

Coming up this Sunday is the Upstate New York Cross Country Series Race #1 (5k) at Mendon Ponds Park, which also happens to be the sixth in the Rochester Runner of the Year (RROY) Series. Though I have yet to either register for the race or feel comfortable enough to lace up my shoes, I am considering getting back on my horse, lacing 'em up and heading out Sunday morning. The competition is likely to be fierce, as trails are hard to resist, but it would be nice to return to the surface without any personal expectations of performing well, other than to finish in the top five for my age group among RROY series participants--a pretty small sub-set of all runners when looked at as a disaggregated group.

The additional fact that the run itself will be something of a big day in local running history, as the 5k will mark the 100th race in the 19 year history of the Upstate NY Cross Country Series. It would be nice to be part of something like that and to see all there other exceptional athletes at "play" on the trails... surely we will all be able to learn something from active participation in the experience.

I am sort of clutching at straws, I know, but continue to look on the bright side of my last "official" run...

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!