On Sunday I traded spots and became the spectator at an endurance event. As you know, I usually do not get the opportunity to spectate as I am usually a part of the action. However, Sunday was a very special day....you see, Sunday was then day when my good friend Mary rocked her first triathlon! Before we go any further, I have to tell you what a champion Mary is. She committed herself to fitness a little over a year ago and hasn't looked back since. Mary decided that she wanted to be able to run in local races and signed up for a running class at Run On. During the course of these classes she began to suffer from tremendous shin pain only to discover that she had stress fractures in BOTH of her legs. This discovery would have sidelined or derailed many people. What a terrific excuse to quit, right? Not Mary, she saw this as an opportunity to work on her swimming and cycling and get this...train for a triathlon. Once her shins were healed she began to run again and signed up for triathlon training with Tri-Now Endurance (if you are looking for tri training, I highly recommend Coach Frank and his team). For the last nine weeks Mary has been swimming, cycling, and running nonstop. She has even been driving to Plano for 5:30 AM track workouts once a week and numerous swim/cycle clinics on the weekends.
Sunday dawned bright and beautiful (and a little windy....refreshing, as Mary would tell you as she ran by dripping wet, fresh from the pool). Mary's husband Keith, daughter Kama, friends Sylvia and Audrey, and Erik and myself comprised the most spirited spectator team at the tri. We had it all: clever signs, inspirational signs, funny signs, a cowbell, cameras, lawn chairs, coffee, muffins, unlimited spirit! I had so much fun watching Mary and I think that she had fun watching us.
We were even caught on film several times by the official race photographers--Team Mary was in full effect! And Mary seemed to be having a blast...she would run by with her arms in the air shouting "I'm doing it! I'm doing it!" I had so much fun being on the other side of the race. It was inspirational to see how many different types of people were racing that day too...the super speedy guys, the moms with their spouses and children on the sidelines, the old, the young, and the folks who were getting it done--even it it was at a much slower pace.
Mary crossed the finish line like a champ too--arms in the air and a huge smile on her face! She truly made it look easy, even though I know the huge amount of sweat and tears that went into this feat. I was itching to break out into a run at times, but I loved being on the other side of the event. It was neat to see how much our cheers helped Mary on her journey and I encourage everyone to get out and spectate at a race sometime. Support your runner, walker, triathlete, and cyclist friends by bringing your signs, spirited smiles, cheers, and even your cowbells. You will never know how much your cheers mean to them...especially in those rough spots.
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