Not Beating the Bridge
I did not beat the bridge.
It's not really a bad thing, in the course of things. I ran the 5-mile "Beat the Bridge" race on Sunday. Being in the third wave, also know as the "jogger" wave and what I half jokingly call the "loser" wave, I would have had to run two ten-minute miles in order to make it to the University bridge before it went up at exactly 9AM. By the time I arrived, people were removing the countdown clock and the bridge was up. All in all, though, the forced break was good. I had a few minutes to rest, drink some water, setting me up nicely for the rest of the race. And, the rain that started around mile 4 was a nice push, "I have to pick up the pace and finish this damn race!"
In the end, I finished at the 1 hour and 12 minute mark. Since I started 10 minutes after the clock, I actually clocked in at slightly more than an hour, or about 12 minutes a mile. Incrementally, I'm improving with this whole running thing.
That same day, for the first time in seeming forever, I actually made a real meal, vegetable curry, with potatoes, cauliflower and chickpeas. This required a great deal of chopping, multiple spices (curry, coriandor, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, pepper) and cooking. I even made two chutneys: sweet onion (yeah for the vidalia!) and cilantro-mint. The meal was absolutely delicious, hearty, spicy and perfect for the end of a rainy and chilly May race day.
In a year, I want to beat the bridge.