"Life is for participating, not for spectating." - Kathrine Switzer

 This week, I got to do two of my favorite things, camping and running. 

We headed down to Des Moines, Iowa, on Tuesday afternoon so I could participate in the National Senior Games. The Senior Games are like the Olympics for people over the age of 50. 

I found a wonderful county park to camp in that was just 15 minutes from the running venue. 

It was right on the Des Moines River. 

The National Senior Games are a two-week event. I was scheduled to run on Thursday, and Rick is going to compete in Archery next week. On Wednesday we went to pick up our credentials for the games. 

It is great to see and be around all the superb athletes who are 50 and older. It was so fun chatting with everyone and hearing their stories. Everyone is elated to be there and compete. 

Thursday was race day for me. I was very excited. To participate in the games, you have to qualify the year before. Last August, when I ran the qualifying race, I ran with a time of 32:24. I was very disappointed in my time. I had not been training and knew I could do a lot better. 

 

So jump ahead to this year. I was determined to do better and knew I needed to start training. I joined RVR Race Team and have run several races since then. The support and training I have received from the team has made me a better runner. 

It was so HUMID running. And the beginning of the race was a huge hill. I was so glad I had been training in the awful heat and humidity, and even happier that I had been doing some hill workouts. 

Finishing up strong. 

All of my training paid off today. I was able to shave 6:12 off of my qualifying time from last year! It has been years since I have been able to run at this pace. I am ecstatic. Runners' High is a real thing 😊

But what really inspires me to keep going is watching the last-place finisher, a 90-year-old man, cross the finish line. You could see the accomplishment and determination on his face. He was all smiles. I aspire to be that person when I am 90 years old. 

On to the next race....

Sharon