Every race for the foreseeable future is canceled, which for
a person like me that doesn’t actually DO many races, shouldn’t seem like a big
deal. But for someone that uses a ton of vacation time every year to volunteer at
races, it is. Spring normally brings with it horrible allergies and the start
of my favorite season…. ULTRATEERING SEASON!
So, as the pandemic reality set in, it became obvious…. Everything
will be different. I mean, duh…. Of course it will be. I mean, virtual races
have been a thing for years and if that’s your jam, go for it. It really wasn’t
mine because I didn’t much care about participating in real races anymore, so I
had no need for virtual ones.
Enter the Head Goat 50k in May. One of my favorite racing companies
Running Fit Events decided to put on a virtual race in May this year, because….
We got nothing else to do, right? But it’s a streaking event. Move a mile a day
for the whole month of May and voila! You’ve done a 50k.
So, of course I signed up. And of course my knee and calf
are messed up so it’s been mostly walking. But so far, it’s also been this
magical, supportive, and perfect group with a goal that has kept my spirits up
and a smile on my face. There’s themes for the day, bad jokes, terrible puns,
inspiring stories, and just a ton of good people supporting and laughing and
moving together/apart. It's a somewhat silly thing, but maybe I just needed a silly thing to focus on instead of all the terrifying awful things around me.
There’s this great line from the last season of The Office:
“I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days
before you’ve actually left them.”
I am gratefully aware of this special moment I am in with
these special people. AND I’ll even have a t-shirt from it. But for now…..I
gotta get my mile in.
