Running Shorts

I owe a lot to Martha Jefferson Hospital and its wonderful doctors and nurses and staff. So for the past five years I have tried to say “thank you,“ in my small way, by participating in the MJH 8K Run.
It’s a challenging course, what with climbing the hills by the Omni and in Belmont. On Saturday morning there was the added challenge of the rain. It would have been so easy to pull up the blankets and stay warm and cozy in bed.
But I knew my teammates would be there.
Trish, Doctor Devil Woman Amber, Joanie, Easy Deb, Ralph, Maggie ... they would run. And, of course, they did. Very well, I might add. Despite the rain and slick roads, Trish bettered her time by a minute. If we had had chip timing, Joanie would have dusted us all, again. She started at the back of the pack and caught us easily. T, J and I finished side by side by side.
Oh, we are nowhere near the front of the pack. We are not 5-minute milers like Rob Cook. Shoot, I just feel lucky to stand in the same room with Julia Rudd, Andrea Wright and Nicola Ratcliffe. They collect trophies like I collect race T-shirts.
Some may say running is a solitary sport, but I disagree. There is a real camaraderie in Charlottesville. I had my teammates on the course and I had my teammates who weren’t in this year’s race.
Cathie B., Her-Mix-A-Lot Anne, and Prince Amy got up to run at 7 in the morning (an hour earlier than usual), so they would be finished in time to cheer us on. Fast Kathy ran miles from her home - with our pace dogs - to meet us on the hills and challenge us to “go, go, go.“ There was our injured duo, Cindy and Rocket, who stood in the rain and served as our inspiration.
Oh, I may have finished 267th, but I felt like a winner.