Pretending to run

Rob decided to enter the Nike+ Human Race 10K ages ago. It was for a good cause, and there was a free concert scheduled after the run. I was very encouraging about this endeavor, and joked that he'd beat Lance to the finish line. Lance Armstrong's personal cancer-support charity was one of those that runners could choose to support. Besides, any decent-sized athletic event in Austin has to include Lance Armstrong as a rule I think. Anyway, Rob started some training runs and all was well with the world. And then he told my friend Brook about the run. This led to some internet research on Nike's site verifying that, yes, you could walk the 10K rather than run. I was out of excuses. I'm a piss poor runner, but I'll walk you into the ground. Rob refers to a weekend walk with me as a "death march". 

Brook and I signed up for the race literally the day before. So much for training runs. The good news was that Brook and I agreed to stick together. We'd jog a bit, walk a lot, and enjoy the chance to move down the middle of Congress Avenue with 15,000 friends and zero cars. 

So I was obviously pessimistic, but you know what? It was a lot of fun! Still hot out when the race started at 6:30pm, but nothing unbearable. Brook and I jogged out with the slow end of the masses because we couldn't bear to look like slackers right off the bat. We spent a lot of time discussing the local landmarks we passed - the Capitol building, UT campus, local restaurants... I think Brook was hungry. In spite of the many scenic areas planned on the route, my favorite part was the presence of two bands playing on street corners. Only in Austin. They both sounded pretty freaking good while we passed. 

Brook also got a kick out of my bargaining strategy to jogging - "Ok, I'll run to that third intersection, but then I'm walking again". It's good to know your limits right? Our true humbling moment came when we realized a little old lady - I am not exaggerating, she was at least mid-70s -passed us. We sped up, but she still stayed with us for a long way. In our defense, this lady was in good shape. She had the running pants and everything. Really... ok, I need to hit the gym more often. 

We did run in the last few city blocks and sprinted the very end. That's how a picture like this came to be. Don't I look convincing though? Brook got some pictures of the masses that I'll add later, but here are some pre-run shots we took:

Post-run, we went to check out Ben Harper, then made some new friends by sharing an outdoor table at a way too crowded pub. This place obviously didn't realize so many hungry people were about to converge on the neighborhood. On our way back to the car we had to walk through the normal Saturday night crowd. One of the door callers in front of a bar somehow convinced us to stop in for another drink. I was not a fan of this plan, but bowed to peer pressure and the promise that we wouldn't be the only runners in the bar. Such a lie! There is nothing quite so bizarre as sipping a vodka sour in sweaty run clothes while surrounded by people that obviously put effort into their appearance. We left after the one drink, but it seemed a somewhat appropriate ending to the evening I'd never planned to begin with.