It Was the Best of Times, It Was the Worst Of Times
Why one of my slowest race times was one of my best times ever
Running has a way of shaping time. Running up steep hills slows time down. Running in sight of a finish line speeds it up.
I ran my tenth marathon in September 2023. My race buddy had to bail on zero notice. I missed my start gun by 25 minutes even though I was early. And I didn’t have a watch.
True to running’s time-shaping effect, in spite of posting one of my slowest race times ever, it was one of the best times I ever had. Here’s what happened.
My running buddy canceled on race morning
At the Montreal Marathon, the full and half marathon routes are together for the first 13km. I was set to run at the start with a dear friend who was registered for the half. Then she was going to stay and help me at the end. I was excited to toe the line with her, and to have her support at the finish.
And then… she messaged as I was commuting to the race to say she had a brutal migraine and would not be able to join. Of course, I totally supported her decision to stay in bed. I was sorry she was in so much pain.
And I was bummed. I was looking forward to our shared…
