This week we were on the sidelines again… this time putting it to good use volunteering for the Niagara Falls International Marathon.
Let me back up…
My foot continues to improve. If only I could stop learning that foot injuries are crazy hard to heal… or that no, I can’t stay off it. Each week, I think… one more week. I think hope we’re at that point. One more week… The problem is that it’s so hard to just stay off of it. I know… just do it. But there are still a couple items on the list to wrap up before the snow flies. And it seems like everything is on uneven ground. That lateral motion is what’s killing me, even with it wrapped. Oh well, we’re getting there. Slowly but surely…
Missing these fantastic fall runs has me nuts, but… must… wait… until healed. …or I’ll be nursing this thing all winter!
Volunteering always makes me feel good. Yesterday it was a combination of feelings. Excited for the runners, especially for those at the end of the pack! We each run for different reasons…
Maybe… because we can, it’s what we do, to push the envelope, to set a goal and reach it… there are so many reasons.
Bittersweet…and Hopeful… we’ll see how training goes over the next year. There are a couple halfs penciled in, maybe a full in my future? We’ll see how it goes.
We’ve been on the sideline before, in the Clap & Cheer seats. It’s different being there to help. To hold off the traffic for a snippet of time to help these runners, who we will never know, achieve their goal… of running a marathon, maybe a PR. When we ran the Mighty Niagara, I remember being so thankful for the volunteers who gave of their time. Feeling good to give a little back.
If I ever run a marathon, this may be the one. The weather was picture perfect – overcast, 45-50 through the run, dry. The thrill of running across the Peace Bridge I can only imagine. The course along the Niagara River… beautiful!
A couple crazy things that happened… of course there was a fire just before the run started… we got to explain to the firemen why they were sitting on Richmond Ave waiting for all these runners to pass to get back to the firehouse (sorry, my phone was having technical difficulties – no pics). This lady (we think) started screaming out of a window a couple houses away… we thought someone brought out their pet goat. Must have been a tough night… too funny. The runners heard her and loved it! (Bet they thought it was a goat too!)
BTW this is the second run – the first was a 5K we were running – that firefighters were traversing the run to get to a fire. They didn’t seem to know there was a run or the roads involved. With technology today, well… would think that info might be helpful.
The Niagara Falls International Marathon start is in front of the Albright Knox Art Gallery/Delaware Park. The pregame can be inside the gallery (no food or drinks allowed) or around the park. There were many volunteers and support for the runners… lots of port-a-potties. Runners are a little over 3 miles in the US before they cross the Peace Bridge and enter Fort Erie to finish the remaining 23 miles along the Niagara River in Canada. It’s a beautiful route finishing just this side of Niagara Falls, Canada.
They have a cadre of runs (5K, 10K, half) along with the full. Only the full starts in the US and finishes in Niagara Falls, Canada. The shorter runs are in Canada. Guess to run the Peace Bridge, it’ll be a full….