Stag Run - 1 year ago

As it's the first anniversary of my last run, it seems appropriate to record the event. It'll not only remind me of what I did back then, but also how much fun it was.

When I was asked what I wanted to do for a Stag Do, I thought rather than be humiliated in some way after being plied with alcohol, I'd try and get some friends to join in with a 10K run. The Reepham Summer Run was 2 weeks before the wedding and the day after the Hen Night, so it seemed perfect. Only 4 other were brave enough to accept the challenge, and the favourite to finish first had to be Rob, the youngest who had recently trained with the Territorial Army. Simon, the eldest of the group, had been taking it all seriously and done loads of training. I'd done a little, while David (who was only doing it because it was what I wanted him to do) and Mikey, as far as I could tell, had done very little. Apart from that, we had our t-shirts, so we were ready.

At the start, serious Simon (who wouldn't/couldn't wear the official stag shirt to run in) zoomed off. Mikey and Rob weren't far behind. I decided to stay with David, and together we plodded along at a slow but steady pace. At one point it was so slow I couldn't run and had to walk alongside David as he jogged unhappily, asking why people did this for fun. It wasn't long, about 1.5k, before we caught up with Rob and Mikey, already walking but in good competitive spirits. We kept this slow pace, running together until about 4.5k, attracting much attention and congratulations from the other runners. Some thought it was a brilliant idea. Others thought we were stupid.
As we turned a corner and prepared to leave the road section for the old railway line, something happened. I'm not sure if I sped up, or whether they slowed down, but a gap quickly opened between me and the other 3. I looked back at about 7k, and they'd gone. The only way I knew they were still running was when another runner sprinted past me, shouting “Congratulations! I passed the rest of the group back there” before speeding off. They were still trying. I plodded on happily, but alone, until I got to the finish, where apparently I got the biggest cheer of the day. I was 5 and a half minutes slower than the previous year, but I'd enjoyed every minute. As I crossed the line someone asked where the other were. I just shrugged.
Simon had finished nearly 15 minutes before me, and at last was wearing his shirt. David came in next, 4 minutes behind me having been encouraged by a female he'd met along the way. He vowed never to ever run again. Ron and Mikey came in 3 minutes later, and turned their finish into a personal race as they sprinted for the line. Mikey won by a second. Only 4 other runners were behind this pair including 2 pensioners, giving me a good line for my wedding speech at least. We didn't care. Us 5 plus Billy and Poppy were the only medal winners on the day, the official souvenir being a mug! We had all really enjoyed it, even the group of supporters we took with us (thanks to Becks, Billy (who gave out medals), Becky, Poppy, Hannah, Amanda, and Maddie the dog for all the noise they made).

Afterwards, it was back home for a well-earned barbeque.