I am not a runner

But I will Race to Eradicate Polio, when my dad and my brother convince me I need to register for the Blanding Rotary First Annual 5K.  Eliminating Polio is actually something we are kind of passionate about, since my grandfather, my dad's dad had Polio.  I was quite young when my Grandpa Glover passed away, but I remembered him always in that wheelchair.  As a matter of fact, when I was a kid, even a teenager, I just always assumed that my grandpa had gotten Polio as a child, as is usually the case.  It has only been recently I realized, he was a young father, with a small family when Polio struck, at the age of 29.  He was a busy, energetic man, struck down by a crippling disease.  Still, once he overcame the affects of the disease, one of which was irreversible paralysis, he continued to be very active and involved in the community.

There is no cure for Polio.

But vaccines can prevent the disease.  Since 1988, Polio cases have decreased by over 99%  Historically, Polio has been the world's greatest cause of disability.  Today there are less than 2,000 people affected by Polio.*

*Facts from the brochure "End Polio Now" created by USU-Eastern SJC Microbiology student volunteers.

Garrett and I get ready for the race to start.  Yes, it was COLD! 

the runners 

good to go 

Rachel and Thomas were ready to go, too 

These guys did the one mile Fun Run with Grandpa Worthy.  Timothy kept going even after he tripped and fell 

Garrett had a strong race.  He came in 5th place.  The guys ahead of him are serious runners:  First place, I didn't recognize, but he was fast!  Second place, Ryan Heck; Third, Ricky Arthur; Fourth, Brian Kirby.

And the fact that Garrett has not been running since Cross Country makes his performance even more impressive.  I think he takes after his dad. 

There I am, coming to the finish line.  Yes, it was sooo uphill. 

I guess it is not fair to say I am not a runner.  This exact route is the same one I used to run all the time a few years ago.  When I struggled with depression several years ago, I discovered that the thing that helped most, more than the medication or anything else was running.  Maybe it was also the fact that, while running,  I listened to the podcast of "Wait, Wait, don't tell me: The NPR News Quiz."  Whenever anyone saw me running, they would usually catch me grinning, too.  I loved listening to that podcast while running.  I have about thirty of them on my computer now, because listening to them around the house is just not the same.

And it is not that I am out of shape, obviously, since I do go to Step Aerobics and Zumba classes regularly.  I do miss running, though.  I am just not a competitor.  I don't usually do races like this.  And even when I run on my own, I go fairly slow, because my heart-rate monitor (which is currently broken) tells me to.

So even though I am not a runner, today I raced for a good cause.  Now I need a nap.