TRIgirls Rock the OBX

After Grandison, Lynn, and I finished the Richmond Marathon and showered, we piled in Susie Q's ride and headed south. There were TRIgirls representing at the Outer Banks Half Marathon, and we had a cheerleading favor to return!

We arrived at High Tide, SanDee and Gregg's oceanfront property to a party in progress. I didn't know TRIgirls were supposed to drink that much wine the night before their race! They aren't, really, so we reluctantly took over that job...

Susie and I modeled our Lucky jeans for everyone--I think soon they are going to have to become an official TRIgirl sponsor. Grandison was crowned queen (although SanDee and others vied for the tiara...) and I ate another million slices of pizza. And cookies. Mmmmmm... cookies. I wish I could say more about the evening, but I ran a marathon and drank a bunch of wine. That's all she wrote.

Lynn, Susie, and I (Lynn--note the use of the Oxford comma there) ended our evening by soaking in the hot tub and posing for pictures in the king size bed.

We were up early the next morning, although not as early as Grandison! Or the runners, of course. Teresa chauffeured us down the point-to-point course to Manteo High School, where we cheered Mary Jo, Deanna B, SanDee, Twila, Aimee, Deanna L, Kathleen, and Katherine to a strong, if rainy, finish.

That MHS link is for Molly, who directed us everywhere in Manteo except really nowhere at all.

Since the number of races I am allowed to enter next year has been severely restricted, I've been looking forward to being a cheerleader. Now, I'm not going to say that everything we said on the sidelines at OBX was totally helpful (e.g., "Cold wet towels just ahead!" in the chilly downpour,) but at least we kept the runner's minds off their miles and aching muscles. Cheering on racers is the perfect opportunity to apply the Golden Rule. I know I like to know what's coming up next, but most importantly, I need the energy from the crowd. Other than the focused elites, it seems as though the relationship between runners and crowd is like that of band and audience--we were more likely to cheer for the runners who smiled or waved back at us or those who picked up their pace when we cheered them on. Note to self: Remember to wear your name on you somewhere! People use it and it helps.

Much of the weekend was a blur--I always get a little stupid after a marathon. Apparently, so does Lynn, and so does my UR student Mike Kirn. She made up a song about SpongeLynn and he labeled his Christmas list "Halloween."

As much as I would like to thank SanDee and Gregg for their generous hospitality in Nags Head, I want to thank Gregg even more for the Udder Balm.

That's the kind of vacation I need to recover from!

Peace out, TRIgirls.