This past weekend, our local running club held its annual
end of the year/awards party to celebrate running in the year 2015.
Repping the #werunsocial movement and proudly showing off my first circuit certificate for....2010? Slight typo on it.
I went to the party with my uncle/running coach Trevor,
Syd, and my dad was in town so he got to come as well. After grabbing some pizza and salad and
mingling with other club members for a bit, the awards portion began. We first heard from the club president and
were introduced to the 2016 board. Then,
awards were given both to this year’s quality runner and a special Red Jacket
volunteer award. After those awards were
given out and a few raffle winners announced, it was time for the circuit
awards.
A circuit is like a division a runner is placed into based
on gender and age. For every race a member
runs in addition to the placing they finish, they get a certain ranking in the
circuit. At the end of the year, whoever
has the highest ranking in their circuit wins.
The circuit winner receives an engraved wine glass and those who
complete a circuit receive a certificate.
A minimum of 6 races is required to complete a circuit, I believe. For this being my first year running, I was
so proud of how well I did in my circuit.
I was neck in neck with Rachel, a speedy girl in my circuit, for most of
the year and we had never actually raced each other in the same race. It came down to a December race as to who
would take the circuit win. We both
ended up racing each other for the first time and she won. Funny thing that Trevor told me
afterwards: if I hadn’t have raced her,
then we would have tied and been co-champions of our circuit. I realized though, that this year it was just
more important for me to run as many races as I could, rather than sit out to
win a circuit. So I ended up behind
Rachel for second place in the circuit, followed by my new runner friend,
Robin. I love that even though the
circuit builds up a sense of competition, I have now met both girls I competed
with in the circuit, and I think they are pretty great and am excited to build
friendships with them! I’m also looking
forward to hopefully running some training runs with them, too, which was one
of my new year’s goals (running with other people).
The lovely 25-29 ladies circuit!
Sitting at the party, surrounded by all the other members
and their families, I realized how truly special Six Rivers Running Club
is. For such a small club, there are
plenty of fun, challenging races to participate in with just a small annual fee
of 20 dollars. But what really sets this
club apart is the sense of community.
This was my first year as a member and new runner and I felt instantly
welcomed into the group. Whether it was
an invite to a group training run, a wave during a race, or a gracious
volunteer’s hand extending a cup of water, my experiences in this club make me
so thankful for all the wonderful, encouraging people who devote their time and
energy to serving the running community in Humboldt County. So thank you, Six Rivers Running Club
members, board, and volunteers for all you do!
Joining this club was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
Also on Saturday before the party, the club kicked off
the first race of the year with the Patrick’s Point Run! I raced the 10K, and I must say, it was a pretty
tough one. It was a wet, windy, soggy 6 miles,
so certainly not a PR (my 10K record is around 48 minutes), but I managed to
pull off a 50:34 finish time.
Must be the socks: ProCompression WeRunSocial BOOM!
P.S. The woman finishing her race next to me on my right, Lynn, is over 80 years old and continues to race in many of the club runs...so cool.
This race got me pumped for the start to another fun year of racing with SRRC!
New friend I made in line thanks to Yoon, the club photographer, because he just had to get a pre-race photo of us lookin so fab.
Photobombed by Franklin :)
Getting all #runmatchy™ with my ProCompression socks and one of my new SparklySoul headbands from my New Year's Grab bag.
