8-8-08

All eyes were on Beijing. The opening ceremonies were being televised in America, but it was the Iversons in Durant who were coming home with a silver and bronze. Our eyes were on the northwest corner of the park in Durant Iowa as local girl sang the National Anthem into a bull horn before the start of the Durant Dusk Hustle 5K. It wasn't quite dusk when we started. It was still wicked hot and humid. We went with our friends, Amy and Brian Boelk, Brian's parents and his childhood friend, Mike. Bill's sister Susie also met us there. Nile ran the mile in a personal record time of 7:23. I felt terrible during the entire race. My mouth was so dry and even chomping on gum wasn't helping. You know that feeling when your throat is so dry that all you want to do is swallow to moisten it but I just couldn't get any saliva. My stomach ached and I was really hot. I was sure I was running like a 15 minute mile. 1 mile mark 8:21-- the fastest mile ever I have run but after conferring after the race we think that first mile was short and the second mile was long. I know I was suffering but I ran that second mile in 10 minutes and I don't think I slowed down that much. However I was at 18:21 at the 2 mile mark but put me on track to get my PR. Susie was right behind me. I felt like stopping and laying on the street. I don't remember suffering this much during a race ever. But I kept putting one foot in front of the other and saw the clock as I came down the home stretch; 27:55, 27:56, 27:57. I am going to do it. I am going to beat my old PR of 28:18. I sped up as I came around the last turn. Everyone was cheering loud. The girl in front of me thought they were cheering so loud for her so she raised her arms in a Rocky pose. I think they were cheering for me sprinting around the corner fighting only the clock. I did it. I crossed in 28:10. Glory. Victory. Success. I took my popsicle stick with 91 on it to the score table. I was fourth in my age group; just out of the medals I thought. But the top girl in my age group won the whole thing so that pushed her out of individual medals to the big trophy so I got the bronze. She finished 9th overall in like 19 minutes something. Bronze medal on 8-8-08; it is on a red/white/blue ribbon. I may as well be an Olympian!

Here is me getting my medal. Sexy skinny running legs if I can say so myself :-) Bill blew his PR out of the water getting under 20 minutes for the first time ever. His hard work has been paying off. He finished in 19:45 in 11th place overall. He got the silver in his age group. We didn't wear matching post race shirts on purpose but don't we look so cute??
Here is our whole group. From the L-- Brian's mom who got the gold in her age group, Brian's dad who got the bronze, me, Bill, Amy (who got like 4 minutes faster than she thought she would so she was quite pleased), Mike (Brian's friend Mike was apparently 280 lb in January and started working out every day and has lost almost 100 pounds. He tied his fastest 5K ever. What an amazing success story of hard work and perseverance) and Brian who got bronze in his age group. Susie had left by then and she got 4th in her age group.
Us with Nile after the race. The family Iverson who all got our PRs at the Durant Dusk Hustle on 8/8/08.

p.s. after the race Brian's mom was quizzing Bill all about where he grew up etc. She is an occupational therapist in the Quad Cities. She kept saying what is your sister's name again? She looks familiar. Turns out she did some OT in the elementary school Susie teaches at. Do you have any other family in the Quad Cities? Bill said no not really and then Nile piped up, your sister Sarah. Bill's other sister, Sarah, is severely and profoundly mentally retarded and lives in a group home. Turns out that is the sister Brian's mom knows best. She was Sarah's occupational therapist for years and knew Bill's deceased mom really well. Small world.