Race for a Reason – Debbie Green 5k

A few weeks ago I told you that I was registering for the Debbie Green 5k here in Wheeling.  I was both excited and nervous about participating in my first race.  Luckily I was able to talk my brother into joining me and I’m thrilled he did!

Andy and I arrived at the race on Saturday around 4:00, to set up the sound system they would use for the award ceremony at the Heritage Port amphitheater.  Despite all of the rain that we’ve had, it was a beautiful day!  We hung out, envying the kids getting Eat N’ Park smiley cookies because we were both hungry.  The Debbie Dash, a 100 meter dash for children, kicked off the events for the evening and shortly afterwards was a ceremony to retire racing numbers for various individuals who have been inspirations to their communities in the battles they have faced.  Randy Stephens was honored and his family accepted a plaque with his retired number in his memory.

It was great to see so many in the blue “Team Randy Forever” t-shirts to come out and race in memory of Randy! Unfortunately, I missed the cut-off date for the Team Randy t-shirt order, so I created a shirt with the number 13 (a number of great significance to his family) on the back. You can see me in the right corner of the picture below sporting our custom shirts.  Andy and I wore these for the race and Liz (Randy’s mom) was really pleased with them!

It was a great experience, sore hamstrings, dead Fitbit battery and all!  I couldn’t have asked for a better walking buddy either!  Andy and I are already planning to race next year.  We figure that in a year’s time we can train enough to run the Green Mile and then walk the 5k again, or maybe even jog the 5k because our fast-paced walk this year was nearly a jog anyways!  Maybe I’ll put that app I downloaded (Couch to 5k) to use, even though I’ve already got one under my belt!