Yesterday, while Miss Bethany was out running 31 miles in preparation for her upcoming 50 miler, Ryan ran with his Mom in the CVS Downtown Providence 5km. This race was also the USATF Road 5km National Championship, so it attracted a lot of the country's top runners. There were a total of about 6,000 runners for the 5km, with a couple thousand more for the high school 3km, so it's a pretty big event. Ryan's mom had run about 4 other 5km and one 10 km race, but this was definitely the biggest one she's taken part in.
We got to the race in plenty of time, picked up our t-shirts and goody bags (CVS really puts together swag bag for the participants!) We hung out on the RI State House lawn, waiting for the race to start, while the Rolling Bones, a zombie-rock cover band played. Mom was a little nervous as we got to our starting corral, but I knew she'd be alright.
Here we are before the race.
We started out maybe a little too fast, got caught up in the rush of the excitement of the start, but we settled into a nice 11:00 min/mile pace and continued strong the entire way. We never stopped to walk, and ran continuously the entire way! There was even a bit of an incline the last half-mile, but Mom actually sped up a little and powered up that last incline and across the finish, for a time of 34:18. So proud of my Mom, she did so well!
Now, here's where the race report gets really sad. As we crossed the finish line, we saw the very sad sight of a man lying on the ground, with a crowd of medics/EMTs performing CPR on him. We said a quick prayer for him, hoping that he would make it through, as the ambulance took him to the hospital. We kept following the local Rhode Island news to see if there were any updates on him, and today the sad news was confirmed that the 29 year old young man had passed away. It's so sad to think that he probably woke up yesterday morning looking forward to a fun 5km, excitedly got to the start, just like everyone else, ran his race, and then in a blink of an eye, it's all gone. A sad reminder for all of us that we must cherish every moment we have. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends in this incredibly tough time.
21 comments:
wait you were at this race too?! great job! it was such a fun race :)
That is absolutely heartbreaking. :(
So sad to hear about the man that passed, definitely a reminder to cherish every moment.
And the Rolling Bones? That's awesome.
You hate to see a situation like this. Hopefully his family can find some peace...
Congratulations on a great run!
So sad to hear about the 29 year old. I hate to hear that and my thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends!
Congrats on the run!
Sorry to hear about the man that passed. Get's you thinking, especially since he's about my age.
Cherish every second!
SO proud of your mom, Ryan!
And wow, that poor guy and his family. You just never know when your time is up. That's why it's so important to live your life in a state of grace :)
Great mother and son run!
So sad about the young man. Never know what life brings us and its a reminder to always enjoy each minute and time with our loved ones!
Congrats - so nice to run a race with your Mom!
Bethany, I hope the 31-miler (wow!) went well!
So sad to hear about the fallen runner. :(
Wow, what a fantastic run by your mom! Congratulations to her! Very sad about the runner that passed away. It reminds us that it can happen to anyone any time. We need to be so grateful for what we have.
How terrible. Too bad that you had to witness something so sad, but a good reminder to cherish the wonderful day that you had.
hearing stories like that really rattle me. what a terrible and unexpected loss for that family.
Congrats on the 5K with your mom.
So sad to hear about the young man that passed away.
So very cool you and your mom raced! And did awesome!
That story is just heartbreaking :( I can't even imagine - and when I think, I'm only 30! It can happen to any of us. Lots of prayers sent to that family.
awesome race for your mom! :)
So sorry to hear about the young man! THat's so sad! :(
Wow, that was such a sad, sad story. He was so young.
Cute pix of Ryan with his mom!
Love the picture with Ryan's mom.
So awesome.
Congrats to your mom for such a great race!! And so sad about the runner...so very sad!!
scary to see a runner down. Reminds us how fragile it all is
Your mom did great!
29. That's so sad! I pray his family is strong. It is so difficult to lose something unexpectedly.
Congratulation, you are doing good, nice run there. I love the post so cool, it detailed every moment of the run. Nice!!!
Post a Comment