The twenty-first 5k was held last Saturday and was entitled A Summer Celebration. Good thing, because it was a balmy 46 degrees and I didn't want to become confused about what season we were celebrating.
This race had some additional unusual categories to register in. There was a stroller category...and you had to have a child in the stroller. (Damn!) There was a dog category. Dogs, dogs and more dogs were EVERYWHERE.
I found out about this race from the expo of one of the other races earlier this year. They had nifty little postcards and were selling everybody on the race because they were offering unique medals. Some events give medals, others don't. This one promised and really cool-looking Rookwood Pottery Medal.
Hot damn. It's all about the bling.
The race wound around the Over the Rhine area of downtown. This is an area of town that has trendy bars, restaurants, and night clubs. It also has high crime and lots of abandoned buildings. On a historic note, the Over-the-Rhine area has more Italianate architecture than any other city. Renovations are rampant. So are stalled renovations.
The race started near Washington Park, a newly renovated park near Music Hall. There was a lot going on that morning: a yoga class near the fountain, an arts festival on the green, two stages with live music and food and beer tents galore. The race started and a light rain began to fall. Followed by light hail.
I say to myself "this is a good time." I was praying that I wouldn't fall on the cobblestones in front of Music Hall and kept reminding myself of all the food tents at the end of the race.
We meandered through Over-the-Rhine, passing by the new casino, and back to the opposite side of Washington Park. As we crossed the finish line, we realize that no one is giving out medals. What's up with that? Wait a minute. No medal? No cool-looking Rookwood Pottery medal?
We seek out the organizers of the event who tell us that the medals are only for the top 3 finishers in each category...and they would have to charge a lot more money to give medals to everyone. And they were snarky about it. Like they didn't think we would ever have finished in the top 3. (Note to organizers: Do not have snarky people at your information booth. It's not an attractive quality.)
I know it will surprise the faithful readers of this blog (all 10 of you) that while I have been doing this for over 6 months, at this point I am not actually finishing in the top 3. In any category. Not even in the stroller with a child category. Not yet anyway. I'm no longer the last finisher, but I can sometimes see the top 3 finishers as they whiz past me in the very beginning.
After all that...and no medal. ...and the smell of wet dog everywhere.
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