"cap 10.gifMost people run a race to see who is fastest. I run a race to see who has the most guts."   - Steve Prefontaine

On Saturday, I officially registered for the Cap 10…along with nearly 30,000 other people. After a Spring Break full of Sea World, the Rainforest Cafe, Mexican food cafes on the Riverwalk, and all the indulgences that San Antonio and my boys have to offer, I had to commit. And commit FAST before comfort sneaked up on me in the middle of my siesta. 

It'll be my first time at the Capital 10k. Some run it for fun. Some run in costumes. Some serious runners use it as their 'Sunday morning warm up'. For me, I'm burning a vacation day and running a chip-timed 6.2 miler as part of my journey towards a half- (then a full) marathon. And I'm finding out that Ann Trason was right: "It hurts up to a point and then it doesn't hurt anymore." Of course, it takes guts to stick it out to that point. Especially for an old guy like me. But the zen-like trade off for the perseverance of reaching your goal is worth it…hands down. In fact, I have a goal time I'm trying to finish in…but we'll see how that turns out. 

A guy named Paul mentioned something in a letter about beating his body into submission. That's what I'm in the process of. With all this talk about being a 'light to the world', how about having the opportunity to shine your light for 20 or so extra years? How about shining your light by taking care of your temple and lowering your cholesterol, blood pressure, and your risk of heart attack and diabetes? (…not to mention your waistline…) How about being around to see your grandchildren get married? Or your great-grandchildren graduate from college?    

This week, I'll log some easy runs to maintain my cardio and stay away from injury. I'll eat a little extra pasta Friday and Saturday. But, the fun part will be picking up my race packet on Friday and then joining nearly 30,000 of my brothers-in-kicks downtown next Sunday. Any joiners?