Farrah Rochon aka Speed Racer
Every year, on the Saturday before Easter, the Crescent City Classic is held here in New Orleans. It's a 10K race that draws runners from around the world. This year, I decided to take part for the first time. Ever since participating in a half-marathon at Disneyland last year, I fancy myself a runner.Or...not.
You see, on Saturday, I learned that you can't just say "oh, I did 13.1 miles back in September, I should be able to do 6.2 with no problem." It just doesn't work that way. You have to actually continue training if you're going to continue participating in races. Who'd da thunk?
Despite being ill-prepared, I had a great time. The race was fabulous. Even though an unseasonable cold snap had temperatures in the 50s, by the time I reached mile two, things had warmed up considerably. Of course, that could also have been the result of the group of Marine Reserves who jogged passed me around that time. I'm suspecting it was the latter.
The sights and sounds along the route were purely New Orleans. I passed several brass bands, a group of hippies with mega-size hula hoops (don't ask), and a set of generous guys handing out beer and scrambled eggs to run participants. After all, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, especially when you're running 6.2 miles. Believe me, people, you'll only see this in New Orleans.
I'm already looking forward to next year's Crescent City Classic. I plan to start training early and be in much better shape when next year's race rolls around. I decided to rejoin Weight Watchers after two women, who had to have been in their 70s, whizzed passed me at around mile marker three. They may have gotten the best of me this year, but I'll be ready for them in 2008!
Here's a pic of me after the race. As you can see, I'm still standing...with the help of a fence.
posted by Farrah Rochon @ 1:56 PM
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