THE 2002 BIG SUR INTENATIONAL MARATHON
April 28, 2002
The staging area to the Big Sur Marathon
was a mixture of excitement and apprehension. The sea of humanity
was breath-taking as we all made our last minute preparations
that, if you are a runner, will understand and if your not, will
think we have somehow been transported back to the stone age.
First of all, there is no shame nor
sexuality for a pre-race runner. People are talking openly about
the band-aids they are putting on their nipples. They are carrying
on perfectly normal conversations while taking handfuls of Vaseline
and thrusting their hands down their shorts. Your hear a calliope
of conversations involving gastrointestinal updates, restroom
experiences, menstruation status, and any number of medical
situations that normally are reserved for family doctors.
After getting properly prepped for
the big race and dropping off our sweats bag (an event that
unexpectedly drove home the “point of no return” reality for
me), we headed to the start line where we edged our way in the
crowd a couple of hundred yards back. When you have a few thousand
people, the “start line” is more of a “start crowd” and the
line only serves as a point you cross a few minutes after the
starting pistol sounds.
Nervously waiting for the beginning
of the race, I hopped up and down and chatted with those around
me. There is nothing quite like the camaraderie you feel at
the beginning of a race, being just one part of the larger animal
that is the marathon crowd ready to begin the race. The pleas
from the race officials to scoot back finally gave way to the
singing of the National Anthem which was a beautiful rendition
that silenced the crowd until the end when they joined in the
singing. So many beautiful moments on this day of fun.
After the National Anthem was completed,
12 white doves were released which normally would have been
a touching moment but for some reason struck me as funny as
they flew every which way in apparent confusion. I envisioned
the conversation went something like “Hey, Bill, where the Hell
are we?” “Got me, Bob, I was just flying around the city and
suddenly I’m here in the mountains. Look at all those people….”
“BANG!” The race began and the
cheers exploded. The crowd inched forward and I was surprised
how quickly the forward motion got back to where I was. The
thought struck me , “God help those that trip at this point
because love or no love, camaraderie or no camaraderie, if you
went down you were screwed.”
As we started forward, someone must
have ran into the pole that held the “Starting Line” banner
because the pole swayed and then came crashing inward into the
crown. The banner dipped and it too fell into the crowd but
nothing was going to dampen the spirit of the runners. They
just held it up as they passed and to tell you the truth, it
was kind of neat to touch the starting banner and you went under
it, symbolically high-fiving the beginning of the race.
Thus, the 2002 Big Sur International
Marathon began.
The stories:
THANK YOU, WHOEVER YOU WERE
COMING IN FULL
MARATHONERS, START YOUR ENGINES
CRAMP IN A MINOR
The pictures:
My pics
Official
pics
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