This year, I ran the 6-mile Wharf to Wharf with my 9-year old!
He barely trained. We started doing 1-mile training runs way back in June (June 7th was our first run), but that lasted all of 3 weeks, with only 4 runs in total with the last one completed on 6/23 and with 1.42 miles being the longest distance we ran!
We didn’t do a single run in July. By this point, I had pretty much given up on the whole training idea–by the time we’d reunited from summer camp and work, it seemed too hot and too late in the day to subject a poor kid to running. I figured we’d have a nice leisurely jog/walk during the event!
As it turned out, a good friend and her son started with us! But, her son is a sprinter and it was very crowded, so very early on, we unfortunately got separated and I lost sight of where they were in the crowd.
The next obstacle was water–he felt dehydrated and the first water station was waaaaay out there (at mile 2.5!)…much later than I had expected. After that first station, I ran with a half-full cup of water for him.
So as not to make it too strenuous or to tax his muscles too much, we walked up the hills (and we made a point to run down them!).
At around mile 3, we walked while he refueled with a granola bar (very glad I took one with us) and then, after that, we did a combination of running, usually to a sign or visible “landmark”. By mile 4.5, we employed a strategy of running for .1 mile and then walking for 20 seconds or so. And, despite his initial belief that he couldn’t possibly go another step, we crossed the finish line together!
This was a phenomenal first effort and I’m so glad that he has expressed interest in doing it again–this time with more training! Very proud and very happy to be able to run with my guy! Official Stats:
Time: 1:27:15
Pace: 14:32/mi