Colder Bolder 2017
What I love so much about this race is that each invitational wave is organized by the times from the Bolder Boulder so that everyone is racing against people who have similar times and there are awards for the top three men and women. It is like mini races within a big race. Then at the end there is an open wave for anyone who would like to register who didn't race the Bolder Boulder. The course is run entirely on the University of Colorado at Boulder campus and finishes in the field house. At the end there is usually some pretty neat finishers food! Just a bonus to an already great event.
This year they opened with The Original Charles Dickens Christmas Carolers for each wave. It really brought the holiday spirit!
This race for was not one of my best races nor was it one of my worst races. I had not run in two weeks because of the need to take some time off from running to let my leg rest up a bit. So I had some choices about how I could approach this race and I picked the me against me option. I think remembering the me against me is a good reminder for us no matter if we race the best race of our lives or the worst race of lives.
It is so easy to compare ourselves to other in a race and feel discouraged when we come in last or even boost when we win. Neither of these reactions are "bad." They just are. It is nice to win. It lets us know that we have done our training. It hurts to lose and reminds us that we may have work to do. But at the end of the day our biggest competition is really ourselves. Did I go out there and race to the best of my ability? Did I go out there and have fun? Did I go out there and show myself of what I am capable of?
That was how I approached today's race. As racers ran by me instead of worrying about them I worried about my race. I knew I wasn't going to be the fastest out there, but I also knew that I had my running form to work on. So in the end when I didn't even come close to finishing in the top of my wave I wasn't disappointed. Instead I was proud of the fact that I had run MY race and worked on my running form. What made me the most happy was that I held myself accountable at the end of the race to keep pushing rather then letting myself off the hook. At the end of the day the only person that I am accountable for how I race is myself and I can sleep well tonight knowing that I had a good solid race. Winning isn't everything. Trust me. I know. :)
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