Charlotte Marathon – Race Day

 Saturday morning, I met up with our pacers that could not make the expo on Friday. What an amazing sight? All of those bright smiling faces, wearing those hot pink pacer shirts ready to help others meet their race goals. Having paced that last 2 years, I now know how they feel. In fact, I learned that several of our pacers have paced every Thunder Road/Charlotte Marathon. That’s 12 marathons. Quite an achievement if I do say so myself.

In fact, all of our pacers deserve a huge pat on the back. May be it has something to do with the passing of time and the gaining of wisdom, but I find giving back to be just as rewarding as running and meeting my own goals. In some ways, I found it more rewarding.

Yeah, when I run well, I feel good about it. However, when I help someone else achieve their goal or get their BQ time, the feeling seems to resonate so much better.  Until you experience it yourself, it is difficult to explain. If you have never offered to pace, let the guys at run.charlotte@gmail.com know. Next fall, they will be looking for Charlotte Marathon pacers again. Actually, there is a possibility our club will be helping organize pacers for the Corporate Cup ½ Marathon in Half Marathon in the spring of ’17. This gives our members even more opportunities to get involved with Charlotte Running Club events. Awesome! Dont you think so.

 

Living the Dream,

The Cool Down Runner