Cancelled: Silver Linings

It happened. 

Again. 

Another event has been cancelled. For me, the Viking Half Marathon was the first event that changed because of COVID-19. It was not cancelled just postponed. Then our MDCC 5ks went away as did the 5K in Kosciusko. All the spring running races in Mississippi were cancelled.

The Bikes, Blues[,] & Bayous held on like a stubborn scab. It refused to go away. But the numbers capped, and I failed to get in. So for me, it was cancelled too.

I had some hope for the Mississippi Senior Olympics. They postponed them and week after week went by with no word. I thought probably they will come off in September or October. Today word finally came: cancelled. 

Ouch. That hurt.

It is only rumor at this point, but the scuttlebutt I hear is that the Heart O' Dixie Triathlon will probably be cancelled also. That will pour salt in some open wounds in my psyche. I always did it and then Bikes, Blues[,] & Bayous the following weekend. The two of those events back to back made for a tremendous training stimulus. Now I'll probably have neither.

There is, however, a silver lining. There is always a silver lining. A lot of events across the country have gone "virtual." That is, registered contestants do the distance at home on race day and still receive their T-shirt and finisher's medal. Even the Boston Marathon was postponed until September and now it will be virtual. 

The good news about that is I can do it. No I am not registered so I will not officially be given finisher's status. But who cares? On the weekend it is the be held, I plan to do 26.2 and, in my mind, it will be the Boston Marathon. Tell me I can't. This opens up the whole world to me.

Actually, I have been doing virtual races for years. The great thing about them is they are free, they start when I want them to start, and the course is of my choosing. Just this week, I did a virtual triathlon to celebrate my birthday. The idea was a 64 mile job to mark my 64th birthday. The "race director" called the run a few miles short for safety concerns. Consequently, I only did 60.75 miles. So I have done a triathlon during this lock down.

If you don't believe you can have some serious fun in the virtual world, check out my albums on Facebook. You see all those Buddy Bones Marathons? Virtual runs all of them. I ran marathon after marathon all by myself, starting when I wanted, and running where I wanted. I had a blast. Now I am trying to work my way back to a fitness level that will allow me to do it all again. I have some great ideas for marathons, triathlons, and swim/runs. 

Thank you, COVID-19 for making my weirdness seem normal. Thank you, Jesus, for my reemerging running health. May I keep it by the grace of God.