When time rolled around, however, no one was talking. Then I found out that Vicki was leaving town. Tuesday before the race, I texted Katie and told her I had just signed up. She replied that she was going to make a decision by the next day. I already knew what that meant. That was a no.
So when Saturday morning rolled around, I was second guessing my decision to make the race. I could have slept in, I thought. I could have done a really long run in place of this, I thought. But I had already paid my fee so I drove over.
The race started at 8:00 a.m. and we were off, leaving the square in downtown Grenada and instantly hit the big bottom of big woods right off the square. That blows me away. You could have Bigfoot within a quarter of a mile of downtown Grenada.
The course goes for 1.1 miles across the woods, then turns right onto Highway 332. From there, it goes to the base of the levee, right to the spillway, up to the top of the levee, then left across the 2.5 miles of the largest earthen dam on planet earth, then down the base of the levee back to Highway 332 and back to the square.
It was in the latter stages of Higway 332 that I began to focus on the fat lady up ahead of me. For the longest time, I thought I had no shot at her. The gap remained the same. Then when we got below the dam, I percieved that I closed the gap to about 200 meters.
From last year, I decided it would be best to walk up the incline to the top. When the fat lady got there, I noticed that she kept running. That's my chance, I thought. She will burn out on the hill, and I will catch her. And that is exactly what happened. I walked up the levee, and she was stopped at the aid station at the top.
Oddly, when I came past the aide station, she spoke to me. We had not interacted until then, but over the years, I have noticed that the fat ladies notice me, they instinctively know we are in a competition. She knew I was stalking her and acknowledged me when I shuffled past.
Believe you me, it's a long was across that levee. I was running scared now, trying to hold pace and not get caught by that fat lady. I didn't know how long she stayed at the aid station. For all I knew she might be stalking me now.
I made it across the levee, down to the road below, and back onto Highway 332. Slowly the miles racked up as I inexorably slowed my already slow pace. When I turned onto the road that heads back to the square, I looked back up 332 to see if I saw her. I didn't. Then I knew that if I just kept shuffling, I was going to beat her and that would make this a successful race for me.
I crossed the finish line at 2:41:06 which was better than six minutes quicker than in 2021. Since I am a year older, no thinner, and I was ahead of the fat lady, I was highly satisfied with my performance. I drove home feeling like a champion. When I got there, the cats percieved my fatique. They like it when I am tired because they know what it means: lots of lounging on the bed. They, all four of them, followed me to the bedroom and joined me in a nap. We spent most of the afternoon taking it easy. CC, of course, had to have the prime position. The other cats understood. Life is good.
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