The beginning of a decade of racing

I distinctly remember laying on the concrete bleachers in Brookdale Park in Bloomfield, N.J., telling my mom on the phone how nervous I was.

In my eight months as a runner I had run greater distances than three miles. Heck, I had done eight by then. But this?  This was a race. And races were for real runners and that was not me. I was just a guy who ran (and not a whole lot), not a "runner".

That was 10 years ago today at the Building Tomorrows 5K, my first race ever.

It happened completely organically. After weighing in at 175 pounds in 2003, I started frequenting the gym, first at the Y then at William Paterson University, a few days a week. By August 2005, I had grown accustomed to my semi-daily workouts, so when the Rec Center closed for maintenance for a couple of weeks, I decided to hit the pavement.

I jogged.  In my old sneakers and sweatpants.  Sometimes in jeans.  On Route 46 in Parsippany.  I had no idea what I was doing.  But I kept doing it and I liked it; and I had no desire to go back to elliptical machines.

So by the time my friend Elaine told me about the April 1 5K at Brookdale, I should have been totally ready, but I was absolutely terrified.

It is weird how certain little details come back in my mind. I do not recall the start, but I remember that it did not take long for the fear to turn to joy while running along the park's paths.  At the end of a downhill I recall smiling to the volunteers as they cheered me on.  I even remember that "American Idiot" by Green Day was playing on my first-generation iPod Shuffle (courtesy of my big brother) at that moment.

I also distinctly remember getting freaked out at the uphill climb into the home stretch and the elation of crossing the finish at 22:51 (7:21 pace) – 64th overall, 58th of 229 males, and fifth of 22 men age 30-34.

It was the start of something amazing and addictive in my life.  It has become the focus of my attention for a decade, the basis for the goals I strive to attain.

Ten years later, I still often run at Brookdale Park, and I still can not help but smile when I do.