You take the good
You take the bad
You mix 'em altogether
You get... the facts of life.

2007.04.23

Friday evening, me and 'the fam' walked 5 miles and watched an Ohio University Bobcats baseball game. The Bobcats lost in what was a close game. Following the game, I ended up carrying Mini-Mattis the 3/4 of a mile back to the hotel. That kid is getting heavy.

Saturday morning, my wife and son ran in the Gridiron Gallop 5K. I did not run this year race. I cannot keep up with Mini-Mattis. He proved that last year.

My wife is a good runner. She ran cross-country in high school. She has run in dozens and dozens of 5Ks. She has run a marathon. She is a good runner. My wife should be able to properly push and pace Mini-Mattis. My wife gave birth to our twin daughters 8 months ago. She is just now returning to form.

Last year, Mini-Mattis ran the 3.1 miles in exactly 31-minutes. This year, (now 8-years-old) the goal was to finish in under 30-minutes. Just like last year, we have in no way trained for the race. Prior to the race I told him, "If and when you pull away from Mom - do NOT look back. Do your best. I will meet you at the finish line."

Well, he separated himself from her very early on. He took off. He was a solid 1/4-mile ahead of his Mom when he looked back. He didn't see her. He got scared. He stopped running. He turned around and walked back to find his Mom.

Once he found her, they ran together for a bit, and then he took off again and headed for the finish line. He ended up finishing in 29:59. I am proud of him for breaking 30-minutes. I am disappointed for him because if he hadn't gotten scared, he could have finished somewhere between 27:30 and 28-minutes.

It just comes down to focus and confidence. I have to remind myself that he is only 8-years-old. I am sure it is a scary experience to be alone in a crowd of 300 grown-ups that are complete strangers.

The reality is, at age 8, he is already a better runner than me. By the time my wife is fully back in running shape there in guarentee that she will be able to push Mini-Mattis let alone beat him. In this realm, he is proving dominance early.

Saturday afternoon, we watched some of the Green & White Spring Football game. The Ohio Bobcat defense looks impressive. The offense faced a lot of 3rd and long situations.

A good time was had by all.