GD 15K

For anyone who watches The Office, perhaps the title of this post looks a bit familiar?

Sunday was the "big race" Bloomsday. For some godforsaken reason, this race is HUGE. 60,000 or so people show up to race this 15K (7.5 miles). I don't get what all the hubub is about (is this how hubub is spelled? I've said it, but never actually written it out before. I never had a reason until now.) Anywho, Dysfunctional Office sponsored two teams (10 people) for the race. If you have a corporate sponsor, you get to be up towards the front of the start line, right behind the Kenyans. That is the only thing that makes this race worthwhile to me. It requires getting up early, driving 20 minutes to the mall, then hopping a bus and riding for another 20 minutes to the start line. A whole lot of effort for a Sunday morning, if you ask me.

The day before was my birthday and Idaho and I had no intention of letting the GD 15K get in the way of my birthday party. We drank gin and tonics and ate nachos along with the rest of my family. So, when Sunday morning rolled around, the last thing I was in the mood for was Bloomsday.

We had some last minute subsitutions as Paris Hilton's mom had her finger bitten off by her dog and wasn't able to babysit Paris' baby. Mini-Idaho was able to jump in at the last minute. It was fun having Mini-Idaho there, but I was a bit disappointed that Paris and her secret training wouldn't be able to take down those in the office that treat a whimpy GD 15K like it is the Olympics and that there is actual prize money riding on this event.

As those of us that were having second thoughts about the whole event casually strolled to the start line, the dysfunctional competitors pushed there way up to the front to start with the always-favorite Kenyans and other speed demons.

The gun goes off and 60,000 people start pushing there way through the downtown streets. People are screaming and pumping their fists, while I'm thinking maybe those leftover nachos that sat on my kitchen counter all night weren't the best breakfast choice. Those with a point to prove were quickly separated from the rest of us. The Virgin and I stuck together. We had a game plan. We would stop at every aid station, we would listen to every band along the way, and if a cute girl happened to run past us, I would be sure to tell her that the Virgin was available. The only thing missing from our perfect plan was money for an ice cream bar and a beer along the way. This is something I will need to remember for next year.

So, in the end we all fared well. Those who pushed themselves to the limit ended up with the same exact t-shirt and slice of pizza as the rest of us, so I guess I don't see the point.

Then, we had Monday to look forward to. Where we knew we would have to listen to the annoying ones re-hash every step of the race, spew out there minutes per mile for each mile, and hobble around complaining about how sore they were from pushing their bodies to the brink and living to tell the tale.

I couldn't have picked a better time for a vacation. I'm ready to get away from Dysfunctional Office for a couple of weeks!