The next week I won my first open (non-military) race, the 5K Airway Heights 'Run for Sight'. I was proud of that win. My apartment was about 500 feet from the start.
Six days later I ran this Bloomsday qualifier. Bloomsday was a huge 12K race through Spokane, Washington, so huge that in 1991, with nearly 60,000 starters, it was the largest timed run in the world. If you wanted a decent start position you had to run a 5-mile qualifier race in under 30 minutes. There were 1200 runners in each of the three qualifying races.
With that many very talented runners in the qualifiers, I knew I'd finish with dignity but probably not win. So on each one I took off and led the first 1/4 to 1/2 mile, and on this one asked Miimi to shoot a photo just in case I was on the losing end of a fishing story. Here I am(in black)leading 1199 runners in the Spring Tonic race. I had a cold so my expectations weren't very high, and after 1989 my running seemed to suffer a little. I got 43rd place this day, and 21st on the qualifier the next week (time of 28:45) which I also led.
The next day, after limping and groaning through a warm-up, telling Miimii I couldn't start because my legs were too stiff to even walk, I won the 10K Hauser Lake run, and came within 15 seconds of the course record. I loved leading this one because I had police escort! I felt so important...other runners were chasing me, but I was chasing a cop! I hear once a runner catches the lead vehicle they can never race again.
There was a short blip (with tiny, long-distance video of me) on the local news. I was presented the women's trophy by accident...twice. I still have a trophy with breasts. Guess I can't use that in the fishing story.