15 Things I Learned From Running the Bridge

Last May, my son came to me and said, “Dad, we need to do something ‘athletic’ together.”  After some discussion (and against my better judgment) we agreed on running, set a goal to run the Cooper River Bridge 10k Run this year and started running together about 3-4 times each week.

Well, April 2nd was the big day.  It was crazy, but great.  We finished in about 62 minutes (for the record, I finished 6 seconds ahead of him), which put us in the top 38% of about 35,000 finishers, and although our goal was to finish in under an hour, we were pretty happy with how we did.

Looking back, there are several things I have learned from this experience:

1. 6.2 miles is longer than I thought it would be.
2. MotrinIB is good.
3. Aleve is better.
4. I am slightly OCD about tracking my workouts.
5. Good running shoes don’t last as long as I think they should.
6. Good running shoes cost more than I think they should.
7. Jeff Galloway is a genius.
8. My son is a pretty cool kid.
9. I don’t drink enough water.
10. Music is better to run to than podcasts (sorry Matt & Erwin…Thanks Toby).
11. I am more proud than I should be that I can outrun a 12-year-old.
12. I will probably not be able to outrun my son much longer.
13. Public parking in Charleston cannot adequately handle an additional 40,000 people on a Saturday morning.
14. It feels good to be in shape, and “in shape” is a relative term.
15. I can do more than I think I can do.

All in all, it was a great experience for both of us.  Now, my son has talked me into training for a 1/2 marathon in October.  I think he’s trying to kill me.