Day 7

I tossed and turned all night never really getting any rest. When my alarm went off i felt relieved. At three in the morning it didn't take long to hop on the interstate. vehicles were few and far in between each other on I -95 making it practically empty. Talk about a rarity in Jacksonville. I had no trouble finding the exit or the staduim. As i turned into the parking lot i realized i was basically alone. About fifteen minutes later cars began to trickle in and i felt better. I settled in and arranged my water belt which had everything from a first aid kit,mints and a wallet stuffed in various pockets. By the time the sun was hitting the horizon i was ready to leave the car. I noticed that people had started setting up tents and tailgating. Many were dressed up in matching team colors and T-shirts. There were twosomes and large groups of friends that were out to have a good time. Reading the backs of some of their shirts i discovered they were running for the sick,departed, buddies and every cause you could think of. All that and the normal supply of super hero customes. The atmosphere felt more like a low key football game than a 15k race. I loved it because i have only been to small local races but on the other hand i was by myself and became a little lost in the crowd. On my way to the start line i walked though the veterans memorial located in front of the staduim. I passed various groups of BGR and thought maybe i should introduce myself but ended up just strolling by them without saying anything. That area was so crowded with groups taking pictires i was a little overwhelmed. I wish i had asked someone to take my picture now. The price of buying them is going to be steep if any turn out worth having which at this point i hope so.

Thank goodness i snapped a picture of the memirial the day before after packet pick up. So I weaved through the veterans memorial and made my way over to wave 4 corral and began pacing the lot until my pedometer read 45 miles. I was only walking nine and needed to be on target when i got my medal. By 8:50 am it was show time and when the gun sounded i moved slowly towards the final steps of the journey.

It wasn't going to be a fifteen minute day for me. Even though i had a fruit cup and banana for breakfast i knew my fuel gauge was on low. The incline on the first bridge set me back and i turned around frequently to find comfort in not being last. I was carrying the same flag i used on the walk to the Moore center. My only regret was that i took it off the pole. It was a little tricky holding on to it when my arms tired but old glory never hit the ground. Exiting the bridge i had high hopes for a great experience. This race had been on my radar for five years and now i was making it the end cap of a memorial journey. I was practically pleased the route involved bridges and as the few spectators left to cheer us back of the packers on with waves i couldn't help but notice the irony. Once the cameras leave the reason for the real struggle begins to shine through. Around this juncture in the race I was cruising steady towards the water as the early bird runners with decent times were nearing the finish with that part of the race already in their memory file. So by the time i hit the shopping district the water station people told us we could take our own water off the table. Glad i didn't need it at that point because their gloves had been who knows where by that time.

I weaved my way through the water crews cleanup and kept going. The course was not scenic in that section but i still felt good as i neared the three mile mark. Late as it was there were still people sitting by sidewalks in the neighborhoods cheering us on. Then another hill showed up. I've been in Florida to darn long to be comfortable with anything steep and i was not pleased as a mini bridge approached in the distance. For us sunshine staters it was a hill, to everyone else it was a bump in the road. Whatever you want to call it, i counted it as another assault on my calves.

On the bright side the shade from large oaks that began to line the route became a blessing as i made my way through those side streets. The temperature was hitting eighty and i was feeling every bit of it. Some people were offering water, orange slices and even sausage.

I wanted none of it, the heat was taking over and my mental state waned. I knew why i was there but i wanted to say kick rocks to this race. Instead i thought of how the marchers kept moving. When that stopped working for me i walked to the side of the road and bent over,i was thinking about resting. Two ladies who had been tailing me came up and said oh no you don't, you pushed us and now we will pull you. Thank the lord it was mile six and for a mile thats what we did, the three of ud talked and kept moving. We hit a corner jamming to a dj on course playing a Beyonce sounding song. I don't know the name but i rocked steady until i hit the final bridge.

I took one look up and realized why they call it the green monster. You struggle through an entire race and then as a reward your given what might as well be Mt Everest. As i eased closer to the monster i saw that the heat and who knows what else had claimed victims all around me. I passed a young girl waiting for medical attention but i didnt look as i passed. My focus was solely on making it to the top I stumbled over to the guardrail and tried to lean on it but my feet hurt and although i wasnt tired my knees were shot. I needed to move to stop the pain of blisters which were a result of grinding my foot to compensate for those knees being unstable. That's when the cussing began. Silently at first,then i mumbled to myself. I called on the Lord as i fought to make that hill. A lady in a nearby small struggling group i was passing said out loud you can do it to me, while i said jokingly to myself won't he do it. Even in my time of despair i can amuse myself. I knew only God could get me up and over that steep bridge. I looked in front of me at three souls that i had trailed the entire race. One of the friends was blind and was lead by the guy with the backpack. The man being lead had some trouble with needing to rest along the way and the bridge was getting to him too. Midway up his friend turned on some inspiration. Earth, Wind and Fires Shining star. Yes that snapped me into conqueror mode too. I followed them to the top passing another woman stopped for some reason. With my blister worsening they left me in the dust. I caught up to a streaker ( someone who has run every race since it started in the 80's) he looked ninty and was not happy i passed him. I turned on the jets so that his attempt to catch me would fail, not that either one of us were going fast.

The relief i felt making it to the top was short lived. The view was awesome but i couldnt linger.With a bad knee that wasn't hurting but causing me to limp, a supposedly good knee acting up and feet in need of a soaking the decent was pure torture.

I gingerly made my way down the hill in agony the entire way. At the bottom a sheriff told me the famous almost there line. He said 400 ft, not ! It was a bit more than that across the street around the staduim and then through what used to be the finish area. No one but the medal guy was there and only a few people lingered in the message tent. All the water was stacked up directly in the sun mind you it was over eighty degrees at that time and it was about a hundred yards away. I looked and there wasn't so much as a banana left. I was so tired i laid on the dirty ground unsure if i would ever gather enough strength to get back to my car. Then as i laid there with some late finishers i saw these volunteers hauling out water and bananas. I said to them i thought you were coming over to ask us if we wanted anything. They said no this is ours. Can the people who paid for and finished the race get a banana before everyone else snatches the vitals up. I hope they enjoyed their haul while i sat there starving and thirsty ( i couldn't drink hot water).

Overall this journey has been an incredible humbling experience. For the lady and her daughter that offered me a scrunchy then had to stop before mile six, i hope you were able to continue. If not you are still awesome and for my back of the pack crew wtg we made it. I walked to honor a trek for civil rights and that voting rights act. On my sojourn i found what i knew to be true that there's still plenty of work to be done and what i needed to be reassured of was that good people rise up in crisis. May the Lord bless everyone that made this possible, i have said many times i walked alone but i never really was. I felt the ancestors with me every step of the way.