Skate of the Union

Today I did the skate of the union race today in N. Va.

I have a big love of racing at a deep level but there is are times in one’s life when the competitive focus lives.  For the last couple of years I have not focused on “racing” and at this point in my life my joy from skating has very little to do with “racing”.

These days my love of skating is more about simply enjoying the weather, my skates, and keeping fit through middle age.  “Racing” was something I did with focus at times in my life and I am certain the comptetive bug will return.  Right now my focus is more broad with enjoyment of skating, cycling, and my other hobbies but no “training plan”, heartrate monitors, workouts, etc.  I don’t hold onto much of the fitness I had in the past and really don’t mind a more mello and healthy level.  I simply skate for the joy it brings me and not as a competitive outlet.

Prior to today my last “racing” was in spring 2005 and since then I have been more focused on simply enjoying my skates rather then trying to become faster.  I am not nearly as fit as I was in spring 2005 but really that is fine with me and you can’t stay fit for all of your life.  A natural ebb and flow of fitness is needed at stages of life.

At some point in the future, my focus might return to “racing” but really for someone like me that takes a lot of psycic energy and actual training since I don’t posess much in terms of natural gifts.

So with the above, why did i do the Skate of the Union “race”?

At a basic level, I was not at the event to “race” but simply as a chance to skate and enjoy the day with other skaters on a fun flat course.  I am here in N. Va visiting family.  The chance to duck out for a skate was a welcome break from the eat until you are stuffed then eat some more pattern of our family events.  Mixing in a bit of exercise will hopefull offset a few calories.

In anycase, on to the report of the event….

The start was as always a bit of stress and that is fun.  The pack surged as people sorted themselves out into their groups.   I was quite impressed with the speed of the group and especially impress with Artem (a local N.C. skater who has made big improvements in recent years).

Durring this early part of the skate, the event was basically controlled by three other skaters.  Of these three, Jose Escobar(sp) was by far the strongest.  With Jose and his strong fitness and great form it was clear he would win the day.  The other two players (don’t know their names) were both good skaters and in the first three laps gaps formed and were closed with Jose, the other two, and occasionally me putting in efforts to knit the elastic and splintering pack back together while an ever shrinking number of skaters held on to the draft in the group.

Around the fourth lap, I looked around and noticed that the group was quite a bit smaller yet Artem was still around and looking quite strong (way to go Artem!).   At around this point Jose decided he needed a bit more of a workout and went out on his own in what would be a 9 mile solo effort.   Actually Jose had earlier taken a wrong turn into a parking lot so he had just caught up from his mistake.   At this point it was completely clear that the “race” for the win was over since Jose simply skated up the road dropping everyone else with little effort.

The pack sorta splintered in response to Jose’s show of power and I found myself in a group with two other strong skaters.  The three of us kept up a nice rotation and thankfully prevented Jose from lapping us (boy that would have been embarising).  In anycase at the end I showed my complete lack of sprint training and crossed the line 4th.  I am not sure my time but I figure it was around 40 minutes for the half marathon.

As with most races there is that would have, could have, should have group of post race thoughts.   Sure I would have trained some more but time commitments from my other hobbies and such always got in the way.   I could have tried harder in the sprint but really for this day it simply was not possible.  I should have had a good time and today I actually did so even when your focus is not on racing it is still possible to enjoy the event even if it is a “race”.

Races are hard and especially for people who don’t finish well there can be disapointment.  In the past I would have taken a glass half empty look at my performance but really today I am much happier to view it as a glass 3/4th full experiance.

Congrats to everyone who attended and especially Artem and Jose.  Both of these guys and many others showed competive fire.  I am sure there are plenty of other stories from the race and when you get down to it the middle of the pack finishers are sometimes the people who work the hardest and give it all.   If you did the race make sure you pat yourself on the back regardless of how it turned out or how you finished.

Also a big thanks to the event organiser.  Everything at the event was well done.  These events are great fun and I encurage skaters to put this one on their calendars for next year.