Gussie does Sigma 2009

I was up by 6am, unheard of for a Sunday morning. This was my first competitive event since sports day in high school. The 11th annual Sigma Corporate Run was to be my triumphant return to the winner’s circle. Weeks of intense training were to culminate in one race. We joined the sea of runners in New Kingston all dressed in their company tees. Corporate Jamaica was well represented, from the seasoned runner to the couch potato. Prior to the race Team Gussie was busy taking pictures and updating facebook statuses. The race started on time at 7:30am (I hear it always does) and we all jostled for position as we made our way up Knutsford Boulevard. Fueled by pride I managed to run all the way up to the 2K point at the intersection of Waterloo and West Kings House Roads. Unfortunately, like Achilles’ heel and Samson’s hair I was betrayed by my weakness, “flat feet”. Running soon became a brisk walk, which at times turned into a leisurely stroll. By now the fitter members of Team Gussie had disappeared up Winchester Road. There were times when I had to dig into my reserves to avoid being passed by senior citizens and mere kids. Shortly after passing the 4K mark I could faintly hear the voice of my sensei telling me to remember all my training and not to bring shame to my dojo. I was joined by my training partner and we both managed to ignore the pain and sprint all the way to the finish line. After refueling it was announced that “we” were able to raise $14.2 million for the Bustamante Hospital for Children and other paediatric wards across the island. Kudos to the organizers, it’s a worthy cause and I’m pleased to have participated. One foot rub and several hours of sleep later I heard that the results were available online. I finished in just over 44 minutes, just two minutes above the average time. I'm thrilled with my performance, not bad for my first marathon.