A somber mood filled the air this morning. We had been prepped for it for the past few days. It was the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and memorial services, memorial television shows, memorial op-eds and much more and reminded us about the horrific day 10 years ago when planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York, in a field in Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon in Washington D.C. While I remembered and offered my thoughts and prayers to those victims, I paid homage to those victims in solitude, shortly before making my way to the beach. I experienced the beauty of it all before unloading my Senator 9'6" "Petal" and making my waves into the already crowded waves at about 7:50 a.m. Robin and Brian were already out. I had slept in because of my previous action-filled night (more info later -- see photo above).
The waves looked nice, but it was already crowded. I'm guessing that so many people had been disappointed in the waves lately that the first sign of any bump in the water had caused the all to pick up and make their way to the shore. Once I took the rip current into the line-up, I looked back, saw a wave and immediately caught and rode one in. I was inspired! However, my surf experience went downhill from there. I got in the lineup and waited my turn, but some of those guys stole every wave that made a ripple. One, in particular, was very annoying. I wasn't the only one who noticed. I shouldn't complain, though; I just need to get better at staking my claim to waves. Brian said that he saw me get to my knees, although I hadn't noticed I had done that. In fact, I felt like I had some of the best pop-ups of my surfing "life." I need to pay closer attention though and, perhaps, practice my pop-ups in the living room like I have in the past. I questioned Brian about it, and he said he only noticed that I ddi it once. I HOPE SO! I stayed out about 3.5 hours. It was a good workout.
In another non-surfing note, yesterday, the Galveston Historical Foundation held their third annual Galveston Revival Race, with proceeds going to revitalization projects caused by Hurricane Ike (Sept. 13, 2008). I decided to run in the 10K race. I was a little nervous at first for being in a "race" per se, but had decided that I would run the 6.1 miles just like I had the two half-marathons I had run -- at my own speed. The run was in the evening (7 p.m.), and it was quite warm. I finished second in my age category. I'm not sure how many were actually in my age category. I'll be looking at the "official" finish times once they are posted during the next couple of days to see my exact stats. I made a couple of tactical errors I think that might have made my run a little better, although I was surprised to have finished second. First, I probably shouldn't have cycled 65 miles in the wind yesterday morning. However, I love my cycling and hate to ever give that up. Second, I should have placed myself better at the start. I got mixed in with much slower runners and was "caught up" in a mass of others and wasn't to break free for the first couple of minutes. Third, I need to always to remember to hydrate a lot before a big ride or run. With that said, I'm still quite pleased. I think I finished the 6.1 miles in about 55+minutes. (I accidentally forgot to stop my Garmin when I crossed the finish line, and I'm not sure how much time had lapsed before I stopped it.) I am very fond of Galveston. It might be one of my favorite places in the world. I know it sounds silly, but I understand why Glen Campbell sang about it. I love Galveston and all it has to offer ... especially the waves!
(Somber note: My dear friend Ray from the nursing home is probably dying. May you rest in peace Ray! You will be missed.)
